Death of the Wicked

But if the LORD brings about something unprecedented, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them and all that belongs to them so that they go down alive into Sheol, then you will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt.”

About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal dead.

And Jehoram walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For he married a daughter of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the LORD.

Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. He died, to no one’s regret, and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

Are not their tent cords pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?’

He is torn from the shelter of his tent and is marched off to the king of terrors.

He is driven from light into darkness and is chased from the inhabited world.

Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth,

…the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?

He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.

The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust.

They spend their days in prosperity and go down to Sheol in peace.

How often is the lamp of the wicked put out? Does disaster come upon them? Does God, in His anger, apportion destruction?

Are they like straw before the wind, like chaff swept away by a storm?

One man dies full of vigor, completely secure and at ease. …

The womb forgets them; the worm feeds on them; they are remembered no more. So injustice is broken like a tree.

They are exalted for a moment, then they are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like heads of grain.

For what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?

He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone. …

They die in an instant, in the middle of the night. The people convulse and pass away; the mighty are removed without human hand.

But if they do not obey, then they perish by the sword and die without knowledge.

They die in their youth, among the male shrine prostitutes.

Be careful that no one lures you with riches; do not let a large bribe lead you astray.

Do not long for the night, when people vanish from their homes.

Of David. Do not fret over those who do evil; do not envy those who do wrong.

For they wither quickly like grass and wilt like tender plants.

For the evildoers will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree,

…yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.

No man can possibly redeem his brother or pay his ransom to God.

…that he should live on forever and not see decay.

For it is clear that wise men die, and the foolish and the senseless both perish and leave their wealth to others.

Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.

For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down.

…he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light of day.

A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction; men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.

Before your pots can feel the burning thorns—whether green or dry—He will sweep them away.

For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

They have no struggle in their death; their bodies are well-fed.

…until I entered God’s sanctuary; then I discerned their end. …

He cleared a path for His anger; He did not spare them from death but delivered their lives to the plague.

…that though the wicked sprout like grass, and all evildoers flourish, they will be forever destroyed.

…but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be uprooted.

The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.

He dies for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.

When the whirlwind passes, the wicked are no more, but the righteous are secure forever.

The fear of the LORD prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be cut short.

When the wicked man dies, his hope perishes, and the hope of his strength vanishes.

When the righteous thrive, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.

The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is extinguished.

The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.

The man who strays from the path of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.

For the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.

A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.

When the wicked thrive, rebellion increases; but the righteous will see their downfall.

Then too, I saw the burial of the wicked who used to go in and out of the holy place, and they were praised in the city where they had done so. This too is futile.

Your pomp has been brought down to Sheol, along with the music of your harps. Maggots are your bed and worms your blanket.

But you will be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit.

In the evening, there is sudden terror! Before morning, they are no more! This is the portion of those who loot us and the lot of those who plunder us.

The dead will not live; the departed spirits will not rise. Therefore You have punished and destroyed them; You have wiped out all memory of them.

For this is what the LORD says concerning the sons and daughters born in this place, and the mothers who bore them, and the fathers who fathered them in this land:

“They will die from deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried, but will lie like dung on the ground. They will be finished off by sword and famine, and their corpses will become food for the birds of the air and beasts of the earth.”

They will bring you down to the Pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the seas.

You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of foreigners. For I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.”

All the sinners among My people will die by the sword—all those who say, ‘Disaster will never draw near or confront us.’”

But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’

One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried. …

Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and withhold some of the proceeds from the land? …

While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.