How many times does the phrase "fear of the LORD" appear?

The count

• “fear of the LORD” — exact phrase in the KJV: about 27 occurrences.
• “fear of God” — about 18 occurrences in the KJV.
• “those who fear the LORD” / “they that fear the LORD”: several additional occurrences.
• Broader vocabulary of fearing God across the Bible: approximately 90 occurrences.

Where it concentrates

The phrase clusters in the wisdom literature:

• Proverbs: “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (1:7; 9:10; cf. 15:33). The phrase is used as a structuring concept across the book.
• Ecclesiastes: the book closes with “Fear God and keep his commandments — this is the whole duty of man” (12:13).
• Psalms: “Blessed is the one who fears the LORD” (Psalm 112:1; cf. 128:1).

The phrase is rare in the New Testament — appearing only a handful of times (e.g., 2 Corinthians 5:11; 7:1; Acts 9:31), where it carries a more relational than reverential connotation.

The Hebrew vocabulary

The standard phrase is yirat YHWH (יִרְאַת יהוה) or yirat Elohim (יִרְאַת אֱלֹהִים). The verb yare (יָרֵא, “to fear, to revere”) is used about 280 times in the Hebrew Bible in all senses; about a third of those refer to fearing God.

What “fear” means

The “fear of the LORD” in biblical usage is generally not paralysing terror but reverent awe — recognition of God’s holiness, justice, and supremacy. The wisdom literature treats it as the foundational disposition for wisdom and a moral life. Proverbs 1:7 is explicit: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”

That said, the term retains some genuine “fear” content — the prophets describe encounters with God as frequently terrifying (Isaiah 6, Ezekiel 1, Daniel 10, Revelation 1). The distinction between “fear” as awe and “fear” as terror is not always sharp.

See also

• /meaning/fear-of-the-lord/ — the meaning behind the phrase.