Fear of the Lord Proverbs 1:7

 Proverbs 7:1 Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge,

but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

This word "fear" translates into "reverence" or "awe." It is about gazing into the awesomeness of God. It is a heart position of worship and respect for God's sovereignty and majesty. It is more than admiration. It is devotion. It is a holy fear that causes us to " rejoice with trembling" Kayla Ferris Proverbs 31 Ministry. 

“Fear of God refers to fear or a specific sense of respect, awe, and submission to a deity.”

““The fear of the LORD” is not the fear that a child has of an abusive parent (God could never be abusive). It is not the fear of calamity or death. Neither is it the fear of losing privileges or being displeasing to humans in some fashion. When one “fears” God, he reverences Him, standing in awe of the Almighty. One who genuinely fears the Lord will have a desire and willingness to submit to what He says to do.

Proverbs 1:7 – “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

 Proverbs 1:29,30 – “Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, they would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke.”

Proverbs 2:5 – “Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.” 

Proverbs 3:7 – “Do not be wise in the your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil.”

Proverbs 8:13 – “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate.” 

Proverbs 9:10 – “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”

Proverbs 10:27 – “The fear of the LORD prolongs days, but the years of the wicked will be shortened.”

Proverbs 14:26 – “In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge.”

Proverbs 14:27 – “The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death.”

Proverbs 15:16 – “Better is little with the fear of the LORD, than great treasure with trouble.”

Proverbs 16:6 – “In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity, and by the fear of the LORD one departs from evil.”

Proverbs 19:23 – “The fear of the LORD leads to life, and he who has it will abide in satisfaction; he will not be visited with evil.”

Proverbs 22:4 – “By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches and honor and life.”

Proverbs 23:17 – “Do not let your heart envy sinners, but be zealous for the fear of the LORD all the day.”

Proverbs 24:21 – “My son, fear the LORD and the king; do not associate with those given to change.”

Throughout the book of Proverbs, fearing the Lord is held up as the right thing to do, showing that there is a connection between the fear of the Lord and wisdom, atonement, walking uprightly, having a place of refuge in God, and a fountain of life.”

Roger D. Campbell

I couldn’t have said it better myself! 

In His Name, Cecilia

Anxiety Proverbs 1:7

 It was recently explained to me that fear is an emotion brought on by a real threat. “I see a lion outside, I can’t go out”. Anxiety is an emotion brought on by a perceived threat. “There might be a lion outside, I better not go out.” 

I could never understand anxiety until about March of this year. 

People would tell me about their anxiety and panic attacks and I didn’t understand it. “Worry is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do but you don’t get anywhere.” You can use all your energy and rock all day but in the end, you’re still in a rocking chair.  

Now I too can relate to having anxiety.

After months of living in “High Alert”. 

But I still haven’t figured out the proper thing to tell someone who tells me they have anxiety. The old cliches don’t fit. “Let go and let God”, “Give it up to the Lord”, “Trust God”. That’s how I USE to answer them and moved on because I couldn’t “identify” with them. They were silly for fearing something that might never happen. They were wasting time. 

Now I understand. Now I can relate. It’s not a good place to be, in constant high alert. But it’s where I’m at. It’s part of what I'm going through. It’s what I’m working on and working through. 

This verse talks about a different kind of fear. I’ve been contemplating “Fear of the Lord” a lot lately. What an odd emotion to describe our respect for God. I want to delve deeper into that but I think I’ve said enough for today. 

Proverbs 1:7 Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge,

but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

In His Name, Cecilia

Leviticus 25:24-28 Year of Jubilee!

 24Thus for every piece of property you possess, you must provide for the redemption of the land.

25If your brother becomes impoverished and sells some of his property, his nearest of kin may come and redeem what his brother has sold. 26Or if a man has no one to redeem it for him, but he prospers and acquires enough to redeem his land, 27he shall calculate the years since its sale, repay the balance to the man to whom he sold it, and return to his property. 28But if he cannot obtain enough to repay him, what he sold will remain in possession of the buyer until the Year of Jubilee. In the Jubilee, however, it is to be released, so that he may return to his property.

Has 2020 seemed like a Year of Jubilee to you?

Recently we’ve heard of two deaths, a spouse of my wife’s coworker and the spouse of a godly friend from church. They were only 62 and 65 years old.

And then our nation has all of the election fraud.

We can ask, where is God? 

But He can ask, where was I in your life, where was I in your nation, where was I in your schools and where was I in your government?

The world is marching towards destruction and evil is everywhere.

But our Lord is here too!

When loved ones die I am reminded of these scriptures:

Isaiah 57: 1Good people pass away;

the godly often die before their time.

But no one seems to care or wonder why.

No one seems to understand

that God is protecting them from the evil to come.

2For those who follow godly paths

will rest in peace when they die.

I believe I will rest in peace when I die because of the Lords promise that I hold on to!

My soul will go into His presence!

Will you rest in peace?

Blessings, David

Leviticus 25:23 Mine, Leases, Foreigners and Residents!

 23The land must not be sold permanently, because it is Mine, and you are but foreigners and residents with Me.

Principal #1: not sold permanently, could only be leased and to be returned in the Jubilee. The lease could be bought out at anytime by a relative, kinsman.

Principal #2: It is Mine! The land in Israel belongs to the Lord!

Principal #3: You are but foreigners and residents, (strangers and sojourners). The Lord was reminding the Israelites their real home was in heaven with Him, even as Christians are reminded today because scripture says:

Hebrews 11: 13All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

2 Corinthians 5: 1For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 

The older I get the more I look forward to my eternal, heavenly home!

Do you look forward to a eternal, heavenly home?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 25:18-22 The Blessing of Obedience!

 The Blessing of Obedience

(Deuteronomy 28:1–14)

18You are to keep My statutes and carefully observe My judgments, so that you may dwell securely in the land. 19Then the land will yield its fruit, so that you can eat your fill and dwell in safety in the land.

20Now you may wonder, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not sow or gather our produce?’ 21But I will send My blessing upon you in the sixth year, so that the land will yield a crop sufficient for three years. 22While you are sowing in the eighth year, you will be eating from the previous harvest, until the ninth year’s harvest comes in.

Matthew 6: 31Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

The Lord keeps His promises! 

Can you imagine a triple harvest sufficient for three years?

Matthew 6: 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.

When we worry about tomorrow we are basically saying we don’t trust our Lord. 

Lift your worries up to Him and ask Him to take away your anxieties.

Everyone worries but not everyone lifts their worries up to the Lord.

Do you lift your worries up to the Lord?

Blessings, David

Leviticus 25:13-17 A Jubilee!

 Return of Property

13In this Year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his own property.

14If you make a sale to your neighbor or a purchase from him, you must not take advantage of each other. 15You are to buy from your neighbor according to the number of years since the last Jubilee; he is to sell to you according to the number of harvest years remaining. 16You shall increase the price in proportion to a greater number of years, or decrease it in proportion to a lesser number of years; for he is selling you a given number of harvests.

17Do not take advantage of each other, but fear your God; for I am the LORD your God.

The promised land was to be divided up to the tribes of Israel, their inheritance was permanent. Each family received their portion and these were the assignments returned to each Year of Jubilee.

“The jubilee was a wonderful institution, and was of very great service to the religion, freedom, and independenceof the Jewish people.” (Clarke)

“Debts were to be remitted, slaves emancipated, and so the mountains of wealth and the valleys of poverty were to be somewhat levelled, and the nation carried back to its original framework of a simple agricultural community of small owners, each ‘sitting under his own vine and fig-tree.’” (Maclaren)

“each of you shall return to his own property.”

Each of you shall return to his possession.

Ephesians 1:14 who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.

Those of us in Christ are God’s possession!

Philippians 3: 20But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,

I look forward to my home in heaven, “A Jubilee” fulfilled to the maximum! We will be free of the shackles of our sinful human bodies, no more pain and we will shout with joy!

Holy, holy, holy is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Do you look forward to returning to your home in heaven?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 25:8-12 Atonement, Jubilee and Freedom!

 8And you shall count off seven Sabbaths of years—seven times seven years—so that the seven Sabbaths of years amount to forty-nine years. 9Then you are to sound the horn far and wide on the tenth day of the seventh month, the Day of Atonement. You shall sound it throughout your land.

10So you are to consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be your Jubilee, when each of you is to return to his property and to his clan.

11The fiftieth year will be a Jubilee for you; you are not to sow the land or reap its aftergrowth or harvest the untended vines. 12For it is a Jubilee; it shall be holy to you. You may eat only the crops taken directly from the field.

“Many take the prophecy of Isaiah 61:1-3 to speak of a Jubilee year.

The founding fathers of the United States were aware of the principle of the year of Jubilee and the freedom associated with it. On the Liberty Bell they inscribed the phrase from verse 10: proclaim liberty throughout all the land.” (Guzik)

Isaiah 61:

The Year of the LORD’s Favor

(Luke 4:16–30)

1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me,

because the LORD has anointed Me

to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives

and freedom to the prisoners,

2to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor

and the day of our God’s vengeance,

to comfort all who mourn,

3to console the mourners in Zion—

to give them a crown of beauty for ashes,

the oil of joy for mourning,

and a garment of praise for a spirit of despair.

So they will be called oaks of righteousness,

the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

“It is worthy of remark that the jubilee was not proclaimed till the tenth day of the seventh month, on the very day when the great annual atonement was made for the sins of the people; and does not this prove that the great liberty or redemption from thraldom, (slavery) published under the Gospel, could not take place till the great Atonement, the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, had been offered up?” (Clarke)

Thraldom: bondage, slavery, thrall, thralldom, thraldom (noun)

the state of being under the control of another person. (Definitions.net)

Did you grasp the comment and concept that Clarke refers to about thraldom (slavery)?

Read it again carefully!

Atonement comes before jubilee (freedom)!

Is Jesus your atonement and freedom?

Blessings, David