Psalm 111 explained: Remembering What God Has Done

A promise to give thanks (v. 1)

The psalm opens with the Hebrew word Hallelujah, meaning praise the LORD, and the singer resolves to give thanks wholeheartedly in both a small circle of good people and the larger gathering. In Hebrew the poem is an alphabet pattern, its 22 half-lines each starting with the next letter in order, perhaps as a memory aid or a way of suggesting fullness, though the purpose is a matter of interpretation.

Works worth studying (vv. 2-4)

God's works here mainly means his acts in Israel's history, which those who delight in them keep studying and returning to. Making his wonders remembered likely points to festivals like Passover, which retold the escape from Egypt every year, and calling him gracious and compassionate echoes how God is described to Moses in Exodus.

Food and a lasting promise (v. 5)

Food for those who fear him, meaning those who hold him in deep respect, may recall the manna Israel ate in the wilderness, though it could simply mean everyday provision. The covenant is God's binding promise to Israel, which the psalm says he never forgets.

The land given (v. 6)

This looks back to Israel settling in Canaan, a land already home to other peoples, as told in the book of Joshua. The psalm celebrates it as proof of God's power, though those stories involve war and conquest that many readers find troubling.

Reliable laws and rescue (vv. 7-9)

Both God's actions and his instructions are described as fair, true and built to last. Redemption means being bought back out of slavery, recalling the escape from Egypt; Christians later read it as also pointing to the rescue they see in Jesus.

Where wisdom starts (v. 10)

The fear of the LORD here means a reverent awe that takes God seriously, and the psalm calls it the starting point of wisdom rather than its end. The same saying appears in Proverbs, and the next psalm, also an alphabet poem, goes on to describe the person who lives this way.

Key verse: Psalm 111:10

Something to think about

Which events from your own past do you find yourself returning to again and again, and what do you think they keep teaching you?