Pastoral Letters

Envy Rots the Bones

May 3, 2015 Author:Pastor Andrew Tan
Several weeks ago, the Straits Times carried an article whose title read “A* scholarship holder, ‘stressed, shy and insecure.” This student was a doctoral student in Stanford University. She was arrested for four counts of poisoning the drinking water of her laboratory mates. She was also caught for sabotaging the work of a fellow-researcher. What made her do those things? Those who knew her remarked that she was shy, found it hard to make friends, and was often stressed with her work. One male student recalled her telling him that she felt that she “was not as good as her peers.”

We do not know for sure what caused her to do that. Were those wicked deeds, as she claimed, a problem that was beyond her control? But for anyone who is overly conscious that others are better than he or she, and as a result, feels insecure and takes the step of hurting others, these actions or feelings could be a sign of envy or jealousy that is deep seated in the heart.

The Bible says that “envy rots the bones” (Prov 14:30b). In other words, envy does not simply destroy at the level of the skin. It destroys a person at its deepest level—the bones. Being envious or jealous of others is a problem anyone can face. The reason is there will be people who are more capable than we, be it at work, in school, and in church. If we do not know how to relate to them correctly, the consequence can hurt ourselves and others.

The two lines of Prov 14:30 read:
14:30a A heart at peace gives life to the body,
14:30b but envy rots the bones.

These two lines contrast one another, that is, 14:30a contrasts 14:30b. If you envy others, your bones will rot (14:30a). This includes disorder of the mind and even body. What is the antidote to envy and the hurt that it brings? The answer is found in 14:30a: If you maintain peace or a healthy heart, you will live a healthy life. Thus, the key to the destructive effects of envy is to guard your heart. There are several points that you need to take note to create a right attitude in your heart.

First, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights” (Jam 1:17). The abilities each person has is given by God. Hence, there is no reason for anyone to boast about his or her abilities. Instead, when you see that someone is capable, you should praise God who created him or her.

Second, Genesis 4 records an incident about Cain, an elder brother, and Abel, his younger brother. God accepted Abel’s offering and rejected Cain’s. As a consequence, Cain became jealous and murdered Abel. What could have prevented this murder sparked by jealousy? Before the murder took place, God told Cain two things. “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?” (Gen 4:7). In other words, make sure you do what is right. If so, although God may not give you what He gave others, but he will surely bless you in other ways that are truly beneficial to you. Thus, you need not be envious. God also told Cain, “But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it” (Gen 4:7). This means that jealousy is now threatening to take control of Cain and make him murder Abel. What Cain must do is to take control of jealousy—do not obey what jealousy wants him to do—murder. For you, be alert about how jealousy is moving within you. What you should do is simply refuse to do the evil things jealousy wants you to do.

Third, jealousy is really another manifestation of “self” that Jesus often warns us about (Matt 16:24-27). He reminds us to deny ourselves. Learn to deny yourself in all areas for God, and you will naturally also be able to put envy or jealousy down. Live to glorify God, and envy or jealousy will have no chance to surface its ugly head.