The Storm of Judgment

21 The lips of the righteous nourish many,
but fools die for lack of sense.

22 The blessing of the Lord brings wealth,
without painful toil for it.

23 A fool finds pleasure in wicked schemes,
but a person of understanding delights in wisdom.

24 What the wicked dread will overtake them;
what the righteous desire will be granted.

25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone,
but the righteous stand firm forever.

26 As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
so are sluggards to those who send them.

27 The fear of the Lord adds length to life,
but the years of the wicked are cut short.

28 The prospect of the righteous is joy,
but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing.

29 The way of the Lord is a refuge for the blameless,
but it is the ruin of those who do evil.

30 The righteous will never be uprooted,
but the wicked will not remain in the land.

The Bible includes many passages about the destruction of the wicked—that is, people who refuse to live God’s way. They decide to go their own way instead, and that leads only to destruction. That’s because we are all sinners. Born with a sinful nature, we cannot live pure and perfect lives on our own. Everything we do is somehow tainted with sin, and we can see this easily because nothing we ever do is perfect.

But there is hope. God has reached out to us with the offer of salvation and new life. We cannot save ourselves or live perfectly on our own, but Jesus Christ, God’s Son, has come to pay the debt of our sin—and when we believe in him as Savior, God credits us with Jesus’ righteousness. This means we can actually be righteous even though we have no way to be righteous on our own. This also means that when the storm of God’s judgment comes at the end of time, we will not be swept away with the wicked. Because of Jesus Christ and his finished work, we will be saved.

Are you a believer in Jesus, the Son of God, who came to save us and give us full life forever with him? If not, ask him to save you today! Ask God to forgive your sins for Jesus’ sake, and to guide you to live for him by the power of his Spirit. God is our sure and only refuge from destruction, and we need him to help us live faithfully each day.

Father, forgive us our sins. Help us to trust in your power to save us through Jesus Christ, and guide us to live for you each day. Amen.