Psalm 111 Breakdown: The Works of the Lord

Hey guys, it is another psalm breakdown, and this one is good. The theme for this Psalm is the works of the Lord. Let’s get started.

Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart, In the company of the upright and in the assembly.

Psalms 111:1 NASB1995

The first verse brings us back to a recurring theme in the Psalms of praising God amongst other people. I believe this gives us insight into the level of praise that David was giving to the Lord. Not only was David honoring God, but he was honoring God in front of other people. David was humble enough to boast about God and not himself, but he also was publicly displaying his allegiance to God. It is one thing to praise God alone, but to praise God in front of other people is the next level.

Great are the works of the Lord; They are studied by all who delight in them. Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonders to be remembered; The Lord is gracious and compassionate.

Psalms 111:2‭-‬4 NASB1995

Now we get to the real lesson of this Psalm. From these verses we can learn that as believers we are called to study the works of the Lord. Now when I read this, my mind immediatly went to the miracles of the Lord. This is because Jesus often refers to His miracles as the Works of the Father. So we are called to study out these miracles and remember them. I think something that would be beneficial for every believer is to take the miracles in the Bible and make them yours. Think of the miracles of the parting of the Red Sea, Jesus walking on Water, and Peter being delivered from prison as your own. Take them and use them in times when you lack faith. Remember them and trust in God. Now the miracles of God aren’t the only things considered as the works of the Lord, as we will see when we continue the Psalm.

He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever. He has made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations.

Psalms 111:5‭-‬6 NASB1995

This section of the Psalm speaks about the love of God and His remembering of the covenant that He made with us. In a different translation, it reads that God is ever mindful of His covenant. I like to think of this as God is always and constantly thinking about you, because you are part of the covenant. He is always thinking about your wellbeing, your needs, and your desires. He wants to bless you and love you, and He is always thinking of you. The second thing that we can learn in this passage is the power of God’s works lead to His people recieving the heritage of the nations. That means the people of God will recieve the abundance and wealth of all the nations. But how exactly do we get this blessing? By the Works of God, which we will learn about in the next section.

The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts are sure. They are upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness. He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.

Psalms 111:7‭-‬10 NASB1995

The Works of God are the precepts of God. They are always relevant and necessary. The fear of the Lord is what will lead us to following His precepts, and all those who do them have a good understanding. So let me tie this all together for you. Essentially the author of this Psalm is trying to express the idea that wealth and abundance come from the Wisdom of God. If we love the commandments of God then we will study them. To better explain it, let me use some imagery. If you never knew how to make a cake, then it might seem impossible to make it out of scratch. Yet with a recipe, it can be relatively simple. This is like life, where without the Word of God you are trying to make a cake from scratch, but with God it can be simplifyed. If you understand this, then you have the foundation for learning. Otherwise you will be doomed to be covered in flour, eggs, and sugar but without a cake. Learn from God and study His ways.

---