Know and Respond or is it Respond and Know?

Proverbs 9:8 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding".

Parallelism is a literary devise frequently used in the book of Proverbs. The writer uses words that are similar or parallel in meaning to emphasize a certain truth. The "fear of the Lord" is mentioned six times to this point. Four out of the six times it is used in conjunction with "knowledge". The other two times it is mentioned with "hating evil". What does the "fear of the Lord" and "knowledge" have to do with each other?

Here is my attempt to begin to understand how these concepts interplay. The fear of the Lord is an appropriate response to the knowledge of God and his ways. Or is it? Proverbs 1:7 tells us "the fear of the Lord is the BEGINNING of knowledge" (also wisdom, 9:10). But how can we fear someone we don't know? What comes first, knowledge or fear? Perhaps the answer is that they happen simultaneously, like two elements, when joined together create something all together different (i.e. wisdom). When you start with the fear of the Lord and add knowledge, you get wisdom. Or maybe they are essentially the same concept, like two sides to a single coin.

I think it is helpful to examine these two concepts separately to help us understand more fully how they work simultaneously. Fear is another word for reverence or worship, suggesting that knowledge (and wisdom) begins when we properly acknowledge who God is and offer him the worship he deserves. Here are some words that came to my mind when I thought of reverence: to respect, think highly of, think about often, to look up to, submit to, to exalt, obey, pay attention to. These are all responding words. As we respond to God we get to know him, and as we get to know him we respond to him.

Knowledge requires time, meditation, study, testing, experiencing, applying, discipline, control, honesty, searching, listening, understanding, repetition, correction, explanation and more. Proverbs is replete with words that describe the proper pursuit of knowledge and ultimately wisdom. All this seems to come out of a heart that responds appropriately to all that God is and is doing. A wise man fears God and knows God. With knowledge comes intimacy with the God of the universe. With intimacy comes knowledge of the God of the universe.

Two words I am taking with me today from this study -- pursuit and responsiveness. I want to pursue God so I can know Him, and I want to respond appropriately to God as I get to know Him. This is the way of the wise man.