Psalm 112/Translation/Tips

The following gives a basic Overview of the Psalm, answering the following questions:

• Title-what title best describes this unique psalm?
  • "The one who fears YHWH"
• Purpose–why was this psalm written?
  • To celebrate the one who fears YHWH
• Content–In summary, what is said in this psalm?
  • Happy is the one who fears YHWH! He will be blessed, and he will be a blessing to others.
• Message–what is the general theme of this psalm? What seems to be the main point the psalmist wanted his audience to realize by hearing this psalm?
  • The one who fears YHWH becomes like YHWH, blessing those around him.

Every psalm has a coherent story behind it. However, many psalms are not written in typical "story" format, with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Here, we attempt to understand the story and background that prompted the psalmist to write.

• Story Behind-How do the various parts of the psalm fit together into a single, coherent story? What is the main message/theme conveyed by this "story behind"?
  • A son of David inherits the throne. He studies YHWH's law and learns to fear YHWH. He becomes wise and successful, and he rules with justice. So, the psalmist looks forward to a time when upright people are blessed, wicked people are punished, and upright people imitate the son of David's example of fearing YHWH.
• Background Situation-what are the series of events leading up to the time in which the psalm was written?

Knowing the layout of the psalm by sections helps us to understand the progression of thought as the poem progresses.

How to read the visual below: The picture below shows the main “chunks” or pieces of the poem. Verse numbers appear on the left. The second column has a title for each section. The large third column contains a brief summary of the section’s content. As you read through the content column, you will see important words and ideas highlighted in similar colors. The icons on the right may be used as memory aids.

 

Progression–what is the flow of thought as the poem progresses?

• The psalmist begins by celebrating how YHWH blesses the one who fears YHWH and delights in YHWH's commands. Among other things, this person has great offspring, he is wealthy, he is righteous, and he is a light for the upright. Then, the psalmist describes how the person who fears YHWH is fearless in the face of bad news and opposition. This person lends generously, he trusts firmly in YHWH and fears nothing else, and the wicked who oppose him will melt away.

Part of poetry is communicating emotion. Each section, and even each verse, can contain a number of different emotions. Here are the main emotional themes of each section:

 

 

In poetry, it is important to keep track of who is speaking, who is the audience, and what it is that the speaker is trying to do with his words.

In the chart below, the left-hand column identifies the speaker, who is the psalmist. The right-hand column identifies the audience, who is the congregation. The middle column tells what the speaker is trying to do with his words (his speech acts) in each section.

In this section, we ask, "what kinds of artistic beauty did the psalmist incorporate into the poem to reinforce its message?" (See Poetic Features video and layer for more details.)

 

Poetic Feature 1: A to Z Celebration

 

 

Psalm 112 is an acrostic poem.  In acrostic poems, each line begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet (Psalm 111, which has several correspondences to this psalm, is also an acrostic poem).

The alphabet is a symbol of completeness. In an acrostic poem, the poet takes a topic and explains it carefully and completely, from every possible angle. The purpose is that the reader would gain a thorough, detailed understanding of the topic, so that he or she understands it “from A to Z.” In Psalm 112, the topic is "the man who fears YHWH" (verse 1a).

Poetic Feature 2: The Imitation of God

 

 

Psalm 112 is closely related to Psalm 111 .

In terms of structure, the two psalms are nearly identical. Each psalm is an acrostic, which means that each line begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Both psalms are 22 lines and have identical superscriptions.

The two psalms also share many similar phrases and words. Many times, what is said about YHWH in Psalm 111 is said about the man in Psalm 112 (see highlighted text and thick connecting lines).

The man in Psalm 112 is described in terms that are especially (and, in some cases, uniquely) appropriate to YHWH. Like YHWH, the man "gives" generously (111:5/112:9) and carries out his work in "justice" (111:7/112:5). Like YHWH, he is "merciful and compassionate" (111:4/112:4), and "his righteousness stands forever" (111:3/112:3, 9).

In other words, the person who fears YHWH and follows his commands becomes like YHWH in terms of his character.

This parallel description of YHWH and the man is perhaps more understandable (though still striking) if the man in Psalm 112 is a king (see this exegetical issue for more detail). In Israel, as in the wider Ancient Near East, the king was both the image of God and the son of God (see Psalm 2), and, as such, he was expected to resemble the character of his God.

The blurring of YHWH and the king occurs elsewhere in the psalms (for example, in Psalms 2, 45, and 110). It is perhaps significant that the pair Psalms 111–112 follows Psalm 110, in which it is difficult to distinguish the king's activity from YHWH's activity (see the poetic feature "The Lord and the lord" for Ps. 110).

It is also important to consider how the author chose to draw attention to certain parts of the psalm. Here are the parts of the psalm that we believe are most prominent, and thus should be most prominent in a performance of the psalm.

 

Like the Sun

Throughout Psalm 112, the one who fears YHWH is compared to the sun:

 

• he is described as a light which has "risen (זרח) in the darkness" (verse 4). The subject of the verb זרח (in the sense of "dawn") is almost always the sun.
• he causes the wicked to waste away, or more literally, to melt (מסס, verse 10c) which is something that the sun can also cause to happen (see Exodus 16:21).
• his horn rises (verse 9c) and horns in the OT are sometimes "a symbol for radiance."
• he has honor/glory (כָבֽוֹד, verse 9c) which is associated with the sun.
• he is characterized many times with the Hebrew root righteous (צדק), and this word is often associated with the sun.
• his impact is forever (verses 3, 6, 9), and in Ps 89:37, the king's dynasty is compared to the sun in the sense that it lasts forever.

 

The application of solar imagery to the man strengthens the association between the man and YHWH (see Poetic Feature 2), since YHWH is often compared to the sun in the OT.

 

It also strengthens the identification of the man as a king, since kings were often compared to the sun in the OT. In this psalm:

• just as the sun has the primary responsibility of providing light and heat during the daytime, so the king has the primary responsibility of establishing and maintaining justice in the kingdom.
• Just as the light and heat of the sun are the preconditions for life and flourishing on the earth, so the justice which the king establishes and maintains is the precondition for peace and well-being in the kingdom.