Proverbs 1:7: What is the ‘Fear of Yahweh?’

Proverbs 1:7 

"The fear of the Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction."

The word used for fear is Yerat, which in Hebrew, means both ‘to be afraid’ as it also means ‘to stand in awe’, and through this becomes an exemplar term to balance the delicate relationship between fear and awe. The ‘fear of Yahweh’ is not the fear of imminent danger, this is the fear that is more closely ascribed to the magnificent sense of wonderment.

The ocean is a worldly example many would choose to describe such a sense, with its deep vastness of space that far exceeds our current potential of exploration, motion that diametrically opposes itself as ripples gently trickle between stones on a pebble beach and the ferocity of its waves overturn ships with its powerful might. The ocean is a natural capacity to admire, just as it also is a capacity to fear. The ocean itself has incubationary properties that allows it to home creatures so varied and multifaceted that millions of people spend thousands of hours each year exploring it, watching nature documentaries about it, painting it and writing stories about it. This is the power of the water that destroyed humanity at God's will, just as it is also the water that kept Noah afloat and safe. It’s almost impossible to take a look at the ocean and not become overwhelmed with a sense of its awesomeness, and it’s this sense of awe, this feeling of absolute wonder that Solomon ascribes to Yahweh.

The fear of Yahweh is a reverential fear, a deep respect, but also an understanding of Gods sheer power, magnitudes above our human potential.

This fear Solomon speaks of, this awesome respect that comes from contemplating God’s boundlessness is a natural human response to the holiness and greatness of God, one that in many ways parallels the fear of the ocean, or the dark, or space, all of which are not inherently bad, yet this fear commonly comes through not fully understanding it or with that, knowing it’s power it can make us feel vulnerable at the foot of something we cannot control.

Solomon does not tell us to worry, in fact what he goes on to tell us is quite magnificent, that the fear of God is also the cornerstone for knowledge.

The word used in the original Hebrew translations of the Old Testament here for ‘beginning’ is Reshit, which means beginning, first and carries the sense of an initial point of origin. Solomon tells us that the awe of God is the foundation of knowledge. The word used for knowledge is Da’at, which is not simply abstract, worldly or academic knowledge, but also discernment and understanding. In the Kabbalah this term carries a mystical connotation, it is a powerful concept that represents the unity of all aspects of existence.

Solomon is teaching us that the awe of God leads to true knowledge, practical wisdom that is rooted in God’s certainty. Without the awe of God, without reverence of God, attempts of understanding life or gaining deep knowledge are misaligned. This directly opposes the knowledge that comes from self-reliance, secular or worldly knowledge that is deemed as folly by Solomon. 

Proverbs 3:7

"Do not be wise in thine own eyes, fear the Lord and depart from evil."

Solomon is instructing us that knowing God, respecting God, is the root of living right, obtaining true wisdom straight from the source of the animating principle of the natural order. True wisdom comes from acknowledging God as the source of all that is true, and to align ourselves with the will of God, truly, is how we are to obtain knowledge, as we continue to actively participate and grow in the light of God's omnipotence.

Proverbs 12:15

"The way of the fool is right in his own eyes: but he that harketh unto the council is wise."

There is a continual theme throughout Proverbs that reminds us of the stark opposition of knowledge that comes from human ideals, and the knowledge that comes from God. Foolish is the man that places his ideals above the Word of God. We are given the lessons, we are shown the path, all we have to do is trust that God knows best.

And through these lessons, through the deep reverence of God we ask ourselves, what is knowledge if not from the source? What are we holding on to if it opposes the will of our creator? At what cost, at what gain, at what peril does one grasp so firmly onto a particular belief that you shall not harken to the council of the Spirit that assures you it is for the greatest good of your soul.

Psalms 111:10

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, all those who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise."

Let us not drink from the waters of the idol, or the waters from the man philosopher who speaks only from his internal mechanics, let us not seek the wisdom of the council of men who base their ideologies off of the ebb and flow of human culture, let us harken to the council of God. Let us drink from the eternal waters of Christ. Let us bathe in the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, to truly cleanse ourselves, to shed the skins of the broken standard that man constructs for himself as his own eyes seek to be held at the height of all consciousness. Let us purge iniquity and walk the path that Jesus demonstrates for us, one that shall lead us all to God, one that along the way, strips humanity of all moral wrong doings, and joins us hand in hand as we embark on the true path of wisdom, in total awe of God.

Ecclesiastes 5:7

"For many dreams bring futility, so do many words. Therefore fear God."