“The wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions. When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily. But wise and knowledgeable leaders bring stability. A poor person who oppresses the poor is like a pounding rain that destroys the crops. To reject the law is to praise the wicked; to obey the law is to fight them. Evil people don’t understand justice, but those who follow the Lord understand completely. Better to be poor and honest than to be dishonest and rich. Young people who obey the law are wise; those with wild friends bring shame to their parents. Income from charging high interest rates will end up in the pocket of someone who is kind to the poor. God detests the prayers of a person who ignores the law. Those who lead good people along an evil path will fall into their own trap, but the honest will inherit good things. Rich people may think they are wise, but a poor person with discernment can see right through them. When the godly succeed, everyone is glad. When the wicked take charge, people go into hiding. People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy. Blessed are those who fear to do wrong, but the stubborn are headed for serious trouble.”
Proverbs 28:1-14 NLT
There is a correlation between wisdom and justice. Just as pride produces foolishness, wisdom produces justice. This is because justice is an outworking of God’s character in a sinful world. When a person is wise, they bring order to chaos. They care for the oppressed. They lift up reconciliation over retribution. They look for ways to extol life giving virtues. Wisdom is not merely a good knowledge, but it is a fruitful knowledge. The crop that a wise person produces is harvested by the wicked and the righteous. Therefore as people of wisdom, we must relent that a wisdom communes with law. It keeps order, produces peace and holds mutual prosperity as a virtue. Thusly, a wise man accepts the need for consequences. In today’s society, we might say he, “believes in the system.” This doesn’t mean that he always obeys it. Christianity is, in part, a reaction to a corrupt Jewish system, prospering in a corrupt Roman government. Nevertheless, a Christian should always believe in a transcendent rule of law based in his transcendent maker. He cannot be an anarchist and claim to be a filler of Jesus. Jesus didn’t reject government. He rejected a self perpetuating one, where justice is defined by power rather than morality. As we strive to be wise, we also must believe in systems of justice, even if we reject a current administration of government. We can not become to disenfranchised with both, as so many Christians do.
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