February 22
Reading: Psalm 112
1 Praise the LORD!
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commandments!
2 His offspring will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4 Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;
he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.
5 It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 For the righteous will never be moved;
he will be remembered forever.
7 He is not afraid of bad news;
his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.
8 His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,
until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
9 He has distributed freely to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn is exalted in honor.
10 The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he gnashes his teeth and melts away;
the desire of the wicked will perish!
Like Psalm 111, Psalm 112 begins with “Halleluia.” Like Psalm 111, Psalm 112 is an alphabetical acrostic, each line beginning with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
This psalm, however, praises the Lord because of what happens in the life of the person who fears the Lord. It is as if the psalmist is saying, “Praise God for all of His blessings on the righteous, from A to Z,” in Hebrew from “aleph” to “tav.”
Have you ever pondered all the amazing blessings that you have, living in the righteousness and wisdom of the Lord? This, of course, does not mean that you and I are perfect in our thinking or our living. What it does mean is that you and I get to enjoy living in the truth and in the favor of the Lord.
Read through this psalm and let it be a guide to you in worshipping the Lord for all of His blessings in your life, in how you think, in how you live. Make a list of all that you are thankful for in knowing God’s commandments, in living in productive ways, in being generous, in living justly, in being able to stand in the truth. Think about how the Lord enables you to think when faced with bad news. (vs. 7) Think about how you are able to handle your fears and enemies. (vs. 8)
Those who live life without the Lord have none of these benefits. In fact, those who do not know the Lord often look at those who do and get angry. (vs. 10) People who live in unrighteousness are upset that we say we know the truth. They are bothered by Christians who claim to know that we are saved. They are threatened when they discover that we believe that there is a judgment coming, and hell for those who reject Jesus Christ. Why? Because deep in the human heart there remains a sense of what might be true. For the unbeliever, sometimes even a whiff of the truth smells like death. (2 Corinthians 2:15-16)