Wicked or mercy

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

WICKED OR MERCY

Prov 21:10

10 The wicked man craves evil; his neighbor gets no mercy from him.

NIV

Let us pray we are neither this man nor live next to him. It is interesting the Hebrew does not have a word for man in this proverb. It merely states the soul of the wicked desires evil and does not find favor in the neighbor’s or associate’s eye. This might well have a conjunction with that contentious wife in the last proverb. She loves to fight, she loves to be quarrelsome, and she loves to disrespect her husband, she shows him no mercy.  Just a thought as this proverb has no gender in its tone. Yet this also applies to how we are toward our fellow man. The idea is that mercy is the opposite of being wicked. If we are not showing mercy, then are we craving evil? This Hebrew word translated mercy is very interesting. One lexicon simply states to be gracious, show favor, to pity. The other lexicon indicates it means to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior. Considering we should never have an inferior this would have to imply everyone. We have been admonished not to think more highly of ourselves then we ought as we all are sinners, some of us are simply saved by the grace of God because of our faith. So in that sense no one should be inferior to us, in fact, we are supposed to think or consider them ahead of us.  So then we are to show mercy to all who we come in contact with. Certainly acts of kindness are a part of showing mercy. But there is even a greater concept to consider. This is to be concerned about their lives, to listen to their plea for help. They may not actually be asking for help or acts of kindness, but in their words they share we can hear their plea. People are hurting, in pain because they do not know God in an intimate way. Their struggles in life, their issues with family, with their health, with their wealth, or lack of it, with their peace of mind and rest in their spirit. The greatest show of mercy would be to show them the kindness, the love of Jesus. Ask them if we can pray for them, and pray with them, over their live needs. Pray for the peace of Christ to come into their lives. When we do this, they will experience mercy. It is wicked to let them suffer in the agony of life without knowing the peace Christ brings. Let us not be that wicked, but be the person of mercy.