This morning, I was thinking about the sociological implications of the song Ain't No Rest for the Wicked. The song examines three sinners/criminals: a prostitute, and mugger, and an embezzler, highlighting certain similarities between them and commenting on society and perhaps even human nature. Yet, there are also noteworthy differences between the first two criminals and the last one.
The prostitute and the mugger are street criminals. The point-of-view character of the song describes encountering them on his way home, and they both ask him for money, either offering him a good time or threatening to shoot him. In both cases, the POV character chalks their lifestyles up to personal choices, asking them "Why'd you do this to yourself?" and "What made you want to live this kind of life?"
But personally, I'm not sure they had much of a choice. Granted, we always have agency. We can always, at least theoretically, choose to suffer and perhaps starve rather than break our moral principles. Yet, poverty can make people desperate, and desperate people often make desperate choices. Sure, theoretically the prostitute and mugger could have made different choices, but realistically, their life circumstances likely practically forced their hands.
Not so with the embezzler. The embezzler seemed not to be quite so desperate, and given another character detail we know about him, he should have known better. The embezzler was described as a preacher, having stolen money from the church he represented. The singer/POV character took a pot-and-kettle/glass-houses approach to the preacher and his crime:
But even still I can't say much,
Because I know we're all the same.Oh yes, we all seek out to satisfy those thrills.
But I'm not sure I see it that way, and I'm not sure God sees it that way, either. Naturally, I hope that sinners will receive some mercy for occasionally giving in to their natural inclinations, even their inclination to steal, but I'm not sure that's what's happening here. The prostitute and mugger were likely in a far more desperate financial situation than the preacher was. They weren't trying to "stuff[ their] bank account with righteous dollar bills." They were trying to feed their families and pay their bills. I think God would look more sympathetically on their situations and actions than He will on the preacher's.
The song seems to be sending a message about society and human nature, but the message I take away from it is one of sympathy and mercy. Those who are in bad situations sometimes make bad decisions. Maybe they had other options, but it can be hard to say. I have a good deal of sympathy for those who feel the need to steal or to sell themselves to survive. I have far less sympathy for those who steal in order to go from living modestly to living comfortably or luxuriously.
Yet, even then, perhaps I shouldn't be so quick to judge. Perhaps the preacher/embezzler was trapped with a desperation-inducing amount of debt. Perhaps the embezzler couldn't afford to keep his family homed, clothed, and fed unless he did what he did. God knows his (fictional) situation; I don't. Therefore, God should be the one to judge him, not me.
I was going to end my blog post by condemning the embezzler and saying that those of us who are blessed to live comfortable, if modest, lives shouldn't harshly judge those who are less fortunate, even when they commit sins and crimes to get by. But upon reflection, I've realized that we don't really know each other's situations, so perhaps we shouldn't judge anyone, no matter how blessed or privileged they appear to be.
We all need mercy and sympathy; some more than others. May we and God have sympathy and mercy on us all.
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