"Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment" (
Proverbs 9:10
Fear of the LORD is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.
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)
The fear of the Lord—that is a startling basis for wisdom. More than that, this fear, when rightly understood, is a delight for believers.
Answering the following two questions will help keep the fear of the Lord integral to your Christian walk—and keep you on the path of wise living.
What is the fear of the Lord?
Why should it be our delight?
What Is the Fear of the Lord?
In order to understand what the fear of the Lord is, we must distinguish between God’s immanence and His transcendence.
God’s immanence refers to His intimacy with us and nearness to us. It is how we abide in Him, and He in us (
John 15:4
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
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). This is an important category in Scripture, but it is only half of the picture.
God’s transcendence refers to His immensity and unfathomable sovereignty. It is His power, holiness, and majesty (
1 Chronicles 29:11
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.
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). We often overlook this side of God’s nature because it highlights our smallness and sinfulness compared to God’s greatness.
When we hold God’s immanence and transcendence in balance, we come to know that the fear of the Lord is a reverential awe for God because of His overwhelming otherness but a delight because of His intimate relationship with us.
The Fear of the Lord for Unbelievers
Part of the difficulty in understanding the fear of the Lord comes from conflating the fear of unbelievers with that of believers.
Unbelievers ought to fear the wrath of the Lord, for “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness” (
Romans 1:18
But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.*
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a). Because their faith is in something other than the saving work of Christ, they remain under the condemnation of God. Therefore, they should fear the punishment of God in a way that leads them to repentance.
The Fear of the Lord for Believers
Believers, on the other hand, experience the truth that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (
). Jesus Christ has taken the wrath of God on Himself, and His redemption saves us from punishment.
Because of salvation, our fear of the Lord is not a terror of punishment but a reverential awe before the majestic, holy, and awesome God who has drawn us to Himself. In His presence, it is all we can do to fall to our knees before Him in a posture of humility and worship Him.
All too often we try to minimize God’s majesty to a more manageable size, because we cannot grasp His grandeur. But God has no rival, no equal (
). Even when His presence is mediated through creation, mountains tremble and the earth splits open.
So, it is right for us to fear God, not as those under His wrath, but as those in awe of His overwhelming greatness.
Delight in the Fear of the Lord
As believers, our fear of the Lord comes from beholding the greatness of God’s power and righteousness. Because of His grace, this is not a terror of His wrath. Instead, it is a delight: O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name . . . (
Nehemiah 1:11
O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me.* Put it into his heart to be kind to me."In those days I was the king's cup-bearer.
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When we behold God’s power and righteousness in light of the forgiveness of the cross, we can marvel at His greatness with gratitude and awe because of our shelter in Jesus. We come with a contrite heart, trembling at His Word (
Psalms 51:17
The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
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;
Isaiah 66:2
My hands have made both heaven and earth; they and everything in them are mine.* I, the LORD, have spoken!"I will bless those who have humble and contrite hearts, who tremble at my word.
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) while delighting in our position as His children (
Romans 8:1-17
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power* of the life-giving Spirit has freed you* from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature.* So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin's control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit. Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life* because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters,* you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature,* you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children* of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God's Spirit when he adopted you as his own children.* Now we call him, "Abba, Father."* For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.
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).
The fear of the Lord, then, is fundamental fuel for worship. It is a dependence on the sovereign God and a holy aspiration to please Him like a child longs to please a father. Fearing the Lord is delighting in His will and wisdom, living out of a desire to hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant. . . . Enter into the joy of your Master” (
Matthew 25:23
"The master said, `Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'
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ESV).
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the NASB.
For over 40 years, Ken Boa has ministered through relational evangelism, discipleship, teaching, and writing. He is the author of more than 50 books—including Conformed to His Image, Handbook to Prayer, Life in the Presence of God, and Faith Has Its Reasons—and a recipient of three Gold Medallion Book Awards. As founder and president of Reflections Ministries, Omnibus Media Ministries, and Trinity House Publishers, Dr. Boa seeks to help people know Christ and grow in His likeness. He holds advanced degrees from Dallas Theological Seminary, NYU, and Oxford University. View a complete list of
