Proverbs 1: King James Bible
Fear of the Lord – Daily Devotion of Proverbs chapter one, Verse seven.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Today’s Inspiration from This Verse
God is Love, right? Doesn’t perfect love cast out all fear? Well then what going on with the fear of the Lord? We don’t commonly use this word in the same manner it was once used.
The Fear of the Lord Is:
- Clean (Psalm 19:9)
- Endures forever (Psalm 19:9)
- The Beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10)
- The beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7)
- To hate evil (Proverbs 8:13)
- Strong Confidence (Proverbs 14:26)
- A fountain of life (Proverbs 14:27)
- The Instruction of wisdom (Proverbs 15:33)
- His Treasure (Isaiah 33:6)
This isn’t shaping up to appear as the same thing we think of if we “fear” something, is it? In this day and age when we think of fear, we get a mental image of the people who are running for their lives from Godzilla. (Okay that could be just me… I digress)
I’d go so far to say, that without a reverent fear of the Lord, you can’t even begin to get to know him at all.
The fear of the Lord is something to be treasured in the heart of a believer, not something to flee from. Those who reject the Father (in this verse that would be the fool) will experience a fear of the Lord of a different kind, which will be terrible and terrifying for them.
But for us who are saved in Christ Jesus, the fear of the Lord is our strength and comfort. A reverence that causes for us to seek to please him. To make his heart glad.
This is beginning to sound allot like a loving Father now doesn’t it? It’s no wonder that Isaiah says that our fear of the Lord is his treasure!
Related New Testament Scripture concerning Fear of the Lord
1 Peter 2:
17 Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.
Revelation 14:
7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Prayer
Father,
Cause for us to fear you in the same manner that pleases your heart. May it fill us with confidence, keep us clean, instruct us in all wisdom and knowledge; may it cause for us to hate what is evil, receive your instruction, and provide for you things to treasure. May the fear of you cause for us to come closer to you than we’ve been before. In Jesus name we pray.
Amen
Confession
Since becoming a believer in Christ, have you ever found yourself lacking fear of the Lord?
The way I see it, if you’re in sin, then you’re outside of fear of the Lord. Because were you to fear the Lord in those moments of weakness, wouldn’t that same fear cause for you to hate sin (in reference to Proverbs 8:13 – hate what is evil)?
It happens to all of us no matter how pious we feel. I think were it not so, we wouldn’t sin.
What are your thoughts? Please leave answers to these questions in the comment section below.
Similar Posts:
- Daily Inspiration from Proverbs 15 P. 207 – Instruction of Wisdom
- Daily Inspiration from Proverbs 19 P. 274 – Abide Satisfied
- Daily Inspiration from Proverbs 14 P.171 – A Wise Man Feareth
- Daily Inspiration from Proverbs 9 P.89 – The Beginning of Wisdom
- Daily Inspiration from Proverbs 14 P.177 – Fountain of Life
Hello – just a quick thought from reading this article – what actually IS FEAR of the LORD?
As you say it isn’t fear in our modern sense but may I ask what type of fear it is as I’m confused as to your meaning of the word Fear.
Many thanks
Andre
Hi there Andre,
My understanding of what exactly is the fear of the Lord, would be a sense of awe, or a profound reverence. Different versions of the Bible actually replace the word “fear” with the word “reverence.”
It’s also defined as spiritually healthy, humbly accepting and acknowledging just how much bigger the Lord is than we are…
Perhaps it could be best described, as a vision of a small child who looks up to his father, and all that goes along with that scenario.
This is a good excuse to do up a separate page for the Bible Study section concerning “Fear of the Lord.” I didn’t choose to get too in depth on this article because, well, that’s the difference between a devotional vs. a Bible study in my mind I guess. Devotionals are a much quicker and easier read. But I will certainly do up a page with a more thorough explanation with Biblical references.
Thank you for your question! I hope that I was able to clear it up some. But stay tuned, because there will be an addition to the Bible study concerning this very soon!
God bless you in Jesus name.
Brian
Fear of the Lord-
My thoughts are that if you love someone, you truly listen to them and take them seriously. If we are in sin, that is, practicing sin without repentance, we are not listening to what God says and if we have heard Him we are not taking Him seriously. We are not loving Him.
Hi Ann,
I agree with your thoughts. You’re talking some scripture right there!
Jesus said to his disciples…
John 14:
15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
(BUT)
24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.
Amen and Amen. Thanks for your comment Ann, and God bless you in Jesus name.
Brian