Proverbs 28 Devotional

Mercy for the Confessing

“He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.”Proverbs 28:13 (BSB)

There are two ways of handling sin, and Proverbs 28 sets them side by side. Covering it up leads nowhere good, but the one who admits it and leaves it behind receives mercy (28:13). Hiding seems safer. But the chapter says concealment cannot prosper, while confession opens the door to mercy.

The opening verse shows what hiding does to a person. The wicked run when no one is chasing them, while the righteous have the courage of a lion (28:1). Guilt makes people flee from shadows. Confession, strangely, makes them brave, because nothing is left to hide. The same chapter calls those who trust their own hearts fools (28:26) and calls blessed the person who always stays reverent before God (28:14). John gives the New Testament's version of this mercy: when we admit our sins, God's faithfulness and justice secure our forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9). Mercy is not pried from a reluctant God. It is promised by a faithful one. Whatever you have been hiding can be brought to him today.

To think about: What have you been covering up instead of confessing, and what keeps you from bringing it to God today?