Proverbs 28:1

November 11, 2023

“The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.”

This proverb was written by King Solomon which was one of the wisest and most intelligent kings of his time. He was given extraordinary wisdom by the Lord because he sincerely asked God for it. This particular passage of Scripture is highlighting to us how the wicked run because of a continual guilty conscience, but a righteous person living right before the Lord can stand worry free because of a clear conscience.

There are many blessings given to a person walking upright in the Lord’s eyes. One of the main benefits of being a submitted believer of Jesus Christ is the peace that you have. There are several verses of Scripture that describe this type of peace, for instance:

Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.”

Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”

Psalm 29:11 “The Lord will give strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.”

There are just some of the examples of Scripture out of the Holy Bible that are pertaining to the peace that a child of God is given. When you are meditating on God’s Word and being led by the Holy Spirit in all aspects of your life you have a pure conscience. Righteous people that are abiding by the Lord’s Biblical principles don’t have to feel like they are obligated to look over their shoulder on a consistent basis.

On the other hand, wicked people that are living in a reckless way will always have to worry about who could be pursuing them. For instance: a cop chasing them for breaking the law or evil people coming after them to retaliate. They are setting their own trap of unnecessary anxiety and don’t even realize it. This is a direct consequence of their wicked ways.

One of the worst feelings in the world is the inability to have sound sleep. God is clear in Psalm 127:2 when it states, “It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep.” Wicked people will not get peaceful sleep but those that truly have a fear of the Lord will be given restful sleep.

The Apostle Paul who was a man of understanding had this concept down. We can see this in Philippians 4:6-7 when he writes, “ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” As Christians we should never have any fear in our hearts let alone any fear of man because we know that the Lord has everything already taken care of!

Now let’s take a closer look at the primary passage of Scripture that I am highlighting out of the book of Proverbs. The words “the wicked” used is the Hebrew word “rāšāʿ” which means: wicked, criminal, guilty one, one guilty of a crime, or guilty of sin. The word “flee” is the Hebrew word “nûs” which means: flee and escape.

So when we analyze these words we can determine that Solomon is making the statement that an evil man or woman that is guilty of something will escape and flee because of their bad conscience troubling them. What a disturbing way to live! A wicked person is always on the go because they feel like they have to escape from the messes that they put themselves in.

The last part of this verse states, “…but the righteous are bold as a lion.” The words “but the righteous” is the Hebrew word “ṣadîq” which means: just, lawful, and righteous. The words “are bold” is the Hebrew word “bāṭaḥ” which means: to trust, have confidence, and be confident.

So when we piece this final part of this passage together we can conclude that King Solomon is making a point that people that are living upright and lawful in the eyes of the Lord are confident and brave. The reason why we can have so much confidence is because we are honest people abiding by the principles that God has set in place for us.

When you have a Heavenly Father that you know beyond a shadow of a doubt will have your back and you can trust Him, your self-assurance is on a whole other level. Righteous men and women do not have to live a life of fear like a wicked person would because they are living a life that is pleasing to the Lord. God honors obedience.

King Solomon further reiterates his point of how important it is to remain righteous in the entire chapter. Some of these examples include:

Proverbs 28:2 “Because of the transgression of a land, many are its princes; but by a man of understanding and knowledge right will be prolonged.”

Proverbs 28:4 “Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but such as keep the law contend with them.”

Proverbs 28:5 “Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand all.”

Proverbs 28:6 “Better is the poor who walks in his integrity than one perverse in his ways, though he be rich.”

Proverbs 28:10 “Whoever causes the upright to go astray in an evil way, he himself will fall into his own pit; but the blameless will inherit good.”

These are just some of the powerful examples that Solomon gives us throughout Proverbs 28. We can never forget that he was a man of great wisdom and the Proverbs that he wrote are significant. Diving deep into every one of them will help your understanding of the Lord’s Biblical law which is a necessity.

The righteous triumph over every tactic and snare of the enemy but the way that we are able to prevail is obedience. One powerful Scripture that discloses the importance of remaining a doer of the Word of God is found in the book of James. James 1:22 discloses “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” When you are a doer of the Lord’s principles found in the Bible you won’t have to consistently be looking behind your back wondering who is pursuing you. God will have your back!

A wicked person has no peace. It may seem like they have everything going for them on the outside: they have the latest cars, biggest house, millions of dollars, but they don’t have any peace. I’ll leave you with this last passage of Scripture Mark 8:36 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?”

Also, don’t forget to check out my other blogs:

Who is the Prophet Isaiah

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Fight Back