Don’t take advantage of a stranger. You know what it’s like to be a stranger; you were strangers in Egypt. Exodus 23:9
During warm-ups before a baseball game in 1946, baseball manager Leo Durocher, pointed across the field at the players of the ’46 New York Giants and said:
“The nice guys are all over there, in seventh place”. Shortly afterward, it was rendered as “Nice guys wind up in last place”.
This is where we get the quote: Nice guys finish last. Or said more eloquently: People who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed by others who are not so decent, friendly, or agreeable.
Being called “a nice person” is a double-edged sword. On one hand, a nice person is respected, loved, and admired. We all love a nice person. We can count on them to be selfless, forgiving, helpful, and loving. On the other hand, if you’re a nice person, you’re frequently the target of being taken advantage. You get bypassed in line, others take your lunch money without consequence, and you’re often bilked out of your resources.
Exodus 23:1-9 is instructions all about being “a nice person.” Don’t gossip, don’t partner with a wicked person, don’t show favoritism, and don’t do anything that’ll mess up your testimony. Do help your wicked neighbor when they lose things. Don’t tamper with justice and stay clear of false accusations.
It takes a lot of work to be “a nice guy”. While you’re admired, you’re also a victim. When you offer someone your shirt, they take your coat as well. You give away your money to good causes, only to be robbed when someone takes advantage of you. At these moments, you no longer want to be nice, or agreeable, or decent. Instead, you want that temporary pleasure of revenge. The temptation to take that bribe is great. And when someone who has hurt you finds themselves in the position of being hurt, you just want to revel in their circumstance.
This is when the writer of Exodus 23 reminds you of something… Don’t take advantage of a stranger. Because you were a stranger once too.
When were you a stranger or robbed or dismissed or overwhelmed, and someone was a nice person and helped you? When were you alone or hungry or sad, and someone sat with you? When did you need to merge into traffic and someone let you in?
I pray that you and I can continue to be nice people. From Exodus 23 to Matthew 25 (check that out later) and all places in-between, scripture tells the people of God that they are called to be people of good character, wise council, and scandalously giving. Even if we finish last.
A prayer attributed to St. Francis,
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is
hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where
there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where
there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where
there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to
be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is
in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we
are born to eternal life. Amen.
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