Planning Evil and Digging Holes

Proverbs 28:10

“Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit: but the upright shall have good things in possession.”

Don’t Be Naive

The first thing we should understand from this proverb is that there are most assuredly those who want to lead “the righteous” astray. Not only do they want to cause them to sin, but they want them to fall into an inescapable pit. There are certainly evil people out there who want to see good people fall.

Those who don’t fall prey to the traps set by the wicked are the ones who are alert and on guard. They are not naive, but “sober…vigilant; because [our] adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

Don’t Be Too Confident

The second thing we should note is the result of leading the righteous astray. Solomon warns that he who does such a thing is guaranteed to fall into his own pit, just as he did in Proverbs 26:27, “Who diggeth a pit shall fall therein…”

Actually, Solomon’s words sound much like his father’s. Writing about evil men who think God will never judge them, he said…

“Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may you establish the righteous– you who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God! … If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword; he has bent and readied his bow; he has prepared for him his deadly weapons, making his arrows fiery shafts. Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies. He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made.” – Psalms 7:9, 12-15 ESV

If I were an evil man planning to lead the righteous astray, I would be a little nervous. Wouldn’t you?

Related articles

• Digging or Rolling? (proverbialthought.com)
• Friendship for a Lifetime by unknown. (christianmotivations.weebly.com)