Wickedness and the Word of God

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   It's hard to read the news these days without getting the impression that wickedness and hostility seem to be the dominant themes in the world. It's hard to look away from what's going on, a bit like not wanting to seeing a car wreck but not being able to take your eyes off of it. One of the frequent questions in the Bible is why the wicked seem to succeed and the righteous falter. Abraham alludes to it when he intercedes for Lot who is living in Sodom. It is a key theme in the book of Job. The Psalms and the prophets are replete with this question.

   If there was a man who understood the tension of seeing the rise of wickedness and the decline of godliness, it is David. In Psalm 12:1-2, he writes, "Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases to be, for the faithful disappear from among the sons of men. They speak falsehood to one another; with flattering lips and with a double tongue they speak." His heart cries out that true justice be done, that those who seek to prevail over the righteous be cut off.    David then goes on to write, "'Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy, now I will arise,' says the Lord; 'I will set him in the safety for which he longs.' The words of the Lord are pure words; as silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times (Psalm 12:5-6)." Here, he expresses clear trust in God to do what He says, to protect and preserve the righteous and to punish the wicked.

   As we wrestle with a world that seems to be on the verge of imploding, let us hold on to the truth that the Lord is still in control. Nothing has slipped beyond His sovereign grasp, and He will make all things right and new.