Proverbs 15:9 "The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the LORD: but he loveth him that followeth after righteousness."
On its own, this proverb is plenty insightful but when paired with the previous proverb, it contains even more insight. On its own, this proverb defines for us what the "way" of a person is. When paired with the previous proverb, the two combine to better help us understand how God views the direction of our lives.
First, let us define a person's "way" in life by the contrast Solomon provided between the wicked and by the soul who "followeth after righteousness." The way of the wicked is not perpetually wicked. The way of the wicked is not constant crookedness or steady sin. It is not evil at every turn and perversion with every step. Given the two opposite sides of this proverb, we can accurately define the "way" of the wicked as "following unrighteousness." The way of the wicked is a life leaning towards wickedness. It is a life following that which is unrighteousness. A life dedicated to fulfilling the lust of the flesh through pleasure is the way of the wicked. A person motivated by the greed of being wealthy is also the “way” Solomon is referring to. A life driven by an appetite for power and fame is another way of wickedness. The person obsessed with getting what they want at any cost is on the way of wickedness.
At first glance, this definition doesn't seem bad enough to be considered a "wicked way" but take a closer look and you'll see that this self-centered desire is what leads a person to make wicked decisions. Our heart's desire determines our way in life. For example, if we're consumed with a strong desire for wealth, we will eventually choose wealth over righteousness. Such a greedy desire will lead to stealing from God, from the government, from merchants, from employers or even from strangers. An unbridled pursuit of riches will lead to placing the value of money over the value of people and relationships. Great evil awaits the man or woman who has a "love" for money since the Bible tells us that that burning desire is the "root of all evil" (1 Timothy 6:10). It is no different if our primary pursuits in life are to be acknowledged and appreciated by people or to get power over people or to have sexual pleasure or even to have something that isn't ours. The "way" of the wicked is any path in life that isn't the pursuit of righteousness.
This is why, when pairing this proverb with its preceding proverb, we see the "sacrifice" of the wicked. On this path pursuing something wicked, a man or woman can still attend religious ceremonies, contribute religious sacrifices and even incorporate religious activities. The way of the wickedness is less about what is being done on the way and more about what direction that way is leading to. If a man is pursuing wealth as his highest goal in life, that pursuit is inherently evil and for that simple but obvious reason, God hates it. It doesn't matter if the man on that path goes to church three times a week and drops ten percent of his income in the offering plate, God still hates that way and for that reason, He loathes the so-called "sacrifice" of that man. If a woman is pursuing attention and appreciation as her highest aim in life, she is on a road that God hates. She can post Bible verses and spiritual songs on her social media page every day but because she ultimately wants attention, her so-called "sacrifice" of time is despised by God.
The direction of our lives is far more important to God than the activity of our lives. God knows that an hour every Sunday is far less influential to the rest of our week than the desires of our heart. He knows that a few good deeds don't change a person's outcome if they're pursuing some evil ambition. A person can obey every traffic law on "the way" to robbing a bank or murdering a person but those moments of compliance are insignificant and contradictory given the wicked intention to break a far greater law. What we do "on the way" to fulfilling some ungodly and self-centered desire is an abomination to God because it is "on the way" that in itself is an abomination to God.
Our intentions are far more important to God than we think. This proverb teaches us that God loves the man or woman who makes righteousness their pursuit. Following after righteousness is living a life with the desire and intention to live, feel, think, speak and behave righteously. Following after righteousness isn't living sinlessly but it is living with the ambition to live sinlessly. God loves that desire and ambition. He takes a special interest in the person with that pursuit. He has a special place in His heart for the person who has that ambition in their heart. David comes to mind as such a person. It was truly his heart's desire to "follow after righteousness." Many of his statements in the psalms stand out as proof of that, as in Psalm 27 when he wrote, "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life." In Psalm 63, he wrote, "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land." It was David's lifelong ambition to walk with God and to live righteously. God loved David for that, describing him as a "man after mine own heart, which SHALL fulfil all my will" (Acts 13:22). As God made sure that we knew, David was far from righteous all the time. On the path leading to righteousness, he lost his focus at times and gave in to lustful and proud temptations. He committed some heinous sins in his life that cost him and others but those sins didn't define his ambition any more than good deeds define a wicked man's ambitions. Our sin matters to God, no matter when, where or how we commit them. That being said, He loves the man or woman who maintains their overall intentions to pursue righteousness, which is why God forgave David when the unrighteous man fell to his knees and repented with renewed intentions to be righteous. In Psalm 51, David repents of his terrible sin and reveals his original and lifelong desire to do right, writing, "Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee."
This proverb was crafted to confront our ambitions. What are we pursuing? What is the primary desire in our heart that is determining our decisions? Are we following the dollar or the stock market? Is financial security what drives us? Is a desire for attention, acceptance and affirmation behind all of our choices? Is a desire for marriage or parenthood stronger than a desire for the will of God? Is an appetite for revenge consuming us and dictating the direction of our thoughts, words, friends and choices? What is the rabbit that we are instinctively and incessantly chasing? What is its name? Where does it come from? More importantly, where does it lead to? If its name is righteousness, God loves you for chasing it. If its name is anything remotely self-serving, it's wicked and as such, it's an abomination to the Lord.
To God, “the way” our hearts are leading us is more important than anything we do or don't do "on the way."
First, let us define a person's "way" in life by the contrast Solomon provided between the wicked and by the soul who "followeth after righteousness." The way of the wicked is not perpetually wicked. The way of the wicked is not constant crookedness or steady sin. It is not evil at every turn and perversion with every step. Given the two opposite sides of this proverb, we can accurately define the "way" of the wicked as "following unrighteousness." The way of the wicked is a life leaning towards wickedness. It is a life following that which is unrighteousness. A life dedicated to fulfilling the lust of the flesh through pleasure is the way of the wicked. A person motivated by the greed of being wealthy is also the “way” Solomon is referring to. A life driven by an appetite for power and fame is another way of wickedness. The person obsessed with getting what they want at any cost is on the way of wickedness.
At first glance, this definition doesn't seem bad enough to be considered a "wicked way" but take a closer look and you'll see that this self-centered desire is what leads a person to make wicked decisions. Our heart's desire determines our way in life. For example, if we're consumed with a strong desire for wealth, we will eventually choose wealth over righteousness. Such a greedy desire will lead to stealing from God, from the government, from merchants, from employers or even from strangers. An unbridled pursuit of riches will lead to placing the value of money over the value of people and relationships. Great evil awaits the man or woman who has a "love" for money since the Bible tells us that that burning desire is the "root of all evil" (1 Timothy 6:10). It is no different if our primary pursuits in life are to be acknowledged and appreciated by people or to get power over people or to have sexual pleasure or even to have something that isn't ours. The "way" of the wicked is any path in life that isn't the pursuit of righteousness.
This is why, when pairing this proverb with its preceding proverb, we see the "sacrifice" of the wicked. On this path pursuing something wicked, a man or woman can still attend religious ceremonies, contribute religious sacrifices and even incorporate religious activities. The way of the wickedness is less about what is being done on the way and more about what direction that way is leading to. If a man is pursuing wealth as his highest goal in life, that pursuit is inherently evil and for that simple but obvious reason, God hates it. It doesn't matter if the man on that path goes to church three times a week and drops ten percent of his income in the offering plate, God still hates that way and for that reason, He loathes the so-called "sacrifice" of that man. If a woman is pursuing attention and appreciation as her highest aim in life, she is on a road that God hates. She can post Bible verses and spiritual songs on her social media page every day but because she ultimately wants attention, her so-called "sacrifice" of time is despised by God.
The direction of our lives is far more important to God than the activity of our lives. God knows that an hour every Sunday is far less influential to the rest of our week than the desires of our heart. He knows that a few good deeds don't change a person's outcome if they're pursuing some evil ambition. A person can obey every traffic law on "the way" to robbing a bank or murdering a person but those moments of compliance are insignificant and contradictory given the wicked intention to break a far greater law. What we do "on the way" to fulfilling some ungodly and self-centered desire is an abomination to God because it is "on the way" that in itself is an abomination to God.
Our intentions are far more important to God than we think. This proverb teaches us that God loves the man or woman who makes righteousness their pursuit. Following after righteousness is living a life with the desire and intention to live, feel, think, speak and behave righteously. Following after righteousness isn't living sinlessly but it is living with the ambition to live sinlessly. God loves that desire and ambition. He takes a special interest in the person with that pursuit. He has a special place in His heart for the person who has that ambition in their heart. David comes to mind as such a person. It was truly his heart's desire to "follow after righteousness." Many of his statements in the psalms stand out as proof of that, as in Psalm 27 when he wrote, "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life." In Psalm 63, he wrote, "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land." It was David's lifelong ambition to walk with God and to live righteously. God loved David for that, describing him as a "man after mine own heart, which SHALL fulfil all my will" (Acts 13:22). As God made sure that we knew, David was far from righteous all the time. On the path leading to righteousness, he lost his focus at times and gave in to lustful and proud temptations. He committed some heinous sins in his life that cost him and others but those sins didn't define his ambition any more than good deeds define a wicked man's ambitions. Our sin matters to God, no matter when, where or how we commit them. That being said, He loves the man or woman who maintains their overall intentions to pursue righteousness, which is why God forgave David when the unrighteous man fell to his knees and repented with renewed intentions to be righteous. In Psalm 51, David repents of his terrible sin and reveals his original and lifelong desire to do right, writing, "Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee."
This proverb was crafted to confront our ambitions. What are we pursuing? What is the primary desire in our heart that is determining our decisions? Are we following the dollar or the stock market? Is financial security what drives us? Is a desire for attention, acceptance and affirmation behind all of our choices? Is a desire for marriage or parenthood stronger than a desire for the will of God? Is an appetite for revenge consuming us and dictating the direction of our thoughts, words, friends and choices? What is the rabbit that we are instinctively and incessantly chasing? What is its name? Where does it come from? More importantly, where does it lead to? If its name is righteousness, God loves you for chasing it. If its name is anything remotely self-serving, it's wicked and as such, it's an abomination to the Lord.
To God, “the way” our hearts are leading us is more important than anything we do or don't do "on the way."
Posted in Proverbs Commentary
Posted in Solomon, Rabbit, path, Way of Life, righteousness, wickedness, David, Bathsheba, Uriah, sin, forgiveness, Psalm, money, wealth, Root of all Evil, Timothy, Acts, Chasing, Financial Security, Sexual Pleasure, Attention, affirmation, church attendance
Posted in Solomon, Rabbit, path, Way of Life, righteousness, wickedness, David, Bathsheba, Uriah, sin, forgiveness, Psalm, money, wealth, Root of all Evil, Timothy, Acts, Chasing, Financial Security, Sexual Pleasure, Attention, affirmation, church attendance
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