Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Whoever remains stiff-necked after many rebukes
    will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy.
When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice;
    when the wicked rule, the people groan.
A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father,
    but a companion of prostitutes squanders his wealth.
By justice a king gives a country stability,
    but those who are greedy for bribes tear it down.
Those who flatter their neighbors
    are spreading nets for their feet.
Evildoers are snared by their own sin,
    but the righteous shout for joy and are glad.
The righteous care about justice for the poor,
    but the wicked have no such concern.

• Proverbs 29:1-7

Proverbs 29:2 ”This could describe the political turmoil of the northern kingdom of Israel in the time of Hezekiah, who collected these proverbs (see … 25:1)”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

The Message

We are coming near to the end of Solomon’s wisdom.  It is one thing to be stiff-necked, stubborn.  It is something else entirely to be such a stubborn person that no rebuke ever reaches your ears and then you react to it.  At some point, the improper behavior will catch up with you.

Proverbs 29:2 is much like the end of Proverbs 28.  Being oppressed by a wicked ruler does not leave anyone happy, unless you are the ruler’s henchman (but then you have a target on your back).  But the people will do anything for a righteous ruler.

Proverbs 29:3 is in the same vein as the previous proverb with regard to the son that values wisdom.  His father will be proud, but if the son chases prostitutes, the son and maybe even the father will be bankrupt.

The next proverb speaks of a ruler that seeks justice will be a good ruler and his reign will bring stability, and the warning is the havoc caused by a ruler that takes bribes.

I worked for a company that was trying to break into a new region of the world.  Our company had never dealt with bribes, but this country had a well-oiled bribe machinery.  The lowest level needed to be bribed in order to talk to him.  Then, you had to bribe him again to talk to his boss.  Then that boss had to be bribed to talk to the next boss, and so forth.  It was a half dozen pencil pushers, each requiring more money in the bribe.  Finally, we got to the decision maker, but that person, a member of the royal family I think, was out of the office.  While we were still waiting for his return, another company got the job.  Our company relooked at their no bribe policy and realized why they had the policy in the first place.  Frankly, I had studied the fine print of the contract, and I was hoping we did not get the job.  They could rig the job so that we gave them everything and they did not have to pay us, on the say-so of the recipient.  My boss thought I was crazy in my assessment of the contract, but the company that got the job lost money on the job, in the high six-digit money loss, more than the escalating bribes had been.

The next proverb likens flattery to casting nets upon yourself.  If you are in it for the adulation, you are fooling yourself.  And the next proverb is along the same vein in that the wicked put themselves in the snare.

The righteous care for the poor, but the wicked do not care at all.  As I have written recently, the poor see the wicked, but it is as if the poor are invisible.  It is not that the wicked have no concern, but the poor are simply not even seen.

And now let us sing.

The following song is Sovereign Ruler of the Skies.  This is sung by Kristyn and Keith Getty and the Foto Sisters.  I mentioned Kristyn first since she shared in the writing of this song.

Closing Prayer

Dear Lord,
We need Your wisdom.  Help us to value wisdom.  Part of having a hardened heart is to have a stubborn streak.  Help us to listen and heed warnings.  Help us understand that we might have something to do with the bad things that are going on.  Help us to value wisdom and justice, and work toward a just end in all decisions.  Never should we ever take a bribe or be party to a bribing system.  Those systems eat everyone on both sides like a cancer.  And another part of having a hard heart is that we love hearing the flattery.  We do not hear the rebuke, for we tune our ears to the flattery only and we think we have no reason to change course.  And if our ears are tuned in to the flattery, how can we even see the poor in our midst.  You have your heart for the needy, and we miss your blessings when we can no longer see the needy.  In thy Name we pray.
Amen

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.