There are a number of words and expressions used within the wider Christian world that need to be explained to the modern-day inquirer. Near the head of that list would be the expression “the fear of the Lord”. Whatever that means, it is clearly important. Proverbs 1:7 says:
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7 ESV)
This expression is repeated in some form or fashion a further 19 times in Proverbs and is also found in Psalms, Job and Ecclesiastes. The command itself, phrased in other ways, is repeated innumerable times across the pages of both the Old and New Testaments.
So what does it mean to “fear the Lord”?
Tremper Longman III says helpfully here: