The Only Acceptable Fear
Summary
So far, we have established that fear is the emotional component of the stress response, which was designed to protect and prepare us to face challenges. We have also established that mankind has been living chronically stressed and afraid. We have also established that fear has two pathways: the low road, which is often irrational, reflexive, pessimistic, and hasty, and the high road, which is rational, non-reflexive, and interpretive.
The Fear of The Lord
This lesson will address the “fear of the Lord.” We routinely magnify, enlarge, or give respect to whatever we fear. Conversely, we negate, marginalize, or overlook what we do not fear. Looking at it this way, to “fear” is to “worship”. Let us explore some scriptures which address the subject.
10The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding [Proverbs 9:10 - Authorized King James Version].
10The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever [Psalm 111:10 - Authorized King James Version].
Fear in these two verses is derived from the Hebrew word “yirah” [H3374] which means respect, reverence or piety. Beginning is derived from the Hebrew word “reshiyth” [H7225] which means first, chief or choice part. The Oxford Languages Dictionary defines “wisdom” as:
"the soundness of an action or decision with regard to the application of experience, knowledge, and good judgment."
Other relevant scriptures express the fear of the Lord as:
- the beginning of knowledge: [Proverbs 1:7].
- life and longevity promoting: [Proverbs 19:23; 14:27; 10:27].
- hating the principle and practice of evil, pride, arrogance and perverse speech: [Proverbs 8:13].
When we put it altogether what we have is:
Reverence for God is foundational and of primary importance to both the acquisition and proper application of knowledge in a manner that leads to a good life (Zoe) and longevity.
A very popular scripture that some bible scholars have claimed was mis-translated is relevant here.
The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God [Psalm 14:1a - King James Version].
My paraphrase of a more accurate rendering of this scripture actually reads, “The fool hath said in his heart, No God.” I concur. Anyone with an accurate knowledge of God will both fear (reverence) and obey Him because:
- they see Him in His Omnipotence, Omnipresence and Omniscience.
- they recognize His sovereignty.
- they recognize that they exist at His pleasure.
- they recognize His character and the principles by which He operates.
- they recognize His loving heart and favorable intent towards them (Jeremiah 29:11).
- they recognize the utter folly in attempting to live life independent of Him.
It does us no good to be afraid of God because that kind of fear leads to avoidance of the very help we need to preclude fear-driven and sinful lives. At the same token we settle for lives less than the ones we are capable of living when we do not reverence and obey Him.
The scriptures highlight another related factor: Knowledge of God and obedience to Him are important elements of fearing Him.
He made known His ways unto Moses, His acts unto the children of Israel [Psalms 103:7 -King James Version].
The children of Israel knew God’s acts, which they quickly forgot and were overcome by fear and panic whenever they faced challenges. Remember that fear, the low road specifically, is irrational and does not consider interpretative and contextual information like “I have been through x, y,z situation before, and God delivered me. He is faithful.”  Moses, on the other hand, knew God’s ways. Because of this, he took the high road and sought God for solutions when faced with challenges. Because He knew God’s ways, when God suggested annihilating the Israelites, Moses negotiated with Him based on His character as a covenant keeper (Exodus 32:1-5). Moses became so comfortable with God showing up as He always does that he disqualified Himself from entering the promised land by striking the rock instead of speaking to it as instructed (Exodus 17:6; Numbers 20:8-12).
We can either fear people and circumstances, or we can fear God. Those who fear God, even those who know His ways, recognize Him for who He is: the all-sufficient One in whose shadow lack, challenges, sickness, and all evil cease to exist. To fear God is to know Him: to know His ways, to trust His heart, His love, and His revealed will even when we do not understand His plan. If you are going to fear anything or anyone, choose to fear God. I hope this topic was as enlightening to the reader as it was to me.