Proverbs 21:18

"The wicked is a ransom for the righteous, and the treacherous is in the
place of the upright" (Proverbs 21:18 NASB). This proverb speaks of the
deliverance and victory of the righteous and the downfall of the wicked (cf.
Proverbs 11:8). It might be referring to a situation where the wicked has
planned evil for the righteous but their plans turn on themselves as it was
with Haaman and Mordecai. It could also be the wicked are going to reap what
they have sowed as the violence and immorality the Babylonians sowed was
reaped when they were conquered by the Medo-Persian empire. At the same time
the Babylonians were being conquered, however, God was putting into motion
the events that would lead the now faithful Israelites out of Babylonian
captivity and back to the Promised Land. We must always remember: "the Lord
knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous
under punishment for the day of judgment" (2 Peter 2:9).

Jeremy Sprouse