THE FEAR OF THE LORD


 

THE FEAR OF THE LORD

 

As a little kid I was taught songs that were intended to scare you straight. 

 

"be careful little eyes what you see..  ears what you hear... mouth what you speak...

 He is watching, watching, watching over you." 

 

The concept of a huge eye in the sky who sees and knows EVERYTHING was terrifying!

 

Even Strong's Exhaustive Concordance describes the Hebrew word translated "FEAR" as: dreadful, exceedingly, fearfulness… and… depending on context… reverential awe.

 

 

So, when you are taught Proverbs1:7 "THE FEAR OF THE LORD is the beginning of wisdom", they lean heavily on the part of the definition of dread and terror of what God might do to you on the Day of Judgement... but only incidentally tagging that it is REALLY "holy awe and respectful reverence"...

...ALL of which still keeps us fixated on the vast chasm between us and Him...

                …even “reverential awe” still carries the stigma of me separated…

…standing off in admiration.

 

 

But... since "God is love" (1Jn4:8)...

 

...and "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear…” (1Jn4:18NKJV)

 

…then… how does this really work?

 

 

Hebrew is intended not to be defined, but rather to draw a picture in the hearer’s mind.

 

 

 

The root Hebrew word יָרֵא (yārēʾ) is built from three simple Hebrew consonants

 

·         י  - Yod is the smallest Hebrew letter often depicts the hand, and introduces this verb, not as an emotion, but as an active, ongoing orientation of a person’s life posture

·         ר – Resh is associated with the head, mind, will… the beginning… one’s internal orientation... conveying the idea of what governs or leads a person from within.

 

·         א – Aleph often points to the source, strength, BREATH, or presence – unseen, yet foundational… an encounter with something ultimate… like an overwhelming reality of PRESENCE.

 

 

Now… put all of the letters together:

When “י”  (active posture) meets “ ר” (inner orientation)  

and is anchored by “ א” (ULTIMATE BREATH OF PRESENCE),

“יָרֵא” paints a different picture than “FEAR” in the modern sense of anxiety or dread.

 

 

The word then illustrates:

a child taking in that gasp…

…that quick breath of air…

…that involuntary initial inspiration of surprise when they first see the person

to which their innermost being is so intimately attached…

…Someone they LOVE!

·         their world is immediately secured…

·         their heart is overjoyed…

·         and their mind is set at ease with an inward recognition

of all that person is in their life.

 

 

This is the epitome of worship in its simplest form.

 

 

So… in scripture “THE FEAR OF THE LORD” is not about terror…

Instead… IT IS BREATHING IN the fulness of the ONE whose very presence is…

…THE BREATH OF LIFE.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SPLITTING HEIRS

Image
  SPLITTING HEIRS   Rom8:16-17 “…We are children of God, and if children… …heirs of God …and joint heirs with Christ…”   For some reason I always thought that “joint heirs with Christ” meant that He was inheriting a certain portion, and I inherited a certain portion assigned to me. In other words… I believed we SPLIT the inheritance… Christ getting HIS allotment… and then somehow, whatever was designated as my allotment was given to me as deemed necessary.   However… the word translated “joint heir” [ sugkléronomos] is a compound made up of: 1.          sun : meaning… so closely identified together as completing one another 2.          kleros : lot or portion … inheritance   SO… Christ and I complete one another and are so closely identified as to BE ONE , thus inheriting the fullness of the inheritance TOGETHER … with complete access… no “my portion”… no “my allotment”… no measur...
Read more

WHAT YOU ALLOW

Image
  WHAT YOU ALLOW   The age old question, “Why would a loving God LET that happen?”, comes from a very confusing perspective of the sovereignty of God.   The Oxford dictionary defines “LET” as: “ NOT prevent or  forbid ”, but, rather… “ ALLOW . ” …as in, "my boss LET me leave early"                                     …or… “who LET the dogs out?” We wonder why He doesn't intervene to prevent evil from happening, but, then again- most people would rather Him not meddle at all and LET us do what we please.   However, in His sovereignty, God gave dominion over everything on the Earth to MAN! (Gen1:26,28)   Yes… Adam fell and forfeited his standing with The Creator of All… BUT… The last Adam, Jesus Christ, RESTORED the grace… the right standing… and the authority to once again rule and h...
Read more

AND DAVID PERCEIVED

Image
  AND DAVID PERCEIVED     Are you a glass, half full… or a glass, half empty type of person? Some may say that it depends on the situation. Some say it depends on how thirsty you are. No matter the rationale behind it all… your PERCEPTION determines your reality. It doesn't matter if it is true, or not… how you PERCEIVE a situation, person, or life condition determines what YOU BELIEVE to be true and real. Marcus Aurelius in his “Meditations” stated, “Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective , not the truth.”     PERCEPTION is everything!     The Oxford dictionary defines PERCEPTION as, “ the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses.”     But what if there is another way to PERCEIVE which brings us into a way of processing life through THE TRUTH , rather that allowing PERCEPTION to define TRUTH ?     2Sam5:12KJV records, “And David P...
Read more