Exhortation to Various Virtues.
WARNING AGAINST EVIL. — V. 30. Strive not with a man without cause, thus increasing litigation, both within the Church and without, if he have done thee no harm, both the taking of the initiative in quarreling and of seeking revenge for a supposed insult being condemned here. V. 31. Envy thou not the oppressor, the man of violence or mischief, no matter how successful his methods may seem, and choose none of his ways, in the hope of rising in the world by such methods. V. 32. For the froward, the malicious person, the deceiver, is abomination, an abhorrence, to the Lord, wherefore his lot will be that of everlasting destruction; but His secret is with the righteous, literally, “toward the upright His secret compact,” they enjoy His friendship, the intimate fellowship with Him.
V. 33. The curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked, in spite of all outward semblance of prosperity and happiness; but He blesseth the habitation of the just, His blessing abiding with them. V. 34. Surely He scorneth the scorners, that is, if there is a person who believes himself entitled to scorn, He heaps scorn upon him; but He giveth grace unto the lowly, to the humble, who seek only His grace and mercy and claim no merit and worthiness for themselves.
V. 35. The wise shall inherit glory, they will finally be given the honor which their attitude merits; but shame shall be the promotion of fools, that will be the reward which they will carry away with them, the portion properly pertaining to them.
That is the consolation of the righteous, that in the end they will be honored by the Lord in the presence of the whole world; this thought enables them to bear many of the afflictions of this present time.