evotional Short note on Psalm 111 connected to Psalm 112: The focus is supposedly on Psalm 111 but in this case it will be more beneficial to place Psalms 111 and 112 adjacent to each other since the format mainframe are the same. The content differs. How does it work? Certain phrases are used in both psalms: “praise the Lord” (111:1 and 112:1); “and his righteousness endures forever” (111:3b and 112:3b); “is gracious and compassionate” (111:4b and 112:4b). There is a word that connects both psalms: “fear/respect” (yareh). It starts in 111:10a and is found in 112:1a; 112:7a and in 112:8a.

It is almost as if Solomon took his book Proverbs and selected some passages from it, split the content into two and superimposed on it a mainframe.

The genre changes in the two psalms from cluster of verses to the next cluster.

He opens with adoration in 111:1-3. He wants to worship God greatly in the council of the upright and in the assembly (111:1c). His deeds are glorious and majestic (111:3a) and His righteousness endures forever (111:3b).

Now the genre change to an explanation answering why God is great and majestic and righteous:

1. “memory He has made to His wonderous works” (111:4a).

2. “grabbed food he has given to the fearing ones” (111:5a). The word thereph is normally used in the context of food for prey. Street cats come to my house for a “cat-buffet” daily and their character is that they grab the food in a snatching way from each other. Sometimes in competition the one who arrives first at the food places his foot over it as a sign that he was there first and the other one then back-off. God is dealing with Satan here for ravages, scavengers and Satan’s instruments keep food from His elect. So God grab it back from them and give it to the fearing ones. There is no Robin-Hoodism of taking from the rich and give to the poor. It is a matter of calculative efforts by those who are responsible to provide the food to the fearful to keep it away from them what is rightfully theirs. Preventing this robbery of food from the faithful, God grab it out of their hands and give it where it properly belongs. Can you steal when you are hungry? The Bible says if you are hungry you can eat at least one apple but hungry does not mean to wipe out the whole orchard or take crates of food for yourself. In the Ancient Near East the principle was not to harvest everything so that poor people or widows can come and collect the remainder.

3. “He remembers to eternity His covenant” (111:5b).

4. “The power of His works He has caused to reveal” (111:6a). This was to give them the heritage of nations (111:6b). Heritage means fashion designs, patent rights, monuments, museum, cultural centers, building designs. It is just the control over the heritage that is given, the origin of that heritage was still the other nation. For example here in South Korea at the Kyungpook National University Hospital in Daegu there is a flank that was build by Japanese under their occupation of the country. Are Koreans calling it now the Korean flank of the hospital? No. They built adjacent to it their Korean extensions and new wings and refer to this as the wing built under Japanese occupation since it is their heritage not Korean.

5. “The works of His hands are truth and justice and all His precepts are truthful” (111:7a-b).

6. His works are steadfast forever and ever, they are done in truth and uprightness (111:8a-b).

7. Redemption provision for His people placing them in a covenant relationship forever (111:9a-b).

In the last verse, the psalmist starts a new genre about the “fear of the Lord” definition that is also found in the Proverbs of Solomon a number of times (Proverbs 1:7 [same as Psalm 111:10]); 2:6 [wisdom from God]; 9:10 [same as Psalm 111:10]; 10:27 [long life]; 13:13b [fear the commandment]; 14:26 [there is confidence]; 14:27 [fountain of life]; 15:33 [the instruction for wisdom]; 16:6b [navigation away from evil]; 19:23 [leads to life]; 22:4 [reward are riches, honor and life]; 23:17-18 [future dream is secure].