Photo by Ashford Marx on Unsplash

Proverbs 28:28 When the wicked rise, men hide themselves: but when they perish, the righteous increase.

Proverbs 29:1-2 He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. 2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

Darkness Kills

Though the algorithms of Facebook will mute my message, it is imperative that America and the Church itself get back to Jesus and back to the Bible. We are the most prosperous nation in the world because our forefathers were Christians, who, knowing the sin nature of man, crafted a Constitution that was not democratic, but a Democratic Republic. We are not represented by popular vote, but by democratically elected representatives. Checks and balances are all throughout our system to prevent the majority rule of godless unsaved people. Why? Because our forefathers had seen other forms of government, and saw the limitation brought about by unrestrained popular wickedness. The Bible says:

When the WICKED {rāšāʿ} rise, men hide themselves

Disney put out a kids movie not long ago called “Wicked For Good”. There is no goodness in wickedness!

When wicked Presidents ascended to power praising sexual deviancy – contrary to what the Bible says (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 1 Timothy 1:9-10) – it wasn’t long before it became a celebrated MONTH where such lifestyles were pushed. When our Judicial System endorsed nationwide abortion on demand through Roe vs Wade (which was law for 49 years), over 60 MILLION children were thrown into landfills. When national television shows began to show murders and sexual deviancy – hiding behind First Amendment privilege – generations of children grew up with no respect for the sanctity of life. In our modern Internet age, wickedness of all types is broadcast across social media and the news channels. What is the result? “MEN HIDE THEMSELVES”. People go along to get along. No one wants to rock the boat, to go against the flow.

This was the world that Jesus had to contend with. Israel was under Roman Rule. Tiberius Caesar ruled Rome, and demanded worship as a god. Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea. Herod Antipas – who had John the Baptist beheaded – ruled Galilee. The High Priest of Judaism, Caiphas did not love God, but he loved religion and his power. The religious rulers of Israel, the Sanhedrin, was a blend of both Pharisees and Sadducees, conservative and liberal, but neither side loved the Lord our God. When Jesus came, He had to stand against this darkness. And Jesus told us:

John 15:18-19 If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I HAVE CHOSEN YOU OUT OF THE WORLD. THAT IS WHY THE WORLD HATES YOU.

Darkness will always hate the light. Jesus is “the Light of the world” (John 8:12), and His people will be the Light of the world (Matthew 5:14-16).

Proverbs 28:28 When the wicked rise, men hide themselves: but WHEN THEY PERISH {āḇaḏ}, THE RIGHTEOUS INCREASE.

Word Study: The word translated “PERISH” is the Hebrew āḇaḏ, which means “to destroy, to exterminate, to put to death”. God never calls on Christians under the New Covenant to physically kill the wicked with weapons like guns or knives. But it is our job to KILL THE WICKED. Not physically, but through conversion. The only way the darkness decreases is by ceasing to be darkness. The Apostle wrote:

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (LSB) For though we walk in the flesh, WE DO NOT WAR ACCORDING TO THE FLESH, 4 for the WEAPONS OF OUR WARFARE ARE NOT OF THE FLESH, but divinely powerful for the tearing down of strongholds, 5 as we TEAR DOWN SPECULATIONS and EVERY LOFTY THING raised up against the knowledge of God, and TAKE EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE TO THE OBEDIENCE OF CHRIST

Proverbs 29:1 He, that being often reproved HARDENETH HIS NECK, shall SUDDENLY BE DESTROYED {peṯaʿ šāḇar}, and THAT WITHOUT REMEDY.

Wickedness Kills its Host

Word Study: Those who will not hear the Word of God, who will mock the standards that God has established in the scripture, will “SUDDENLY BE DESTROYED”. This is the Niphal Imperfect of šāḇar, which means “to be broken, maimed, crippled, wrecked or crushed. By who? Not by the Christian. The Christian does not seek to physically harm anyone. But the person who will not accept reproof will actually bring destruction into their own lives. The Bible warns us that “the WAGES OF SIN IS DEATH” (Romans 6:23). To do that which God forbids (sin) is to bring destruction on yourself. God told Adam:

Genesis 2:17 … in THE DAY THAT YOU EAT OF IT, YOU SHALL SURELY DIE

God did not tell Adam that He Himself would destroy Adam. He told Adam that “when you do what I tell you not to do, YOU WILL KILL YOURSELF”. Sin doesn’t hurt God. Wickedness doesn’t hurt God. Sin and wickedness destroys the person who submits to it. God warns throughout the Scripture:

Ezekiel 18:4 The soul WHO SINS SHALL DIE

Ezekiel 18:20 The one WHO SINS IS THE ONE
WHO WILL DIE

The stepbrother of Christ wrote in James 1:15 “when YOUR DESIRE is concieved, it GIVES BIRTH to SIN, and SIN GROWS UP TO BRING DEATH”.

When Israel rejected the command of God and, fearing the Amalekites more than they feared God, God refused to allow them to enter the Promised Land. They DIED SUDDENLY in that they quickly lost the Source of Life and blessing, God Himself. And then over a period of 40 years, they stayed on death row in the wilderness not because God killed them – but because they killed themselves by rejecting reproof.

When the wicked refuse to hear God’s Word, they sentence themselves to sudden and inescapable death. God doesn’t kill them. They kill themselves.

Proverbs 29:2 When the RIGHTEOUS ARE IN AUTHORITY, the people rejoice: but when the WICKED BEARETH RULE, THE PEOPLE MOURN.

It is certain that wicked people will rejoice when a wicked ruler is in control. The darkness hates the light. Though God is merciful and filled with Grace, there will come a time when He will step back and let you have your own way.

Illustrate: When the Prophet Samuel was but a child, his mother Hannah sent him to live with Eli the High Priest at the Tabernacle. Eli had two sons who were priests, and these two sons “sexually laid with the women who served at the doorway of the Tabernacle” (1 Samuel 2:22). They were not even attempting to hide this atrocity, but did it openly. Eli rebuked his children (1 Samuel 2:25), but did not attempt to remove them from the priesthood. God came to Eli and rebuked him, saying:

1 Samuel 2:30-31 (LSB) Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, declares, ‘I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father should walk before Me forever’; but now Yahweh declares, ‘Far be it from Me–for THOSE WHO HONOR ME, I WILL HONOR, and THOSE WHO DESPISE ME WILL BE CURSED. 31 ‘Behold, the days are coming, and I will break your strength and the strength of your father’s house so that there will not be an old man in your house.

God went on to say 1 Samuel 2:34-35 (LSB) ‘Now this will be the sign to you which will come concerning your two sons, HOPHNI and PHINEHAS: ON THE SAME DAY BOTH OF THEM WILL BE PUT TO DEATH. 35 ‘But I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and in My soul; and I will build him a faithful house, and he will walk before My anointed always.

Because God’s Priests walked in wickedness, refusing the rebuke of God, the Bible says “word from Yahweh was rare in those days; VISIONS WERE INFREQUENT.” (1 Samuel 3:1). The leadership was wicked. When Israel went to war with the Philistines, they carried the Ark of the Covenant into battle with them. They did not carry the Ark in honor of God, but carried it as if it were a lucky rabbit’s foot. When the Philistines saw the Ark, they despaired:

1 Samuel 4:8 (LSB) Woe to us! Who shall deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all [kinds of] plagues in the wilderness.

Sadly, the unbelievers believed more than the believers believed! What happened?

1 Samuel 4:10-11 (LSB) So the Philistines fought, and ISRAEL WAS DEFEATED, and every man fled to his tent; and the slaughter was very great, for there FELL OF ISRAEL 30,000 FOOT SOLDIERS. 11 And the ARK OF GOD WAS TAKEN; and the TWO SONS OF ELI, HOPHNI and PHINEHAS, DIED.

God didn’t kill HOPHNI and PHINEHAS. They killed themselves by wickedness. The died suddenly. When Eli found out what happened, he fell backward off his seat and broke his own neck (1 Samuel 4:18).

Without Vision, The People Perish

Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no VISION {ḥāzôn}, the people PERISH {pāraʿ}: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

Proverbs 29:18 has been misquoted and misapplied by many preachers over the years. When the congregation starts to grow and the pastor feels it is time for a building project he preaches “where there is no vision, the people perish”. When the congregation gets locked and stagnant and pastor wants to get them moving he preaches “where there is no vision, the people perish”. When the pastor is trying to vision cast and sell his congregation on a new program he preaches “where there is no vision, the people perish”. This proverb has nothing at all to do with property, programs, or a purpose driven agenda. This text deals with prophecy – the Bible itself.

Word Study: The word translated “VISION” is the Hebrew ḥāzôn, which refers to Biblical Prophecy or the proper application of Scripture to your life. God warned Israel in the days of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 23:16 (KJV) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a VISION {ḥāzôn} of their own heart, [and] not out of the mouth of the LORD.

This is why the Southern Kingdom of Judah was in a deep state of spiritual, moral, and political crisis. They had turned away from God, and began to worship idols like Baal, Asherah, Chemosh, Molech, Dagon, Astarte and Tammuz. The people of God were about to perish. Jeremiah warned that Babylon was going to conquer Judah, and destroy the Temple and Jerusalem. The people refused to repent. They hardened their necks, and continued in wickedness.

In 586 BC Jerusalem was destroyed by Babylon. The Temple was burned. Much of Judah was carried away into captivity and slavery, and for those who remained they were in abject poverty. The people “PERISHED”, pāraʿ, showed lack of restraint and disrespect for God’s Word. Then the nation was “SUDDENLY DESTROYED {peṯaʿ šāḇar}”.

Our nation itself is headed toward sudden destruction. “He that KEEPETH THE LAW, happy is he”. America is visionless, without a Word from God. The Lord has set before our nation and our Church a way that leads to peace and prosperity. God has warned, “If you neglect this way, you will instead perish”. Beloved, we are perishing. We are perishing because we have stepped away from doing the Word of God, and instead is doing the word of man. Evangelist Franklin Graham remarked on how our nation has degraded from the way of Christ. He said:

“The spirit of anti-Christ is everywhere. … in our government today, you can’t pray to Jesus in many public meetings. You can pray to God or a god. You can mention Buddha or the name of Muhammad — but you can’t pray to Jesus Christ.”

“Where there is no revelation – no Word from God – the people perish.” Many Americans call themselves Christians but they have rejected the authority of the Word of God. There are many who know what the Scripture says, but refuse to do what the Scripture says. Christians are called to keep the Law – to follow God’s revealed Word if we want to be happy. We walk according to the Law of the Spirit (Romans 8:2). Jesus plainly told us:

John 14:24 (LSB) He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.

Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV) Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.

If we would live a good life, we need to walk with our Great God in obedience to His Word. The world calls on the Christian to compromise his faith, to reject Scripture which does not meet its criteria – we must not do it. I must not compromise God’s Word. God has given us a revelation, a Word from Him, and all of it – ALL OF IT – is authoritative. Pastor J. C. Ryle said:

“Beware of manufacturing a god of your own: A god who is all mercy but not just, A god who is all love but not holy, A god who has a heaven for everybody but a hell for none. Such a god is an idol of your own. The hands of your own fancy and sentimentality have made him. He is not the God of the Bible.”

Proverbs 29:18 he that KEEPETH THE LAW, HAPPY is he.

Those who walk according to the Law of the Spirit – trusting in Him no matter what the world says – these are the ones who find happiness. We cannot trust the government to fix the government. We all need Jesus!

Proverbs 29:16 When the WICKED ARE MULTIPLIED, transgression increaseth: but THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL SEE THEIR FALL.

Who are the ones who can save us from wickedness? Not the government. A daddy sat down to read his little daughter a bedtime story. He started out, “Once upon a time …” The little girl interrupted him. “Daddy, do all bedtime stories begin with ‘once upon a time’”. Her daddy said,

“No honey. There’s a whole bunch of fairy that start out with ‘If elected, I promise’”.

The hope for us all is Jesus and His Word lived. Nothing else will do. When the Apostle Paul was captured for preaching the Gospel, in Acts 27 he was chained and taken by ship to Rome to stand trial before Caesar. When the ship hit a terrible storm, so much so that the crew quaked in fear, Paul told them:

Acts 27:22-26 (LSB) And now I advise you to be cheerful, for there will be no loss of life among you, but [only] of the ship. 23 For this very night AN ANGEL OF THE GOD TO WHOM I BELONG and WHOM I SERVE stood before me, 24 saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.’ 25 Therefore, be cheerful, men, for I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told. 26 “But we must run aground on some island.”

Do you belong to Jesus? Do you serve Him? If so, you need not fear standing up for Him. God is in control, and God will look after us until our mission on earth is completed. Do you belong to the God of the Universe? Do you serve Him? John MacArthur write in his book entitled “Slave”:

“to be a Christian, in the true sense of the term, is to be a wholehearted follower of Jesus Christ. As the Lord Himself said in John 10:27, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me”. The name suggests much more than a superficial association with Christ. Rather, it demands a deep affection for Him, allegiance to Him, and submission to His Word. “You are My friends if you do what I command you”

Amen