Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you, delivering you from the way of evil, from men of perverted speech, who forsake the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness, who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil, men whose paths are crooked, and who are devious in their ways.
– Proverbs 2:9–15
What a contrast in Proverbs 2:9–15 between someone who understands righteousness and justice and equity, good paths, wisdom in their hearts, knowledge pleasant to their souls, discretion watching over them, understanding, guarding them, delivering them from the way of evil. Then that introduces in Verse 12 a contrast with those who have perverted speech, who forsake upright paths, who walk in ways of darkness and rejoice in doing evil, delighting in the perverseness of evil. People whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways.
Proverbs 2:9–15 Helps Us Discern Good Leaders
Wise leaders fear God and can discern between good and evil.
So as we pray in these days leading up to an election in the United States, as followers of Jesus who live here, and hopefully in ways that apply to our brothers and sisters in other countries. Proverbs 2:9–15 drive us to pray for wise leaders. That’s what Proverbs is all about, particularly Proverbs 2:9–15. It is for wise leaders who fear God and who discern between good and evil. And for leaders who walk in upright paths, who lead with justice and equity, whose paths are not crooked, who are not devious in their ways.
God, we ask for this in your mercy. Oh God, would you raise up leaders and give us wisdom as we play our part in voting and using our voice? God, for the sake of leaders who walk in righteousness and justice and equity, who understand goodness, who discern between good and evil and who forsake evil. God, we pray for leaders who delight in good according to your definition of good. Oh God, according to your goodness, according to your word. God, we pray for leaders with wisdom. God, we pray for leaders with wisdom.
This Verse Leads Us to Pray for Good Leaders
We ask for leaders with knowledge, with discretion and understanding. So God, we pray for all these things in our own lives. God, we pray that you’d help us to understand righteousness and justice and equity. We pray that wisdom would come into our hearts. Also, we pray for knowledge to be pleasant to our souls. We ask that discretion would watch over each of us. And we pray that understanding would guard us and deliver us from the way of evil. Please keep us from being people of perverted speech who forsake the paths of uprightness and walk in the ways of darkness who rejoice in doing evil.
God, we pray that we would find no pleasure in evil. Keep us walking on the good path that you have called us to. And God, we pray for leaders who will walk in the good path that you’ve created us to walk in. Also, God, we pray for wise leaders who fear you. We ask for leaders who have understanding and discernment and discretion. For leaders whose lives, whose leadership, whose policies and practices in private and in public are righteous and just and equal, every good path. God, we pray this for our lives. And we pray this for our leaders in Jesus’ name.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
