he fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, a word that refers to the first and controlling principle; not a stage that one leaves behind but a foundational and constitutent part to everything that happens subsequently. “O Lord, I beseech Thee, may Thine ear be attentive to the prayer of Thy servant and the prayer of Thy servants who delight to fear Thy name, and make Thy servant successful today, and grant him compassion before this man” (Neh. 1:11).