Commentaries:
God understands the effect of "mob psychology." Even in war with lives on the line, men tend to behave in a way that will increase to affect the whole army negatively unless it is impeded or prevented entirely.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Little Things Count!
He mentions "the faint heart," "those who are afraid and terrified," and "those given to panic." Every one of them is an invisible, internal force or power that compels a certain kind of conduct in battle. Each is a "spirit" motivated from within. Each one of those is debilitating to the soldier himself and can be communicated to others, seriously damaging the morale or the spirit of fellow soldiers.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Holy Spirit and the Trinity (Part 3)
In battle there is a kind of "mob psychology." If one man breaks and runs because he is fearful, he is likely to set off a wholescale retreat because everybody else will be frightened by the one who was fearful. So the army is routed and defeated, because the action of one affects the attitude of all.
The opposite works, too—the bravery of one can also inspire all. There are both sides of it.
We must come to understand that, in every situation, we have a responsibility to the whole. We do not stand alone! There is individual responsibility, first, to be obedient to God, and second, to be faithful and loyal to the whole. If we go off and do something on our own, then we will bear the burden of our sin, but it is not going to end there because our sin will affect everybody else unless corrective action occurs.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Every Action Has a Reaction
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