Monday 12 September 2016

Psalm: Psalm 3

Background

By and far the largest number of sayings in Proverbs deals withthe righteous and the wicked. And you can see this in today'spassage, whether it is in the 'practical' of having fair scales(verse 1) or honest speech (verse 9), or the more theoreticalprinciples (verse 3).

In the context that Proverbs was written there was a strongconviction that the world was orderly - wise and right conduct wasrewarded but foolish or evil behaviour was punished.

However this is not the world that we live in, and it is likelythat it wasn't the world of Proverbs either. It seems as if thewriters have confused what they think ought to happen with thereality of what actually takes place.

But perhaps that is doing the writers an injustice. Looking atthe wicked or the unjust it can seems as if they can be verysuccessful. In others words, they have got away with it. But whoknows the state of their heart. It is like an apple with a rosy redskin that looks perfect to eat, but inside has been eaten away bymaggots and is rotten to the core. Could this be what the writersof Proverbs were referring to?

To Ponder

• How do you respond the questions: why do good things happen tobad people? Or why do bad things happen to good people?

• Which proverb from the passage attracts your attention?Why?