“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”
Psalm 1:1
Why does the Holy Spirit counsel us not to walk in the counsel of the ungodly, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit in the seat of the scornful? It is simply because you will be judged by the company you keep. The story in 2 Chronicles 18:28-32 is food for thought and a lesson to all those who think that they can still keep their old friends after their new birth experience. Jehoshaphat, the godly king of Judah, went in the company of Ahab, the evil king of Israel, to fight a battle. Despite the warning by God’s prophet that the outcome of the battle would not be favourable, he still went ahead with Ahab to fight in this battle (2nd Chronicles 18:9-16). Meanwhile, Ahab decided to disguise himself as an ordinary soldier, while he persuaded Jehoshaphat to dress in his royal robes. Unknown to Jehoshaphat, the king of Syria had instructed his soldiers to go after the king of Israel alone. So, on sighting Jehoshaphat dressed in royal apparel, the soldiers went after him, thinking he was the king of Israel. He would have been killed, but for divine intervention. One lesson here is that the king of Judah would not have been attacked if he had not kept company with an evil king who was under God’s judgement (2nd Chronicles 18:27). Another lesson is that keeping company with the ungodly exposes you to the dangers of a fraudulent lifestyle. Why did King Ahad disguise himself as if he was not a king? One can only assume that his motive was to set Jehoshaphat up for intense attack.

There have been stories of young school girls who have been defiled because of the promiscuous company that they kept. So-called “friends” have set friends up for gang rape. One reason why children of God must be wary of keeping company with the ungodly is that the children of this world know how to manoeuvre through the dangers of a sinful life, but the children of light don’t know the ways of this world (Luke 16:. The story was told of a good boy who went out for the very first time in the company of drug addicts. Unfortunately, they were raided by law enforcement agents and this boy was arrested along the drug addicts. His parents could not believe it when the news got to them. A Christian who keeps company with the ungodly will end up becoming a victim. It is certain that nothing good can come out of such relationship. Therefore, be careful of the people you associate or partner with.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.