# 402 The Proverbs – ‘A manual for living’ (MSG). Proverbs 1:1-7 (key words: The fear of the Lord)   

In the Book of Acts there is an interesting verse (9:31), speaking of the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria, which incidentally had been suffering due to persecution from Saul. But a miraculous event had taken place, and that was the transformation of Saul (later known as Paul), who now, instead of hating Christians, joined with them proclaiming that Jesus is the Son of God (9:20). Then we read that the church…enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened, and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord. (9:31) 

“Living in the fear of the Lord,” of course, was not a new concept for these believers. If they had read their Bibles (basically the OT at that stage) they would have seen this phrase used over 100 times! It would then be used 22 times in the NT, including the verse above.

In Wisdom literature it is used 5 times in the Book of Job:

e.g., There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:1)

29 times in the Book of Psalms:

e.g., Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. (Psalm 34:11)

18 times in the Book of Proverbs:

e.g., The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. (Proverbs 1:7)

And 5 times in the Book of Ecclesiastes:

e.g., …here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is the whole duty of man.   (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Considering how important and how often this subject is mentioned in the Bible, it will be difficult to go very deep in this Blog. This will just be a “taster,” and so I suggest firstly, that you put “the fear of the Lord/fear God” into a website such as Bible Gateway, and read through all the verses on the subject. Then secondly, check out any good books on the subject such as one I picked up recently. It is called “The Awe of God – The astounding way a healthy fear of God transforms your life” written by John Bevere (published by Thomas Nelson, 2023). Below are just a few helpful quotes from this book.

 In his introduction he says: “What if fear – rightly aimed – is a virtue? What if the fear of God is the paradoxical path to an authentic relationship with Him? And what if this holy fear is what truly opens up to the fulness of life that Jesus followers have experienced throughout the centuries? What if this fear eradicates all other fears?”

In Chapter 3 (What is Holy Fear?), he says:

“To fear God is to reverence and to be in complete awe of Him. To fear God is to hallow Him. Hallow is defined as to ‘respect greatly.’  [i.e., Lord’s prayer] To fear God is to esteem, respect, honor, venerate, and adore Him above anyone or anything else.

When we fear God, we take on His heart. We love what He loves, and we hate what He hates… what is important to Him becomes important to us…

To fear God is to hate sin… hate injustice… to depart from evil in every sense – thought, word, and action… It keeps our outward behaviour congruent with our inward thoughts, motives and beliefs.

To fear God is to walk in authentic humility before God and mankind… to give Him the praise, adoration, thanksgiving, and worship He deserves… to give Him all that belongs to Him… to tremble before Him in wonder and awe. It is to give His Word and presence our full attention… to obey God… to abstain from any form of complaining, murmuring, or grumbling… to respect, honor, and submit to His direct and delegated authority… with the only exception being if the authority tells us to sin… it shapes our intentions, thoughts, words, and actions.”

He then continues:

“Now let’s partially list the benefits of holy fear… some of the many Biblical promises…

The fear of the Lord is the starting place for an intimate relationship with God… is the beginning of wisdom, understanding and knowledge. It gives foresight and clear divine direction… is how we mature in our salvation and are conformed to the image of Jesus… is clean, it produces true holiness in our lives… to abide in it… is to secure an eternal legacy… produces confidence, fearlessness, and security… gives us identity, makes us productive, and empowers us to multiply… provides angelic assistance, fulfilled desires, enduring success, nobility, influence, longevity, productive days, enjoyment in life, happiness, pleasure in labour, healing for our body and so much more… it endures forever… is a treasured gift from our heavenly Father.” (# 54)

“The remarkable thing about God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else.” (Oswald Chambers – quoted in Chapter 12) (# 54)

No wonder, at the very beginning of Proverbs, the author says, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge [and wisdom]. (Proverbs 1:7)

And Paul writing to the believers in Corinth exhorts:

Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1)