Proverbs (Part 137) - Pro 10:28-29

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28. Pro 10:28 – "The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish." A. The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: i. Definitions a. Hope n. – 1. a. Expectation of something desired; desire combined with expectation. b. Righteous adj. – 1. a. Of persons: Just, upright, virtuous; guiltless, sinless; conforming to the standard of the divine or the moral law; acting rightly or justly. c. Gladness n. – The state of being glad; joy, rejoicing. Also, cheerfulness, alacrity (in action). d. Glad adj. – 1. Bright, shining, beautiful. Obs. 2. a. Of persons: Cheerful, joyous, or merry in disposition; joyful, happy. e. In other words, men who are just, upright, virtuous, guiltless, sinless (because of Christ's death for them), and conform themselves to the standard of God's law have a desire and expectation of joy, happiness, and rejoicing in their future. ii. The righteous have a hope of gladness in this life. a. Believing in Christ brings the righteous joy (Rom 15:13; 1Pe 1:8). b. A righteous man will be in the kingdom of God (the local church) wherein joy and gladness are found (Rom 14:17; Act 2:46). c. The righteous experience joy and gladness when they worship God in His church (Psa 100:1-5). d. God blesses the righteous with gladness (Psa 4:1, 5 c/w Psa 4:7; Psa 97:10-12). iii. The righteous also have a hope of gladness in the next life. a. Heaven where God dwells is a place of gladness (1Ch 16:27). b. The bride of Christ will be brought into King Jesus' palace with gladness at the marriage supper of the Lamb (Psa 45:14-15; Rev 19:7-9). c. At the second coming the righteous who were good and faithful servants will enter into the joy of their Lord (Mat 25:21). B. but the expectation of the wicked shall perish. i. Definitions a. Expectation n. – The action of waiting; the action or state of waiting for or awaiting (something). Now only with mixture of sense 2: Expectant waiting. 2. The action of mentally looking for some one to come, forecasting something to happen, or anticipating something to be received; anticipation; a preconceived idea or opinion with regard to what will take place. b. Wicked n. – 1. Bad in moral character, disposition, or conduct; inclined or addicted to wilful wrong-doing; practising or disposed to practise evil; morally depraved. (A term of wide application, but always of strong reprobation, implying a high degree of evil quality.) c. Perish v. – 1. a. intr. To come to a violent, sudden, or untimely end; to suffer destruction; to lose its life, cease to exist, be cut off. d. In other words, the things that men who are evil, morally depraved, bad in moral character, disposition, or conduct are looking forward to with anticipation are not going to happen, but rather their hopes are going to come to a violent, sudden, and untimely end. ii. The hope and the expectation of the wicked shall perish when they die (Pro 11:7; Job 8:13-14). a. All of their hopes and dreams die with them. b. All the plans of the things they intended accomplish and all their plans of traveling and vacations will never come to fruition once they die. c. Their plans of making lots of money and living forever will be dashed to pieces as death closes in on them and finally overtakes them. iii. The desire (what they want) of the wicked shall perish (Psa 112:10). iv. On the day they die their thoughts shall perish (Psa 146:4). v. The wicked only have an expectation of wrath in hell (Pro 11:23 c/w Rom 2:5-6, 8-9; Psa 73:18-20). 29. Pro 10:29 – "The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity." A. The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: i. Definitions a. Way n. – III. Course of life or action, means, manner. 11. a. A path or course of life; the activities and fortunes of a person. b. pl. Habits of life, esp. with regard to moral conduct. b. Strength n. – 1. The quality or condition of being strong. a. Power of action in body or limbs; ability to exert muscular force. c. Power in general, whether physical, mental, or due to the possession of resources; ability for effective action; efficiency, vigour (of mental faculties, etc.). d. Capacity for moral effort or endurance; firmness (of mind, character, will, purpose); power to resist temptation or fulfil a difficult duty; fortitude as one of the cardinal virtues. Freq. in phr. strength of character. c. Upright adj. – III. fig. 8. a. Of persons: Adhering to or following correct moral principles; of unbending integrity or rectitude; morally just, honest, or honourable. d. In other words, when a morally just and honest man of unbending integrity directs the course of his life and his habits according to God's precepts he will have the capacity to endure with firmness of mind, character, will, and purpose and will have the power to resist temptation and fulfill his duties. ii. Those who walk in God's ways will have strength to endure hardship and persecution. a. Paul was an upright man who walked in God's ways, and he was therefore strengthened and not moved by persecution and temptations (Act 20:22-24). b. Paul found strength to endure persecution by following Christ (2Co 12:10; 2Ti 3:10-12). c. Paul was strengthened by God so that he could continue preaching the gospel (2Ti 4:17). iii. When we walk worthy of the Lord we will be strengthened by Him (Col 1:10-11). a. When we follow the way of the Lord in Christ, He gives us strength to do all that He commands us to do (Php 4:13). b. When we do so we will be given the strength to be steadfast and unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord (1Co 15:58). B. but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity. i. Definitions a. Destruction n. – 1. The action of demolishing a building or structure of any kind, of pulling to pieces, reducing to fragments, undoing, wasting, rendering useless, putting an end to, or doing away with anything material or immaterial; demolition. b. Iniquity n. – 1. The quality of being unrighteous, or (more often) unrighteous action or conduct; unrighteousness, wickedness, sin; sometimes, esp. in early use, Wrongful or injurious action towards another, infliction of wrong, injury; in modern use generally connoting gross injustice or public wrong. c. In other words, those who are unrighteous, who live sinfully and wickedly, and who inflict wrong and injury on others shall be destroyed by God and rendered useless. ii. Destruction and punishment await the workers of iniquity (Job 31:3; Pro 21:15). iii. The workers of iniquity are not walking in the way of the Lord. a. They are not walking on the strait and narrow way which leads to life, but on the wide and broad way which leads to destruction (Mat 7:13-14). b. They turn aside unto their crooked ways and will find destruction rather than peace (Psa 125:5; Rom 3:16-17). iv. Workers of iniquity do not keep the way of the Lord and will be destroyed for it. a. Those who work iniquity and walk not in the way of the LORD will be destroyed in this life (2Ki 21:22-23). b. Sinners think the way of the LORD is not equal and will be judged and destroyed for it if they don't repent (Eze 18:29-32). v. God hates workers of iniquity (Psa 5:5) a. God will destroy them eternally in hell (Psa 11:5-6). b. They shall be destroyed forever (Psa 92:7-9). c. Jesus will tell the workers of iniquity to depart from Him into the lake of fire on judgment day (Luk 13:27-28). d. The way of the ungodly shall perish (Psa 1:6).