Counting Verses Commanding Fear of God

The concept of "fear of God" is a recurring theme throughout the biblical text, appearing in numerous verses that either command it directly or describe its characteristics and benefits. While a precise numerical count of every verse commanding fear of God is difficult due to variations in translation and interpretation of what constitutes a direct command, many passages explicitly call for this reverence.

One of the most direct commands appears in Deuteronomy 6:13, which states, "You shall fear the Lord your God, and Him you shall serve" ^{[6, 7, 8]}. This verse is significant enough that it is discussed in the Babylonian Talmud, where it is analyzed in the context of whether it functions as a warning or a positive commandment. The Talmud notes that while it commands fearing God, for a verse to qualify as a warning, it must prohibit rather than command ^{[6, 7, 8]}. Nevertheless, it clearly articulates the expectation of fearing God.

Other Old Testament passages similarly command or exhort the fear of God. For instance, Deuteronomy 13:4 states, "You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him and keep His commandments and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him." Psalm 22:23 urges, "You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you offspring of Israel!" Ecclesiastes 12:13 concludes the book with the instruction, "Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man." These verses, among others, are identified in Torrey's Topical Textbook as direct commands to fear God ^[3].

The nature of this fear is not typically understood as a paralyzing terror, but rather a profound reverence, awe, and respect for God's holiness, power, and judgment. However, some biblical texts do describe a more visceral fear. For example, Psalm 55:5 speaks of "fearfulness and trembling" and "horror" overwhelming the psalmist ^[1]. Similarly, Psalm 119:120 states, "My flesh trembles for fear of you. I am afraid of your judgments" ^[2]. The Latin Vulgate renders this verse as "Confige timore tuo carnes meas ; a judiciis enim tuis timui" ^[4]. This suggests that while the primary sense of "fear of God" is reverential, it can also encompass a healthy apprehension of divine justice.

The benefits and characteristics associated with the fear of God are also frequently highlighted in scripture. Proverbs 1:7 declares, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." Proverbs 8:13 links the fear of the Lord with hatred of evil. Job 28:28 and Psalm 111:10 identify it with wisdom. It is described as a treasure to saints (Proverbs 15:16; Isaiah 33:6), a fountain of life (Proverbs 14:27), and sanctifying (Psalm 19:9) ^[3]. Psalm 128:1 pronounces a blessing upon "every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways" ^[5].

The New Testament also reiterates the command to fear God. 1 Peter 2:17 instructs believers to "Fear God. Honor the emperor" ^[3]. Jesus himself, in Matthew 10:28, commands his disciples, "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell." Augustine, in his Exposition on Psalms, connects this teaching of Jesus to the psalmist's prayer, noting that Christ commanded not to fear those who kill the body, but to fear God who has power over both body and soul ^[9]. Augustine further emphasizes that the fear of God is a crucial element in prayer, particularly in the petition for the forgiveness of sins, which he considers "the only wisdom for escaping misery" ^[12].

The patristic tradition, as seen in texts like Hermas, Tatian, Theophilus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria, discusses the nature of fearing God. It is presented as a fear that leads to keeping God's commandments and empowers individuals against evil, rather than a fear of the devil ^[10]. This fear is described as "filial and reverential" ^[3], a concept also explored in Twelve Patriarchs, Excerpts, Epistles, Apocrypha, Decretals, which distinguishes between fearing an unjust being (lest one be wrongfully destroyed) and fearing a righteous one (lest one be caught in sin and punished) ^[15]. This tradition also notes that the "absence of fear, which the fear of the Lord produces, is called the beginning of what is good," suggesting that a proper fear of God leads to a lack of fear in other, less significant matters ^[14].

John Calvin, in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, discusses the concept of "fear and trembling" in relation to working out one's salvation. He clarifies that this fear is not meant to strike terror into consciences or prevent security in God's mercy, but rather to repress the temerity that can arise from the "remains of the flesh" ^[11]. Calvin also notes that the "fear of the Lord" is uniformly attributed to all saints and is called "the beginning of wisdom" and even wisdom itself ^[13].

The command to fear God is thus a pervasive biblical theme, understood not merely as terror but as a multifaceted reverence that encompasses awe, respect for divine authority, and a healthy apprehension of God's justice. It is presented as a foundational element of wisdom, a motivator for obedience, and a source of blessing.

Sources

Psalms “Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has overwhelmed me. -- Psalms 55:5”
Psalms “My flesh trembles for fear of you. I am afraid of your judgments. -- Psalms 119:120”
Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Fear, Godly — God is the object of -- Isa 8:13. God is the author of -- Jer 32:39,40. Searching the Scriptures gives the understanding of -- Pr 2:3-5. Described as Hatred of evil. -- Pr 8:13. Wisdom. -- Job 28:28; Ps 111:10. A treasure to saints. -- Pr 15:16; Isa 33:6. A fountain of life. -- Pr 14:27. Sanctifying. -- Ps 19:9. Filial and reverential. -- Heb 12:9,28. Commanded -- De 13:4; Ps 22:23; Ec 12:13; 1Pe 2:17. Motives to The holiness of God. -- Re 15:4. The greatness of God. -- De 10:12,17. The goodness of God. -- 1Sa 12:24. The forgiveness of God. -- Ps 130:4.”
Psalms “Confige timore tuo carnes meas ; a judiciis enim tuis timui. -- Psalms 118:120”
Psalms “Psalms 128:1 (Webster) — A Song of degrees. Blessed [is] every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.”
Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Temurah 68a.7:2: The Gemara counters: Why not, i.e., what is the difficulty? But isn’t it written: “You shall fear the Lord your God, and Him you shall serve” (Deuteronomy 6:13)? Fearing God certainly includes not pronouncing His name in vain, and this verse can therefore serve as the warning. The Gemara answers: That verse is a warning stated as a positive mitzva. In order to qualify as a warning, the verse must prohibit, not command.”
Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Temurah 68b.7:2: The Gemara counters: Why not, i.e., what is the difficulty? But isn’t it written: “You shall fear the Lord your God, and Him you shall serve” (Deuteronomy 6:13)? Fearing God certainly includes not pronouncing His name in vain, and this verse can therefore serve as the warning. The Gemara answers: That verse is a warning stated as a positive mitzva. In order to qualify as a warning, the verse must prohibit, not command.”
Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Temurah 4a.2: The Gemara counters: Why not, i.e., what is the difficulty? But isn’t it written: “You shall fear the Lord your God, and Him you shall serve” (Deuteronomy 6:13)? Fearing God certainly includes not pronouncing His name in vain, and this verse can therefore serve as the warning. The Gemara answers: That verse is a warning stated as a positive mitzva. In order to qualify as a warning, the verse must prohibit, not command.”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 8: Augustine — Exposition on Psalms — PSALM LXIV.[5] (part 2): the Psalm the servant prayeth, which but now in the Gospel the Lord was commanding. What but now was the Lord commanding? "Fear not them that kill the body, but the soul are not able to kill; but Him rather fear ye, that hath power to kill both body and soul in the hell of fire."[10] And He repeated, "Yea, I say unto you, fear Him."[11] Who are they that kill the body? Enemies. What was the Lord commanding? That they should not be feared. Be prayer offered, therefore, that He may grant what He hath commanded. "From fear o”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 2: Hermas, Tatian, Theophilus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria — ON FEARING GOD, AND NOT FEARING THE DEVIL.: "Fear," said he, "the Lord, and keep His commandments.(8) For if you keep the commandments of God, you will be powerful in every action, and every one of your actions will be incomparable. For, fearing the Lord, you will do all things well. This is the fear which you ought to have, that you may be saved. But fear not the devil; for, fearing the Lord, you will have dominion over the devil, for there is no power in him. But he in whom there is no power ought on no account to be”
CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 57: and so abused the goodness of God to their own destruction. But though you should hold that the words were addressed to elect believers, no inconsistency will follow. It is one thing, in order to prevent believers from indulging vain confidence, to repress the temerity which, from the remains of the flesh, sometimes gains upon them, and it is another thing to strike terror into their consciences, and prevent them from feeling secure in the mercy of God. 23. Then, when he bids us work out our salvation with fear and trembling, all h”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 6: Augustine — Homilies on the Gospels — CHAP. XI.--38. The sevenfold number of these petitions also seems to me to correspond to that sevenfold number out of which the whole sermon before us has had its rise.[3] For if it is the fear of God: 39. Nor are we indeed carelessly to pass by the circumstance, that of all those sentences in which the Lord has taught us to pray, He has judged that that one is chiefly to be commended which has reference to the forgiveness of sins: in which He would have us to be merciful, because it is the only wisdom for escaping misery. For in no other sent”
CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 57: to save us we shall be delivered; and here we begin again to breathe. But, ascending to a loftier height, let us seek the city of God, let us seek the temple, let us seek our home, let us seek our spouse. I have not forgotten myself when, with fear and reverence, I say, We are,—are in the heart of God. We are, by his dignifying, not by our own dignity.” 26. Moreover, the fear of the Lord, which is uniformly attributed to all the saints, and which, in one passage, is called “the beginning of wisdom,” in another wisdom itself, althou”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 2: Hermas, Tatian, Theophilus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria — CHAP. VIII.--THE VAGARIES OF BASILIDES AND VALENTINUS AS TO FEAR BEING THE CAUSE OF THINGS, (part 3): just is of what is unjust. If, then, that absence of fear, which the fear of the Lord produces, is called the beginning of what is good,[2] fear is a good thing. And the fear which proceeds from the law is not only just, but good, as it takes away evil. But introducing absence of fear by means of fear, it does not produce apathy by means of mental perturbation, but moderation of feeling by discipline. When, then, we he”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 8: Twelve Patriarchs, Excerpts, Epistles, Apocrypha, Decretals — CHAP. V.--THE FEAR OF GOD.: "Therefore you shall be able to persuade yourselves with respect to the things that are profitable, if, like charmers, you say to the horrible serpent which lurks in your heart, 'The Lord God thou shall fear, and Him alone thou shall serve.'(2) On every account it is advantageous to fear Him alone, not as an unjust, but as a righteous God. For one fears an unjust being, lest he be wrongfully destroyed, but a righteous one, lest he be caught in sin and punished. You can therefore, by fear toward”

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