Fear And Reverence Of The Lord Is The Foundation Of Wisdom

Is the majority always right? That’s a serious question and needs to be answered. But it’s also a dangerous question because a conniving answer could undermine our social order. Remember, our society consists not only of various levels of government, it includes families, social clubs, churches, and businesses; and to a large extent our society is based on the “majority rule” principle. That’s what local and national elections are all about.

Before we proceed, please understand I am not advocating a rejection of elections, majority-rule in Congress, congregational government in local churches, and so forth. In any scenario, the first result could be the rise of a dictator and that is abhorrent. But also understand this: Even with majority rule in place, we can still have a dictator, anarchy, or chaos when we elect people who have no fear or reverence for God in office.

How can that be? Let’s look at a couple of stories in the Bible. We’ll start with Exodus 32:1-6. Moses was on the mountain getting the rules for living (Ten Commandments) from God. But the majority of the people wanted a god they could see, so they chose a common god of the middle east: a young bull (“golden calf”) to worship. Even Aaron the high priest — Moses’ brother — cooperated with them. But the majority was wrong. Majority-rule here was disastrous.

Look at Numbers 13. The Israelites left Egypt, spent two years hearing from God and getting their society established. They were at the border of the Promised Land, and “home” was in sight. God — who created the world and all that is in it, so He has the right to do what He wants — told Moses to send 12 men across the river to get information.

All 12 gave a good report about the land but 10 of them — 83.3 percent — said they should not go into the land, while Joshua and Caleb — 16.6 percent — gave the correct report.

The masses agreed with the majority, and God issued judgment: all those over the age of 20 at that time would never enter the Promised Land. All, except for Joshua and Caleb, because they agreed with God. The ungodly majority ruled, and they reaped disaster.

However, Proverbs 11:14 says, “Without wise leadership, a nation falls; there is safety in having many advisers.” So what should we do?

We must have wise leadership; but we — the people — must be knowledgeable enough to know who is wise, be courageous enough to elect them, and be wise enough to follow them.

How do we gain that wisdom?

Proverbs 9:10 says “The fear and reverence of the Lord is the foundation of all wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.” That is beautifully self-explanatory.

Proverbs 11:10a says, “When the righteous [Godly people] do well, the city [society] rejoices [prospers].” Proverbs 29:2 says, “When the righteous [Godly people] are in authority, the people [society] rejoice; but when the wicked [ungodly people] are in power, the people groan [suffer].”

Therefore, since the “majority-rule” concept often gets us into trouble, we should be looking in a different direction. The answer is found in the Bible. We should be looking for wise people to lead us.

We need to understand that the majority is not always right. Therefore, like Joshua and Caleb, we should not be swayed by the opinion of the masses; rather we should study Scripture, pray about decisions, and base our lives on what is right in God’s sight — even if we must stand alone.

But remember: God will be standing with you.

GENE LINZEY IS A SPEAKER, AUTHOR AND PRESIDENT OF THE SILOAM SPRINGS WRITERS GUILD. SEND COMMENTS, QUESTIONS TO MASTERS.SERVANT@COX.NET. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR.