By Mark A. Horne
Psalm 112
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; he has given 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!
“Everyone fears something.” You may have heard that said by someone. You may even have said it yourself. What is fear? The Oxford Dictionary defines fear as, “an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.” When one thinks about certain fears, there is a sense that they are unpleasant. If one contemplates getting run over by a large green bus, or the sullied monster under the bed grabbing your dangling hand off the left side, then one experiences more than unpleasantry. However, what about a certain individual’s fear on the downward descent of a high roller coaster? Or the birthing of a first-born child? Then the fear may not be described as unpleasant; it may be exhilarating, thrilling, or exciting.
The Psalmist in the passage highlights that point by providing a contrast. Notice verses one (1) and seven (7). In verse one, there is fear. However, the fear is of the LORD. Now, that kind of fear certainly comes with terror. C.S. Lewis points that out in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe when Lucy, Mr. Beaver and Mrs. Beaver discuss Aslan, a lion who is a literary parallel to Jesus.
“Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion.” “Ooh” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion”….“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
C.S. Lewis – The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
In the Bible, when one encounters God, he/she certainly becomes afraid and experiences a possible sense of terror. That shouldn’t be unexpected. God is a mighty God and the Creator of the universe. One’s knees should knock and hide one’s face in His presence. In these Biblical instances the encountered must be told, “Fear not,” “Do not be afraid;” all the while falling on their face, or covering their eyes, or removing shoes.
Then we hear the words of Psalm 112. One may notice the “fear not/do not be afraid” theme, but that isn’t explicitly stated. What is interesting is the quantified “delight” of the fear of the LORD. Read verse one again. Amid standing before the Sovereign in meditation and prayer, he takes delight in the rules of life God has spelled out in Scripture. He understands that the commandments of the Almighty are good, true, and worthy to be followed. They are a means to loving God through obedience and caring about the what is the heart of the Redeemer. And no matter what comes his way, the Psalmist knows that it is good.
Verses one through six shows the consequences of living out these commands: mighty generations, blessed homes, grace, mercy, and justice. The contrast given in verse seven is significant. Whatever news that comes the believer’s way, is not bad. His/her trust is in a Sovereign God who carries out His divine plan for His glory.
Howard Eyrich and William Hines has this to say concerning how our fear of God is central to a life of obedience to Him. “We are called to fear or reverence God in a way that holds Him in highest esteem in our hearts and minds. There is also a sense in which we should be motivated to obedience based on the fear of disobedience….Living in reverential fear of God and His commands is clean in the sense that it is a way of life that it keeps one pure and undefiled (emphasis mine).” (Eyrich and Hines, Curing the Heart: A Model for Biblical Counseling, 38-39)
There are many unhealthy fears in life. However, fearing the LORD is not one of them. Many taste the bitter fruits of self-will or reap the consequences of disobedience. Yet the one whose heart is filled with the peace and joy as a child of God is one who has a lovingly reverence of Him. This person finds a pure and lasting happiness in doing everything to God the Savior. Yes, serving God may mean the loss of all earthly good (1 Corinthians 15:19). Still, the treasure store of Christ is open to those who trust in Him (1 Peter 2:4-8). The child of God realizes that the fears in this life have no power to touch him or her where his or her treasure is. Really, they have no power at all.
The secret to maintaining a reverent fear of the Lord and to not be fearful of earthly issues is stated in verse 7. As a child of God,“…his/her heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.” This means that one has come to a settled conviction that he or she has a relationship with God and that God holds him or her in His hands. The child of God is certain of God’s goodness and all-sufficient power and grace towards the believer. The person who fears the LORD has his or her feet firmly planted on a solid rock and has come to be fixed in heart as to the LORD’s leading in the right way. It is not mere thinking. It is full persuasion. He or she knows in whom they believe (Isaiah 26:3).
So, one who is God’s fears Him reverently, but he or she is able to face earthly fears firmly because he or she constantly trust Him fully. One should form habits of trust in whatever circumstances one finds him or herself. It is not a single act of faith, or an occasional irregular trust, which will ensure this fixed heart. No, it must be perpetually repeated until it is fixed in place. One must put his or her will into it and abandon everything that may cause trust to seem impossible. This is how the Psalmist declares a child of God to be blessed in times of earthly fear.
Andrews PCA 