WG: Fear / Reverence
Overview
The fear/reverence concept spans both testaments through the yare-phobeo bridge, the strongest verb-to-verb LXX connection in the group (241 co-occurrences). Hebrew distinguishes yare (reverent awe / terror) from pachad (sudden alarm / dread), while Greek unifies most of the range under the phob- family. The word group covers both positive covenant fear of God and negative human terror, with proskyneo (worship) as the behavioral outworking and deilos (cowardly fear) as the condemned counterpart.
Word Group Members
| Strong's |
Word |
Transliteration |
POS |
Occurrences |
Role in Concept |
Library Entry |
| H3372 |
יָרֵא |
yare |
verb |
317 |
Core OT verb — to fear, revere; covers the full range |
H3372-yare.md |
| H3373 |
יָרֵא |
yare |
adj |
54 |
"Fearing, reverent" — construct: "those who fear him" |
TODO(need H3373 study) |
| H3374 |
יִרְאָה |
yir'ah |
noun |
42 |
"Fear, reverence" — "the fear of the LORD" |
H3374-yirah.md |
| H6343 |
פַּחַד |
pachad |
noun |
48 |
"Dread, sudden alarm" — visceral terror |
TODO(need H6343 study) |
| H6342 |
פָּחַד |
pachad |
verb |
25 |
"Be startled, dread" — physical alarm |
TODO(need H6342 study) |
| G5399 |
φοβέω |
phobeo |
verb |
90 |
Core NT verb — to fear, to revere |
G5399-phobeo.md |
| G5401 |
φόβος |
phobos |
noun |
44 |
The state — fear, reverence |
G5401-phobos.md |
| G5398 |
φοβερός |
phoberos |
adj |
3 |
The quality — fearful, terrible |
TODO(need G5398 study) |
| G4352 |
προσκυνέω |
proskyneo |
verb |
54 |
The behavioral response — worship, bow down |
G4352-proskyneo.md |
| G2125 |
εὐλαβέομαι |
eulabeomai |
verb |
2 |
Cautious, pious reverence — formal/ritual nuance |
TODO(need G2125 study) |
| G1169 |
δειλός |
deilos |
adj |
3 |
Cowardly fear — always negative |
TODO(need G1169 study) |
Relationships
Hebrew Word Family (yr' Root)
- H3372 יָרֵא (yare) (verb) → H3373 יָרֵא (yare) (adjective) → H3374 יִרְאָה (yir'ah) (noun)
- All from the same root: the action, the quality, and the state of fearing/revering
Hebrew Contrast: yare vs. pachad
- H3372 yare — the full range from reverential awe to terror; can be positive ("fear God")
- H6342/H6343 pachad — sudden alarm, dread; primarily negative/visceral; OT co-occurrence with yare: 3 shared verses
Greek Word Family (phob- Root)
- G5399 φοβέω (verb) → G5401 φόβος (noun) → G5398 φοβερός (adjective)
- G5400 φόβητρον (phobetron, "fearful sight") — 1 occurrence (Luke 21:11), extends the family
Co-occurrence (appear in same verses)
| Word A |
Word B |
Shared Verses |
Typical Context |
| H3372 yare |
H3373 yare (adj) |
4 |
"O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him" (Psa 34:9) |
| H3372 yare |
H6343 pachad (n) |
3 |
Fear vocabulary clustering in threat/reassurance contexts |
| H6343 pachad |
H6342 pachad (v) |
5 |
"In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even!" (Deu 28:67) |
| G5399 phobeo |
G5401 phobos |
5 |
Intensification — "feared with great fear" (Mark 4:41, Luke 2:9) |
| G5399 phobeo |
G4352 proskyneo |
2 |
Rev 14:7; Rev 15:4 — fearing God paired with worship |
LXX Bridges (Shared Greek Targets)
| Greek Target |
Hebrew Sources |
Notes |
| G5399 φοβέω |
H3372 yare (241x), H3373 yare (45x), H6342 pachad (10x) |
phobeo unifies what Hebrew distinguishes |
| G5401 φόβος |
H6343 pachad (35x), H3374 yir'ah (31x), H6342 pachad (5x) |
phobos maps both the reverential noun and the dread noun |
Roles in the Concept
- Core verb: phobeo (G5399) — the act of fearing or revering; neutral — context determines whether positive (reverence) or negative (terror)
- State/disposition: phobos (G5401) — the condition of fear; also neutral — "fear of God" (positive) vs. "fear of death" (negative)
- Quality/description: phoberos (G5398) — "fearful, terrible" — describes the object that provokes fear (Heb 10:27, 31; 12:21)
- Outward response: proskyneo (G4352) — worship as the behavioral expression of godly fear (Rev 14:7 links "fear God" directly to "worship him")
- Cautious piety: eulabeomai (G2125) — careful reverence, used of Noah (Heb 11:7) — more specific than phobeo
- Negative counterpart: deilos (G1169) — cowardly, timid fear — always condemned (Mat 8:26; Mark 4:40; Rev 21:8 lists "the fearful" among the lost)
Key Passages Where Multiple Group Words Appear Together
- Rev 14:7 — phobeo + proskyneo: "Fear God, and give glory to him... and worship him that made heaven, and earth"
- Rev 15:4 — phobeo + proskyneo: "Who shall not fear thee, O Lord... for all nations shall come and worship before thee"
- Mark 4:40-41 — deilos + phobeo + phobos: "Why are ye so fearful (deilos)?" then "they feared (phobeo) exceedingly" with "great fear (phobos)" — the full spectrum in two verses
- 1 John 4:18 — phobos + phobeo: "perfect love casteth out fear (phobos)... he that feareth (phobeo) is not made perfect in love"
- Luke 2:9-10 — phobeo + phobos: "they were sore afraid (phobeo with mega phobos)" then "Fear (phobeo) not"
Semantic Contrasts
| Concept |
Positive (Godly Fear) |
Negative (Cowardly Fear) |
| Verb |
phobeo + God as object |
deilos (condemned) |
| Attitude |
phobos theou — "fear of God" |
phobos thanatou — "fear of death" (Heb 2:15) |
| Outcome |
wisdom, acceptance (Acts 10:35) |
judgment (Rev 21:8 — "the fearful" in the lake of fire) |
| Antidote |
— |
perfect love (1 John 4:18); faith (Mark 4:40) |
Generated from: gather_word_group_data.py, gather_word_data.py
Last updated: 2026-04-13