Yirah — Fear of the LORD

The reverent awe that Proverbs calls 'the beginning of wisdom' — not dread of God but dread of life without Him.

Yirah in the Bible — example verses

“And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake.”Genesis 20:11 (KJV)

“And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.”Exodus 20:20 (KJV)

“This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.”Deuteronomy 2:25 (KJV)

“The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.”2 Samuel 23:3 (KJV)

“And he charged them, saying, Thus shall ye do in the fear of the LORD, faithfully, and with a perfect heart.”2 Chronicles 19:9 (KJV)

“Also I said, It is not good that ye do: ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies?”Nehemiah 5:9 (KJV)

“But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.”Nehemiah 5:15 (KJV)

“Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?”Job 4:6 (KJV)

These are the first 8 of 45 occurrences. See every verse containing H3374, with Strong's tagging and study tools:

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Definitions from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance. Verse text from the King James Version. Study any word free at Ekdia — no ads, no subscriptions.