What other scriptures discuss the consequences of wickedness and darkness? The Warning in Job 18:5 “Indeed, the lamp of the wicked is extinguished; the flame of his fire does not glow.” Bildad’s blunt picture is simple: wickedness snuffs out its own light. Scripture repeats this truth again and again. Echoes of the Extinguished Lamp These passages pick up Job’s image of a dying lamp: • Proverbs 13:9 — “The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is extinguished.” • Proverbs 24:20 — “For the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.” • Revelation 18:23 — “The light of a lamp will never shine in you again,” spoken over Babylon, the symbol of entrenched evil. The verdict is consistent: sin eventually cuts off every source of illumination and hope. Stumbling in Present Darkness Wickedness does not wait for final judgment; it drags life into confusion now. • Isaiah 59:9-10 — “We hope for light, but there is darkness… We grope along the wall like the blind.” • Jeremiah 13:16 — “Give glory to the LORD your God before He brings darkness and before your feet stumble on the mountains at dusk.” • Ephesians 4:18 — “They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God.” • 1 John 2:11 — “Whoever hates his brother is in the darkness… and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” Sin clouds discernment, skews decisions, and leaves a person wandering without sure direction. The Day the Sun Goes Out Prophets and apostles announce a coming, climactic darkness for the unrepentant. • Zephaniah 1:14-15 — “A day of wrath… a day of darkness and gloom.” • Isaiah 13:9-11 — “The stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light… I will punish the world for its evil.” • Revelation 16:10-11 — “The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness.” When God finally judges, even the natural lights dim; creation itself testifies against persistent rebellion. Blackest Darkness Reserved Forever Eternal consequences are described with the same imagery—unending night. • Matthew 22:13 — “Throw him into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” • 2 Peter 2:17 — “Blackest darkness is reserved for them.” • Jude 13 — “Wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.” • 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 — “They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord.” Hell is pictured not only as fiery but as utterly lightless—total separation from the God who is light. Why Darkness Follows Wickedness • God is light (1 John 1:5). Rejecting Him means rejecting light itself. • Evil works thrive in secrecy (John 3:19-20). Darkness becomes the chosen habitat of sin. • Justice requires exposure (Ephesians 5:11). What will not come to the light voluntarily is sentenced to perpetual night. The Offered Escape into Light Even passages of judgment hint at mercy: • Micah 7:8 — “Though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light.” • John 8:12 — “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” • Colossians 1:13 — “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of His beloved Son.” Every person experiencing the consequences described above is invited to step into Christ’s light and find forgiveness, clarity, and unending day. |
    |