Proverbs 13:17 ESV
A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing.
[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=proverbs+13%3A17&version=ESV]
“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news,” declares Isaiah 52:7, and we can all understand the sentiment. When someone comes to tell us good news, we are glad to see them, even if they themselves had nothing to do with it, because of the news they bear. If your mother or sister or brother or child is sick, and a messenger comes to tell you that all will be well with them in a few short days, do you not rejoice? Are you not filled with gladness for the messenger’s presence, for his message? Indeed, the messenger has a great power- and like all great powers, it can be used for evil as well as good.
The focus of this part of the verse- on the messenger, not the recipient- illustrates the thrust of this proverb, which is to warn the reader to act as a faithful, not a wicked, messenger. But how does a ‘wicked messenger’ fall into trouble? The simple answer is this: the man who lies, who twists his message, who takes pleasure in delivering bad news because of the pain it causes (even if the news is truthful), this man curses himself before God. That God created the universe matters.
The same God who created the universe also defines morality according to His character, demanding of His people compassion (Ps. 103:13; Pr. 12:10) and truthfulness (Ex. 20:16). We are His handiwork (Ps. 139:13; Gen. 29:31). As such, those who sin, in that sinning pursue their own destruction; those that seek God, in that virtue pursue eternal life (John 17:3). Thus this proverb warns us: to be a wicked messenger (to pervert some part of the role towards evil) is to pursue destruction, and he who pursues trouble will eventually fall into it.
Conversely, the faithful envoy is said to bring healing. The meaning of this is simple enough when we consider the messenger who brings good news. As, perhaps, Minas Tirith felt when the Eagle brought news that, “… the realm of Sauron is ended for ever, and the Dark Tower is thrown down,” so may we, in miniature or individual, feel when we hear that our friend or family member has been relieved of illness. Another example will be familiar to many: the end of Roe v Wade, the relief of that dark shadow over the land. Did not that good news bring great joy?
Another type of news, however, exists, the type of news that hurts, for all it is true (because it is true). We don’t want to hear that somebody was hurt, that our business is failing, or that our teeth are going to require another, more expensive visit to the dentist. Yet, if we don’t hear this news, if the messenger doesn’t tell us it, are we really better off? A wound, once given, is not made better by pretending it doesn’t exist. The answer, then, is that while these truths may hurt, we need to know them.
Sometimes, we can alleviate the issue. Perhaps the person who was hurt can recover with little difficulty, given some care. Perhaps the business just needs some readjustment to succeed. Perhaps our dentist can recommend a treatment that doesn’t hurt our jaws or out pocketbooks quite as much. Sometimes, though, it’s out of our control- the loved one can’t be treated successfully, the business is already unrecoverable, that left molar is essentially one giant cavity. In such cases, the bad news must be viewed not only in its own light but in light of the good news which overshadows all else, the good news of Christ’s resurrection.
Isaiah 52:7, after all, not only tells us of the beauty of the messenger who brings good news; it tells us also of the news itself: “… who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’” God reigns over all the earth, working all deeds, both good and evil, to the good of His people. Thus, all evil news must be viewed not as an end of itself but as a part of the glorious story God has created, the story of history, of which each of us is a small part, even, to each other, an obscure part. Evil news, therefore, is a preparation for good to come, and conversely, all good news is a hint of what is to come.
This should not breed complacency. The impermanence of evil should not lead us to ignore it or become apathetic towards it. God hates evil, and to do otherwise is to act evilly (Matt. 12:30). Instead, we ought to remember that good will triumph, that justice (the meeting out to each person and thing that which it has merited) is the final end of creation. Of course, this by itself is grim news, given the depravity of mankind. Christ has, however, by His grace imputed His righteousness to us, our sin to Him, so that in God’s eyes, His people are sinless and, furthermore, perfect in righteousness. Let us glorify Him who died upon the cross and was torn from Himself, from His Father, for our sakes, that we might be redeemed from our just fate, from eternal damnation, and lifted up to honor Him by a justice which is joined to mercy.
God bless.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
