“For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul… to deliver you from the way of evil…” (Proverbs 2:10-15, NASB)

One of the benefits of living by God’s wisdom is that it will guard you against joining evildoers and walking in ways of evil. It says,

“For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will guard you, understanding will watch over you, to deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perverse things; from those who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; who delight in doing evil, and rejoice in the perversity of evil; whose paths are crooked, and who are devious in their ways.”

The word “evil” appears three times in this passage. In Hebrew, the word is “rah” and it can mean evil as in someone or something that is wicked, bad, unpleasant, or displeasing. Here are some examples of the use of the word in the Bible: Genesis 2:9 says, “And out of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (rah).” Genesis 6:5 says, “Then the LORD saw that the wickedness (rah) of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil (rah) continually.” Genesis 13:13 says, “Now the men of Sodom were wicked (rah) exceedingly and sinners against the LORD.” In John 17:15, Jesus prayed for his disciples, “I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one (ponéros).” The first example describes what evil is: the very opposite of what God considers good. The second and third examples describe how God felt about evil and what He did to remove it from the earth, using the flood and fire from heaven. The last example describes evil personified as a being, namely Satan, known as the “evil one.” Although Jesus’ use of the word evil is recorded in Greek as ponéros, it is most likely that he prayed in Aramaic using the word “rah.”

There are many other examples in the Bible of what it is, how God feels about it, and what He will do to remove it. They remove any and all excuses or justifications we might have for walking in evil and receiving just judgment for it. Solomon passionately encourages us to receive and treasure wisdom, especially that which comes from the “mouth” of the Lord (Prov.2:6). If we do, then it will enter our “hearts” and will become pleasant to our “souls,” the very things that guide our paths and destinies. Additionally, Solomon notes that living according to God’s wisdom helps protect us from getting involved with wrongdoers and following harmful paths. From the descriptions, we get a sense that these evildoers were not just ignorantly or accidentally falling into evil ways, but that they “delighted” and “rejoiced” in walking in ways of evil. These are the ones that Apostle Paul described as: “They know that God’s law says that people who live in this way deserve death. Yet, not only do they continue to do these very things, but they even approve of others who do them” (Rom.1:32, GNB). God’s wisdom will give us the strength and understanding to say “no” to these people and steer clear of their crooked paths. And when wisdom alone is not enough, God Himself will protect us. 2 Thessalonians 3:3 promises us, “But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” To me, this benefit of living by God’s wisdom is especially encouraging.

• How does wisdom guard you against evil, according to Solomon?
• In what ways can understanding God’s views on evil prevent you from engaging in evil actions?