Archaic KJV Word
Fear
Modern equivalent: being afraid of
What Was Lost
The combination of terror and delight. Yirah was what you feel standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon -- a mix of overwhelming beauty, genuine danger, the impulse to step back, and the inability to look away. The fear of the Lord was not being scared of punishment but being undone by magnificence.
Closest Survivor in Modern English
awe (captures the wonder but loses the trembling)
Peak Usage (1611)
KJV Proverbs 9:10 -- 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom'; Psalm 111:10 -- 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom'
Died still used but misread (~1800)
Hebrew yirah ('awe/reverence/overwhelming awareness of God's magnitude') reduced to 'being scared of God.' The fear of the Lord became terror rather than awe, making God sound threatening rather than magnificent.
What Replaced It
“terror”
Implies desire to flee; yirah was awe that drew you closer even as it overwhelmed you
“respect”
Casual and horizontal; yirah was the vertigo of standing before infinite majesty
“reverence”
Closest but too formal and mild; yirah was the full-body response to encountering the living God