If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac, had not been for me, surely now you would have sent me away empty Genesis 31:42a NASB Fear – It seems that everyone wants to rescue Isaac from the text. Jonathan Sacks’ statement may be Jewish, but it is reflected over…
Now a word was brought to me secretly, and my ear received a whisper of it. Amid disquieting thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on people, Dread came upon me, and trembling, and made [f]all my bones shake. Then a [g]spirit passed by my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. Job 4:12-15 NASB Dread…
For [j]what I fear comes upon me, and what I dread [k]encounters me. Job 3:25 NASB What I fear – An unfortunate translation. By rendering this word as “fear,” we miss the point and the connections. Even more, when the translators use “dread” in the subsequent phrase, they mix up the real meanings and miss the oxymoron. …
Rulers persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of Your words. Psalm 119:161 NASB שָׂ֭רִים רְדָפ֣וּנִי חִנָּ֑ם (ומדבריך) [וּ֝מִדְּבָרְךָ֗] פָּחַ֥ד לִבִּֽי Rulers persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of Your words. שָׂ֣שׂ אָ֭נֹכִי עַל־אִמְרָתֶ֑ךָ כְּ֝מוֹצֵ֗א שָׁלָ֥ל רָֽב I rejoice at Your word, like one who finds great plunder. שֶׁ֣קֶר שָׂ֭נֵאתִי וַאֲתַעֵ֑בָה תּוֹרָתְךָ֥ אָהָֽבְתִּי…
Take away my disgrace which I dread, for Your judgments are good. Psalm 119:39 NASB Disgrace – by now we’ve learned that shame in the ancient Semitic world is not an inner psychological state. It is public disgrace. Now we need to know what “disgrace” means in this ancient world. The word is ḥerpâ. In…
How blessed is the man who fears always, but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity. Proverbs 28:14 NASB Fear always – How can a man be blessed if he is always afraid? This just doesn’t seem to make any sense. If perfect love casts out fear, and we are exhorted to enter…
“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 NASB Fear– Actually, I’m not afraid in the usual sense of the word. I’m not even afraid to die. …
“ If the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had not been for me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the toil of my hands, so He rendered judgment last night.” Genesis 31:42 NASB Fear – We are a fragile audience. At least that’s what the…
“and the dread of Me is not in you,” declares the Lord God of hosts. Jeremiah 2:19c NASB Dread– Of course God is the God of love. Certainly He desires to forgive. Without a doubt, He is gracious and merciful. Yes, He sent His son on our behalf. Definitely He cares. It is undeniably true that He is the…
Because of all my adversaries, I have become a reproach, especially to my neighbors, and an object of dread to my acquaintances; those who see me in the street flee from me. Psalm 31:11 NASB Reproach– Are you the Mary Mallon of sin? Remember her? She was “the first person in the United States identified as an asymptomatic…
