It pays to stay close to righteous people. The Bible is full of instances of not-so-righteous people being delivered from trouble or spared disaster on account of righteous people they were close to.
When God revealed His plans to destroy Sodom, Abraham asked God to spare the city if there were 50 righteous people found in it. God agreed. Abraham then negotiated that number down to 45, 40, 30, 20, and ultimately 10, with God agreeing each time. God would have shown mercy to an entire city of violent gang rapists for sake of ten righteous folks! Unfortunately for Sodom, there were fewer than ten righteous; by the most generous count, there were only four: Lot, his wife, and his two married daughters, all of whom God's angels drove out of the city prior to it's fiery and sulfurous demise. [Genesis 18:20-19:29]
Earlier in the history of the world, God became regretful over His creation, for men had become exceedingly corrupt and violent. God resolved to wipe them all out except for the one man he found to be righteous, Noah. The Bible didn't say any of Noah's family was righteous, just Noah and Noah alone. And yet, when the destructive floods came, Noah's entire family--including the wives of his sons--was safe on the Ark, spared by Noah's righteousness. I'd say those daughters-in-law married well. [Genesis 6:5 - 7:7]
The Apostle Paul had been imprisoned and was travelling by ship to Rome along with some other prisoners to make his appeal to Caesar when a terrible Nor'easter struck. The storm persisted for many days, prompting the crew to jettison their cargo, anchors, and most of their provisions. Having gone hungry for many days, the men began to lose hope. An angel appeared to Paul at this time and told him, "Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you." When Paul related this to the men on the ship, many were encouraged, although a desperate few attempted to escape by the life boats. Paul told the soldiers guarding him, "Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.” So the soldiers dropped the lifeboats into the raging sea. Two weeks after the storm began, the ship wrecked ashore. The soldiers considered killing the prisoners but, for the sake of Paul, they did not kill anyone. As promised, not a single man died; God had rescued everyone, including the prisoners (some of whom deserved death, likely) on account of one righteous man. [Acts 27:13-44]
So when trouble threatens, find a righteous person and stick close to him or her.
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