Psalm 37:12-15
English Standard Version (ESV)
12 The
wicked (A)plots against the righteous
and (B)gnashes his teeth at him,
13 but the Lord (C)laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his (D)day is coming.
and (B)gnashes his teeth at him,
13 but the Lord (C)laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his (D)day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword and (E)bend their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose (F)way is upright;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their (G)bows shall be broken.
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose (F)way is upright;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their (G)bows shall be broken.
16 (H)Better is the little that the
righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For (I)the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the Lord (J)upholds the righteous.
than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For (I)the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the Lord (J)upholds the righteous.
18 The Lord (K)knows the days of the
blameless,
and their (L)heritage will remain forever;
19 they are not put to shame in evil times;
in (M)the days of famine they have abundance.
and their (L)heritage will remain forever;
19 they are not put to shame in evil times;
in (M)the days of famine they have abundance.
20 But the wicked will perish;
the enemies of the Lord are like (N)the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like (O)smoke they vanish away.
the enemies of the Lord are like (N)the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like (O)smoke they vanish away.
As
I read this today I wondered how this would apply to us today. The first thing I thought of was
bullying. Have you ever been
bullied? Have your children been
bullied? Maybe you have been bullied or
intimidated as an adult, I certainly have.
To me, people who bully others are the wicked ones. All the while that the bully is laughing at
the one they view as lesser than them, God is laughing at them. God knows that their time is limited, they
will self- destruct.
The
righteous on the other hand may appear to have so much less than the evil
ones. It may even seem that the evil ones are
being rewarded for their bad behavior.
They appear to be the ones in control.
Yet, as we read in this Scripture passage, we find that their time is
fleeting. They hunger so much for power
they fail to recognize the One True God and choose to make decision their
way. “I Did It My Way” would be their
theme song. Although they may be
prospering in the physical sense, they are dead in the Spiritual sense.
Although
the righteous don’t look like they own anything, God is taking care of
them. Some of the most generous people I
know have been those who have very little but recognize that God has supplied
their every need. We need not want the
things of this world but simply cling to the One who saved us. He will take care of us.
The
wicked will fade away but the righteous will remain. As you seek Him, I trust you will find that
you are on the righteous side of God.
Seeking
Him with all my Heart,
Sheila
Very pertinent post. Bullying happens even with adults, although it may be more underhanded and secretive, the concept is the same...especially in the church. To the ones being manipulated and bullied, they feel as though the bully is winning. And he often does...for a time. In the midst, it's often hard to remember that God sees, the bully will be held accountable and the righteous will prevail.
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