Posted on 11/23/2022 5:38:41 PM PST by Pilgrim's Progress
“These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment. He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous; him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him: But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them” (Proverbs 24:23).
What belongs to the wise? That the evil man in verse 19 and the unfearing man in verse 21 will be destroyed. They understand that. They know that. These things also belong to the wise. They understand the end of the evil man in verse 19 and the rebellious man in verse 21 and 22. it is not good to have respect of persons in judgment. That’s something else that belongs to the wise man. Judge the rich as strictly as the poor.
“My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors” (James 2:1-9).
Here James is saying that if you have respect of persons, and you respect the rich man more than a poor man, he said that that was having the faith of Lord Jesus Christ with respect of persons and it's not supposed to be. He talks about the fact that God chose the poor. Jesus Christ was a poor man. He never was a rich man during His earthly ministry.
Verse 24 is a reference to the Antichrist. “He that saith unto the wicked,” and Satan is called the wicked one. or “that wicked one” in Second Thessalonians 2.
That's what the Antichrist does. He makes the unrighteous righteous. “But to them that rebuke him,” God rebukes him, the Lord rebukes him, and Bible believers rebuke him. “But to them that rebuke him,” the wicked, or the one that respects the person of the wicked, probably for profit; and judges in respect to their wealth.
You see that business back up in verse 23? “It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment.” “He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous.” If you say that just because a guy is rich or has power, and that's the kind of thing that people hate. The common people hate that; they really abhor that. They want the same kind of treatment. You can put them in jail, but but you better put the rich man in jail too, or they'll revolt, eventually.
“But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, And a good blessing shall come upon them.” Do you want a good blessing? Then rebuke the wicked man and rebuke him that calls the wicked man righteous.
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A lot of evil people being honored these days.
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