Bible Strands
Isaiah 8:13
The LORD of Hosts is the One you shall regard as holy. Only He should be feared; only He should be dreaded.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The prophet Isaiah addresses the people of Judah, commanding them to reject the panic and political paranoia of their contemporaries. He directs their attention away from human threats toward divine authority.
The words — The Hebrew תַקְדִּ֑ישׁוּ (tak.Di.shu) literally means "you will regard as holy," while מוֹרַאֲכֶם (mo.ra.'a./Khem) translates to "your fear." These terms establish Yahweh as the sole object of reverence and dread.
The thread — This command to fear only God echoes in Luke 12:5, which identifies the One who holds authority over death as the proper object of fear. It aligns with Isaiah 26:3, which links steadfast trust to perfect peace, and Revelation 15:4, which declares that all nations will fear and glorify God alone.
Why it lands — The text demands that the reader abandon human anxieties and place exclusive reverence on Yahweh. It requires a practical shift of allegiance from worldly threats to divine sovereignty.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
Cross-references
- Luke 12:5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!
- Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You.
- Revelation 15:4 Who will not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed.”
- Matthew 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
- Psalms 76:7 You alone are to be feared. When You are angry, who can stand before You?
- Malachi 2:5 “My covenant with him was one of life and peace, which I gave to him; it called for reverence, and he revered Me and stood in awe of My name.
- Numbers 20:12 But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me to show My holiness in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.”
- Genesis 31:53 May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.
- Isaiah 29:23 For when he sees his children around him, the work of My hands, they will honor My name, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and they will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
- Numbers 27:14 for when the congregation contended in the Wilderness of Zin, both of you rebelled against My command to show My holiness in their sight regarding the waters.” Those were the waters of Meribah in Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin.