Solomon declares that righteousness guards. Righteousness is two-fold. First, being righteous is having a right relationship with God. Second, righteousness is those actions that result from a right relationship with God. Marks of righteousness are actions that incorporate and emanate love, perseverance, courage, compassion, consistency, integrity, peace, joy, and a sense of what is appropriate. Thus, righteousness guards a person living in a field of these virtues.
The person who is not morally good is overthrown by their lifestyle. Their life is undermined and overthrown by their own wickedness. Before pride of life sets in my heart I must remember that if not for the grace of Christ I would have remained living a lifestyle of immorality.
Oh, on the surface I was as white as a tombstone. But inward I was full of dead men’s bones. Immoral thoughts and attitudes resided in my heart. Sometimes they would break through the walls of my tomb. So now in me righteous ways are possible because through grace I have been saved, through faith from a body of death. (Ephesians 2:4-5, 8-10) I am God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for me to do. Through these God guards me.
