Table of Contents
Bible references
Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. (1Co 15:33 KJV)
Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” (1Co 15:33 NKJV)
Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals. (1Co 15:33 ESV)
Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character. (1Co 15:33 NIV)
Meaning of Evil communications
Evil communications or bad companionship refers to being in a relationship with any person or group of persons who influence your life negatively. Evil communication also refers to being affiliated with any society or organization that would have a bad influence on your life, physically or spiritually, or both. Therefore, evil communication encompasses our affiliation with evil cults, the occult, bad clubs, secret societies, evil fraternities, etc.
Evil communication also encompasses our close friendship with unbelievers, backsliding Christians, and mere churchgoers whose lives do not conform to the word of God. Sometimes, family members such as wife, husband, mother, father, siblings, etc. can prove to be bad companions through their bad habits and bad advice; hence making our relationship with them an evil communication.
Evil communication is generally being in contact with an ungodly person or an ungodly group of people. Other versions of the Bible use the term bad company in place of evil communications. Example: ‘Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33 NIV).’
The use of the term bad company in place of evil communications gives 1 Corinthians 15:33 a narrow meaning. Bad company means bad friends or immoral friends. Our understanding of the term bad company totally excludes other people in our lives who can also have a bad influence on us such as family members.
Examples of evil communications corrupt good manners
The Bible says a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh. The idea of the man and the woman becoming one flesh, allegorically, is like mixing water and alcohol; the result is neither water nor alcohol; rather a water-alcohol mixture. They have become part of each other and have influenced each other with their properties, and neither the alcohol nor the water is unique anymore.
Since the husband and the wife will become one flesh, there would be a mutual influence. The husband will influence the wife and the wife will influence the husband; mutual influence is indispensable in marriage. This goes against the misconception that it is only the husband who influences the marriage. The Bible leaves us with much evidence on how marriage brings about mutual influence and how certain women influenced their husbands to make certain decisions or carry out certain actions.
Because of mutual influence in marriage, when the Israelites came from Egypt, God, knowing how much bad influence the pagans would be on them, cautioned them more than enough that they should not intermarry with the pagans nor have any association with them lest the pagans would lead them astray into apostasy, worshipping strange gods (Deuteronomy 7:2-4). By commanding the Israelites to dissociate themselves from the pagans, God was helping them to avoid evil communication.
1. Pagan wives corrupt Solomon
Some notable Israelites such as David and his son Solomon marry pagan wives. But Solomon became a victim in that, in time, the pagan women misled King Solomon to do evil in the sight of the Lord. In case you have forgotten, remember that King Solomon was God-fearing and God appeared to him twice. Solomon offered a thousand plus sacrifices to God in Gihon, requested wisdom at the hands of God, and built and dedicated God’s temple in Jerusalem. Could there be anything that would turn this fellow’s heart away from God? Yes, something did; it was not false teachings, persecution, etc.; rather, it was his contact with evil women that turned his heart away from God.
Solomon had many women in his life: he had 7000 wives and 3000 concubines. Against God’s commandment, many of his women were from heathen nations such as Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. In his old age, these women made him build altars and high places where they could burn incense and offer sacrifices to their gods. Solomon built altars for Ashtoreth god of Sidon, Molek god of Ammon, and Chemosh god of Moab. King Solomon himself joined his wives in the worship of these gods. (1 Kings 11:1-13)
King Solomon was described as one who did evil in the sight of God. This same description was made about any adulterous and apostate kings such as Nadab, Elah, Abijah, etc. So King Solomon, later in his life, became an apostate; it was ungodly women who led him there. Indeed, evil communication corrupts good manners. Many causal factors lead Christians to commit apostasy; examples are denying Jesus in times of persecution, embracing false doctrines, etc. What happened to King Solomon should teach Christians of today that being bonded to a bad spouse and or being in a relationship with ungodly people is one of the sure paths to demoralization, impiety, and apostasy.
2. Jonadab misleads Amnon
Now Absalom, David’s son, had a beautiful sister from the same mother called Tamar, who was a virgin. Over time, Amnon, David’s firstborn, loved her. And Amnon was so obsessed with her that he fell sick because of her. Amnon had a friend called Jonadab, the son of David’s brother, Shimeah. Jonadab was very crafty; when he saw that Amnon was not in a good mood, he convinced Amnon to tell him his problem. And Amnon told him that he was in love with Tamar but he did not know how to get her. Then Jonadab told him to pretend to be sick. And when his father comes to see him, he should ask him to send Tamar to prepare some food for him to eat (2 Samuel 13:5).
So Amnon listened to Jonadab’s bad advice and lay down and pretended to be sick. When King David, his father, came to see him, Amnon pleaded with the king to let his sister Tamar come and prepare some food for him. Then David made Tamar go to Amnon’s house. There, she took dough and prepared cakes with it. When she took the food to Amnon to eat, he made sure that everyone in the room was gone, leaving him and Tamar. Then Amnon asked Tamar to bring the food closer so that he might eat from her hand. But when she came closer to feed him, he seized her and demanded that she should have sex with him. She refused and pleaded with him not to do such an outrageous thing.
Therefore, Amnon would not listen to her, and being stronger than her, he forced himself on her and raped her. And afterward, Amnon sacked Tamar from his house. This outrageous thing that Amnon was deceived to do, cost him his life two years later, for Absalom, the brother of Amnon, avenged his sister by taking Amnon’s life. The saying is true that evil communication corrupts good manners. Reference 2 Samuel 13
3. Jezebel corrupted Ahab
All the kings of Israel were evil and King Ahab was no different. However, Ahab did evil far worse than his predecessors. And he did evil to that extent because he was in an evil communication. Though God commanded the Israelites not to marry from the idolatrous nations, Ahab went to marry Jezebel, princess of Zidon, daughter of King Ethbaal of the Zidonians. Jezebel made Ahab establish her native religion, which is the cult of Baal, in the Kingdom of Israel and appointed priests for the cult. Therefore, this couple thrust the kingdom of Israel deep into idolatry (1 Kings 16:30-33).
With the worship of Baal came the persecution of men of God. The wicked Queen Jezebel, in the quest to silence and remove the worship of God from Israel, killed many prophets of God. King Ahab was in the know of her wickedness, yet he gave her his seal of approval (1 Kings 18:13).
In time, Ahab desired to buy Naboth’s vineyard but Naboth did not sell it to him and he became sad. Then Jezebel devised a plan to take the vineyard for Ahab. She wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and nobles in Naboth’s city. The letters instructed them to falsely accuse Naboth of blasphemy and have him stoned to death. The people followed Jezebel’s orders, and Naboth was killed. Then Jezebel had Ahab take Naboth’s vineyard. (1 Kings 21:8-10)
The Bible categorically mentions that Ahab was influenced by his evil wife Queen Jezebel to do evil. It is written, “There was none who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of the LORD like Ahab, whom Jezebel his wife incited.” (1 Kings 21:25). Once again the marriage of King Ahab to Jezebel reminds us of the saying ‘Evil communication corrupts good manners’.
4. Athaliah misleads King Jehoram
It is always sad to hear how potentially good people fall and perish due to the influence of bad people. One such sad story is the life of King Jehoram, the son of King Jehoshaphat. He became king at the age of 32 and reigned for 8 years. This king could have easily become a good king for his father and his predecessor was a good king who feared the Lord. But he could not. Why? Because he was in evil communication; that is, he was married to an evil woman, Athaliah, who turned his mind and heart away from following the living God into idolatry. King Jehoram forsook the Lord, practiced idolatry, built high places, and committed other atrocities. The Bible says,
“And he [Jehoram] walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for the daughter [Athalia] of Ahab was his wife: and he did evil in the sight of the LORD (2 Kings 8:18).”
Because of his sins, God denied him of peace. The Philistines and the Arabians raided and looted his kingdom. Lastly, God walked him into his grave by striking him with a bowel disease. By and large, it was the influence of an evil wife that turned his story into a tragedy. Indeed, evil communication corrupts good manners. Reference 2 Chronicles 21:1-20, 2 Kings 8:16-24
5. Athaliah misleads King Ahaziah
Earlier on, good kings such as King Asa and Jehoshaphat, who left good legacies, had reigned in the Kingdom of Judah. However, King Jehoram and his son, King Ahaziah, failed to walk in their footsteps because of evil communication. These two kings were victims of the same circumstance. King Ahaziah’s mother was Athaliah, the daughter of King Ahab; the same woman who corrupted her husband, King Jehoram. This evil woman and her family, the house of Ahab, misled the heart of this young king of 22 into idolatry. The Bible says
He [King Ahaziah] also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counseller to do wickedly. Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father to his destruction (2 Chronicles 22:3-4).
This young king’s reign was very brief because of his sins; just a year into his reign, God delivered him into the hands of Jehu, a military commander, who had him killed. King Ahaziah’s history keeps reminding us of the saying ‘Evil communications corrupt good manners.’ Reference 2 Chronicles 22:1-12; 2 Kings 8:24-29; 2 Kings 9:16-29
Dangers of evil communications
Remember, evil communications could refer to living with a bad wife, a bad husband, a bad relative, keeping bad friends, or being part of a bad society that will demoralize you and ruin your relationship with God.
Evil communication will ruin your relationship with God. King Solomon got himself into evil communications when he married idolatrous women. When King Solomon grew old, spoilt by many years of prosperity and peace and blinded by love, he became careless of the law of God, and his pagan wives got the better of him. One after the other, his staunch idolatrous wives asked him to do them a favor by building shrines where they could also worship their native idols in the land of Israel. Solomon loved his wives (1 Kings 11:1) and to please them, he defied the commandments of God and granted them their heart desires. The bad influence of Solomon’s wives ruined his relationship with God. This is the reason why as Christians we should not be married to bad husbands and bad wives. A bad companion will come between you and God, in that, in other to please him or her, you would have to displease God.
Evil communication will get you into trouble. According to the event leading to Naboth’s death, it was Jezebel who instigated the death of Naboth, so that she would seize his vineyard. When her plan was successful and she laid hold of Naboth’s vineyard, she gave it to her husband King Ahab and he also accepted it happily. Immediately after Ahab stepped into the vineyard, God sent his servant Elijah to reprove Ahab and threatened him that because of what they had done to Naboth his entire family would be exterminated (1 Kings 21:20-27). So, who got Ahab into trouble? It is his evil, pagan wife Jezebel who brought this trouble upon Ahab. Had it not been her, Ahab would not have had the evil intent of killing Naboth.
When a Christian finds himself amid bad company, he turns to be ashamed of his faith and the righteousness thereof. In that in other to fit in the bad company, he has to either abandon or compromise on his Christian virtues; by so doing, he will find the ease to indulge in the sinful things they do. Now to be ashamed, or to abandon, or to compromise on your Christian faith and virtues is tantamount to apostasy.
Evil communication is a source of bad advice. A bad friend, a bad wife, a bad mother, etc. will impart bad advice to you to do evil things against your fellow human beings and God. Amnon followed the evil advice of his bad friend, Jonadab, to commit an outrageous act in Israel, leading to his disgrace and, later, his death. King Rehoboam followed the bad advice of his friends which ignited a rebellion in his kingdom, leading to the separation of his kingdom into two.
Evil communication which is being in a relationship with bad people, organizations, etc. is dangerous to one’s life. A bad friend, a bad organization, and even a bad relative can betray you if it is profitable enough to do so. Mind you, the evil woman Delilah, the mistress of Samson, when she got to know Samson’s secret, betrayed him. According to the deal, Delilah was to receive eleven hundred pieces of silver from each of the lords of the Philistines for successfully leading them to Samson’s capture (Judges 16:5). Judas Iscariot, who became a bad disciple, betrayed Jesus for 30 silver pieces.
Lessons from evil communications corrupt good manners
‘Evil communications corrupt good manners’ is a word of caution to the Christian man or the Christian woman who is preparing for marriage. Do not make the mistake of falling into the hands of a bad husband or a bad wife who will affect your life negatively. God is still in the business of helping his children to find good spouses and you are a prayer away from getting a good spouse.
‘Evil communications corrupt good manners’ does not give Christians the leverage to view their neighbors as evil and begin to hate them or stigmatize them. The Bible teaches Christians that we should live in peace with everyone irrespective of their religious, cultural, or moral background. And the Bible teaches that we should be good to all, both Christian and unbelievers. Therefore we should greet, respect, and be helpful to all, whether good or bad.
‘Evil communications corrupt good manners’, rather, is a note of caution to all Christians to avoid any close friendship with those whose bad lifestyle can ruin our good morals and, consequently, our relationship with God. And if you are already in such a relationship, we should do well to come out of it. However, it is impossible to avoid close communication with certain people such as our family members. When any of your family members such as wife, mother, father, uncle, siblings, etc. prove to be a bad companion in your life, Scriptures like Luke 14:26 and Matthew 10:37, should remind you that nothing should stand between you and God.
What to do if you find yourself in an evil communication
Remember, evil communications corrupt good manners is warning us that if we are in close relationships with bad people (wives, fathers, friends, etc), we are at risk of being influenced by them to sin; they influence us through the bad examples they set or through their bad advice. This calls for taking measures. What should a Christian do about evil communications?
For any professing Christian who has joined bad company and for any professing Christian who is affiliated to any secret society, or cult, or secret organization, or secret club, and for any professing Christian who fellowships with an apostate church, this is what God tells you to do:
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. (2 Corinthians 6:17-18)
Sometimes, even relatives such as wife, mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, cousins, etc. can prove to be bad companions in our lives through the bad examples they set, or their bad advice, or their interference with our commitment to God. For any professing Christian who is experiencing evil communication at home, Jesus says,
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:26).
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Matthew 10:37)
Jesus expects you to love your wife, father, mother, other relatives, and friends less than you love Him. In other words, do not let them come between you and God. Let your love and devotion to God surpass your love and devotion to any other human being on this earth.
There was a man who did not fail like Adam and King Solomon. Though he was in a very deplorable state in which he was very tempted to sin, he did not give in to external influence like how the others did. He is a worthy example to all who love the Lord and wish to be loyal to Him. This man’s name is Job.
9 Then said his wife unto him [Job], Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. 10 But he [Job] said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips. (Job 2:9-10)
When the going got tough for Job and all was lost, he needed a consoler or a comforter to encourage him in the Lord. However, at such a time, his wife proved to be a bad companion and tried to drive him to the grave sin of cursing the Lord. She said to him, “curse God and die.” Lo and behold, Job, rather, rebuked her and kept his integrity. If all Christians were like Job, what a pleasure would that be?