The Fear of the Lord

“Praise the LORD!
How blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
Wealth and riches are in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
Light arises in the darkness for the upright;
He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.
It is well with the man who is gracious and lends;
He will maintain his cause in judgment.
For he will never be shaken;
The righteous will be remembered forever.
He will not fear evil tidings;
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
His heart is upheld, he will not fear,
Until he looks with satisfaction on his adversaries.
He has given freely to the poor,
His righteousness endures forever;
His horn will be exalted in honor.
The wicked will see it and be vexed,
He will gnash his teeth and melt away;
The desire of the wicked will perish.” Psalm 112

Those who fear (reverence, love, honor, respect, obey, and worship) the Lord are those who put themselves in the position to benefit by the description found in this Psalm. We are told, “How blessed is the man who fears the LORD...” (verse 1) followed by a list of specific matters in which this one will receive blessings. This is not the heritage of those who hate God, those who deny Him lordship of their lives.

The previous Psalm ends by saying, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments;
His praise endures forever” (Psalm 111:10).

Those who try to imitate godly wisdom are described in 2 Timothy 3:7: “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” What a tragic commentary on the empty pursuit of something which only “the fear of the LORD” can freely grant. Once again the rift between God’s way and man’s way becomes increasingly obvious, and Jesus’ teachings take on new light and meaning when we see their counterpart in the Old Testament.

The fear of the Lord makes a hero; the fear of men makes a coward.