Devotion 4 — When Power Stops Listening
Devotion 4 — When Power Stops Listening
Scripture
“They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see;
ears, but do not hear.”
— Psalm 115:5–6
Power rarely collapses because it lacks strength.
It collapses because it stops listening.
In the biblical tradition, righteousness is not defined first by authority, intelligence, or control—but by the willingness to hear.
Throughout Scripture, a clear contrast appears: those who listen, and those who refuse.
Justice flows from listening.
Injustice begins when listening breaks down.
Two familiar examples make this plain.
Pharaoh: Power That Refused to Hear
Pharaoh’s defining failure is not simply oppression—it is his refusal to listen.
He ignores the cries of the enslaved.
He dismisses Moses’ warnings.
He reframes suffering as defiance.
Each plague is not only a judgment—it is feedback.
Reality itself is speaking.
And Pharaoh refuses to hear it.
The Torah describes this with a striking phrase: Pharaoh hardened his heart.
In practice, this means he closed himself off from correction, from reality, and from God.
His failure is a collapse of sh’ma:
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he does not listen to the people
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he does not listen to conscience
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he does not listen to God
Justice cannot emerge because listening has already failed.
Tyranny often begins the moment power stops hearing reality.
“Let Them Eat Cake”
History offers similar warnings.
The phrase attributed to Marie Antoinette—“Let them eat cake”—may or may not be historical. But it endures because it names a deeper truth.
When leaders are insulated from suffering, they stop hearing reality.
The result is predictable:
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scarcity becomes invisible
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consequences feel distant
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suffering becomes abstract
Whether literal or symbolic, the phrase captures a failure of listening.
The Pattern of Failed Listening
Across Scripture and history, the same pattern appears:
Distance from consequence
Pain becomes theoretical.
Control instead of understanding
Authority replaces wisdom.
Certainty without curiosity
There is no need to learn.
Suppression of dissent
Truth is ignored, silenced, or punished.
In every case, injustice does not begin with action.
It begins when listening fails.
Idols: The Ultimate Image of Not Listening
The Bible’s critique of idolatry reveals something deeper than false worship.
Idols are condemned because they are unresponsive.
They cannot be interrupted.
They cannot be corrected.
They cannot hear suffering—and therefore cannot respond to it.
The psalmist describes them clearly:
They have mouths, but do not speak.
Eyes, but do not see.
Ears, but do not hear.
And then comes the warning:
Those who make them become like them.
To stop listening is not just a failure.
It is a transformation.
You begin to resemble what you worship.
When Leaders Become Like Idols
Scripture returns to this pattern again and again.
Saul refuses to listen—and loses his kingdom.
Rehoboam refuses to listen—and divides a nation.
Ahab refuses to listen—and silences the truth.
Jeroboam creates idols not out of faith, but to avoid accountability. Idols are useful because they do not challenge power.
Even the people of Israel are described this way.
They honor God with their lips, but refuse to listen with their hearts.
The prophets name this condition clearly:
hard-hearted, stiff-necked, blind, deaf.
These are not insults.
They are diagnoses.
Injustice often begins as a failure of perception.
The God Who Hears
In contrast, the God of Scripture is defined by listening.
God hears:
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the cry of the enslaved
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the plea of the widow
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the suffering of the stranger
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even the groaning of creation
God listens—and calls the community to do the same.
This is why leaders who refuse to listen are judged so strongly.
They begin to resemble idols rather than the living God.
Why This Still Matters
The pattern has not changed.
Any system that:
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ignores feedback
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silences protest
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substitutes ritual for responsibility
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treats suffering as background noise
is not neutral.
It is already on the path to injustice.
The Core Insight
Injustice does not begin with bad decisions.
It begins when people in power stop listening to reality.
Pharaoh’s legacy is not strength—it is collapse.
“Let them eat cake” is remembered not as policy, but as disconnection made audible.
Sh’ma—the discipline of listening—is what keeps power from becoming blind.
Reflection Questions
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What voices have I dismissed too quickly?
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Where might comfort be dulling my ability to hear truth?
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Who in my life is telling me something I do not want to hear?
Prayer
God who hears the cries of the world,
keep our hearts open when it would be easier to close them.
Guard us from becoming deaf to suffering
or blind to the truth spoken around us.
Teach us to listen with humility,
to welcome correction,
and to respond with justice and compassion.
May our lives reflect the wisdom of sh’ma—
listening that leads to faithful action.
Amen.