I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
The verse pictures the wicked rising to great power and spreading widely like a thriving green tree, reaching high position and broad influence. That prosperity lasts only for a time, for he soon passes away and is brought low and destroyed until he cannot be found. By contrast the upright and perfect are to be marked and watched, for their end is peace, since God keeps His eye on those who fear Him and hope in His mercy to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. This brief triumph takes place under God's rule, for He sees the end from the beginning and brings order out of confusion, and He Himself overthrows the wicked by scattering their gains, withering their plans, and at times suddenly taking away health or reason, as pride brought down Nebuchadnezzar from his royal standing. It warns that pride, self-trust, self-glory, and taking credit for success never secure a person or a church but bring confusion, humiliation, and downfall, because God is supreme and gives success for His glory, and those who boast in wealth, intellect, or power instead of depending on Him will be brought down.
Temporary Power of Wicked
The wicked may rise to great power and prosper abundantly, spreading widely like a flourishing green tree in full leaf. That spreading reaches high position and broad influence, with the worldling attaining prominence and extending his course and governing principles far beyond the righteous. Their establishment can look firm and secure, as if rooted to last, yet it is only an appearance of strength.
That prosperity is only for a time and does not endure, for the powerful wicked suddenly passes away, is brought low and destroyed, and disappears so completely that he cannot be found. Transgressors shall be destroyed together and their end cut off, so that what seemed towering vanishes without trace. By contrast the upright and the perfect are to be marked and observed, for the end of that person is peace. God keeps His eye on those who fear Him and hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine, and the perfect upright one whose faith works by love and purifies the soul gains preparation for eternal life. God ever commends obedience, and this contrast of destruction for the wicked and peace for the upright stands as the sure outcome.
This temporary triumph unfolds within God's rule, for He sees the end from the beginning and brings order out of confusion. That certainty assures honest believers not to fear, since God can act for His name's glory, and it has been confirmed in experience. God allows the wicked a season under Satan's zeal, suffering them for a time to manifest envy and hatred against His people. Their spreading is Satan carrying them so far that they do despite to the Spirit of God and harden their hearts against the advocates of truth. As He allowed Satan to develop his character, so He lets them reveal their envy, hatred, and deceptive character until they with Satan stand exposed before the heavenly universe, the unfallen worlds, and the fallen world in their true attributes as deceiver, accuser of the brethren, and murderer at heart.
God Himself overthrows that power by scattering gains faster than they can be gathered, so that selfish getters who grasp all they can by their own schemes and carry themselves loftily in probationary time find their rising insecure. He withers branches and brings plans to nothing, turning apparent success into failure and increased difficulty. He can suddenly deprive the powerful of health or reason to bring justice and order, bringing the proud low in a moment. Nebuchadnezzar's loss of reason and royal standing through pride illustrates this fall, showing that God does not sustain the proud in their prominence.
Warning Against Prideful Selfishness
The flourishing tree warns that pride, self-trust, self-glory, and taking credit for success never secure a person or a church, but end in confusion, humiliation, and downfall, because God is supreme and gives success for His own glory rather than for human glory. Those who boast in wealth, intellect, knowledge, or power instead of depending on and exalting God will be brought down. The wicked may rise to great power and prosper like a spreading, firmly established tree, yet that prominence does not last, for they pass away and cannot be found. Nebuchadnezzar illustrates the fall, since pride cost him his reason and royal standing and showed that God does not sustain the proud.
The same warning bears on powerful people in God's work in particular, who must not trust in position or oppress others, since God can suddenly deprive them of health or reason and will bring justice and order, while the upright have peace in the end and transgressors are destroyed. Spreading like the tree describes selfish getters of money and property who grasp all they can by their own schemes and carry themselves loftily, thinking they are rising securely in probationary time. Their gains do not stand, for God scatters faster than they can gather and brings them down so completely that they cannot be found. It also describes privileged people who receive abundant means and become proud and exalted while the needy are left without help, and such prosperity is no warrant for withholding aid in temporal and spiritual need.
The image further applies to a church leader who uses resources to build structures that glorify himself, for such outward success gives the church no life or godliness, and wasted money can cripple God's work. In God's work it means making a great self-exalting display by placing large money in high halls, absorbing treble the means other workers would use, and surrounding self with extravagant ideas, practices, habits, and show to gain influence. God forbids this and requires working after His order, counting the cost of the tower begun so as to carry it complete to the top crying grace, grace unto it. He requires instead steady, bright, shining light and humble house-to-house labor of healing and saving after Christ's meek and lowly way, rather than flash, Herod-like display, and making self an idol to be petted and worshiped.
The tree reveals a worldling's course and governing principles as different from the righteous, with high position and broad influence that are only temporary until he passes away and disappears so completely that he cannot be found, in contrast to the upright whose end is peace. It therefore warns against letting a cherished, engrossing object absorb the mind and separate the soul from God, directing desire and ambition toward worthy, lasting objects. It shows that a hypocrite, sinner, or corrupt person may flourish for a time among honest people like a green bay tree, but will eventually be exposed in folly and brought to confusion, for God searches him out and separates the vile from the precious. Self-trust and apparent success of this kind did not last for Bro. Aldrich, whose branches God could wither and whose plans God could bring to nothing, so that his poor management increased the Institute's difficulties.
The verse pictures the wicked rising to great power and spreading widely like a thriving green tree, reaching high position and broad influence. That prosperity lasts only for a time, for he soon passes away and is brought low and destroyed until he cannot be found. By contrast the upright and perfect are to be marked and watched, for their end is peace, since God keeps His eye on those who fear Him and hope in His mercy to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. This brief triumph takes place under God's rule, for He sees the end from the beginning and brings order out of confusion, and He Himself overthrows the wicked by scattering their gains, withering their plans, and at times suddenly taking away health or reason, as pride brought down Nebuchadnezzar from his royal standing. It warns that pride, self-trust, self-glory, and taking credit for success never secure a person or a church but bring confusion, humiliation, and downfall, because God is supreme and gives success for His glory, and those who boast in wealth, intellect, or power instead of depending on Him will be brought down.
Temporary Power of Wicked
The wicked may rise to great power and prosper abundantly, spreading widely like a flourishing green tree in full leaf. That spreading reaches high position and broad influence, with the worldling attaining prominence and extending his course and governing principles far beyond the righteous. Their establishment can look firm and secure, as if rooted to last, yet it is only an appearance of strength.
That prosperity is only for a time and does not endure, for the powerful wicked suddenly passes away, is brought low and destroyed, and disappears so completely that he cannot be found. Transgressors shall be destroyed together and their end cut off, so that what seemed towering vanishes without trace. By contrast the upright and the perfect are to be marked and observed, for the end of that person is peace. God keeps His eye on those who fear Him and hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine, and the perfect upright one whose faith works by love and purifies the soul gains preparation for eternal life. God ever commends obedience, and this contrast of destruction for the wicked and peace for the upright stands as the sure outcome.
This temporary triumph unfolds within God's rule, for He sees the end from the beginning and brings order out of confusion. That certainty assures honest believers not to fear, since God can act for His name's glory, and it has been confirmed in experience. God allows the wicked a season under Satan's zeal, suffering them for a time to manifest envy and hatred against His people. Their spreading is Satan carrying them so far that they do despite to the Spirit of God and harden their hearts against the advocates of truth. As He allowed Satan to develop his character, so He lets them reveal their envy, hatred, and deceptive character until they with Satan stand exposed before the heavenly universe, the unfallen worlds, and the fallen world in their true attributes as deceiver, accuser of the brethren, and murderer at heart.
God Himself overthrows that power by scattering gains faster than they can be gathered, so that selfish getters who grasp all they can by their own schemes and carry themselves loftily in probationary time find their rising insecure. He withers branches and brings plans to nothing, turning apparent success into failure and increased difficulty. He can suddenly deprive the powerful of health or reason to bring justice and order, bringing the proud low in a moment. Nebuchadnezzar's loss of reason and royal standing through pride illustrates this fall, showing that God does not sustain the proud in their prominence.
Warning Against Prideful Selfishness
The flourishing tree warns that pride, self-trust, self-glory, and taking credit for success never secure a person or a church, but end in confusion, humiliation, and downfall, because God is supreme and gives success for His own glory rather than for human glory. Those who boast in wealth, intellect, knowledge, or power instead of depending on and exalting God will be brought down. The wicked may rise to great power and prosper like a spreading, firmly established tree, yet that prominence does not last, for they pass away and cannot be found. Nebuchadnezzar illustrates the fall, since pride cost him his reason and royal standing and showed that God does not sustain the proud.
The same warning bears on powerful people in God's work in particular, who must not trust in position or oppress others, since God can suddenly deprive them of health or reason and will bring justice and order, while the upright have peace in the end and transgressors are destroyed. Spreading like the tree describes selfish getters of money and property who grasp all they can by their own schemes and carry themselves loftily, thinking they are rising securely in probationary time. Their gains do not stand, for God scatters faster than they can gather and brings them down so completely that they cannot be found. It also describes privileged people who receive abundant means and become proud and exalted while the needy are left without help, and such prosperity is no warrant for withholding aid in temporal and spiritual need.
The image further applies to a church leader who uses resources to build structures that glorify himself, for such outward success gives the church no life or godliness, and wasted money can cripple God's work. In God's work it means making a great self-exalting display by placing large money in high halls, absorbing treble the means other workers would use, and surrounding self with extravagant ideas, practices, habits, and show to gain influence. God forbids this and requires working after His order, counting the cost of the tower begun so as to carry it complete to the top crying grace, grace unto it. He requires instead steady, bright, shining light and humble house-to-house labor of healing and saving after Christ's meek and lowly way, rather than flash, Herod-like display, and making self an idol to be petted and worshiped.
The tree reveals a worldling's course and governing principles as different from the righteous, with high position and broad influence that are only temporary until he passes away and disappears so completely that he cannot be found, in contrast to the upright whose end is peace. It therefore warns against letting a cherished, engrossing object absorb the mind and separate the soul from God, directing desire and ambition toward worthy, lasting objects. It shows that a hypocrite, sinner, or corrupt person may flourish for a time among honest people like a green bay tree, but will eventually be exposed in folly and brought to confusion, for God searches him out and separates the vile from the precious. Self-trust and apparent success of this kind did not last for Bro. Aldrich, whose branches God could wither and whose plans God could bring to nothing, so that his poor management increased the Institute's difficulties.