Topical Encyclopedia
Awe is a profound sense of reverence, wonder, and respect, often accompanied by fear or admiration, particularly in the presence of something greater than oneself. In the biblical context, awe is frequently associated with the divine majesty and holiness of God, as well as His mighty works and acts of judgment.
Biblical Usage and ContextThe concept of awe is deeply embedded in the biblical narrative, where it is often linked to the fear of the Lord. This fear is not merely terror but a reverential awe that acknowledges God's supreme power, holiness, and authority.
Proverbs 9:10 states, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding" . Here, awe is foundational to wisdom and understanding, suggesting that recognizing God's greatness is essential to a proper relationship with Him.
Awe in WorshipAwe is a central element in worship, as believers are called to approach God with reverence and humility.
Psalm 33:8 declares, "Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere Him" . This call to reverence underscores the appropriate response to God's majesty and power. Worship in the Bible often involves expressions of awe, as seen in the heavenly visions of Isaiah and John, where the holiness and glory of God evoke profound reverence (
Isaiah 6:1-5;
Revelation 4:8-11).
Awe and God's CreationThe natural world is a testament to God's creative power and often inspires awe.
Psalm 19:1 proclaims, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands" . The beauty and complexity of creation lead to a sense of wonder and admiration for the Creator.
Romans 1:20 further emphasizes that God's invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, are clearly seen in what has been made, leaving humanity without excuse.
Awe in Response to God's ActsThroughout Scripture, God's mighty acts elicit awe from those who witness them. The parting of the Red Sea, the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ are events that demonstrate God's power and provoke awe among His people. In
Exodus 14:31, after witnessing the deliverance from Egypt, the Israelites "feared the LORD and believed in Him and in His servant Moses" . Such events reinforce God's sovereignty and inspire trust and reverence.
Awe and the Fear of the LordThe fear of the Lord, often synonymous with awe, is a recurring theme in the wisdom literature of the Bible. It is portrayed as a source of life, protection, and blessing.
Proverbs 14:27 states, "The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death" . This reverential awe leads to obedience, moral living, and a deeper relationship with God.
Awe in the New TestamentIn the New Testament, awe continues to be a significant response to Jesus' ministry and the early church's activities. The miracles of Jesus, His authority over nature, and His resurrection inspire awe among His followers and even His adversaries.
Mark 4:41 records the disciples' reaction to Jesus calming the storm: "They were filled with great awe and asked one another, 'Who is this? Even the wind and the sea obey Him!'" . The early church also experienced awe as a result of the apostles' signs and wonders, as described in
Acts 2:43: "A sense of awe came over everyone, and the apostles performed many wonders and signs" .
ConclusionAwe, as depicted in the Bible, is a multifaceted response to God's presence, power, and holiness. It is an essential aspect of faith, worship, and the believer's relationship with God, encouraging a life of reverence, obedience, and trust.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) Dread; great fear mingled with respect.
2. (n.) The emotion inspired by something dreadful and sublime; an undefined sense of the dreadful and the sublime; reverential fear, or solemn wonder; profound reverence.
3. (v. t.) To strike with fear and reverence; to inspire with awe; to control by inspiring dread.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
AWEo: Fear mingled with reverence and wonder, a state of mind inspired by something terrible or sublime.
In the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) it occurs inPsalm 4:4: "Stand in awe, and sin not" (where the Revised Version, margin has, "Be ye angry," so Septuagint; compareEphesians 4:26);Psalm 33:8;Psalm 119:161. In the following passages the Revised Version (British and American) substitutes "stand in awe" for the King James Version "fear":Psalm 22:23 phoboumenoi;
Isaiah 29:231 Samuel 18:15;Malachi 2:5; and inHebrews 12:28 it substitutes "awe" for the King James Version "reverence" (deos here only in New Testament). In all these passages, except1 Samuel 18:15 (eulabeito, where it describes Saul's feeling toward David), the word stands for man's attitude of reverential fear toward God. This is the characteristic attitude of the pious soul toward God in the Scriptures, especially in the Old Testament. It arises from a consciousness of the infinite power, sublimity and holiness of God, which fills the mind with the "fear of the Lord," and a dread of violating His law. SeeFEAR.
D. Miall Edwards
Greek
4573. sebazomai -- to fear, spec. to have reverentialawe... to have reverential
awe. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: sebazomai Phonetic
Spelling: (seb-ad'-zom-ahee) Short Definition: I worship Definition: I worship
...1190a. deos -- fear, reverence
... fear, reverence. Transliteration: deos Short Definition:awe. Word Origin from deido
(to fear) Definition fear, reverence NASB Word Usageawe (1). 1190, 1190a...
127. aidos -- a sense of shame
... as a negative particle) and eido (through the idea of downcast eyes); bashfulness,
ie (towards men), modesty or (towards God)awe -- reverence, shamefacedness....
2124. eulabeia -- caution
... reverence,awe. From eulabes; properly, caution, ie (religiously) reverence (piety);
by implication, dread (concretely) -- fear(-ed). see GREEK eulabes....
1568. ekthambeo -- to amaze, to be amazed
... Verb Transliteration: ekthambeo Phonetic Spelling: (ek-tham-beh'-o) Short Definition:
I am greatly astonished Definition: I am greatly astonished, amawe-struck...
5401. phobos -- panic flight, fear, the causing of fear, terror
... fear, terror NASB Word Usage cause of fear (1), fear (37), fearful (1), fears (1),
intimidation (1), respect (1), respectful (1), reverence (1), sense ofawe (1...
4586. semnos -- reverend, ie venerable, spec. serious
... 4586 (an adjective derived from 4576 , "to revere, be inawe") -- properly, what
is (dignified, has ""); weighty, deeply respected because viewed as majestic...
5399. phobeo -- to put to flight, to terrify, frighten
... to fear. From phobos; to frighten, ie (passively) to be alarmed; by analogy, to
be inawe of, ie Revere -- be (+ sore) afraid, fear (exceedingly), reverence....
2285. thambos -- amazement
... Noun, Neuter Transliteration: thambos Phonetic Spelling: (tham'-bos) Short Definition:
astonishment Definition: astonishment, amazement (allied to terror orawe...
2298. thaumastos -- wonderful
... Cognate: 2298 -- marvelous, describing anawe-evoking sight (dramatic sense of ),
moving the beholder to their deepest emotions. See 2296 ()....
Strong's Hebrew
6342. pachad -- to dread, be in dread or inawe... pachad. 6343 . to dread, be in dread or in
awe. Transliteration: pachad Phonetic
Spelling: (paw-kkad') Short Definition: dread. Word Origin a prim.
...6345. pachdah -- dread, (religious)awe
... dread, (religious)awe. Transliteration: pachdah Phonetic Spelling: (pakh-daw')
Short Definition: dread.... fear. Feminine of pachad; alarm (ieAwe) -- fear....
6184. arits --awe-inspiring, terror-striking
... 6183, 6184. arits. 6185 .awe-inspiring, terror-striking. Transliteration:
arits Phonetic Spelling: (aw-reets') Short Definition: ruthless....
6206. arats -- to cause to tremble, tremble
... tremble NASB Word Usage cause (1), cause terror (1), cause trembling (1), dread
(3), feared (2), make the tremble (2), shocked (1), stand inawe (1), tremble (4...
7264. ragaz -- to be agitated, quiver, quake, be excited...
... be afraid, stand inawe, disquiet, fall out, fret, move, provoke, quake,. A
primitive root; to quiver (with any violent emotion, especially...
3372a. yare -- to fear
... frighten (4), frightened (1), have...fear (1), made me afraid (1), revere (10),
revered (3), reverence (3), showed reverence (1), stand inawe (1), terrible (3...
6343. pachad -- dread
... Word Origin from pachad Definition dread NASB Word Usageawe (1), disaster (1),
dread (20), fear (9), great (1), great fear (1), great fear where fear (1...
1481. guwr -- to sojourn
... also to gather for hostility (as afraid) -- abide, assemble, be afraid, dwell, fear,
gather (together), inhabitant, remain, sojourn, stand inawe, (be) stranger...
2865. chathath -- to be shattered or dismayed
... NASB Word Usage been shattered (3), break (1), cracked (1), dismay (1), dismayed
(26), frighten (1), shatter (1), shattered (9), stood inawe (1), terrified (8...
1481c. gur -- to dread
... Word Origin a prim. root Definition to dread NASB Word Usage afraid (2), dreaded
(1), fear (4), feared (1), stand inawe (2). 1481b, 1481c. gur. 1482 ....
Library
Schin.
... Let us therefore here also recognise the words of the Church: "Princes have persecuted
me without a cause: and my heart hath stood inawe of Thee" (ver.161)....
Further Examples from the Old Testament in Favour of Fasting.
... And then (came) the word of the Lord unto Elijah, Thou hast seen how Ahab hath shrunk
inawe from my face: for that he hath shrunk inawe I will not bring the...
Shaping a Prayer on the Anvil of the Knees.
... One enters with a holy hush over his spirit, and, withawe in his eyes, looks
at Jesus in Gethsemane.... With whatawe must they have ministered!...
"But in what I am Now About to Narrate...
... We did so with deep reverence andawe, as if we were carrying out a watch prescribed
to us before the tent of an angel; while, all the time, the door of his...
Humility
... sinful man, O Lord'? God grant to us all, that after that first feeling of
dread andawe is over, we may go on, as St. Peter went on...
1 Timothy vi. 13-16
... Again he calls God to witness, as he had done a little before, at once to increase
his disciple'sawe, and to secure his safety, and to show that these were...
Christ and his Captors
... He emphasises our Lord's patient standing there, in the midst of theawe-struck
crowd, and even inciting them, as it would seem, to do the work for which they...
The Beatific vision
... If we could see Jesus as he was, we should see him with greatawe. If we had
seen him walking on the water, whatawe should we have felt!...
Hallowing Christ
... He is, the Lord. Let us take care that our thoughts about Jesus Christ
are full of devoutawe and reverence. I venture to think...
Reverence in Worship.
... The more he acquainted himself with God, the greater would be hisawe and holy fear....
They have consideredawe to be superstition, and reverence to be slavery....
Thesaurus
Awe (32 Occurrences)... 3. (vt) To strike with fear and reverence; to inspire with
awe; to control
by inspiring dread. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia.
AWE.
...Awe-struck (9 Occurrences)
Awe-struck. Awestruck,Awe-struck. Awful . Noah Webster's Dictionary (a.) Struck
withawe. Multi-Version ConcordanceAwe-struck (9 Occurrences)....
Awe-inspiring (2 Occurrences)
Awe-inspiring.Awe,Awe-inspiring. Awesome . Multi-Version
ConcordanceAwe-inspiring (2 Occurrences). Song of Songs...
Awe-stricken (1 Occurrence)
Awe-stricken. Awesome,Awe-stricken. Awestruck . Noah Webster's Dictionary
(a.)Awe-struck. Multi-Version ConcordanceAwe-stricken (1 Occurrence)....
Fear (970 Occurrences)
... 7. (n.) To have a reverentialawe of; to solicitous to avoid the displeasure of.
8. (n.) To be anxious or solicitous for. 9. (n.) To suspect; to doubt. 10....
Awful (20 Occurrences)
... 2. (a.) Inspiringawe; filling with profound reverence, or with fear and admiration;
fitted to inspire reverential fear; profoundly impressive....
Awesome (47 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (a.) Causingawe; appalling; awful; as, an awesome
sight. 2. (a.) Expressive ofawe or terror. Multi-Version Concordance...
Astonished (92 Occurrences)
... The personality, teaching and works of Jesus were so wonderful, Divine, supernatural,
as to awaken emotions of surprise andawe never before known in the...
Revere (26 Occurrences)
... (vt) To regard with reverence, or profound respect and affection, mingled with
awe or fear; to venerate; to reverence; to honor in estimation....
Bannered (2 Occurrences)
... Bannered (2 Occurrences). Song of Songs 6:4 Fair 'art' thou, my friend, as Tirzah,
Comely as Jerusalem,Awe-inspiring as bannered hosts. (YLT)....
Resources
What does it mean to have the fear of God? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does it mean that God is holy, holy, holy? | GotQuestions.orgHow should a believer respond to the characteristics of God? | GotQuestions.orgAwe: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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