"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments: His praise endureth forever."
Psalm 111:10
Part 1
“The fear of the LORD.”
“The fear of Jehovah.”
Who is it that deserves our fear, our “respect, reverence,” and “piety?”[1] (BDB). It is Jehovah, the true God of the Bible. He is the God who is “independent.” All other gods need other gods, and people to support them. Not so, Jehovah! He is “self-existent.” He is the changeless great “I AM” and needs no one else, and nothing else to exist. He is the God of the scriptures, the God of “revelation.” He has chosen to reveal Himself to us, not just through His creation, but in detail in His Word, the Bible. And Jehovah is the God of “redemption.” Without Him, there is no salvation for lost humanity! He is the one true God.
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3).
Jehovah is our God that we are to Fear:
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10).
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).
“Is the beginning of wisdom.”
Clarke quotes this phrase in the word order of the Hebrew text.
“‘The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Jehovah.’ Wisdom itself begins with this fear; true wisdom has this for its commencement. It is the first ingredient in it, and is an essential part of it. In vain does any man pretend to be wise who does not fear the Lord; and he who fears the Lord departs from evil: he who lives in sin neither fears God, nor is wise”[2] (Clarke).
It is the “fear of the LORD” where wisdom begins.
“The foundation, the origin, the commencement of being truly wise… There is no true wisdom which does not recognize the being, the perfections, and the claims of God. The highest wisdom – the most lofty endowment of man – is that he “may” know and honor God”[3] (Barnes).
The psalmist points us to “good understanding.” But what is that! Come back tomorrow, and we look at this.
Quote: “Faith is obedience at home and looking to the Master; obedience is faith going out to do His will”[4] (Andrew Murray).
[1] Brown, Driver, Briggs. Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Hebrew Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[2] Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] Albert Barnes, Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[4] Andrew Murray’s quote is from his book, With Christ in the School of Prayer. Downloaded: Monday, July 20, 2020. From: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/obedience?page=3.