• Proverbs 25:5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.

  • May 24 2024
  • Length: 10 mins
  • Podcast

Proverbs 25:5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness. By cover art

Proverbs 25:5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.

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  • Wise rulers have counselors to assist in decisions. They cannot know all the details of every part of the kingdom or nation, so they rely on counselors for help. But if these advisors are wicked, a good ruler will be corrupted by evil influence and deceit. These evil men must be removed, so the kingdom or nation can prosper in righteousness. The context adds further weight to this proverb (Pr 25:4). A good ruler is silver, and wicked advisors are the dross. If the dross is taken away, the purified ruler will be able to lead his kingdom to wonderful prosperity. Righteousness exalts a nation, therefore wickedness must be publicly crushed to obtain God’s blessing (Pr 14:34; 20:26). Dross is a good term for the scum that gathers in high places to siphon a living from legitimate rulers. But a great leader will drive them away as with a refiner’s fire (Pr 20:8). Wise and faithful counselors are crucial for successful government. The longevity of a ruler is dependent on righteousness (Pr 16:12; 29:14). The grave concern facing every leader is to find wise and faithful counselors. King David rejected evil men from his service and company (Ps 101:3-8; 119:63). David also gave deathbed instructions for Solomon to kill two officials, even though one was David’s nephew and had served as general of the army his entire reign (I Kgs 2:5-10). Asa removed his mother from being queen in a national revival of righteousness (I Kgs 15:13). Jethro told Moses, “Thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them” (Ex 18:21). And King Jehoshaphat charged the judges in his day, “Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment. Wherefore now let the fear of the LORD be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the LORD our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts” (II Chron 19:6-7). What glorious wisdom! Dear reader, give God the glory! In addition to making you wise unto salvation, the Bible is also a political manual of no mean proportions. Read the following examples of bad and good counselors, and then consider your nation’s plight. Rehoboam followed his father, Solomon, as king of Israel. Because Solomon had heavily taxed the nation, the people offered to serve Rehoboam forever, if he would ease their burden a little. Instead of listening to the wise advice of his father’s counselors and reducing taxes, he followed the advice of his young friends and harshly threatened the nation with higher taxes. Ten tribes revolted and left Rehoboam only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin (I Kings 12:1-19). Rehoboam never ruled his father’s expansive nation a single day, for wicked counselors, his boyhood friends, cost him most of the nation. Haman was a wicked counselor of King Ahasuerus of the Persian Empire. Hating the Jews, because of Mordecai’s lack of public worship, he slandered them to the king and enticed the King to authorize their extermination. It was only by the intervention of Esther the queen that she, Mordecai, and the rest of her people were saved. Haman was justly hanged with his sons at Esther’s request. A whole book of the Bible is written to describe this wicked intrigue and God’s protection of His people, in spite of a wicked counselor who had the ear of the king. Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, was tetrarch of Galilee from 4 BC – AD 39. He married his brother Philip’s wife, Herodias, for which John the Baptist rebuked him. Herod feared John, knew he was just and holy, and heard him gladly. But Herodias used a subtle ploy to trap Herod into beheading him against his will, for she hated John for his criticism of her adultery (Mark 6:17-29). Herodias should have been cooking supper instead of plotting to destroy John. After assisting in the punishment and crucifixion of Jesus Christ, both Herod and Herodias were exiled to Spain by the emperor Caligula.
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