26 "Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.'
27 "But he will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!'
Jesus has a word for those who labor in injustice and unrighteousness – “Away from me!” The word translated “evildoers” comes from two Greek words: “Ergates” meaning “worker, laborer, one who does something” and “Adikia” meaning “without justice; injustice, unrighteousness, wrongdoing, misdeed, impropriety, and fault. It is the failure to discharge one’s duties toward others and the failure to abide by the lawful standard of appropriate conduct. It represents a disregard for order, convention, harmony, and beauty, especially for the world. Biblically, unrighteousness is considered ultimately to be an act against God Himself – essentially a disregard for what God has revealed to be the true character, function, and purpose of things. Righteousness is the keeping of God’s law.” Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids
Undoubtedly, the call to righteousness among God’s people and the certain blessings which follow the righteous life permeate the pages of Scripture. One of my personal favorites, penned by King David, is found in Psalm 37:
25 I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread. 26 They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be blessed. Psalms 37:25-26 (NIV)
In contrast to the retribution of the unrighteous, the Lord establishes and protects the way of the righteous – His love and protection follow those who pursue righteousness and holiness. Indeed, when Abraham pleads with God to stay His hand from destroying Sodom, he uses the argument of righteousness:
23 Then Abraham approached him and said: "Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing--to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" Gen 18:22-25 (NIV)
We all know the story, Abraham petitions God down to sparing wicked Sodom for the sake of ten righteous souls. Unfortunately, ten righteous souls could not be found within Sodom’s walls. Hence, the destruction ensued yet God spared the righteous Lot and his family by pulling them out. As stated before, God does not delight in unrighteousness but delights in those who live righteously. Psalm one gives us yet another confirmation of our verses for today:
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Psalms 1:1-6 (NIV)
Lastly, Peter gives us a strong warning regarding this same subject:
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)-- 9 if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 10 This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority. 2 Peter 2:4-10 (NIV)
4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 5 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, Romans 15:3-5 (NIV)