Fear Of Yehovah

Joseph F. Dumond

Isa 6:9-12 And He said, Go, and tell this people, You hear indeed, but do not understand; and seeing you see, but do not know. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn back, and be healed. Then I said, Lord, how long? And He answered, Until the cities are wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land laid waste, a desolation, and until Jehovah has moved men far away, and the desolation in the midst of the land is great.
Published: Dec 10, 2021

News Letter 5857-042
The 5th Year of the 4th Sabbatical Cycle
The 26th year of the 120th Jubilee Cycle
The 6th day of the 11th month 5857 years after the creation of Adam
The 4th Sabbatical Cycle after the 119th Jubilee Cycle
The Sabbatical Cycle of Sword, Famines, and Pestilence
1737 Days until the Two Witnesses
562 Days into the 2300 Days Started May 31st, 2020
December 11, 2021

Shabbat Shalom Royal Family of Yehovah,


Shabbat Zoom Meeting

There are many people in need of fellowship and who are sitting at home on the Sabbath with no one to talk to or debate with. I want to encourage all of you to join us on Shabbat, and to invite others to come and join us as well. If the time is not convenient then you can listen to the teaching and the midrash after on our YouTube channel.

What are we doing and why do we teach this way?

We are going to discuss both sides of an issue and then let you choose. It is the work of the Ruach (Spirit) to direct and to teach you.

The medieval commentator Rashi wrote that the Hebrew word for wrestle (avek) implies that Jacob was “tied”, for the same word is used to describe knotted fringes in a Jewish prayer shawl, the tzitzityot. Rashi says, “thus is the manner of two people who struggle to overthrow each other, that one embraces the other and knots him with his arms”.

Our intellectual wrestling has been replaced by a different kind of struggle. We are Wrestling with Yehovah as we grapple with His Word. It is an intimate act, symbolizing a relationship in which Yehovah and I and you are bound together. My wrestling is a struggle to discover what Yehovah expects of us, and we are “tied” to the One who assists us in that struggle.

Today, many say Israel means “Champion of God”, or better — the “Wrestler of God”.

Our Torah sessions each Shabbat teach you and encourage you to constantly challenge, question, argue against, as well as view alternative views and explanations of the Word. In other words, we are to “wrestle with the Word” to get to the truth. Jews worldwide believe that you need to wrestle with the Word and constantly challenge Dogma, Theology, and views or else you will never get to the Truth.

We are not like most churches where “The preacher talks and everyone listens.” We encourage everyone to participate, to question and to contribute what they know on the subject being discussed. We want you to be a champion wrestler of the Word of Yehovah. We want you to wear the title of Israel, knowing that you not only know but are capable to explain why you know the Torah to be true with logic and facts.

We have a few rules though. Let others talk and listen. There is no discussion about UFO’s Nephilim, Vaccines or conspiracy-type subjects. We have people from around the world with different world views. Not everyone cares who is the President of any particular country. Treat each other with respect as Fellow wrestlers of the word. Some of our subjects are hard to understand and require you to be mature and if you do not know, then listen to gain knowledge and understanding and hopefully wisdom. The very things you are commanded to ask Yehovah for and He gives to those who ask.

Jas 1:5  But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and with no reproach, and it shall be given to him.

We hope you can invite those who want to keep Torah to come and join us by hitting the link below. It is almost like a Torah teaching fellowship talk show with people from around the world taking part and sharing their insights and understandings.

We start off with some music and then some prayers and it’s as though you were sitting around the kitchen back in Newfoundland having a cup of coffee and all of us enjoying each other’s company. I hope you will grace us with your company someday.

Sabbath December 11,  2021, the room will be open at 12:30 PM Eastern with singing and prayers until about 1:15 PM. You are all welcome to join and watch. It is not recorded. We will have our afternoon service after this. You are welcome to come and join us before during and after we are off the air.

We look forward to you joining our family and getting to know us as we get to know you.

Joseph Dumond is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Joseph Dumond’s Personal Meeting Room

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Septennial Torah Portion

If you go to Torah Portion at our archived section, you can then go to the 5th year which is the 5th year of the Sabbatical Cycle, the one we are in now, as we state at the top of every News Letter. There you can scroll down to December 11, 2021, and see that this Shabbat we could very well be midrashing about

Exodus 17-18

Isaiah 12-14

Ps 123-128

John 6:28-71

If you missed last week’s exciting discoveries as we studied that section you can go and watch past Shabbats on our media section.


Each week on Shabbat we do a Torah portion. we go by the 3 1/2 year cycle which is twice during the Sabbatical Cycle.

November 4, 2021, we had a guest speaker come and give a teaching. You can listen to the Midrash here. We encourage brethren to come and teach so they can do so in front of a friendly real live audience which will afterwards midrash the teaching and we never know where that will lead us. But it is exciting.

I wanted this teaching to be used for our newsletter so I asked Rose to write it up for us and she has done so.

Fear

by Rose Treasure

Fear is a universal emotion.  Human beings and almost all creatures have fear reflexes built into our development at the time of birth, and the fight or flight response stays with us throughout life.  Reasonable fear can be lifesaving, and unreasonable and phobic fear can be debilitating.  It was a lack of fear, however, that caused me to begin thinking about and studying the subject of fear in the Bible.

In early 2020, I was planning to fly out from Oregon to visit my dad for his 85th birthday in Washington DC.  Just before it was time to go, I began hearing rumors of a “pandemic.”  I wasn’t afraid.  I did some research about it, and realized that for my age group and health level, I mostly needed to wash my hands and avoid breathing on people.  I went ahead with my trip and had a wonderful time with my dad.

While I was travelling home from DC, I could see the fear level in the world growing considerably.  Fear was all over the media.  People were acting weird all around me, lining up to wash their hands and talking about it incessantly, and still, I was still not afraid.  I started wondering if I was being obtuse, or if I was missing something.   I asked in prayer if I should be more afraid, the answer that came back was, “fear not.”  I knew this was a Biblical term, so that started me looking into it, thinking about it, and praying about it. As I began to learn and understand about fear in the Bible, I also began to understand why I was not afraid.

The word for fear in the Hebrew is the word: יָרֵא.  In Strong’s,  the word Hebrew is pronounced, “Yah-rey”.  It means, literally, to fear.  It’s the action, the verb tense, of fear.  Just exactly what it sounds like.  From blueletterbible.com:  affright, be make afraid, dreadful, put in fearful reverence, terrible act, A primitive root; to fear; morally, to revere; cause.
To frighten — affright, be (make) afraid, dread(-ful), (put in) fear(-ful, -fully, -ing), (be had in) reverence(-end), X see, terrible (act, -ness, thing).

It can also mean to be in awe of or to show holy reverence, to respect;  but the primary meaning is fear.  I want to emphasize that it’s not a symbol or an allegory or anything but fear fear.

The first thing that jumped out at me when searching this out was the obvious importance placed in the Bible on fearing Elohim.  I have so far found more than 85 references in the Tanakh where it’s clear we are intended to fear YHVH, but this is a work in progress.  I am still studying out these references, and it seems like I find new references every day.

I think it’s hard for many folks to get their brain around the idea that YHVH, who loves us also wants us to fear him.  I’ve known people who are very offended at that idea.  What I would say to them is that YHVH is worthy of Fear!  The Bible tells us this in many places.  Here are just a couple of them:

  • Exodus 15:11 Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?
  • Psalm 96:4 For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.
  • Psalm 99:3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.
  • Psalm 119:120My flesh trembleth for fear of thee; and I am afraid of thy judgments.

All of these examples tell us that YHVH is worthy of our fear.  This lead me to my next understanding which got me excited because I began to realize that not only is YHVH fearsome, we are actually COMMANDED to fear YHVH.

The fear of YHVH is tied to our treatment of one another.

  • Leviticus 19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.
  • Leviticus 19:30 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
  • Leviticus 19:32 Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD.
  • Leviticus 25:17 Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear thy God: for I am the LORD your God.
  • Leviticus 25:36 Take thou no usury of him, or increase: but fear thy God; that thy brother may live with thee.
  • I noticed how all of these commandments to respect one another are mentioned in the very same sentence alongside the Fear of YHVH.The idea of fearing Elohim is not just an abstract concept.  It is something that is intertwined in the Torah and the commandments again and again.  Notice these are not proverbs or Psalms, but Torah or law!  We are commanded to do these things in the same breath as we are commanded to fear YHVH.  When we treat one another with respect, we display our fear for him.

I began to see something amazing!  There seems to be a causal relationship between keeping the Torah and fearing Elohim, and fearing Elohim and keeping Torah.  It forms a cycle of obedience and fear.

In the last part of Deuteronomy, Moses is giving his final commandments to the children of Israel before he passes.  He reminds them over and over to fear YHVH, and gives them all the many reasons why.  I always sort of feel like it’s a big long letter to the current and future children of Israel, and I had never before noticed how many times Moses admonishes them to keep the commandments and fear YHVH.

In this section, Moses talks about the relationship between fear and obedience, and the blessings for obedience. Deuteronomy 5:29 O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children forever!

  • We will have long lives if we keep his commandments and fear him, and so will our children and grandchildren. Deuteronomy 6:2 That thou mightest fear the LORD thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged.
  • Our fear of Him will cause us to keep his statues.. Deuteronomy 8:6 Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear 
  • We are walking in His ways if we fear him. Deuteronomy 8:6 Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear 

Again and again, Moses tells the people not just to obey, but to obey and fear.

One may ask why a loving God would want us to fear Him.  According to the Bible, it’s a lot like the relationship between child and parent.  The child loves the parent, wants their positive attention, and seeks their approval.  They also fear the parent.  They respect the power that can set limitations and dole out punishments.  So it is for YHVH with us.

This is so important to our Father, that he says he will put it straight inside of us   Jeremiah: 32:37 ‘See, I am gathering them out of all the lands where I have driven them in My displeasure, and in My wrath, and in great rage. And I shall bring them back to this place, and shall let them dwell in safety.  38 ‘And they shall be My people, and I shall be their Elohim. 39 ‘And I shall give them one heart and one way, to fear Me all the days, for the good of them and of their children after them.   40 ‘And I shall make an everlasting covenant with them, that I do not turn back from doing good to them. And I shall put My fear in their hearts so as not to turn aside from Me. 

In chapter 31, Jeremiah writes, “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”  The two things are the same, placed inside of us for our own good.

The Bible states outright that we are meant to fear YHVH in order that we will be obedient.  Exodus 20:18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people say it, they removed, and stood afar off.  19 And they said unto Moses, “Speak with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.  20 And Moses said unto the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear  of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.” “Don’t be afraid …”

Joshua places the issue of service (obedience) and fear hand in hand.  Joshua 24:14 Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; cast aside the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!”  Joshua is telling them to fear their god, and in the same passage challenges them to serve him.

But this holy fear seems to do more for us than just cause obedience.  We can also see a correlation between fearing YHVH and wisdom.

  • The beginning of wisdom is fear of YHVH: Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
  • Fear YHVH and we will depart from evil, Proverbs 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
  • A wise king will fear YHVH: Psalms 2:10-11 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.  11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.  Remember that next time you vote.
  • It will be well with those who fear Him: Ecclesiastes 8:12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him.

We can also see the opposite of this principle.  If we DON’T fear YHVH, we will not keep Torah.

  • Malachi 3:5 And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts.
    Notice how this verse rounds up all those sinners as people who do NOT fear YHVH, and lists a number of types of sinners which are people who fear not YHVH.
  • Jeremiah 44:10 They are not humbled even unto this day, neither have they feared, nor walked in my law, nor in my statutes, that I set before you and before your fathers.
  • Proverbs 1:26-29 When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, 27 When distress and anguish come upon you. 28 Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. 29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, 29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, 30 They would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke.

Our Father in Heaven, much as our earthly fathers often do, intends to protect us from our own poor decision-making.  When we don’t obey, much like our earthly fathers, we face his anger and punishment.

It is in fact our DUTY to fear Elohim.  In Ecclesiastes 12:8-14, we read: “Futility! Futility!” said the Qoheleth, “All is futile.”  9 And besides being wise, Qoheleth also taught the people knowledge, and he listened and sought out – set in order many proverbs. 10 Qoheleth sought to find out words of delight, and words of truth, rightly written.  11 The words of the wise are like goads, and as nails driven by the masters of collections – they were given by one Shepherd. 12 And besides these, my son, be warned – the making of many books has no end, and much study is a wearying of the flesh. 13 Let us hear the conclusion of the entire matter: Fear Elohim and guard His commands, for this applies to all mankind! 14 For Elohim shall bring every work into right-ruling, including all that is hidden, whether good or whether evil.
Notice the language ties the FEAR of YHVH into the keeping of his commands, and that this applies to ALL MANKIND!

And yet, when I think about fearing YHVH, and I meditate on that thought, I’m not thinking about duty, and I’m not thinking about service, or even wisdom.  When I think of fearing Elohim, what I feel can better be described as awe!   I am dumbstruck by his greatness, and I feel a spine-tingling excitement that He is so awesome.  It’s a lot like the feeling I get just before the roller coaster takes off.

The word fear is often translated as “awesome” or “awe.”  There seems to be two classes of fear in the Bible: the fear of dread, which falls on the sinner and non-believer, and the fear of YHVH, which is more like awestruck reverence before.  The sinner fears him with trembling and terror, where the believer fears him through rejoicing and praise.

The Bible tells us that YHVH is indeed awesome, and worthy of our praise, and that for the obedient believer, and that our praise is really a form of that fear, and it should be a good experience for us.

  • We should clap our hands and shout that he is awesome. Psalm 47:1 Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! 2 For the Lord Most High is awesome; He is a great King over all the earth.  That word awesome the word , the same word which means fear.
  • The whole earth is in awe of his signs, and the earth and the sunset shout for joy!Psalm 65: 8 They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.  I really want to hear the dawn and the sunset shout for joy!
  • The Bible says we should rejoice in our fear. Psalm 2:11  Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

The Bible reveals many reasons why he is so worthy of our awe and holy reverence.   Habakkuk 2:20 But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him. The entire earth itself is commanded to be silent before him.  Think about that!  How can the entire earth be silent?

Job says he comes in awesome majesty, and that he is excellent in power, and judgement, and justice. Job 37:22 He comes from the north as golden splendor; With God is awesome majesty. 23 the Almighty, we cannot find Him; excellent in power, judgment and abundant justice; He does not oppress. 24 Therefore men fear Him; He shows no partiality to any wise of heart.”

The Revelations tells us that his works are great and marvellous and that his ways are just and true.  The whole world will come and worship before him. As a believer, we don’t have the dread of judgement, and we can rejoice in his awesomeness.  Revelation 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

And that is because he IS Awesome.  His works are perfect and he is a God of truth, and we can trust him to be just and righteous.  

  • Deuteronomy 32:4 – He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he. He alone made the heavens, and the earth, and even the hosts of heaven also worship him. He alone made the heavens and earth and all that is in them.
  • Nehemiah 9:6 “You alone are the Lord; You have made heaven, The heaven of heavens, with all their host, The earth and everything on it, The seas and all that is in them, And You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You.” Even the hosts of heaven will worship him.
  • And in the end, we will rejoice together in heaven, and shout hallelujah.It is the wicked who must fear his wrath and feel the dread of fear.  The believer should fear him with worship and praise, and awestruck, reverent joy.  Revelation 19:1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.

That circles us back around to what started me down this path.  Why was I so unafraid when others around me seem so obviously afraid?  I don’t see myself as particularly brave or overly strong and yet there was no fear in me.

In the Hebrew, when the word is used as in, “fear not” is still the word, but it is pronounced “al-teeray” and it looks like this אַל־תִּירָ֣א.

I found so far 78 places in the Tanakh where either YHVH or someone representing YHVH, such as an angel or a prophet commands an individual or a group to “fear not.”  In each case, the cause of the fear was something of this earth: infertility, armies, global disasters, and even the total destruction of Jerusalem.  In each case, the people involved were told to FEAR NOT.  What’s really exciting is that in almost every case when an admonition is given to FEAR NOT, it is almost followed up with some wonderful reason or promise why they should not fear.

I noticed a pattern of fear and obedience leading to blessing in the very beginning.  Genesis 15:1-6 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. 2 And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? 3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. 4 And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. 6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

We see that Abraham was afraid of not having a legacy to pass his inheritance to.  YHVH promises him that he will number them among the stars, and Abraham believes him.  Abraham feared YHVH more than he feared the very real potential future of his lost legacy.

Later on, YHVH gives the same promise to Isaac.  Genesis 26: 24 And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. 25 And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well.

Isaac was afraid to be killed by the kings in the region because of his wife’s beauty.  YHVH comes to him and promises him the same promise that he gave to his father Abraham; and that he would protect him for the sake of that promise.  So Isaac digs a big hole to commemorate the event.

Genesis 46:1 And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac. 2 And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. 3 And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: 4 I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. 5 And Jacob rose up from Beersheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed with him: 7 His sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt.

We see that Jacob is struggling with whether or not to travel down to Egypt.  YHVH provides the same reassurance to all three men to encourage them to fear not the things of the earth because he will make them a great nation, the same promise to the third generation, and a promise he has obviously kept.  In all three cases, these men believed YHVH and trusted him.

Here are few more examples. In Judges 6:23, YHVH says to Gideon that he won’t die.  In Joshua 10:24 Joshua tells the fighters of Israel not to fear because Elohim will put their enemies under their feet, and he literally had them do that.   In 2 Kings 6:16-17 Elisha tells his servant that those with them are greater than the enemy:  When the boy’s eyes were opened, a great army of angels surrounded them.  And Proverbs 3:25-26 admonishes us not to fear the things of the earth because YHVH is our confidence.

Clearly, we are intended to “fear not.” Here are a few more examples of why people were told not to be afraid: he has delivered the enemy into their hand (Numbers 21:34), he is with them against the enemy (Deuteronomy 20:1), He will fight for them (Deuteronomy 1:29), YHVH is among them (Deuteronomy 7:21), YHVH will help them (Isaiah 35:4), YHVH has redeemed them and called them by his name (Isaiah 41:14), they will not be ashamed (Isaiah 44:1-3), he will save them, and they will be a blessing (Joel 2:21).

So what does all this mean?  How do you walk this out?  Knowledge is great, but only if you can apply it to real life.  So, how do we express our Fear of YHVH.  How do we live in a way that says to him, “I fear you!”

The Bible seems to make it clear we should by Obeying Torah. This includes keeping the Biblical feasts, obeying as much of the Torah as we possibly can, not working on his Sabbaths and not causing others to work.  Also, higher level things like respecting one another, and doing right by one another, which echoes Yeshua’s many commands to love one another.

Obviously, YHVH wants his people to not be afraid of the world, and he those who fear him and then obey him.  In Exodus, it tells us clearly that the midwives defied Pharoah and refused to obey the command to kill the babies.  The midwives in Egypt were in imminent danger by not obeying Pharoah.  He was as a god on the throne and could act without consequence.  These women were blatantly disobeying him, but they chose to do the right thing even though if Pharoah found out, he would murder them.
            Exodus 1:17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them,     but saved the men children alive.
I just want to point out the reward they received for not killing the Hebrew babies.  Exodus 1:21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, he made them houses.  I’d really like to see these houses.

In reality, we are imperfect people, and I don’t think we can actually have a complete absence of fear.  It seems more like that we are to not fear anything more than we fear YHVH.  The people we’ve talked about, and many others in the Bible, must have been afraid.  I would have been afraid!

Scripture seems to indicate that we are to fear YHVH first before all else.  Maybe this doesn’t mean an absence of fear as much as it does a hierarchy of fear.  In other words, we need to put our fear of YHVH ahead of our fear of the things of the earth.

That’s not to say that we do not face danger or death.  The truth is, we face danger every day.  Life is fragile.  Every day around us individuals die in their homes and cars and workplaces, and yes, from covid and other diseases.  Who’s to say that any of us is more worthy, or more holy, than any of them?  There is not a guarantee that we won’t die, or that we won’t suffer from disease and hardship.  Yeshua tells us in the Bible to not fear the things of the earth but to “fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”  Matthew 10:28.

We can also express our fear of YHVH through repentance and turning away from our sin. We see an example of this in King David.  He wanted to bring the Ark into Jerusalem the wrong way, and when it went all wrong, and the Ark slipped and someone died, he stopped, and asked himself: “How shall I bring the Ark of God home to me?”  Then he acted on his fear of YHVH, which was greater than his fear of the world or even his wife.  This caused him to bring it into the city in the method in which they were commanded, and he threw an excellent party. (1 Chronicles 13)

When we see that we have done wrong, we can examine our hearts and our actions, and ask ourselves if we have displeased YHVH.  If we know that we have, we need to repent of that sin and come back at it the right way.

When making decisions, we need to make decisions from the perspective of fear of YHVH, and not from the perspective of fear of the world. That fear of YHVH, and the desire to obey his will, should be first in our decision-making.  In searching all this out, I found two stories that parallel one another.  The story of Hezekiah, a King of Judah, which we find in 2 Kings 19,.and Jeremiah 42-43. involving the remnant of Judah left behind after the captivity.

Hezekiah and all of Jerusalem were faced with terrifying circumstances.  Camped outside the city was a massive army far superior to theirs, and the people of the city expected Hezekiah to lead them. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, taunted the city and ridiculed YHVH.

Hezekiah prayed, and Isaiah came.  Isaiah said, “fear not!” He said the army would be sent away.  Hezekiah chose to BELIEVE the prophet on behalf of YHVH and stood his ground.  Hezekiah feared YHVH more than the very present danger outside the gates.  The next morning, Sanecherib’s army was mostly dead, and he went home, and no one in Jerusalem was harmed.

In Jeremiah 42-42, we read about the remnant of Judah left behind in Jerusalem after the city was sacked, and Daniel and his contemporaries are carried off in chains.   This remnant left behind was faced with terrifying circumstances.  Jerusalem had just fallen, and they were traumatized and afraid, and their newly appointed leader was also murdered.

They called for the prophet, and asked him, “should we stay or should we go?”  The prophet told them, “Stay here.” But instead of making a decision based on their fear of YHVH, which they agree to do in this passage, they make a decision to fear the dangers in the earth around them, call the prophet a liar, and flee to the perceived safety of Egypt.   That didn’t really work out for them, as history tells us they were slaughtered in Egypt, just as Jeremiah warned them would happen.

Both situations were very similar.   They were both faced with TERRIFYING decisions.  They were both surrounded by the enemy.  They both sought YHVH’s advice through the proven prophet.  But Hezekiah believed the prophet, and lived, where the remnant ignored the prophet and died.  If we are looking at the wrong things when it is time to make a decision, then we will make the wrong decision.

There are some notable places where people in the Bible made poor decisions from putting their fear of the world before their fear of YHVH.

  • Lot’s daughters, in Genesis 19, when they seduced their father.
  • The spies when they brought back an “evil report” on the land of Israel in Numbers 13 & 14.
  • Saul when he visited a medium to try to speak to Samuel in 1 Samuel 28.
  • Peter is overwhelmed by fear, and looked at the problem instead of Yeshua, and began to sink beneath the water in Matthew 14.

In each of these cases, the Bible tells us their behavior was because of their fear.

Finally, we can express our fear and awe of him through praise and worship.  This subject all by itself could make an entire study and teaching.  The Bible ties praise and fear of Elohim together again and again.  Here are just a few of the examples.

  • Psalm 40 tells us he will put a new song in our mouths, and many shall see, and fear and trust YHVH.
  • 1 Chronicles assures us that he is great, and greatly to be praised and feared.
  • Psalm 22:24 – We are meant to STAND IN AWE of him, all you offspring of Israel. That’s you and me.  It’s all of us.
  • Psalm 112:1 Shouts to PRAISE YHVH We are told that we are blessed if we fear YHVH and greatly delight in his commandments.
  • Revelation 14:7 We are told fear YHVH and to give him glory! Those two things will continue to go together through all eternity.

I have an unpopular opinion to share.  It’s quite obvious we live in a world where there is not a fear of YHVH. Partly, I think this is because our society through the media and the pulpit have taught us a wrong view of our Father in heaven.  They’ve sort of painted him to be like a genie – there to answer our prayers, and give us what we want, and send angels to protect us.  But as we see in Jeremiah, those that don’t fear YHVH are rebellious and ungrateful.  I believe that the rise of atheism and general disbelief is also a cause.  If He doesn’t exist, then science, which is our new god, the worship of self, can explain away all of YHVH’s works, and take away his credit, and we will save ourselves. 

People don’t believe that what is happening all around us IS YHVH, so they are fearing the wrong things.  Yeshua said in Matthew 24:24 that in the end times, even the elect will be deceived.  In the olden days, terrible catastrophes used to be called “Acts of God.”  Now we say, “Climate Change” or “Global Warming” and by doing so, we take all the credit for the acts away from YHVH.  It is creating an environment where people don’t repent, almost can’t repent, because of the idea that if man would just stop using plastic or stop driving cars, we can save ourselves.  How can they fear YHVH when they don’t believe these acts were done BY YHVH?

There’s a lot to be afraid of in the world right now.  Those of us who read and study Bible prophecy have pretty general idea of what’s coming, and all of it sounds terrifying.  And that’s precisely why we must fear YHVH so that we can see with our eyes and hear with our ears and understand that all of these things that are so terrifying right now are all in YHVH’s hands.  That is the greatest comfort we can have.  Maybe it can be called climate change or global warming, but even if those terms are accurate, it is happening at the hand and the command of the creator of the universe, YHVH.

There are a lot of verses that talk about blessings that come with placing our fear in the proper order. There are a lot of them, way too many to list.  Here are just a few.

  • 2 Kings 17:39 But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
  • Psalm 25:14 The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.
  • Psalm 31:19 Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!
  • Rev 19:5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.

If we believe YHVH is awesome, if we treat him with the awe, reverence, and respect he deserves, all else dims in the light of that glory.  There is a lot to be afraid of in this world.  But nothing, clearly nothing, is more worthy of our fear than YHVH.

 

9 Comments

  1. Zoilo

    Thank you for this wonderful insights and timely topics. Fearing Yehovah leads to repentance then obeying Him (Torah) and reaping the blessings both spiritual and physical.

    It says that the Holy Spirit will lead/teach us ALL the truth..

    All means all…

    Please keep it up.

    Shabbath shalom everyone!

    Reply
  2. Jud Baxter

    Thank you, Rose, for writing this good piece. It is well stated and very encouraging…. Courage. Be of good courage… Thank heart.. thanks, sister. Love you.

    Reply
  3. Bruce

    believe that the Bible speaks a lot more about the fear of the Almighty than about his love. If this belief is true, could this be just co-incidental? Or, is there something for us to learn? All praise to YHVH for this. Thanks also Joe and Rose

    Reply
    • Ben B

      When I started to really really fear YHVH, then the wisdom and revelation of His words reveal and shown to me and protected me.

      Reply
  4. Chris Sorber

    Dear Rose,

    Thanks for this beautiful study about the ‘fear of Yehovah’.
    I have heard your teaching in the midrash recently and was then already impressed.
    Being able to read it now in all quietness was and is very rewarding.
    Once more …. thank you very much.
    May Yehovah bless you with His awesome blessing and put you in a position to share the knowledge He is revealing to you.

    Reply
  5. Kurt MacPherson

    Thank you Rose, prasie Yah and fear not!

    Reply
  6. Harry

    Fear has many manifestations. Thanks Rose for dealing with the major one: legitimate fear of Yehovah.

    Reply

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