At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Ps. 16: 11)
“Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; But who is able to stand before envy?”
Proverbs 27:4
As many people know, envy is ranked as one of the seven deadly sins. But this ranking was bequeathed to us by a previous generation of Christians, one that was more attuned to the spiritual danger involved with it than we have been. What previous generations considered to be a soul-threatening vice, we have come to accept as a constitutional right.
Let us first consider what the proverb teaches. The clear idea is one of growing dangers, with each one more daunting. Wrath comes first, and it is cruel. Anger comes second, and it is outrageous. But then comes envy, and lays waste to everything. In other words, envy is far more of a threat than is wrath or anger.
In part this is because wrath and anger are both quite visible. You can see them coming. It is possible to take cover. You might be able to think about some possible countermeasures. You might be able to get your shield up.
But envy is much harder to see. It does not usually erupt into shouting or overt violent attacks. Envy is even difficult for the envious one to see. He thinks that he is just focused on justice, or fairness. Nobody wants to admit to being envious, because that involves acknowledging the superiority of someone else. They have better looks, or a better car, or they are smarter, or they earned the promotion that passed over you.
Envy is more than covetousness. Covetousness simply wants their own version of what someone else has. Envy is a teeter totter sin, meaning that when one person goes up, the other must come down. Envy wants to have what the other person has, and also wants the other person to no longer have it.
It is malevolent and quite destructive. Who can stand before it?
