Definitive Rules Aren't That Clear

Scripture:
Here’s the rule: The light of the wicked is put out.
Their flame dies down and is extinguished.
Job 18:5

Observation: Bildad dives into his second speech with this definitive truth ... that evil people receive their just punishment and are forever sentenced to death. His speech goes on and on about the definitive downfall of evil, sinful people. They fall into their own traps, get caught by their own plots, trip on their own defenses. They die in their beds and are sent to rot in a grave, where they are never remembered, their lives amounting to nothing, with no fame or glory attached to their name. Bildad is clear ... it is definitively understood that evil people get their comeuppance.

Bildad says this is a rule, but we all know it isn't quite true. We all know that, here on earth, evil people often ... win. Yes, they lose in the end, and the eternal end of losing far outweighs a few decades of winning. But by earthly measures - which are the measures being discussed by Job's friends when they see his misery - evil people who completely and fully reject the Lord become famous, live in comfort, successfully pull of their plots and plans, and enjoy the choicest goodness that life offers. Sometimes, their names echo across history, never to be forgotten here on earth. The definitive rule Bildad states may be true in the context of eternity, but it is provably false within the context of a human lifetime.

Application: I well understand the perspective of Job, and that of the author of Ecclesiastes later, in this regard. I know evil people who have fully and completely rejected Jesus, deny the existence of the Lord God almighty, and find success and comfort in all aspects of life. They win out over others, including the faithful, causing pain. This includes those who have deluded millions - even billions - into lifestyles that destroy their own lives.

On earth, Bildad is wrong ... these people often win. Earthly pain and earthly comfort have nothing to do with evaluating if someone is good or sinful. However, I live in full comfort and faith that the Lord's eternal reward includes how we will, indeed, completely forget about those who chose to be outside of the Lord's grace.

Prayer: Lord, may I live within your grace, regardless of how my life proceeds on a daily basis. I desire to do your will, come what may. Amen.