Week 7: The Wisdom of Corruption

Isaiah 1:23 English Standard Version (ESV)


23 Your princes are rebels
and companions of thieves.
Everyone loves a bribe
and runs after gifts.
They do not bring justice to the fatherless,
and the widow's cause does not come to them.




Last week I jumped the gun a bit and threw in verse 23 into my posting, putting myself ahead of my companion-in-writing. At a loss for how to spend more time on this verse it was suggested to spend some time on the phrase I used last week “the wisdom of corruption.” It was used in the context of rebelling against God and so they were seeking things from another place. When we seek wisdom from God we are exposing ourselves to guidance that often doesn't make sense. Many times it goes against what we “feel” to be right, or what we think would be best for us or our situation.



Isaiah's rebellious princes have come from a long line of rulers who would seem to back and forth on where they would seek counsel or friendship. When we look back to I Kings chapter 12, we see Rehoboam seeking wisdom from two sources for how to deal with a situation. The old or “godly” men who served his father Solomon, and the young or “corrupt” men that he grew up with. We know which counsel he went with. The question here is why? They spoke to him the things he wanted to hear, things that were rooted in cruelty and a desire to make his will the dominant one, as opposed to showing mercy and respect. This is the line of kings that swung back and forth almost like a pendulum in their desire to serve God or themselves, with each evil king seeming worse than the last.




Lord, I know my heart enough to see that I have before and still could swing either way. I pray that you would be the controller of my heart. Please keep me from seeking after wisdom from those that are living for themselves, but from those whose sole purpose is to serve.

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