blessings of obedience « Crystal Writes A Blog

Proverbs 28: Fearful or Formidable

A digital, 2-panel image created by Wombo Dream AI. It shows a man in the first panel running in terror from skittering leaves as if he's being chased by them. This lines up with the first half of Proverbs 28:1 that says “The wicked flee when no one pursues.” The panel on the right side shows man boldly standing with a huge lion by his side. It's to represent the other half of the verse that says, “but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” — AI (Wombo) Fearful or Formidable by Crystal A Murray (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

As soon as I started reading Proverbs Chapter 28, the first verse reminded me of a verse in The Torah (in Leviticus) about people being afraid of the sound of a skittering leaf. And another in Joshua supports the part of the verse about boldness. I’ll post all three together…

Proverbs 28:1 WEBUS
[1] The wicked flee when no one pursues; but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

https://bible.com/bible/206/pro.28.1.WEBUS

Leviticus 26:36 WEBUS
[36] “‘As for those of you who are left, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a driven leaf will put them to flight; and they shall flee, as one flees from the sword. They will fall when no one pursues. 

https://bible.com/bible/206/lev.26.36.WEBUS

Joshua 1:9 WEBUS
[9] Haven’t I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed, for Yahweh your God is with you wherever you go.”

https://bible.com/bible/206/jos.1.9.WEBUS

There are more verses with similar messages, and they all point to the same basic idea: Life without The Lord is also without strength, promise, hope, or real peace. Life with The Lord includes these things and so much more. And while many pursue their own temporary pleasures, when that season passes, they’re left with an emptiness that echoes so loud, it creates heart-pounding fear. In writing about the difference without and with God, Paul said this to the converted (Messianic) Hebrews…

Hebrews 11:24-26 BSB
[24] By faith Moses, when he was grown, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. [25] He chose to suffer oppression with God’s people rather than to experience the fleeting enjoyment of sin. [26] He valued disgrace for Christ above the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his reward.

https://bible.com/bible/3034/heb.11.24-26.BSB

And if you want to do an even deeper dive into this first verse, I’ve just learned tonight how many fantastic study tools are available at the Bible Hub website. https://biblehub.com/proverbs/28-1.htm will take you to multiple translations of verse 1, and when you scroll down, you’ll find commentaries, teaching points, Bible study questions, and more. But be careful because all the study info includes sources to even more study info, and you could be reading for a long time if you love God’s Word. The link I provide with each post at the top has a lot of study on the whole chapter as well.

The rest of this chapter talks about riches, power, and poverty. It’s all good advice, and its messages have proven true in the test of time, especially where it speaks of how leadership (good and bad) affects a community. Like verse 4 that says (my paraphrase) those who leave lawfulness behind end up praising the wicked, but the law abiding end up in arguments with the wicked. Yes, it is normal to find contention with those who refuse to give God the honor He deserves. And it’s much better to stand boldly for God’s ways than to end up like the person in verse 9…

Proverbs 28:9 WEBUS
[9] He who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.

https://bible.com/bible/206/pro.28.9.WEBUS

While I spent a good portion of time following verses and word studies, I also spent my fair share of time playing with different filters on the prompt for today’s picture. So now, just for fun, I’ll end with the adorable image I got using the knitting filter.

A digital image created by Wombo Dream AI and using their “knitting” filter. It's the same prompt as the image above only made cute by being knitted characters. It's a 2-panel image with a scared and running knitted man on the left to represent the first half of Proverbs 28:1 that says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues.” The panel on the right has a knitted, kinda grumpy, man standing boldly next to a knitted lion. This represents the 2nd half of the verse that says, “but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” — AI (Wombo) Knitted Fear vs Boldness by Crystal A Murray (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

March 28, 2026 Posted by Crystal A Murray (aka CrystalWriter) | AI Image Creations, Bible, Nonfiction, Proverbs & Wisdom, Proverbs Series, Wombo Dream | Bible, blessings of obedience, boldness, fearfulness, lawfulness, lawlessness, Proverbs, Proverbs 28 | Leave a comment

About

Crystal is, like her name, multi-faceted. She can even write about herself in third person and only feel a little awkward about it. 🙂 She loves to write; she loves kaleidoscopes, fractals, and all things colorful; she loves her husband, her family, and her feline furkids; and mostly she loves Yahveh Almighty, her Creator. She believes her creative mind is in her DNA from Him, and she believes He sees His creations as she sees the images inside a kaleidoscope–all different yet all beautiful and most beautiful when light (His light) shines through them.