Proverbs 12:7

Your preservation and prosperity – and that of your family – depend on righteousness. The wicked last only a short time, deceived by superficial and temporal pleasures, before they are overthrown and forgotten. Then you cannot find them, because they are gone.

But the righteous man and his family will endure, in this world and the next, because God, men, and nature are on his side. The choice is yours. How long will your family last? What will you do for a lasting legacy today? Seek the Lord while He may be found.

You and your family are at risk. Sin will destroy both. Violating God’s laws and wisdom ruins the lives and estates of most men. Sin first brings God’s angry judgment. You are in deep trouble when the great and dreadful God of heaven is your enemy (Ps 34:16; Is 63:10). He can drown all men in a flood (of whom none remain). He can drop rebels alive into their graves (Num 16:29-33). He can turn she bears on children (II Kings 2:23-24).

Sin then brings man’s judgment, who by conscience and duty has formal and informal laws to punish the wicked. Adulterers, drunkards, liars, murderers, scorners, slanderers, sluggards, sorcerers, spendthrifts, and other sinners are despised and punished in various ways. If civil rulers do not destroy them, then parents, bosses, spouses, or neighbors will. They are soon reduced to poverty, die a miserable death, and their memory rots (Pr 10:7).

Sin also has natural consequences, which destroy the wicked. Foolish spending reduces rich men to rags. Pride costs kings battles or even wars. Sexual indulgence brings terrible diseases. Drunkenness causes accidents and destroys families. Murder can bring capital punishment. Disrespectful speech, excessive sleep, or purloining can cost a man his job.

On the other hand, God gives a righteous man peace, protection, and prosperity. And men will respect and reward a righteous man, even if selfishly for indirect benefits from him. By living moderately without the vices of the wicked, a righteous man generally has better health and lives a longer life. The laws that work against the wicked man work for him. Exceptions are when God in affection takes the righteous home early (Is 57:1-2).

Compare and contrast Mordecai and Haman in the Persian Empire, Kings Saul and David of Israel, John and Judas of the apostles, the family trees of Jonathan Edwards and Joseph Kennedy. Where is Alexander the Great, his family, or his estate today? What happened to the Rothschilds and Vanderbilts? What is left of Howard Hughes or Marilyn Monroe?

Invest in your future now. Repent of your sins. Beg God for forgiveness. Make restitution for wrongs. Learn righteousness from the Bible. Pray for it. Live it. Claim Psalm 112 as your personal promise from God. Let God’s holy word the Bible be the constant and only guide for your life. There is a reward for the righteous (Is 58:1-11).