Responding to the Wicked (Job 21:16-21)

Job 21:16-21 describes a hard truth: the wicked often get away with it and even prosper—in this world. Anyone who’s lived long enough has seen that, and other scriptures acknowledge that. Psalm 73; Jeremiah 12:1-3; Malachi 3:13-15.  Although God will eventually bring those folks to justice, Psalm 73:16-20, 27; Proverbs 11:3-5; Malachi 3:18, how do we respond in the meantime? What does scripture tell us?

 

One thing is to draw near to God. Psalm 73 shows how one righteous person responded to wickedness in his day—he drew near to God. He noted that it “is good to be near God” and to make “the Sovereign Lord [his] refuge.” Psalm 73:28. We see the same thing in Jeremiah 12:1-3; the prophet was not shy in bringing his frustration to God. So pour your heart out to Him, let Him know your concerns, ask Him for guidance in how to respond to the evil you see. And just as importantly, pray for those who are doing evil. Matthew 5:44; Praying for Leaders: Why, When, and How .  My experience is that more prayer brings more peace in these circumstances.

 

Another thing scripture tells us is to draw encouragement from Godly community. Malachi 3:16 describes how believers responded to the ascendence of evil in their day: “Those who feared the Lord talked with each other and the Lord listened and heard.” That is consistent with Hebrews 10:24's instruction to “spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” It is also consistent with relatively recent history; Christian community helped folks cope with the evils of Communism in eastern Europe and Jim Crow in the American South. It can help us deal with evil in our time.

 

Scripture also tells us to get busy doing the good we can do. Psalm 37 deals with how the righteous are to respond to the success of the wicked and tells us, among other things to get to work. Psalm 37:3 tells us to “[t]rust in the Lord and do good.”  That point is reiterated in verse 27: “Turn from evil and do good.” The Hebrew word translated as “do” means to work, act, be industrious.  Find some positive things you can do to offset the evil around you. For some that might be directly confronting that evil, pushing back against it. For others it might be mitigating its impact. For still others it is delivering other manifestations of God’s love. There are an infinite number of ways to do this. So get out of your head and get to work! You and the people you serve will be glad you did. 

 

Prayer:

Loving God, please help us to respond wisely to the evil in the world. Draw us to you, draw us to your church, spur us to action. We ask this in Jesus’ infinitely loving name.