PUDDY

⁸ They (The priests) feed on the sins of my people

and relish their wickedness. Hosea 4:8 (NIV)

On a classic episode of Seinfeld Elaine is dating Puddy, her not too bright boyfriend and she surprisingly discovers that Puddy is a Christian.  In the story they need a newspaper and Puddy tells Elaine to steal the one from the neighbor.  Elaine says, “No!  Why don’t you just steal it?”  Which he comes back with, “I can’t.  I’m a Christian.  Just do it.  You can steal.  You’re going to hell anyways.”

It’s a bad thing when God’s people get themselves in a place where they benefit from the sins of others, “I won’t get my hands dirty but that doesn’t mean that you can’t do it for me.  I’ll just turn a blind eye.”

God’s priests were benefiting from the sins of God’s people.  They were actually feeding on the sins and relishing in God’s people’s wickedness.  Instead of showing a broken world a better way (which was their purpose) they were encouraging a continuation, a furthering of that brokenness.

You can’t be light when you’re encouraging darkness.  You can’t point to a better way on one hand and with the other take the fruit of ill gotten gain.  You can’t live in both worlds.  You need to choose a side:  righteousness or worldliness, selfishness or holiness, duplicity or integrity.