HAPPINESS

 •  13 min. read  •  grade level: 6
OF THE WICKED
Is limited to this life
From men which are thy hand, O Lord, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes. (Psalm 17:14)
But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. (Luke 16:25)
Is short
That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment? (Job 20:5)
Is uncertain
But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? (Luke 12:20)
Is vain
I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity. (Ecclesiastes 2:1)
For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool: this also is vanity. (Ecclesiastes 7:6)
Is derived from
Their wealth
They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave. (Job 21:13)
Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness. (Psalm 52:7)
Their power
Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? (Job 21:7)
I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. (Psalm 37:35)
Their worldly prosperity
From men which are thy hand, O Lord, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes. (Psalm 17:14)
Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. (Psalm 37:3-4)
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. (Psalm 37:7)
Gluttony
And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die. (Isaiah 22:13)
Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. (Habakkuk 1:16)
Drunkenness
Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them! (Isaiah 5:11)
Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant. (Isaiah 56:12)
Vain pleasure
They take the timbrel and harp, and rejoice at the sound of the organ. (Job 21:12)
And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands. (Isaiah 5:12)
Successful oppression
They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. (Habakkuk 1:15)
Marred by jealousy
Yet all this availeth me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate. (Esther 5:13)
Often interrupted by judgments
And while the flesh was yet between their teeth, ere it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord smote the people with a very great plague. (Numbers 11:33)
A dreadful sound is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him. (Job 15:21)
Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. (Psalm 73:18-20)
Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. (Jeremiah 25:10-11)
Leads to sorrow
Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness. (Proverbs 14:13)
Leads to recklessness
And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth: (Isaiah 22:12)
Sometimes a stumbling-block to saints
For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. (Psalm 73:3)
When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; (Psalm 73:16)
Righteous art thou, O Lord, when I plead with thee: yet let me talk with thee of thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously? (Jeremiah 12:1)
Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? (Habakkuk 1:13)
Saints often permitted to see the end of
Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end. Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. (Psalm 73:17-20)
Envy not