Psalms 112

General context

The psalm begins with Praise ye the Lord and calls blessed the man who fears the Lord and delights greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty on earth and the generation of the upright blessed; wealth and riches shall be in his house and his righteousness endures for ever. Light arises in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, full of compassion and righteous. A good man shows favour and lends and guides his affairs with discretion; he shall not be moved for ever, and the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings, for his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord; his heart is established and he shall not be afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies. He has dispersed and given to the poor, his righteousness endures for ever, and his horn shall be exalted with honour. The wicked shall see it and be grieved, gnash with his teeth and melt away, and the desire of the wicked shall perish.

Cited passages: Psalms 112:1, Psalms 112:2, Psalms 112:3, Psalms 112:4, Psalms 112:5, Psalms 112:6, Psalms 112:7, Psalms 112:8, Psalms 112:9, Psalms 112:10

Psalms 112 (KJV)

This page shows the King James Version. In the app, reading opens in the Berean Standard Bible unless you have chosen another translation. The reader includes five translations: the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), the King James Version (KJV), the World English Bible (WEB), the Bible in Basic English (BBE), and the American Standard Version (ASV). Search covers three of them: Berean Standard, King James, and World English. Basic English and American Standard readers search the King James words.

Historical context

This source prints no superscription; the psalm is ten verses and opens with Praise ye the Lord. No speaker uses I; the whole poem describes the man that feareth the Lord in the third person, and the wicked in the last verse. The man is not named, and no place or event is given. What the text says of him is specific: he delights in commandments, has seed and a house with wealth, shows favour, lends, gives to the poor, and is not afraid of evil tidings; his enemies and the wicked are mentioned without identification. Verse 4 says he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous, close to the words Psalm 111:4 uses of the Lord, and the phrase his righteousness endureth for ever appears in verses 3 and 9 here and in Psalm 111:3 of the Lord. There is no Selah.

Cited passages: Psalms 112:1, Psalms 112:9, Psalms 112:8, Psalms 112:4, Psalms 111:4, Psalms 112:3, Psalms 111:3, Psalms 112:10

Literary context

The psalm is a portrait in promises. Nearly every verse uses shall: his seed shall be mighty, wealth shall be in his house, he shall not be moved, he shall not be afraid, his horn shall be exalted. The heart is named twice, in verses 7 and 8, fixed and established, and both times the point is that he is not afraid. Light in darkness in verse 4 is the one image of change; the rest is stability, not moved, everlasting remembrance. His righteousness endureth for ever is said twice, in verses 3 and 9, each time next to a material good, riches or giving. The last verse turns for the first time to the wicked, whose seeing, grieving, gnashing and melting reverse the fixed heart of the blessed man, and the poem ends on a desire that perishes, set against the desire the blessed man sees fulfilled in verse 8.

Cited passages: Psalms 112:2, Psalms 112:6, Psalms 112:7, Psalms 112:8, Psalms 112:4, Psalms 112:9, Psalms 112:10

Key moments

1. Blessed is the man (Psalms 112:1). The man who fears the Lord and delights in his commandments is called blessed.
2. Light in the darkness (Psalms 112:4). Light arises for the upright, who is gracious and full of compassion.
3. He lends and shows favour (Psalms 112:5). The good man lends and manages his affairs with discretion.
4. A heart fixed (Psalms 112:7). The blessed man does not fear evil tidings because his heart trusts the Lord.
5. Given to the poor (Psalms 112:9). He has dispersed to the poor and his horn is exalted with honour.
6. The wicked melt away (Psalms 112:10). The wicked see, gnash their teeth and their desire perishes.

For reflection

The blessed man's heart is fixed so that he is not afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies. Is the fearlessness the psalm describes tied to that seeing, or does it stand on its own?