◄ What Does Proverbs 1:7 Mean? ►

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 1:7(NASB)

Verse of the Day

The wise man is the one who develops a teachable spirit and is ready, willing, and anxious to learn. The fear of the Lord and reverence for His holy name is the foundation upon which each one of us should build our lives, for fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, the foundation of knowledge, and the gateway to truth. It is the key to spiritual insight and the singular requisite for godly instruction in righteousness.

For the believer, the fear of the Lord comes from a humble heart of worship which has a reverential respect, a holy fear, and a thankful heart for all that our Lord Jesus is and all that God has done for each of His children. For the unbeliever, a fear of the Lord should stem from the convicting work of the Holy Spirit. The unsaved man should fear the Lord because of sin, righteousness, and judgement, but instead: "The fool has said in His heart, 'there is no God.'" The fool despises godly wisdom and has a contempt for instruction in righteousness.

Today, we are flooded with worldly wisdom and swamped with knowledge and instruction from every section of humanity, but unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain to build it.

Unless our knowledge is founded on a reverential fear of the Lord, and unless our wisdom is established from on high, we run the risk of becoming wise in our own understanding, rather than fools for Christ.

How important to trust in the LORD with all our heart, to acknowledge Him in all our ways, and not to lean on our own understanding, for to do so demonstrates a prideful respect for self and not a reverential fear of the Lord.

Jesus is the foundation upon which our knowledge is founded, and He alone commands our reverential fear, humble worship, and eternal devotion, for in Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and we are positioned in Him.

My Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me and convicting me of sin, righteousness, and judgement, and thank You that by faith in Christ I have been brought into Your kingdom and placed into His Body. To You alone belongs my reverential fear, humble worship, and eternal devotion, through time and into eternity. In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN.