If you are like me, you have a wide assortment of friends and family members with whom you interact. We have friends we want to travel with and others who might fall more into the category of fun acquaintances. We associate with people at work or church whom we enjoy in those settings. The proverb above isn’t to be applied to everyone in our lives, but it should be applied to those relationships that have a strong presence or influence.

The proverb teaches us to “make no friendship” with someone who is driven by anger or wrath. Like God, we should look at a person’s motivations. Only then can we discern the importance or value of the relationship. Anyone we spend a great deal of time with will eventually begin to impact our own thoughts and character.

I was a young newlywed when I went to work as a secretary in a real estate office. One of the men I worked with had been in the Navy. To put it bluntly, he spoke like a sailor! Sometimes a string of words would fly out of his mouth and embarrass us both. I tried not to judge him because that was the vocabulary he had been exposed to for years and years, and he was a good person. 

After I had worked with him for several months, his language began to impact my thoughts. One night I was pulling dinner out of the oven and hit my hand on the side of the oven. I was shocked when the first word that popped into my head was not a word I would ever want to repeat.

I was around this person a lot and his language influenced my thoughts. Thankfully, he didn’t influence what I actually chose to say! He was someone I learned to appreciate in many ways, but not someone I would choose as a close friend. I didn’t become “entangled” in his vocabulary, even though it did influence my thoughts. That is what the author of the proverb was teaching. We should be “in the world” but always aware we shouldn’t become “like the world” we live in.

The people we take into our hearts, and especially into our souls, should be people whose influence draws us closer to the Lord. Our friendships should encourage and support our sanctification rather than weaken the character God has called us to have.

If a person is driven by anger, wrath, or any other kind of sin, be cautious to limit their influence in your life. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Our deepest friendships should bless us with godly influence and help us walk more closely with God.