Innocence leads to confidence, wickedness to fear 28:1 The wicked man flees though no-one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lionGod uses this image of fleeing unpursued in warning his people against disobedience in Lev 26:17 I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no-one is pursuing you. (Cf Lev 26:36 As for those of you who are left, I will make their hearts so fearful in the lands of their enemies that the sound of a wind-blown leaf will put them to flight. They will run as though fleeing from the sword, and they will fall, even though no-one is pursuing them.) This is what literally happened to the Arameans in 2 Kings 7. Cf Ps 53:5 There they were, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread. There is nothing quite like a clear conscience. English proverbs liken it to a soft pillow, an easy couch, a coat of mail and a continual feast.
A striking contemporary example of this is the story of Denver born Katherine Ann Power. At the end of the sixties she was a student in Boston caught up in the anti-war movement of the day. To raise funds the group organised a bank raid in which she was the getaway car driver. In the course of the crime William Schroeder, a police officer, was killed. Legally, Power was considered an accessory to murder. Although the others were soon captured she became a fugitive and evaded arrest. She took on a new name and identity, settling in Oregon under the name Alice Metzinger. She even married and had a son. In 1993, however, some 23 years after the murder, she finally turned herself in to the Massachusetts authorities and received a prison sentence now served. Why did she give herself up? By that time it is highly unlikely that she would have been indicted. Being reunited with her original family no doubt played its part but the chief motive for her action was the desire for peace of mind. Suffering from a deep depression she and her therapist came to accept that the underlying problem was her sense of guilt for her past crime. She was being tormented by guilt. However skilful she had been at hiding from law enforcement officers, she could not hide from herself and the knowledge of her crime.
Here the righteous man, the man with a clear conscience, is said to be like a lion. He is a legitimate tyrant over his own moral life. The righteous have no fear. Behind them is only God’s goodness and mercy. Do you know this blessing? Think of how Daniel and his three friends faced what they faced. This is what made Moses bold before Pharaoh, Elijah bold before Ahab, Paul bold before his Roman judges and Luther bold before the Emperor. If we are wearing the breastplate of righteousness we can say with David (Ps 27:1) The LORD is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?
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