Don't Muddy The Waters

“A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.” (Pr 25:26 AV)

 The phrase ‘falling down’ means to waver.  There could be many meanings of wavering.  One writer equals this to a refusal to stand against the wicked.  He believes when a righteous man does not stand against the actions of the wicked, it is like clear water that had become fouled.  Another writer believes the ‘wavering’ or ‘falling down’ is manifested by the choice to fall into sin.  He believes the ‘falling’ is succumbing to the temptations which a wicked man might bring.  Still, another believes this ‘falling’ is a falling down to worship the wicked.  In fact, all these possibilities could have the same outcome.  That is, the integrity of the righteous is brought into question by those who have observed his character over a period of time.  What is more, the fountain or spring which always ran clean and pure is not brought into doubt as to the duration of its purity.  Was it corrupt all along?  Falling before the wicked doesn’t just affect our present character.  It brings into judgment our entire life’s character.  Even if the lapse of character just happened.

I’ve spent a lot of time in the outdoors.  I have seen my share of water sources.  From lakes to ponds, from puddles to springs, I have seen many sources of freshwater.  One of the skills we were taught was to always boil your source of water before you consume it.  In this day and age, the outdoorsman can use purifying tablets that will kill any nasties that may be lurking in your water supply.  Back in my day, we had to boil it and store it before we consumed it.  Boiling water was a safety precaution.  If our source was running water, then it was more than not, safe to drink.  There were times when in a desperate situation, we would fill our canteens with running water.  Some of the best tasting water was a groundswell stream.  That is where rainwater overfills the ground and it bubbles up like a coffee percolator.  The ground is usually sandy or stony, so it is well filtered.  I have filled my canteen from a source like that a few times in my life.  A funny thing happens though.  If I filled my canteen from such a place, and then step away from it only to see mud or dirt rise from it, the purity of the contents of my canteen was brought into question.  Was the source always this dirty and it was simply too small to tell?  Can it be trusted?  Even if the source was as pure as the wind-driven snow, a sick feeling rises in one’s stomach of the littlest of contamination might be possible.

The thing about water is water is also a naturally reflective surface.  If it is muddied by someone stepping in it, then it ceases to reflect.  If the observer is using the life of another as a source to examine himself, if he falls before the wicked, this becomes impossible.  The point is this:  the water source is pretty much what it always has been.  For the most part, the fountain and spring are clear and pure.  When something enters it from outside itself, it can bring into question the past as well as the present purity of that water.  Those who benefit from the purity of the fountain or spring can temporarily no longer do so until purity can be assured once again.  How we interact with the wicked around us matters just as much to the wicked and those who observe us as it does us.  What we choose to do or not do effects those around us.  A fountain or spring will eventually run purely again.  It is only a matter of time.  The lasting effects might be there are fewer who will trust that spring or fountain because it was fouled in the past.  What we choose to do matters.  How we choose to respond to the wicked matters.  It will have lasting effects on personal being as well as all those who depend on our character as a matter of ministry to their own.