A shallow understanding will see the word "believe not" to mean not accepting a religious belief that a person thinks will save them.
but that is only a carnal religious understanding.
What the verse is saying is that we come into the life and light of God by faith. By faith we enter into His presence...His light...and are empowered to walk as Jesus walked. By faith we are translated into the higher walk of the kingdom...full of love, joy, peace....but also dead to ourselves so that God might walk IN us and us in Him.
The crows here know nothing of the higher walk. They are mockers...all. Christ for these is a story-book character they are told they have to believe in for self-preservation. And worse yet, these carnal people like wild beasts can't help but be inspired by the spirit of Cain and Korah. Their unbelief is turned into evil in the face of the testimony of Christ according to the truth.
But he who wants to save his life will lose it. God is selfless...and He resists the proud and selfish.
This is a wisdom beyond the outer reaches of the outer man.
I still go back to when Paul stood before them and they’re wanting proof Christ speaks in him. Because from where they stood he was a reprobate in their eyes. Not
yet a brother. But an outsider to them. As one who is without. Is this not what they are saying in you are a reprobate? What is hidden? They claim brothers to Christ…yet they don’t see what is hidden from them …Christ in Paul.
They being the ones thinking they are in the right. While not seeing the gospel in Paul….held out to them. It being hid from their eyes. It stands out to me Paul could see it by Faith in them. “Until Christ be formed in you” and this Paul seeks by Faith in Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:19-20 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and
has committed unto us the word of reconciliation. [20] Now then
we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
To me this is exactly what Paul does in that passage of being blamed as being one hidden in darkness. Committing the word of reconciliation….as an ambassador for Christ, God beseeching unto them …their blinded by the god of this world that they don’t see what they refuse see in Paul (on the verge of turning away from the gospel) which is Christ (a Light shining unto those sitting in darkness) speaks through Paul.
But they couldn’t see Christ in Paul otherwise they wouldn’t have called him a reprobate; therefore calling Christ in Paul the reprobate. instead considering him no brother, no brethren, it hidden from their sight and Paul as one they had help out of the darkness of being reprobate.
To me what is there in the exchange is …they don’t see Paul as a brother while Paul isn’t saying the gospel is loving you in your sins but instead prayer a light (which Paul does pray) shines and they see, more than hoping, having Faith in the light of Christ speaking in Paul to shine unto the darkness of their hearts not seeing what is hidden from them, which is Paul (Christ in him) is not as one who fails.
To me that is hopeful. Hopeful by Faith in Christ …that what is hidden be seen, made manifest which is Christ. To me it still speaks of brothers who can’t see they are brothers in Christ. That being the gospel hidden that the god of this world does not want to be seen. That the light may shine in the knowledge of Christ and God be glorified is reconciliation and restoration of what the god of this world is hell-bent on destroying “that they be One as we are One.”