How many times is "fear of the LORD" in the Bible?
The phrase "fear of the LORD" appears 30 times in the King James Version, in 30 verses. It is found in 7 of the 66 books. The World English Bible words it differently: fear of Yahweh 23.
Fear of the LORD in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of fear of the LORD counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| fear of the LORD | 30 | not counted |
| fear of Yahweh | not counted | 23 |
| Total | 30 | 23 |
First and last mention of fear of the LORD
And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out with one consent.
Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.
Where the two translations differ
7 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 0 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
1 Samuel 11:7: counted in the KJV only
And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out with one consent.
He took a yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the borders of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, “Whoever doesn’t come out after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen.” The dread of Yahweh fell on the people, and they came out as one man.
Job 28:28: counted in the KJV only
And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
To man he said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom. To depart from evil is understanding.’”
Verses with fear of the LORD on our topic pages
8 verses that use fear of the LORD in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
Come, you children, listen to me. I will teach you the fear of Yahweh.
On: Fear
The fear of Yahweh is to hate evil. I hate pride, arrogance, the evil way, and the perverse mouth.
On: Pride
The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom. The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
On: Wisdom
In the fear of Yahweh is a secure fortress, and he will be a refuge for his children.
On: Fathers
Better is little, with the fear of Yahweh, than great treasure with trouble.
On: Contentment
The fear of Yahweh leads to life, then contentment; he rests and will not be touched by trouble.
On: Contentment
Yahweh’s Spirit will rest on him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Yahweh.
On: Holy Spirit
Common questions
How many times is fear of the LORD in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 29 of the 30 uses are in the Old Testament and 1 in the New Testament. Fear of the LORD appears in 7 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Proverbs has the most (14), then Isaiah (6) and 2 Chronicles (4).
Where is fear of the LORD first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is 1 Samuel 11:7: "And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out with one consent." The last is Acts 9:31.
More word counts: forty days, Jesus Christ, praise the LORD, 666, love, God, Jesus, Christ, or all 253 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-05.