The Upright Man: A Glowing Spark in Darkness

When David declares, "With the merciful thou wilt show thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright" (Psalm 18:25), he describes no mere pretender to righteousness. The Hebrew word for "upright" means a person good throughout, though not thoroughly—one who genuinely pursues holiness, not one who merely personates religion.

Consider Noah, whom Scripture names repeatedly: "Noah was a just man and perfect in his generation." Spurgeon observed that Noah resembled "a glowing spark of fire in a sea of water"—perfect goodness burning amid corruption. The Almighty's affection for Noah's name is so evident that He speaks it again and again, as though unable to restrain His delight.

Or consider the plainness Jacob possessed—before Rebekah's cunning scheme corrupted him. He was a man whose heart you could read directly from his tongue, tam in the Hebrew sense: simple, cordial, unfeigned, and exact.

The upright person is not a moral acrobat, bending himself into shapes to please onlookers. He is a man of uprightness every way—like an even die that lands square and true regardless of how cast. He possesses stiff strength to tread down lusts within and temptations without. Such was Luther contra Romam, such was Athanasius contra mundum. With such a man, Adonai shows Himself upright, for He recognizes His own character reflected faithfully in the human soul.