Embrace the Word for Friday, September 4, 2026
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Psalm 112 highlights the character of and consequences that result from a life of wisdom. Like Psalm 111, Psalm 112 is an alphabetic acrostic. The twenty-two lines of each Psalm begin with the twenty-two successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. There are many other links that bind Psalm 111 and Psalm 112 together. Like Psalm 111, Psalm 112 begins with “Praise the LORD” (Hallelujah). Other links between the two Psalms include: “the fear of the LORD” (111:10; 112:1); “upright” (111:1; 112:2,4); “righteousness endures forever” (111:3; 112:3,9); “just/justice” (111:7; 112:5); “gracious and merciful” (111:4; 112:4), and “command/commandments” (111:9; 112:1). Whereas Psalm 111 highlights the works of God, Psalm 112 highlights the works of the godly person. Psalm 112 picks up where Psalm 111 left off. As Psalm 111 concluded with the need to fear the LORD, Psalm 112 pertains to fearing the LORD. Psalm 112 also returns to key elements of Psalm 1. Both Psalms open with “Blessed” (1:1; 112:1); close with the way that perishes (1:6; 112:10); and in between, points to delighting in God’s Word (1:2; 112:1), talks of true prosperity (1:3; 112:3-5), and speaks of righteousness (1:5-6; 112:3-4,6,9). Psalm 112 begins with a statement about the man who enjoys the blessings of the LORD (112:1a-b), continues with a description of the character and consequences of god-fearing wisdom (112:1c-9), and concludes with a comment on the tragedy of wickedness (112:10).
Psalm 112 opens with a call to praise: “Praise the LORD!” (112:1a). While the focus of this Psalm is not the LORD, but the man who fears the LORD, it should be kept in mind that the duty of fearing the LORD is an enabled duty. The LORD supplies to the one who fears Him all the gracious enablement that is required. But it might also be kept in mind that both the duty to fear the LORD as well as the enabling grace to perform such duty is a good thing from the hand of God and to which God should be praised. Such a life that consists of fearing the LORD is a happy and enjoyable life: “Blessed is the man who fears the LORD” (112:1b). Reflecting back on the term “Blessed” from Psalm 1, the term describes the enjoyment experienced by the one upon whom God’s favor rests. Psalm 1 is a bold declaration for any who would hear: “This is the best way to live!” Like Psalm 1, the orbit around which true enjoyment in life is received comes through God’s Word: “who greatly delights in his commandments!” (112:1c). The blessed man of Psalm 1 delights in God’s Word and thus meditates upon it consistently. So too, the man who fears the LORD receives God’s Word to the point that it shapes and reshapes—directs and redirects—how he delightfully lives before the LORD.
As the Psalmist generically highlights the “blessed” state of the man who fears the LORD and therefore delights in obeying Him, he now unfolds some of the particularities of what such enjoyment from the LORD consists of: “His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed” (112:2). There are consequences to rightly fearing the LORD and keeping His commandments. The first particular matter of blessings that come to those who fear the LORD pertains to offspring or familial blessings. The terms of the Old Covenant are explicitly connected to being fruitful: “I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you” (See Leviticus 26:9; See also Deuteronomy 28:4). Another particular matter of blessing is ample wealth and/or financial stability: “Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever” (112:3). Once again, the terms of the Old Covenant offer these realities through obedience: “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely” (See Leviticus 26:3-5). The wisdom of Proverbs also observes the connection between living righteously and assurances of financial stability: “In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, but trouble befalls the income of the wicked” (See Proverbs 15:6).
After introducing some of the consequential blessings of rightly fearing the LORD, the Psalmist produces some specific ways that wisdom demonstrates a life of applied righteousness: “Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous” (112:4). The man who fears the LORD displays the light of uprightness in even the darkest of contexts. The traits of such light are identified as graciousness, mercy, and righteousness. Solomon states something similarly concerning wisdom: “But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day” (See Proverbs 4:18). An application of living wisdom, seen as a displaying light, is ones actions that are informed by generosity and justice: “It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice” (112:5). The needy are attended to with grace and justice.
The Psalmist returns to other consequences of living in proper fear of the LORD including steadfastness and a good reputation: “For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever” (112:6). The man who fears the LORD will not be easily toppled, for the LORD will sustain him: “He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken” (See Psalm 62:2). In fact, the legacy of such a man will be recalled for years to come. Exploring the durability of the man who fears the LORD further, the Psalmist adds: “He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries” (112:7-8). With a heart that is established by the LORD, not even bad news rattles the man who trusts in the LORD. The man who fears the LORD is dauntless before all that would otherwise threaten to unravel him. Not only is such a man not enslaved by such fearful threats, he is confident that all that the LORD has promised will in fact come to pass in his life. Out of such confidence, this man who fears the LORD is fearless before everything else. And this fearlessness frees him to fittingly focus on the needs of others: “He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever; his horn is exalted in honor” (112:9). Confident that he will look “in triumph on his adversaries” the man who fears the LORD focuses on a just generosity as he awaits the LORD exalting him in strength and honor.
The Psalmist concluded with a word of warning: “The wicked man sees it and is angry; he gnashes his teeth and melts away; the desire of the wicked will perish!” (1112:10). In stark contrast to all the consequences of fearing the LORD, a brief word is offered that touches on the consequences of not properly fearing the LORD. The wicked are filled with envy over what awaits the righteous, who will see victory and exaltation. While the wicked have no desire to pursue the kind of life that leads to wonderful consequences, they desire those consequences and are frustratingly enraged to see someone other than themselves experiencing such blessings. Reminiscent of the ending of Psalm 1, perish is an optimal word for the fate of the wicked. Whereas Psalm 1 states that “the way of the wicked will perish” (1:6), here the focus is upon the fact that the very desires of the wicked will be denied.
As we reflect on Psalm 112, we can consider the Lord Jesus Christ as the One of whom it can be truly said: “Blessed is the man who fears the LORD” (112:1b). While Psalm 111 focused on the works of God, Psalm 112 focuses on the works of a man. Perhaps Psalm 112 is actually pointing to the God-Man, the Lord Jesus Christ. Psalm 110 anticipates the King-Priest who would come through David’s line. Perhaps Psalm 112 speaks of Him, for Jesus truly fulfills all the particular ways that a life lived in the fear of the LORD would be actually lived. What this means by way of application for those who are followers of Christ is that we read Psalm 112, not simply in a moralistic way untethered from Jesus, but in a way that acknowledges that inheriting the blessed life described in this Psalm comes through union with the Lord Jesus Christ. A union with Christ that enables all who trust in Him to begin the process of living like Him. This is the way that the Apostle Paul applies Psalm 112 to the Christian life. As the Apostle Paul calls for Christians to practice generosity, he does not merely tell Christians to be generously sacrificial in their giving. He does exhort Christians to give with a sacrificial generosity; he even quotes Psalm 112 and its description of the generosity of the man who fears the LORD. However, Paul frames his command with reassurances that Christ’s grace is what empowers Christian obligations: “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever” (See 2 Corinthians 9:8-9; quoting Psalm 112:9). It is the Holy Spirit who empowered the Lord Jesus Christ to live generously: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (See 2 Corinthians 8:9). That same Spirit now dwells in all who trust Christ supplying the desire and the empowerment to fear the LORD. Since it is the Spirit of Christ in us, we do not congratulate ourselves, we declare “Praise the LORD!”
That’s all for Embrace the Word for Friday, September 4, 2026. I look forward to being back with you for the Monday, September 7, 2026 episode of Embrace the Word as we take a look at Psalm 113.