Tiny Devotional for Saturday, 09-10-2022

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, the puppy dog is staring at my breakfast.

I want to SHARE with you, Papa!

The memory of the righteous is blessed,
But the name of the wicked will rot.
Proverbs 10:7, NASB

Sometimes, the writers of the Bible aren’t very religious. If they were religious, they would have used a refined, modest, and demure phrase, HINT at unpleasantness, and say “tut-tut!” if their editor suggested otherwise.

They didn’t do a religious thing, though. I checked multiple translations of “the name of the wicked will rot,” and they all use the word ‘ROT.’ Even in Hebrew, which I can neither read nor speak:

זֵ֣כֶר צַ֭דִּיק לִבְרָכָ֑ה וְשֵׁ֖ם רְשָׁעִ֣ים יִרְקָֽב׃ 

Now, I’m going to go out on a limb, and suggest that’s because they placed a very high value on getting the point across. There’s a joke about hitting a mule with a 2x4 just to get his attention, and the word ROT is a figurative 2x4. It worked on me this morning!

Note that rotting doesn’t require the righteous to do anything; it’s passive, natural, and inevitable.  Attacking the reputation of the wicked might be fun, but it doesn’t seem to be necessary. Why should we spend ANY energy assassinating the character of the wicked dead? It stinks; leave it alone.

Instead, BLESS the memory of the righteous! When you finish reading this Tiny Devotional (or maybe even right this second!), think of someone who poured blessings into your life, and who has now crossed over to the Other Side. 

Cherish that memory, of a family member, author, singer/songwriter, pastor, teacher, friend or stranger who helped and encouraged you.

And then, tell somebody.

Peace be on your household.