Proverbs 28:1 - Meaning and Application

See here, first, what constant fear people live under when they keep doing evil. A guilty conscience makes people their own terror, so they run when no one is chasing them. Like a person hiding from debt who thinks every stranger is a bailiff, sinners often pretend they are calm, but secret fears follow them everywhere. They fear danger even when there is no real danger, because they have made God their enemy and know it (Psalm 53:5).

Such people cannot help seeing the world as against them, so they have no true peace, no confidence, and no courage. They live with a fearful expectation of judgment. Sin makes people cowards. As the old writers said, fear shows a corrupt heart, and the memory of terrible guilt leaves a person stunned and troubled. If they flee when no one pursues, what will they do when God himself comes against them with his armies? (Job 20:24; Job 15:24; Deuteronomy 28:25; Leviticus 26:36).

Second, see the holy safety and calm that belong to those who keep a clear conscience and stay in God’s love. “The righteous are bold as a lion,” even like a young lion. In the greatest danger, they can trust the God of all power. That is why they need not fear, even if the earth is shaken and removed. Whatever hardships come in the path of duty, they are not shaken by them. “None of these things move me.” A clear conscience is a strong defense.