Proverbs 29:6

An evil man is ensnared in his transgression,
but a righteous man sings and rejoices.

My mother often reminded me growing up that one of the dangers of sin is that if committed once, it often is very easy, unless confessed and repented of, to commit the same sin again and again and again. After awhile, the sin becomes a habit, and our consciences are seared so that we no longer feel the pangs of the sin as we earlier had.

Proverbs 29:6 is a continuation of 29:5. As we saw yesterday, flattery is an attempt to snare one, and often oneself,  into a “net.” Proverbs 29:6 has the same idea in mind. “An evil man is ensnared in his transgression . . . .” Like flattery, sin ensnares us. The Bible speaks very clearly about a punishment for sin, which may not come until the final day of judgment. But sin often has consequences on this side of heaven. One consequence is that sin “ensnares” us to commit other sins, sometimes more grievous than another (Proverbs 1:17-19). To be ensnared, too, speaks of a certain bondage to commit sin apart from one’s own conscious intent because one has given himself over to the evil one for his devices.

The second half of Proverbs 29:6, however, reminds us of the freedom for those who are “righteous.” Those who make God their chief end (Westminister Shorter Cathecism question number one) have God as their ultimate joy and satisfaction. They are often kept from the snares of sin or are delivered by God out of the snares. To be made right with God, through Jesus Christ our Lord, brings the greatest satisfaction and joy that life affords.

Praise the Lord for Jesus Christ who has freed us from all the snares of sin!

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