Series: Blessed Be
Psalm 112:1 ESV
There was a time in my life when I would read a passage of scripture and I would take the meaning at face value. I didn’t stop and investigate. I assumed I probably knew what it meant.
For example, Psalm 112:1, “Praise the Lord!Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments!”
It seems straightforward enough, right?
But after I went to Seminary I learned about exegesis…the professors don’t necessarily give you answers.
That would be too easy.
Instead they give the gift of making you question everything in scripture. I learned how to frame the question in my head.
I learned to question every word and every punctuation mark.
It turns out, that is a great blessing.
Think of it this way…did Sherlock Holmes take small clues for granted? Of course not! He paid attention to every tiny detail. He dug in!
That’s often what we need to do with scripture.
In addition to that, previous speaking and writing training taught me to ask who what when why and where.
And so it is with every phrase.
Who wrote it?
What was the circumstance?
When did they write it and what was going on at that time?
Why did they write it is often important as well.
Where were they when they wrote it and did that impact the passage?
Using today’s scripture from Psalm 112:1 we learn that this psalm is an acrostic and each line or section begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. So, Psalm 112:1 begins with the letter Aleph.
The first word (preceding word) of the Hebrew Psalm is Asher (אַשְׁרֵי) and the English word is Blessed.
In the ESV they begin with Praise the Lord prior to verse 1.
The Psalm author is unknown.
The Psalm was written in recognition of the blessing man receives when he/she revere (some translators use the word fear) Holy Yahweh God.
The intention of the psalm is to extol praise to God for blessing man (men, women, etc.) who turn to God with the intent of recognizing that Yahweh is THE God and God’s commandments are a great delight in the way (commands, precepts, and prescribed direction) of God. In other words when we are attentive to the way God has for us, we will be blessed.
While a specific time or date isn’t mentioned, some believe it was written around 1000 B.C. while many experts believe it was written after the time of the Babylonian Exile when the Jews were back in Jerusalem (530 B.C.). Both (or either) would be relevant.
The overarching theme is more important in this case.
The psalmist wants the reader to know that we are blessed when we turn to God and recognize the importance of seeking God’s way.
Whether that took place at the time of King David or it took place after the Babylonian exile, both are true.
Even today Psalm 112:1 has a great message and reminder for us. Psalm 112:1 is a great message for us today.
We are reminded that seeking God and turning to God always blesses us.
Absolutely every time we take time to get off the eight lane freeway and turn to God we are blessed in some way…usually in multiple ways. We are also reminded that we are not in charge. We do not need to carry that heavy load. When we seek God’s way, God will carry the load for us!
So, back to the initial intent of digging into scripture. For me, the training I received from my professors gave me great tools in my tool box. I did not get answers to specific questions.
We were not just given a fish. We were taught how to fish.
Spiritual Practice: Fishing for answers
Whether that be answers in scripture or answers in life, we can turn to God for help, Today, take time to get off the busy path and spend time sitting with God.
In God, Deborah
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