When God speaks in Psalm 12, the emphasis alters from evil ways in evil days to what is happening to the weakest in society.

Listen:

"Because the poor are despoiled,
because the needy groan,
I will now rise up", says the Lord;
"I will place them in the safety for which they long."
(Psalm 12:5)

And the whole context of this Psalm changes from the perpetrators of evil and vice to the victims of a society that allows such evil things to take place while the poorest wallow in poverty. And that last line is the greatest denunciation I have heard of what society is doing and what harm is being caused:

On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among humankind.
(Psalm 12:8)

When those willing to devote themselves to goodness are destroyed, ignored, or alienated, then society becomes a place where evil flourishes.

Prayer: Lord, we know that all it takes for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing. Help us take up the cause of Christ and give our lives to 'the way, the truth and the life' as expressed in Jesus Christ. Amen.

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About the author:

Kenn Stright <kennethstright@yahoo.ca>
West Petpeswick, Nova Scotia, Canada
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