There was a time when people thought that to get out of bed on the left side was to open oneself to evil spirits. That’s why we talk about somebody in a foul temper having got out of bed on the wrong side. And medieval theologians argued that since a ladder leaning against a wall forms a triangle, and a triangle is a symbol of the Holy Trinity, anyone who carelessly walks through this mystical space is risking divine wrath. That led to the custom of making condemned prisoners walk under the ladder that led up to the gallows. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy of bad luck.
However, God’s displeasure does not come from random acts outside of us, but from calculated attitudes within us. “What does the Lord require of you,” the Bible says, “But to act justly, to love mercy, and walk humbly with Him.”