Psalm 111 [show]Psalm 111
[111:1](1) Praise the LORD!
I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
[2]Great are the works of the LORD,
studied by all who delight in them.
[3]Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
and his righteousness endures forever.
[4]He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
the LORD is gracious and merciful.
[5]He provides food for those who fear him;
he remembers his covenant forever.
[6]He has shown his people the power of his works,
in giving them the inheritance of the nations.
[7]The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy;
[8]they are established forever and ever,
to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
[9]He sent redemption to his people;
he has commanded his covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is his name!
[10]The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
His praise endures forever!
Footnotes
1. [111:1] This psalm is an acrostic poem, each line beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet
Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. (2) Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. (3) Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. (4) He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful. (5) He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever. (6) He has shown his people the power of his works, in giving them the inheritance of the nations. (7) The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy; (8) they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness. (9) He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name! (10) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!
This is the first object of praise, also among Christians. They exalt and thank God for all the works He has created, praising Him as the only Creator and Master of everything in heaven and earth, not simply because He has created it but also because He has created it for our use and benefit. The sun and moon must shine for us day and night; the sky must give us rain, clouds, shade, and dew; the earth must give us all kinds of growing things and animals; the waters must give us fish and countless necessities; the air must supply birds as well as our breath; fire must warm us and give us countless benefits. And who can enumerate everything? It cannot be otherwise or better expressed than in these short words: “Great are the works of the Lord.” And it cannot be sufficiently proclaimed to all eternity, even though the leaves and grass were all tongues. For who can praise or even comprehend this work alone that He created our body and soul out of nothing and daily keeps us alive and protects us against so many devils and so much danger to our life?
Here the psalmist indicates how few are the righteous who consider or see these works of the Lord. They neither praise nor give thanks, not even when they say: “Great are the works of the Lord.” They are used to them and saturated with them, like an old house with smoke. They use them and root around in them like a hog in a bag of feed. They say: “Oh, is that such a great thing that the sun shines, or fire warms, or water gives fish, or the earth yields grain, or a cow calves, or a woman bears children, or a hen lays eggs? That happens every day!” My dear Mr. Simpleton, is it a small thing just because it happens every day? If the sun did not shine for ten days, then it would be a great thing. If there were no fire on earth except at one place, then, I think, it would be more precious than all the gold and silver in the world. If there were only one well in all the world, then I imagine that a drop of water would be worth more than a hundred thousand gulden, and in comparison beer and wine would be so much garbage. Or, if God were to make all women and children out of a bone, as He did Eve, and there were only one who could bear children, I am sure that all the world, all kings and lords, would worship her as a goddess. But now that every woman is fertile, it is nothing. If a magician could make an eye that would live or that would be able to see one cubit, great God, he would be a lord on earth! Yes, whoever could make a real leaf or a blossom on a tree would be above God and would have a world of admiration, praise, and thanks.
But it is a discouraging thing that men are so damnably ungrateful and blind. God showers upon them such great and rich miracles, and they do not consider even one of them or thank Him for it! But if some clown shows up who can walk a tightrope or who has monkeys to display, him they admire, praise, and exalt. Therefore the psalmist says here that the works of God are great, but only in the eyes of the upright. There they are studied with pleasure. For the upright think about those works, consider them, admire them with pleasure, so that they must gratefully say: “Surely, this is an excellent, great, beautiful, and glorious work!”
Martin Luther, (1999). Vol. 13: Luther’s works, vol. 13 : Selected Psalms II (J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald & H. T. Lehmann, Ed.). Luther’s Works. Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House.
