“Listen to me, you who know right from wrong,
    you who cherish my law in your hearts.
Do not be afraid of people’s scorn,
    nor fear their insults.
8 For the moth will devour them as it devours clothing.
    The worm will eat at them as it eats wool.
But my righteousness will last forever.
    My salvation will continue from generation to generation.”


12 “I, yes I, am the one who comforts you.
    So why are you afraid of mere humans,
    who wither like the grass and disappear?
13 Yet you have forgotten the Lord, your Creator,
    the one who stretched out the sky like a canopy
    and laid the foundations of the earth.
Will you remain in constant dread of human oppressors?
    Will you continue to fear the anger of your enemies?
Where is their fury and anger now?
    It is gone!
14 Soon all you captives will be released!
    Imprisonment, starvation, and death will not be your fate!
15 For I am the Lord your God,
    who stirs up the sea, causing its waves to roar.
    My name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
16 And I have put my words in your mouth
    and hidden you safely in my hand.
I stretched out the sky like a canopy
    and laid the foundations of the earth.
I am the one who says to Israel,
    ‘You are my people!’” (NLT).

”The only known antidote to fear is faith.” Woodrow Kroll.

This passage gives a number of reasons why God’s people should not fear:

  1. The command of God: ”Do not be afraid…” (7);
  2. The comfort of God: His comfort is real (12a). The Holy Spirit, ”the comforter”, is real. (See also 2 Corinthians 3:1-11);
  3. The vision of God (13);
  4. The ability of God (14,15);
  5. The Word of God (7,16);
  6. The protection of God (16);
  7. The feebleness of men (7b,8,12; see also v.6). In this majestic chapter, the permanence of God (His Person, Word and Work) is contrasted with the transience of men- in particular opponents and oppressors.

 ”Faith, which is trust, and fear are opposite poles. If a man has the one, he can scarcely have the other in vigorous operation. He that has his trust set upon God does not need to dread anything except the weakening or the paralyzing of that trust.” Alexander MacLaren