”Envy thou not the oppressor, And choose none of his ways. For the froward is abomination to the LORD: But his secret is with the righteous.“
Proverbs 3:31-32
The getting of value by taking it by unjust means from others is an abomination to the LORD. Pressing others down to lift yourself up is empty, shortsighted, petty and it ends up getting you targeted by other selfish persons.
In contrast, using your value to gain value by investing in education and tools improving yourself and those around you is a slow, tedious, worthwhile way grow wealth. Doing so builds trust in your community and gains you loyalty.
In short, oppressive behavior is a childish, short term bandaid fix to a mature, lifelong and life threatening problem. Employing oppressive behavior is like bathing in refuse and all of life from the lowest beast to the Creator of all despise it.
We are admonished to find God’s secret with the righteous. This is in no way suggesting God has a secret to share with those who consider themselves “holier- than-thou” or “above such things.” They are all too often embodying an oppressor. The context points to the secret instead being, “in counsel with” God. The implication being that righteousness (not oppression) gives us a pass to go “behind the scenes” or to loosely borrow a legal term, “In Chambers” where the public is not permitted to hear the discussion.
In its most simplistic form this is an warning not to proceed with what, on the surface, looks like the correct choice (oppression as a way of getting your will enforced) but to instead seek a better way that will keep us from being a muck monster and gain us an audience with a higher power.