A prudent man sees evil and hides himself,
but the naïve proceed and pay the penalty.

Proverbs 27:12

As New Testament believers we have a wonderful Helper, Comforter, and Sustainer; just to name a few of His names. And with this indwelling of God we have the ability through the Holy Spirit to discern when evil is in our path or knocking on our door. 

We certainly aren’t supposed to be a recluse and shut ourselves away from the world and its evil. I don’t think this is what our key verse is teaching. We are to put on the whole armor of God and fight the good fight and defend the widow and orphan. We cannot do those things if we are wimps!

But, there are times when we must flee evil and the only way to know when that is the right course of action is to stay in The Word, keep prayed up for discernment, and keep close to the Holy Spirit. Adding a pair of running shoes to our armor is also a good idea. Just ask Joseph.

Genesis 39:12

She caught him by his garment saying, ‘Lie with me!’ And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside.

Previous to this encounter, Joseph made it very plain to this woman that he would not sin against his master, the woman’s husband, Potiphar, or sin against God. But she brazenly kept after Joseph. He tried to avoid her and keep himself surrounded by others so she couldn’t seduce him. But, she was relentless in her attempts and trapped him when no one else was in the house. Joseph still refused and fled, but his coat came off and this woman used it to claim that Joseph was the one who was trying to seduce her. Talk about a woman scorned!

At first glance, this looks bad…really bad and in human terms it was. Even though Joseph kept his purity by fleeing from evil, he was thrown into prison. Many commenters believe that Potiphar knew his wife was a flirt (stating it mildly) and gave Joseph the lesser of his possible judgements. Putting Joseph to death was the standard judgment in such a situation, but God stayed Potiphar’s hand. 

Joseph faced a lot of evil; first from his own brothers, then as a slave and then in prison. 

But God! He had a plan for Joseph! Not only for Joseph individually, but for an entire nation yet to be born! Joseph was not perfect and God had to deal with his pride. But, Joseph was a discerning and wise and prudent individual who kept close to God. He learned when to flee evil and leave the consequences to God. He learned when to endure and yet thrive in the middle of evil. And he learned when and how to confront evil. 

Fools wear running shoes too, but for all the wrong reasons. They run into evil and mischief rarely even considering the consequences. They always want to push the line of their foolishness. 

Let’s keep our running shoes on and our hearts and minds tuned into the Holy Spirit!

John 16:13a

But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;