I am afraid of the Jews who have gone over to the Babylonians, for the Babylonians may hand me over to them and they will mistreat me.

Jeremiah 38:19

Many times, the fear of people clouds our best judgment. Though our heart is telling us one thing, our mind plays its dirty tricks on us. It   anticipates all that people may think, say, or do if we act on our persuasions, and finally convinces us to play it safe. Though the word of God strongly instructs our hearts, and His Spirit leads us in the right way, the terror of confronting the people around bullies us into submission to its threats. We save face and lose on the grace of God.

Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonian army under King Zedekiah. The prophet Jeremiah told the people to surrender to King Nebuchadnezzar because God had appointed him to take the land and send the people into exile. The leaders reject Jeremiah’s message and imprison him. He is even thrown into a dry well and left to die. By a kind act of Ebed-melech, a respected court official, Jeremiah is rescued and brought back into confinement in the palace courts.

King Zedekiah senses the truth in the prophet’s message. He calls for Jeremiah and asks to hear the message of God directly from him. “I want to ask you something … And don’t try to hide the truth” (Jer. 38:14). Jeremiah expresses his sentiments about the Kings reaction to the truth. Zedekiah assures the prophet of his safety (16), so Jeremiah tells the king exactly what God has said – surrender and be spared of your life or face the ugly consequences.

““But I am afraid to surrender,” the king said, “for the Babylonians may hand me over to the Judeans who have defected to them. And who knows what they will do to me!”” (19).

Despite the prophet’s guarantees, and the vivid picture he painted of the devastation of Jerusalem, Zedekiah refuses to surrender. He rather asks Jeremiah to do him a favor by not telling his officials about their conversation (24-26). Unbelievable!

True to the prophet’s word, Jerusalem fell and the ultimate happened. Nebuchadnezzar “slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and killed the nobles of Judah. Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon” (39:6-7). Solomon was right: the “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe” (Prov. 29:25).

Today, many are refusing to turn their lives to Christ, because of the fear of man. “I will be ostracized” they say, “and I can’t live without the fraternity of my family and people.” “I am a community leader. What would my people think about me?”

Not only that. Many Christians shy away from doing the right thing because of what people will say. They can’t commit to strict discipleship for how they think people may perceive them. With such excuses, they forgo the blessings of the Lord.

I have sat with a man in Koulouck, a village ministry center for our church. His heart throbs for Christ every time I talk to him. He comes around, works with us and even worships with us. When asked for a decision, he balks. He fears the reaction of his grown-up children. I have told him that it would be his greatest gift to them – by pointing them to Christ, the only source of life. To date, he is still pondering.

I pray you have not allowed the fear of men to prevent you from believing the word of the Lord and obeying Him. For, you only deny yourself of His blessings. May He deliver you from such fear that so easily besets us and keeps us from running the race well (Heb. 12:1).