Proverbs 29:4
"The king gives stability to the land by justice,
but a man who takes bribes overthrows it"
A leader is one who brings consistency and harmony to the area that he leads; it is not okay to have a constant revolution. It is justice or predictable patterns of behavior that bring reward and predictable patterns of behavior that bring punishment that cause or allow stability to arise. When a leader, in his leadership, allows for back doors to fairness, then the whole of the leader’s goals and accomplishments are thrown into doubt.
Justice is a very sure, moral thing – an action to stop those who would violate God's moral law: the Ten Commandments. There must be a box to operate in; it must be consistent; and it must be consistently enforced. The rule of law is the best friend of a real leader.
There is an interesting direction that this proverb takes if one sees it as a lesson in leadership. The word stability is the word standing. It could mean stability, significance, or endurance. The word justice is the word misphat which is the word for judgment as well as justice. It could deal with the decisions of the leader as much as the moral character of the leader. The idea of land is that which is ruled by the leader.
This proverb could be saying that the leader gives endurance or even significance to his company, family, and civic organization by the type of decisions that he makes. If he allows his decision making to be influenced by bribes, then all the stability that he thought he had is gone.
This principle is true in business or politics or family. When a leader allows his decision to be influenced by whether he will get or keep getting favors because of it, then the organization that he is leading will crumble. We see this with political leaders who become corrupt through money flowing to them. We see this through civic organizations and people receiving favors to allow certain people to be involved. We see this in families when affairs begin or credit cards are hidden.
When you make decisions as a leader, you need to make the best decision for everyone – not one influenced by whether your pockets will continue to be lined.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz