Thursday, April 8, 2010

The Miserable Man (Proverbs 16:27-30)

There are many different facets to an evil man, many different things to look out for. Here are just a few.

"A worthless man devises and digs up mischief, and in his lips there is a scorching fire." Proverbs 16:27, Amplified

This is not to say that this man is of no worth to the Lord. The worthless man in this verse sees no value in himself, o if he is miserable then he must find others to make miserable. Whatever beauty surrounds that person of interest then he wishes to burn it down. There was a scholar who once said, "Miserable being must find more miserable being, then he is happy." In truth the miserable will never be happy for there will be others who are happier than he.

"A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates close friends." Proverbs 16:28, Amplified

Again, this verse focuses on the miserable man trying to make himself happier. But another aspect unfolds here into the psyche of the miserable man, he is also perverse. If he cannot attack the singular then he will go for the plural. To sow strife is to break up friendships, or to cause a community to turn against itself. I know that we have all done it at least once in our lives. I remember a time in high school when I was mad at someone so I began a rumor that was intended to hurt this one in particular person and cause his friends to turn from him so I could scoop up their friendships. Strife is meant for one end, destruction.

"The exceedingly grasping, covetous and violent man entices his neighbor, leading him into the way that is not good." Proverbs 16:29, Amplified

The covetous man wants everything that others have. He feels that he deserves them more than those who have them so he must do all he can to spoil their enjoyment. I know I have been guilty of feeling covetousness. There have been times that I feel others had too much where I had too little. It all boils down to misery again. Covetousness is spoken of in the Ten Commandments and it simply means that you are not happy with what you have. Just because others have what we do not does not mean that we need to destroy their experiences. (I am not saying that we all feel like this, I just know that at times I have felt this way in fact more recently than I care to admit.)

"He who shuts his eyes to devise perverse things, and who compresses his lips [as if in concealment] will bring evil to pass." Proverbs 16:30, Amplified

This word picture of shut eyes and pursed lips brings to mind a person in deep concentration. What this verse is essentially saying is that anyone can bring evil to pass. In order to do so, however, we must first put on the mantle of the perverse and miserable man.
Be happy with what the Lord has given to you.

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