"The word “fear” would be better understood if it were translated as "reverence," for that more closely reflects the application of its meaning in this passage.
Our preparation verse for this morning from Proverbs 1:7 states this message in a slightly different way:
7. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Wisdom is the ability to put the knowledge you have learned into practice in a way that is pleasing to the Lord.
To have knowledge and not put it to use in this way is very foolish, for it won't profit you or anyone else. It is as good as having nothing. In fact, it might even be worse than having nothing, for we are responsible for what we know. Note what we are told in Ezekiel 33:30-33.
If the Israelites had continued in their reverence for the Lord, they would never have been taken captive into Assyria and Babylon, and thus they would never have had to change their message of acknowledging God's grace.
If they had retained their reverence for the Lord, their wisdom would have shown them the error of their ways, that they could correct themselves.
With God it is necessary to be sensitive and have compassion, even if you're a man, for that is the way that the Lord Himself is."
Click on the link below for the full article:
http://www.all-creatures.org/sermons97/s2may93.html
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