The wicked crave evil; their neighbors get no mercy from them
Among the most frequently mentioned characters in Proverbs are “the wicked.” This verse mentions both their attitudes and actions.
What makes “the wicked” who they are is not what they do — but how they think. And it’s because of the way they think that they do the things they do.
“The wicked crave evil” offers some insight into their thought processes. For whatever reasons, “the wicked” have decided they really don’t care about what is good or about others — so to “crave evil” is about all that’s left.
Consequently, “their neighbors get no mercy from them.”
This verse points out to us that there are people like this out there. And it will be the wisdom of Proverbs that will help us identify them and offer us the insights to best deal with them.
But…what this verse doesn’t discuss is the truth that “the wicked” can have a spiritual transformation. As the Apostle Paul once reminded the Corinthian church, “such were some of you” (I Corinthians 6:11).
Here at Helping Up Mission, the men I’ve come to know, love and respect are just not the same guys that their criminal records indicate. They’ve had a spiritual awakening that has begun a supernatural transformation process which simply can’t be explained in human terms.
The bad news is that there are some really wicked people out there. The good news is that they can — and do — change!
And hopefully, on this basis, the Apostle Paul can also say to each of us — “and such were some of you!”