There's a beautiful map in my office that, to be honest, is there because we didn't really have anywhere in the house to put it. It's a bit peculiar. It's obviously hand-drawn and ancient, with vivid color and great detail. It looks kind of like a Lord of the Rings map. The labels all use our same alphabet, but the accent marks and strange words show that it's clearly in a different language.
When people visit my office, the more curious of them look at the map expecting to be able to figure it out. It usually starts with them saying, "Oooh, cool map. Don't tell me where it is." "OK," I say. "Let me know if you need a hint." Then their eyes scan it, seeing somewhat familiar features but still unable to lock it in. Almost without exception people need the hint, and after I tell them, everything clicks. "North is down," I say. Cue the sigh of dawning realization and the recognition of Italy's upside-down boot and the Iberian peninsula sticking up like a flag in the Atlantic. It's called the Veltkarte Des Idrisi (the "Worldmap of Idrisi") and, as Idrisi was a Muslim scholar in the 1100’s, is centered on the Middle East but with an upside-down orientation.
The fear of the Lord is the "North is down" of the Proverbs. Everything in it and in its understanding of life is centered on the fear of the Lord. We will see that, contrary to FDR's inaugural address, the real fear isn't fear itself but fear divorced from its proper target—the Lord, of whom proper fear becomes trust. North is down.