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There are plenty of situations in life where the question is not simply, “Can I do this?” but “Should I?”

You may have the legal right to insist on something. You may be able to make a business deal that works strongly in your favor. You may hold the stronger position in a disagreement. You may even be able to do something without anyone else ever knowing.

But being able to do something does not automatically make it right.

Nehemiah 5 raises that issue in a very practical way. It connects the way we handle money, relationships, power, and personal rights with something the Bible calls the fear of God.

What Does It Mean to Fear God?

The people of Jerusalem were going through a severe economic crisis. Some families were struggling to find enough food. Others had mortgaged their homes and property. Some had borrowed money to pay taxes, and the situation had become so desperate that children were being placed into debt servitude.

What made the situation worse was that their own people were taking advantage of them.

Nehemiah confronted those responsible and asked: “Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God?” (Nehemiah 5:9)

That phrase can sound strange. The fear of God is not living in terror of a cruel or unpredictable God. It means taking God seriously for who He is. We recognize His holiness, submit to His authority, and allow that reality to shape the way we live.

Their deepest problem was not simply financial. They had stopped allowing God to govern this part of their lives.

God had already taught His people that reverence for Him should affect the way they treated someone in need: “Take no interest from him or profit, but fear your God, that your brother may live beside you.” (Leviticus 25:36)

Those instructions were given specifically to ancient Israel, but the principle remains important. God cares about honesty, compassion, justice, and the way we use whatever power or advantage we may have over someone else.

What Does Real Repentance Look Like?

Nehemiah did not merely point out what was wrong. He told them to stop and, as far as possible, make things right.

Their response was: “We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you say.” (Nehemiah 5:12)

Then comes one of the most important statements in the chapter: “And the people did as they had promised.” (Nehemiah 5:13)

They followed through.

We see the same principle in the New Testament when Jesus came into the life of Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus had become wealthy as a tax collector, but after encountering Jesus he said: “If I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” (Luke 19:8)

Repentance is more than feeling sorry. It is more than admitting that something was wrong. It means turning from it.

That may mean apologizing to someone we have hurt. It may mean correcting something false we have said. It may mean returning something that does not belong to us. It may mean changing a pattern of behavior that we know is wrong.

We cannot undo every consequence of our choices, but where something is within our power to make right, repentance should make us willing to do it.

When People Matter More Than Getting Our Way

Later in Nehemiah 5, Nehemiah describes his own conduct as governor.

Previous governors had placed heavy financial burdens on the people. Nehemiah had the same office and legitimate privileges, but he chose not to use them.

Why?

He says: “But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.” (Nehemiah 5:15)

Then he gives another reason: “because the service was too heavy on this people.” (Nehemiah 5:18)

Those two statements belong together.

Because Nehemiah feared God, he cared about what exercising his rights would do to the people around him.

That principle reaches into very ordinary life.

In a family disagreement, I may be right about the issue, but am I more concerned about winning than loving the people God has placed around me?

  • If I am selling a car, a piece of equipment, or something online, am I willing to disclose a problem the buyer may not notice?
  • If I have a disagreement with a neighbor, having a legitimate right does not give me permission to be harsh, dishonest, or vindictive.
  • If I can manipulate circumstances to get the outcome I want, will I remain honest even when honesty costs me something?

The fear of God does more than keep us from obvious wrongdoing. It produces something positive: integrity, compassion, generosity, and love.

Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:37–39).

A proper fear of God should make that love visible.

One Question Worth Asking

Nehemiah 5 leaves us with a question that reaches far beyond ancient Jerusalem:

What is one area of my life where the fear of God needs to make a visible difference?

Not simply, “What do I believe about God?”

But: What changes because I take Him seriously?

The goal is not merely to become more careful people. It is for the holiness and love of Christ to be seen in the way we live, the choices we make, and the way we treat the people around us.

May we be able to say with Nehemiah: “But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.”