The Righteous and the Wicked: Insights from Psalm 112

Psalm 112: 9-10 NKJV

He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever;
His horn will be exalted with honor.

The wicked will see it and be grieved;
He will gnash his teeth and melt away;
The desire of the wicked shall perish.

My Thoughts –

The final two verses of this psalm highlight the characteristics of a righteous man who fears the Lord, emphasizing generosity towards the poor and the enduring nature of his righteousness. The psalmist notes that the righteous, likened to a reservoir of blessings, are honored by God while reflecting God’s love and compassion. In contrast, the wicked will see the prosperity of the righteous and experience grief and frustration as their desires perish. Ultimately, their wickedness leads to disappointment, revealing the stark differences between the lives of the righteous and the wicked…….Bill

_________________________

Commentaries:

Charles Spurgeon

“He hath dispersed, he hath given, to the poor.” What he received, he distributed; and distributed to those who most needed it. He was God’s reservoir, and forth from his abundance flowed streams of liberality to supply the needy. If this be one of the marks of a man who feareth the Lord, there are some who are strangely destitute of it. They are great at gathering, but very slow at dispersing; they enjoy the blessedness of receiving but seldom taste the greater joy of giving. “It is more blessed to give than to receive”—perhaps they think that the blessing of receiving is enough for them.

“His righteousness endureth forever.” His liberality has salted his righteousness, proved its reality, and secured its perpetuity. This is the second time that we have this remarkable sentence applied to the godly man, and it must be understood as resulting from the enduring mercy of the Lord. The character of a righteous man is not spasmodic, he is not generous by fits and starts, nor upright in a few points only; his life is the result of principle, his actions flow from settled, sure, and fixed convictions, and therefore his integrity is maintained when others fail.

“His horn shall be exalted with honor.” God shall honor him, the universe of holy beings shall honor him, and even the wicked shall feel an unconscious reverence of him. Let it be observed, in summing up the qualities of the God-fearing man, that he is described not merely as righteous, but as one bearing the character to which Paul refers in the memorable verse, “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.” Kindness, benevolence, and generosity are essential to the perfect character; to be strictly just is not enough, for God is love, and we must love our neighbor as ourselves: to give everyone his due is not sufficient, we must act upon those same principles of grace which reign in the heart of God.

“The wicked shall see it, and be grieved.” The ungodly shall first see the example of the saints to their own condemnation, and shall at last behold the happiness of the godly and to the increase of their eternal misery. The child of wrath shall be obliged to witness the blessedness of the righteous, though the sight shall make him gnaw his own heart. He shall fret and fume, lament, and wax angry, but he shall not be able to prevent it, for God’s blessing is sure and effectual.

“He shall gnash with his teeth.” Being very wrathful, and exceedingly envious, he would fain grind the righteous between his teeth; but as he cannot do that, he grinds his teeth against each other.

“And melt away.” The heat of his passion shall melt him like wax, and the sun of God’s providence shall dissolve him like snow, and at the last, the fire of divine vengeance shall consume him as the fat of rams. How horrible must that life be which like the snail melts as it proceeds, leaving a slimy trail behind. Those who are grieved at goodness deserve to be worn away by such an abominable sorrow. The desire of the wicked shall perish. He shall not achieve his purpose, he shall die a disappointed man. By wickedness he hoped to accomplish his purpose—that very wickedness shall be his defeat.

_________________________

Enduring Word

He has dispersed: This psalm has much to say about the generosity of the one who fears the LORD. Since he is blessed in regard to material things (Psalm 112:3), it is important that he is generous with his blessings. He is also wise; dispersed implies a wise and thoughtful distribution as part of the discretion that guides his affairs (Psalm 112:5).(Guzik)

i. Paul quoted Psalm 112:9 in 2 Corinthians 9:9 to encourage Christians to be generous: As it is written: “He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.” (Guzik)

ii. This generosity is not “…given indiscriminately and at random, but ‘dispersed,’ like precious seed, with prudence and discretion, according to the nature of the soil, and in proper season, so as to produce the most plentiful harvest.” (Horne)

His righteousness endures forever: The profile of this man (or woman) who fears the LORD is remarkable. It is a reflection of the character of God Himself, even as the moon reflects the sun’s light. It is partially fulfilled in the godly man or woman, and perfectly fulfilled in the man Jesus Christ.

· He is a God-fearing man (who fears the LORD).

· He is a lover of God’s word (delights greatly in His commandments).

· He is a prosperous man (wealth and riches).

· He is a man who makes a home for his family (his descendants…his house).

· He is a loving and kind man (gracious, and full of compassion).

· He is a helping man (deals graciously and lends).

· He is a wise man (will guide his affairs with discretion).

· He is a strong man (not afraid of evil tidings).

· He is a generous man (he has dispersed abroad).

· He is a man who does not abuse power (his horn will be exalted with honor).

· He is a hated man (the wicked will see it and be grieved).

(Guzik)

Endures forever: “Wise living is characterized by lasting success, unlike many human endeavors that fail or are short-lived.” (VanGemeren)

“When all the flashes of sensual pleasure are quite extinct when all the flowers of secular glory are withered away; when all earthly treasures are buried in darkness; when this world, and all the fashion of it, are utterly vanished and gone, the bountiful man’s state will be still firm and flourishing, and ‘his righteousness shall endure forever.’” (Barrow, cited in Spurgeon)

His horn will be exalted with honor: “His power and authority shall be exalted with honor. He shall rise to influence only through his own worth, and not by extortion or flattery.” (Clarke)

“Let it now be read again in close connection with the preceding one [Psalm 111], and it will be seen that the supreme fact about this man is that he has indeed become like the God Whom he fears and obeys. The very things celebrated in the praise of Jehovah are those which constitute the excellencies of this man who fears Him.” (Morgan)

The wicked will see it and be grieved: In contrast to the enduring blessing upon the upright man, the wicked man will melt away. His misery will be all the worse as his desire is frustrated and he sees the blessings that come to those who fear the LORD. (Guzik)

i. The wicked may not gnash their teeth in this life, but they certainly will in the age to come (Luke 13:28). (Guzik)

ii. “The covetous wretch who sat a brood upon his bags, and befooled the bountiful man, shall himself come to beggary, which he so much feared, and be ready to eat his own nails through envy at the other’s prosperity.” (Trapp)

_________________________

Matthew Henry

The vexation of sinners, v. 10. Two things shall fret them:-

1. The felicity of the righteous: The wicked shall see the righteous in prosperity and honor and shall be grieved. It will vex them to see their innocency cleared and their low estate regarded, and those whom they hated and despised, and whose ruin they sought and hoped to see, the favorites of Heaven, and advanced to have dominion over them (Ps. 49:14); this will make them gnash with their teeth and pine away. This is often fulfilled in this world. The happiness of the saints is the envy of the wicked, and that envy is the rottenness of their bones. But it will most fully be accomplished in the other world, when it shall make damned sinners gnash with their teeth, to see Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom, to see all the prophets in the kingdom of God and themselves thrust out.

2. Their own disappointment: The desire of the wicked shall perish. Their desire was wholly to the world and the flesh, and they ruled over them; and therefore, when these perish, their joy is gone, and their expectations from them are cut off, to their everlasting confusion; their hope is as a spider’s web.

_________________________

Cross References

Proverbs 11:24 (KJV 1900)

²⁴ There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth;

And there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

Proverbs 10:28 (KJV 1900)

²⁸ The hope of the righteous shall be gladness:

But the expectation of the wicked shall perish.

Acts 7:54 (KJV 1900)

⁵⁴When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.

Matthew 8:12 (KJV 1900)

¹²But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

_________________________

KJV W/Strongs Bible

112:9 He hath dispersed 6340 8765, he hath given 5414 8804 to the poor 34; his righteousness 6666 endureth 5975 8802 for ever 5703; his horn 7161 shall be exalted 7311 8799 with honour 3519.

112:10 The wicked 7563 shall see 7200 8799 [it], and be grieved 3707 8804; he shall gnash 2786 8799 with his teeth 8127, and melt away 4549 8738: the desire 8378 of the wicked 7563 shall perish 6 8799.

_________________________

Geneva Bible 1560

Psalm 112:9-10

9 He hathe (e) distributed and given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever: his (f) horn shalbe exalted with glorie.

10 The wicked shal se it and be angry: he shal gnash with his teeth, and (g) consume away: the desire of the wicked shal perish.

(e) The godly pinch not niggardly, but distribute liberally, as the necessity of the poor requires, and as his power is able. (f) His power and prosperous estate. (g)The blessings of God upon his children shall cause the wicked to die for envy.

Closing Thoughts:

Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your heart to my knowledge; For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you; Let them all be fixed upon your lips, So that your trust may be in the Lord; I have instructed you today, even you. Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge, That I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth, That you may answer words of truth To those who send to you? Proverbs 22:17-21 NKJV