I tend toward quietness in a crowd. Or, to put it another way, I tend to let others speak while I determine the tenor of the conversation. Staying out of controversy interests me more than the attention it brings.

So I slow down as I read this stipulation: If anyone sins because they do not speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have seen or learned about, they will be held responsible.

Tucked into instructions regarding offerings for unintentional sins, this teaching smacks of my potential negligence. When I know I should speak up—but it’s easier on me not to—and I turn quietly away, then I’ve committed the sin referred to.

Most of the time it’s wise to hold your tongue. More so today with the social media mob standing ready with pitchforks and torches. But in certain situations, failure to speak is the wrong strategy. Or more to the point—failure to speak offends God and harms your neighbors.

When these situations arise (and we’ll know them because of our temptation toward hiding), truth and justice requires our voice.

Speak up.

Leviticus 5 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by davide ragusa