Payoff

(Proverbs 24:20 KJV)  For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out.

Here is why we are not to fret or be envious:  The “evil” (7451a) will have no “reward” (future NASB) (319).  You need to understand this with a little flexibility.  A hard nosed literalism would say this means that evil people will not be around tomorrow and will know only suffering.  That is obviously not the meaning. 

“Reward” (future NASB) (319) has the idea of a project coming to completion.  It means “end” but with a value added on.  I think a good modern word for use here might be “payoff.”  The KJV translation is pretty good with the idea of reward.  It obviously has an eternal dimension but if you follow the lives of the rich and the famous you will observe that their final years are not all that good either.

So?  Take the long view.  Realize that God will not be mocked.  Think of God as a rope salesman as in giving enough rope to hang yourself.  Or give you a rope to hold on to and be rescued.  The choice is really ours.  I know the choice I made and continue to make.  I hope you are on board.