The Power And Potential Of Holy Fear

“The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had told them; they let the boys live.” (Exodus 1:17, CSB)

One of the most fundamental aspects of humanity is an intimate awareness of right and wrong. When you and I see something that is just flat-out wrong, the natural impulse for many of us is shock, horror, even anger at the injustice taking place in front of our eyes.

My three sons had one of these moments on a school playground. There was a child on the playground who had a sensitivity to loud noises. This child was on the autism spectrum and my kids were well aware of the considerations needed to ensure a positive environment. Our family has experience with this community since my wife used to work with kids with autism. When the other kids got loud, the child started to panic and scream. The other kids didn’t know what to do which made them feel afraid. Friends, fear always leads us somewhere. The question is where is it leading us and why?

For these kids, the fear of something they didn’t understand led them to make fun of this child. My sons were shocked and horrified and ran over to defend the kid. When my sons came home they were so angry but also concerned. One of my sons, speaking on behalf of the others, said, “Dad, we know we did the right thing. But what if those kids make fun of us now at school?” This was a very real and legitimate question. I responded, “Yeah, they could. But what will that kid that you defended think of you three? How much better was his day because you didn’t let fear lead you to do the wrong thing, but rather, lead you to do the right thing?” They nodded their heads and went on their way.

In Exodus 1:17, these heroic midwives were given a horrific task. Pharaoh of Egypt, the most powerful man in the known world at the time who also happened to be viewed as a god, told these women to murder innocent male Hebrew babies. Can you imagine being assigned this evil task, and what might happen if you didn’t do what was commanded of you? The fear they must have felt. The Scriptures tell us that they did have fear, but their fear was of God. They had enough awareness of God that they knew to fear the King of the cosmos, the God of the world, not this human who was masquerading around as a god. The phrase “fear God” (yā·rē in Hebrew) deals with honesty and being upright in the first five books of the Old Testament (The Pentateuch.)^a

These women were determined to live an upright life in front of God. They had appropriate fear that was aimed at the right person – God, not man. And because they wanted to live a life of honesty and goodness before God, this led them to do something very hard and also incredibly holy. Through their humble awareness of God, these women were agents of mercy used by God for the saving of many lives. Including one little Hebrew baby boy named Moses who would be used by God to bring liberation to the Israelites.

Friend, I know you may be faced with the fear of doing something that may have a hard consequence. But as you process your fear, fix your gaze upon God – the one whom we should fear and honor with reverence. Considering God will lead us to act in ways congruent with His will. So even if we have to face the fear of the very hard realities of our life, we are doing so in the presence of God.

One last detail – these midwives are actually blessed and rewarded for their fear of God. They are given their own families (Exodus 1:21, CSB).

There may be consequences to human fear, but there is a blessing that always comes with our holy and reverential fear of God. I know this can be hard to live out so let’s start with a prayer:

Lord, thank you for your goodness. Help us in our moments of fear. When our mind runs rampant with the possible consequences of doing the right thing, remind us of the blessings that come from fearing you and doing what you ask. Be with us in our fear and thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit who equips us to get through our fears and live out a life of faith. Amen.