THE FEAR OF GOD
Hebrews 5:7-9; Psalm 130:3,4; Genesis 39:8,9;
Malachi 3:16,17; Psalm 22:21 (from ‘Yea’)-23
I would like, dear brethren, to speak about the fear of God, as something that we as believers should each have, so that it should be part of our constitution. It is something that is prominent in the Scriptures; there are many references to the fear of God to be found in them.
I would say firstly that the fear of God does not mean that believers are to be afraid in God’s presence. The fear of God means that the believer has reverence, respect, and consideration for God, and also love for God. Now it may be, and it perhaps has been, part of the soul experience of many here, that there was a time when you knew the terror of the Lord, because God is a righteous God, and He cannot tolerate sin in His presence. We might be able to look back through our history to when we had our conscience enlightened through God’s mercy, but perhaps there was a time before that when we were fearful, because of these sins we had committed that would have kept us out of God’s presence eternally. But the glorious matter of trusting the Lord Jesus, and being accepted by God in the worth of that One would remove any fear or terror, because the Lord Jesus has borne the penalty of the sins of believers. If there is anyone here whose conscience is troubled today, who does not wish to be in God’s presence, perhaps because you feel uneasy as a result of your sins, the answer is in the Lord Jesus, the One of whom we read in Hebrews 5. He is the remedy.
What I am saying about the fear of God does not in any sense run counter to other scriptures such as “perfect love casts out fear”, 1 John 4:18. God in His love wants to make us comfortable and at home in His presence, but alongside that, we should carry with us a reverent sense of who He is as the eternal God.
The second scripture that we read speaks about “Jah”; that is a reference to God’s absoluteness, His greatness and His might. The beginning of Romans chapter 3 speaks about the condition of man, and among a whole list of horrible things that mark people away from God, one is that there is “no fear of God before their eyes”, Rom.3:18. That is generally the condition of things in the world around us. The fear of God is a regulating thing; it keeps and preserves us in our links with God; it preserves us too in our links with one another. And it also keeps us from the world through which we have to pass. We have to go through a world which is marked by every person doing what is right in their own eyes. But that is not to mark believers: I am sure that there is no one here like that. Romans puts the truth so starkly, but then you come to the One “whom God has set forth a mercy-seat, through faith in his blood”, Rom.3:25. The fear of God is something that is commendable. The Hebrew midwives at the beginning of Exodus who sought to preserve life, feared God (Exod.1:17), and it says of Job that he was “one that feared God”, Job 1:1. The last scripture perhaps bears on that. God looks down and He appreciates those that fear Him, even whilst moving amongst those in the world who, by and large, do what they like.
Is the fear of God something that marks us all? It is an attractive feature and was seen in the Lord Jesus. We might think about Him, the blessed Man who was here. Scripture refers to “the days of his flesh”, bringing out the substantiality of what He was here in manhood. There are other scriptures that refer to the fear of God, primarily in relation to what is millennial. It says in Isaiah in relation to His rule in that millennial day, “his delight will be in the fear of Jehovah; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears”, Isa.11:3. It says prophetically at the end of 2 Samuel of the Lord Jesus that He “shall be just, Ruling in the fear of God”, 2 Sam.23:3. It is most attractive. Joseph said simply, “I fear God”, Gen.42:18. So when we see the fear of God set out in perfection in the Lord Jesus, it should attract our heart to the principle.
The psalm we read refers, again in type, to the Lord Jesus as He was in the garden of Gethsemane when the devil was against Him. The enemy sought to bring any and every device to divert the Lord Jesus from the path of obedience to the will of His God and Father. Satan had come in at the beginning of the Lord’s public pathway, had brought before Him these various temptations. How did the Lord answer him? He answered him by Scripture: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which goes out through God’s mouth”, Matt.4:4. We had an impression in the reading about the perfection of the manhood of the Lord Jesus, and we can see it in type in the passage that we read in the psalm. But after those temptations, the enemy returned. I was struck by the feelings of the Lord Jesus here. It is good to have our hearts softened in relation to Him. In Gethsemane, He offered up these supplications and entreaties. The disciples were not able to watch with Him. The Spirit uses remarkable language in this section about the Lord as Man entreating the Father. These matters are to be weighed in our spirits, as far as we are able for it, to promote depth in us. It says here that God was One “who was able to save him out of death”. It does not say, ‘from death’. We have a touch of that where we read in Psalm 22: “from the horns of the buffaloes hast thou answered me”.
There was a time when the Lord Jesus was not answered, when He was forsaken on the cross, but in Gethsemane He offered up these supplications. What I wanted to touch on particularly was that He was heard “because of his piety”, or the alternate rendering given in the footnote is that He was heard ‘in that he feared’1. You get an impression of the feelings in Mr Darby’s own soul when he wrote ‘and then well rendered…in that he feared’. Jesus was portraying the perfection of what man should be to God in every aspect. The Lord's perfection was shown in His relations as the true Man with His God and Father, regarding Him as the portion of His inheritance (Ps.16:5) and not allowing anything else to come in. We speak about piety as God coming into our circumstances because they are ordered so that He can, and that would be true for us, but with the Lord Jesus it was more than that. It was the mystery of piety, it was the perfection of His life here, and He was heard because of that. That is what I was thinking of in the hymn we sang (Hymn 268). Hebrews says, “though he were Son”; and the greatness of His person is guarded, but it was on account of His piety, or ‘in that he feared’, that He was heard. And it surely touches our hearts that “he learned obedience from the things which he suffered”. He did not learn how to obey – far be the thought, for there was nothing inwardly that the Lord Jesus had to overcome – but He came into new circumstances in manhood where obedience attaches to man's place before God. The hymn tells us,
‘Where men God’s rights withheld,
Thine offering excelled’ (Hymn 268).
We see that here in its acme in relation to the Lord Jesus, “he learned obedience”.
As a result, He is able to succour us. Our High Priest is in heaven now and, speaking carefully, through the experiences which this scripture speaks of, He has been perfected – which means that He has been made entirely suitable to be installed in that position2. “Having been perfected” would include His resurrection and His going on high, and then He has become “to all them that obey him, author of eternal salvation”. That is the moral link. The Lord in His manhood here was found in obedience, and being obedient is a mark of one who fears God. In us, it is not the fear of retribution, but the desire to please God and not to lose the joy of communion by allowing something to intrude. We covet the divine presence so much, we value so much what the Lord Jesus has done for us, that we would desire that nothing would come in to spoil our enjoyment of it. We can cry to the One who is spoken of here as the “author of eternal salvation”, not only in this time scene but linked on with what is eternal. But there is also obedience, which is a moral principle, dear brethren. May our hearts be touched by the precious manhood of the Lord Jesus, the One who was “heard because of his piety”, heard in that He feared, and who enjoyed those relations that He had with His God and Father. Nothing could detain the Lord Jesus or take Him out of the path of obedience.
I thought Psalm 130 linked to an extent with what we have touched on, but seen from our side. It is a song of degrees. Firstly, it says there “If thou, Jah, shouldest mark iniquities …”. He is a forgiving God. Think of the treasuries that God has! And one of the things that He has in the divine treasury is forgiveness. Has each one of us known what it is to be forgiven? We spoke in the reading about the enjoyment of divine blessings, and one of them is the enjoyment of forgiveness of sins. In Christianity, we do not reach a point in our progress and then leave it behind. No, it is one of those things that should be with us all the time, to appreciate that I am a forgiven sinner, and the price paid for that was the blood of the Lord Jesus. I love the verse further down, “with him is plenteous redemption”, Ps.130:7. It is available to anyone who feels the need of it.
But then there is to be a result, “But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared”. What the Lord said in Luke is very salutary, “Fear not those who kill the body”, Luke 12:4. As far as men are concerned, the worst that they could do to believers, despite all their cruelty, is to hasten their departure to be with Christ. But then He said, “Fear him who after he has killed has authority to cast into hell” (v.5). That is very sobering; it would point to the omnipotence of God and the fact that He is over all. But here in the psalm it is forgiveness – that is a moral reason to fear God. Not that divine forgiveness can be withdrawn, not that there is any change in God’s attitude, but it would help us in our moral state to be maintained as pleasing to God and to flee anything that would cause us to sin. The reason that we need forgiveness is because we are sinners and the reason that God has provided us with a Saviour is “because of his great love wherewith he loved us”, Eph.2:4. But then this is a reason why we should fear God, to regard Him with reverence, because He has forgiven us. Anything that might come up in our soul history that might cause us to fall out of communion with God is to be carefully avoided – we should flee from it. The result of being in the good of these verses that we have read in Psalm 130 is that, by the Holy Spirit, we should seek to keep ourselves – as Jude says, “praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God”, Jude v.20. Keep yourselves in that positive, holy area where we will be in the good of divine forgiveness and the good of relationships with God and the Lord Jesus.
I would like to give the scripture in Genesis a practical bearing. Joseph was a wonderful person. In many of the passages in Genesis, he is a type of the Lord Jesus, especially regarding the delight that the Father found in Him. Think of the tests that Joseph had to go through, His soul entering into irons (Ps.105:17,18) speaking typically of the Lord Jesus. Then his exaltation amongst the Gentiles and the Jews typically coming into future blessing again, although Jews can and do enjoy a blessing now as being part of the assembly. But I was thinking particularly here in relation to Joseph, that because he feared God, it kept him from moral disaster. The other psalm that I wanted to touch on along with this is Psalm 19. It is a Psalm of David and one of the verses there speaks about “The fear of Jehovah is clean, enduring for ever”, (v.9). Now of course anything in relation to God Himself must be morally pure, that is beyond question, but when we think about it from our side, the challenge is how we hold ourselves. Joseph here faced a great temptation that came before him because he had been given a place in the house of Potiphar. Joseph was such a man that his master had confidence in him, and trusted him, and then this great temptation came up, but he refused it. I was linking that also with Daniel and his purpose of heart. The fear of God built into our moral constitution is to be our very being; it would cause us first to judge of and approve the things that are more excellent, but then also cause us to turn away from every suggestion of the enemy. Had Joseph yielded, it would have brought moral disaster. Think of all that comes out as to Joseph, the one who was able to save Egypt in the days of famine. None of that could have happened if he had yielded and had given way. He says, “how should I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”. It says earlier that no one was in the house, there was no one else to see. You may say, as the world does, what would it have mattered if he had given in to the temptation before him? But he knew that he would sin against God, the God he feared (Gen.42:18).
I was also thinking of another scripture in Corinthians : “Do ye not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God: and ye are not your own? for ye have been bought with a price: glorify now then God in your body”, 1 Cor.6:19,20. Joseph lived in Old Testament times, but I am giving this a New Testament application. It is a great test to keep ourselves pure and unspotted from any suggestion of the impurity in the world, given how pervasive and corrupting the world is. Satan would delight in using the world to bring in all and any type of temptation. But think of the disaster that would come from giving way, dear brethren, and only the help of the Holy Spirit and the fear of God will preserve us, as Joseph was preserved. It was costly, and you might find that – if you fear God and give God His due place and not give way in little things or in big things, there might be a price to pay. It might be that you would not be free to go somewhere, it might be that you could not do something that others do or progress in a certain direction. God knows all about that, He takes account of it, and He appreciates every believer who is loyal to Himself much more than we could ever know. There is a time coming for believers when we will all be manifested before the judgment-seat of Christ (2 Cor.5:10). We will then know the divine assessment of our lives. Think of the approval that Joseph would receive from God, and if we are kept by the Holy Spirit from giving in to temptation, that will merit the Lord’s approval.
The fear of God will keep us body, soul and spirit. The King of Sodom wanted the souls (Gen.14:21) and in Revelation it speaks about those who trade in the body and souls of men (Rev.18:13). There are things in the world that are so damaging to body, soul and spirit but the fear of God will preserve us. Reliance on the Holy Spirit and love for the Lord Jesus will enable us to enjoy the wonderful things that we were speaking about together in the reading. You may think that the fear of God is a restrictive thing, but it is not! In the book of Proverbs, there are many wonderful references to it – I feel for myself that I should know that book much better. One of the things it says is “The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom”, Prov.9:10. It also says in relation to the fear of God, that “The fear of Jehovah prolongeth days” (Prov.10:27), and that “The fear of Jehovah tendeth to life”, Prov.19:23. These are beautiful, positive suggestions. Then “the fear of Jehovah shall be your treasure” (Isa.33:6); a secret between believers and their God, as we are preserved in His fear.
In Malachi, the reference is collective. It is striking that this was written around four hundred and fifty years before the Lord Jesus came into the world. There was much that God was displeased with. There was the bringing of offerings that were lame, and those who offered were keeping the best for themselves. Times and seasons are not in our hands, but I think we would all feel that, as in the days of Malachi, we are coming towards the end of this dispensation. Divine things are to be preserved in life and power and enjoyment to the end, and what will promote that is the resource that believers have in the Holy Spirit and in moral features that have been seen in persons since the beginning of the dispensation, and which are available to us now. One of the things referred to here that is particularly of interest to heaven is, “Then they that feared Jehovah spoke often one to another”. You may say, Do I have to go through this on my own? There may seem to be nobody else like minded, but you will find that there are others in the secret of it. It is such a positive feature, it would hold us in relation to God, but it would also help us to rightly regard one another, because the saints are God’s property. They “spoke often one to another”. For us, that might be the weeknight meetings or meetings like this or on a Lords Day, or one to one conversation, for that is normal Christianity. It is not mundane, but it is normal in relation to God’s exalted and glorious things.
Then it says, “and Jehovah observed it, and heard”. God does see everything. He sees us at every stage. We are not to be afraid of that; I do not think that it is to make us fear in the sense of terror, but it is something to be mindful of in the same way that the government of God continues for as long as we are left here. But “Jehovah observed it”, He saw it and He heard. What close attention God pays to us. What care He expends on us individually, but this seems to be collective, and then “a book of remembrance was written”. Think of all the things that are going on in the world, great and historic events, and also sorrowful happenings that would cause our hearts to go out to men and women away from God. But God sees what exists in quietness and outward obscurity, and so “a book of remembrance was written before him for them”. God has His books; they are very wonderful. Think of what is contained in them, the book of life, for example, but here it is a book in relation to those that God observed and heard, those who feared Him. And it is “for them that feared Jehovah, and that thought upon his name”. His name is to be pondered: it says, “and his name is called Wonderful”, Isa.9:6. The fear of God is something that is greatly to be valued and treasured when we are together in our gatherings as well as when we are alone. The outcome here is, “they shall be unto me a peculiar treasure” or ‘my own possession’3. What God took account of in those who were faithful in Israel is for our encouragement. What was here for God then was “a peculiar treasure, saith Jehovah of hosts”. We could think of that also as applying to the present time; it is a fine touch. Think of the myriads of them that love Him. It was so even in Corinth in Paul’s time. When there was much outward failure, God had many in that city. I look around and perhaps I may feel despondent, but we need to look above and take our bearings from heaven. It is from heaven that the next move will be seen in relation to the coming of the Lord Jesus, and it is also on heaven that we must have our sights set in relation to things down here.
Peter was like that; he is another who wrote about the fear of God. He had the light of the Lord Jesus glorified, the excellent glory. He says for example, “pass your time of sojourn in fear”, 1 Pet.1:17. But in a slightly different setting, he also writes, “not fearing with any kind of consternation” (1 Pet.3:6); I think that is lovely. That is reverent fear, but it is in confidence in the One whom we know as our God and our Father. God says through Malachi, “and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him”. Perhaps some of these references are more particular to Israel in the time in which they were written, but I think we can take them to ourselves and think of the divine approval there is of those who are found together, thinking upon His name, and the outflow for God from that.
Finally, in Psalm 22, we see that the fear of God is something that is not detached from the answer that God receives. This psalm, the great sorrow psalm of the Lord Jesus, would ever affect our hearts. The fact that it is ‘Upon Aijeleth-Shahar’, or ‘According to the hind of the morning’4 shows that it represents a feminine response; and it would show that in undertaking all the work that He accomplished, the Lord Jesus had response in view. He has had an answer, has He not? There was that time we have already spoken of when He was not answered – when He was on the cross. When He was forsaken in His extremity, there was no answer. That has not happened to anybody else. If there is any soul here in soul need and they cry out for mercy, they will be answered, but such is the gravity of the matter of sin, that Christ could not be answered. But then there is this touch, “from the horns of the buffaloes”. In that extremity, He was answered; answered publicly in His resurrection and too there was that matter of “Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46); how beautiful that was. But I was thinking of verses 22 and 23, particularly 23. The outcome of that was that there should be praise and an answer. The declaration of the Father’s name unto His brethren is a wonderful cause of praise. How enriching it is, what a sphere has been opened up by it. But then there is this matter of “Ye that fear Jehovah”. We have spoken about liberty and there is liberty as we come into God’s presence, but I think we should carry with us even as we move into the holiest, that deep reverence for God. I am not suggesting at all that it is not so, but there could not be any levity in His presence. There should be full dependence on the Spirit, for words to speak perhaps, and too to be kept in our spirits. Not to put any in bondage, but even in the choice of hymns to sing, what we move into are the greatest of spiritual things and there must be reverent respect for divine Persons. In the same way we are to be preserved from any familiarity with any of the divine Persons. It speaks in the Old Testament in type about the Spirit as an angel and we are to “Be careful in his presence”, Exod.23:21.
We have spoken already about the indwelling Spirit and the temple. Where I go, what I do, what I say – we would desire to be preserved from anything that would offend the Holy Spirit or the Lord Jesus. We have spoken about Him in His manhood and how beautiful it was. I thought of that in Hymn 80,
‘Thy throne, O God, for ever’
The One who is our Friend, our Shepherd, our Guard – He is also “over all, God blessed for ever” (Rom.9:5); what a One He is. And the Father, our heavenly Father who we love, and who loves us, is the One who is greater than all (John 10:29). But then divine Persons are for us, and it is because of this that there should be praise. God will soon have His praise from Israel too; it is silent at the moment, but I think what divine Persons have in the assembly in the response of sonship is to be appreciated and entered into by us. And underlying it would be that moral element of the fear of God.
Well, you may say this is practical, which it is, and it also enters into our relations with one another. But it is not something we should be afraid of, and as we are helped as to the fear of God, the blessed God, while beyond us in the greatness of His Person, is for us, blessedly so. May we be encouraged as to the fear of God, in a wholesome way so that it should mark us and be built into our constitution, and that there may be more for God’s glory, for His name’s sake.
Bo’ness
13 August 2022
A Barrie Brown