112:1 Praise the Lord! How blessed is the one who obeys the Lord, who takes great delight in keeping his commands.
The author of this song is unknown. It is an acrostic song, as each verse begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. There are two Hebrew acrostics in each verse. This song was to be sung at the Jewish festivals.
The Hebrew for “praise the Lord” is Hallelujah. Psalms 111-113 are Hallelujah songs.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter aleph, which is a silent letter which carries many vowel sounds. The Hebrew word is אַשְׁרֵי (asher), meaning “blessed, happy, or fortunate.” Those who study and apply Bible doctrine at the deepest level will be happy in their life. When one does not feed Bible doctrine into their soul every day, then they starve their soul to death. They become weak and depressed. The Devil wants depressed men to pay thousands of dollars to a psychologist, so that the psychologist can feed them more secular humanism. Secular humanism is a doctrine of demons which degrades men into animals. If one studies the entire counsel of the Word of God at the deepest level, then one does not need a psychologist. All of the answers to life are found in the written Scriptures.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter bet, which is the English “b” sound. The Hebrew word is בְּ֝מִצְוֹתָ֗יו (b-mitsutin), meaning “in his commandments.” The commandments are Bible doctrine. Those who love Christ will keep His commandments, or His Bible doctrine. One cannot keep Bible doctrine if he does not know what they are. The only way to learn Bible doctrine is to study the entire counsel of the Word of God at the deepest level. Those who love Christ will study and apply Bible doctrine at the deepest level.
112:2 His descendants will be powerful on the earth; the godly will be blessed.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter gimmel, which is the English “g” sound. The Hebrew word is גִּבּ֣וֹר (gibbor), meaning “mighty man.” The man who studies and applies bible doctrine at the deepest level will become a mighty man on the earth. He will become a warrior in the angelic conflict. He will bring up children who will master Bible doctrine and become a spiritual warrior on the earth. The prayers of a גִּבּ֣וֹר (gibbor) can bring down enemy strongholds.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter dalet, which is the English “d” sound. The Hebrew word is דּ֭וֹר (dor), meaning “generation.” Those who live in the genealogy of the גִּבּ֣וֹר (gibbor) will be blessed, or happy. Happiness comes only from mastering and applying Bible doctrine at the deepest level.
112:3 His house contains wealth and riches; his integrity endures.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter hey, which is the English “h” sound. The Hebrew word is הוֹן (hon), meaning “wealth." Those who study and apply Bible doctrine will possess wealth. This verse applies only to the Messianic Jews who were living faithful under the Mosaic Law. The believer today is promised happiness through suffering. Therefore, be careful of prosperity teachers who take this verb out of context
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter vav, which is the English “v” or “w” sound. The Hebrew word is וְ֝צִדְקָת֗וֹ (va-tsadkitu), meaning “and his righteousness.” The righteousness attitude of the one who masters and applies Bible doctrine will always remain with him.
112: In the darkness a light shines for the godly, for each one who is merciful, compassionate, and just.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter zayin, which is the English “h” sound. The Hebrew word is זָ֘רַ֤ח (zarach), meaning “it arises.” Everyone lives in the darkness of the satanic world system. Those who lack Bible doctrine from the entire counsel of the Word of God are walking in darkness. They are completely deceived by the satanic environment around them, but they do not know it. They are conformed to the world, but they do not know it. However, those who master and apply Bible doctrine are godly. They possess enough Bible doctrine to discern the things of God and the things of Satan. They are not fooled by the devices of the satanic world system.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter hect, which is the German “h” sound. The Hebrew word is חַנּ֖וּן (hacun), meaning “gracious, kind, and compassionate.” The people of the satanic world system are evil, deceptive, and destructive. Those who master and apply Bible doctrine at the deepest level are merciful, compassionate, and righteous. The difference between an immature believer and a mature believer is the amount of sound Bible doctrine taken into the soul.
112:5 It goes well for the one who generously lends money, and conducts his business honestly.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter tet, which is the English “t” sound. The Hebrew word is טֽוֹב (tov), meaning “good.” In Hebrew, this verse literally reads “a good man shows favor and lends.” A man with strong Bible doctrine will loan his money to others.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter yod, which is the English “y” sound. The Hebrew word is יְכַלְכֵּ֖ל (yi-calbal), a qal imperfect verb, meaning “he will provide or sustain." The man with strong Bible doctrine will provide honesty in his business.
112:6 For he will never be upended; others will always remember one who is just.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter kof, which is the English “k” sound. The Hebrew word is כִּֽי (kay), meaning “because.” The man with strong Bible doctrine will lend to others and run an honest business, because he knows that he will never be upended. God promised prosperity to Jewish men who kept the Mosaic law. This promise does not extend to the church. God promises suffering to the church. Beware of prosperity teachers who take this verse out of context.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter lamed, which is the English “l” sound. The Hebrew word is לְזֵ֥כֶר (la-zachar), a lamed preposition with a verb, meaning “to remember." When people die, they are usually forgotten. The man who masters and applies strong Bible doctrine will never be forgotten. People still remember Polycarp, John Wycliffe, John Hus, Martin Luther, William Tyndale, Uhlrich Zwingli, John Calvin, Dwight Moody, Lewis Sperry Chafer, I.C. Schofield, J. Vernon McGee, Merrill Unger, John Walvoord, Henry Morris, Zola Levitt, John Danish, and many other great saints who mastered and applied Bible doctrine.
112:7 He does not fear bad news. He is confident; he trusts in the Lord.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter mem, which is the English “m” sound. The Hebrew word is מִשְּׁמוּעָ֣ה (mishmuah), meaning “news, report or rumor.” The one who masters and applies Bible doctrine at the deepest level will never fear bad news. He understands the sovereignty of God, He understands that God can turn all bad news into good news.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter nun, which is the English “n” sound. The Hebrew word is נָכ֥וֹן (na-kun), meaning “it was appointed or established.” The heart of the man with strong Bible doctrine has been appointed, established, and fixed by trusting in God to turn the evil into good. The biggest weakness of immature believers is that they do not understand that God is a master of turning evil into good. The devil does his worst, but God turns it into His best,
112:8 His resolve is firm; he will not succumb to fear before he looks in triumph on his enemies.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter samek, which is the English “s” sound. The Hebrew word is סָמ֣וּךְ (samuch), meaning “firm, able to support, or able to sustain.” The man who masters and applies strong Bible doctrine is so firm and stable, that he will not be overtaken by fear. The enemy can throw his worst, but the man with strong Bible doctrine will be able to stand against it. Many immature believers think that they can “bind the devil” with their words. The devil cannot be bound with human words. The only person who can bind the devil is the Lord Jesus Christ. He will bind him for 1,000 years at His Second Coming. The only defense that the believer has against the devil is his Bible doctrine. Fragmented Christians have no chance against the Devil. He knows their weakness and he will exploit it.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter ayin, which is a silent letter which carries many different vowel sounds. The Hebrew word is עַ֖ד (ad), meaning “before or until.” Literally, the second half of this verse reads, “Before he sees his adversaries.” The man with sound Bible doctrine will see the fall of his adversaries. Why? God is protecting him. The man who studies and applies Bible doctrine will successfully complete the divine mission which God gave him before the foundations of the world. The forces of evil will not be able to stop him.
112:9 He generously gives to the needy; his integrity endures. He will be vindicated and honored.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter pey, which is the English “p” sound. The Hebrew word is פִּזַּ֤ר (pazar), meaning “he has scattered.” The man with strong Bible doctrine scatters his prosperity among the needy. It is important to note that the man with strong Bible doctrine will not give to social programs. Social programs feed, clothe, and give shelter to those who are living in the satanic world system. The local church is to feed its own poor. It is not to feed the devil’s children. The people of the devil need to ask the devil to feed them. When the devil refuses to feed his own, then maybe the devil’s children will change sides.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter tsade, which is the English “ts” sound. The man with strong Bible doctrine is righteous, because the Lord Jesus Christ transferred His own righteousness to the believer. A believer can only do righteous acts by studying and applying Bible doctrine. The man who studies and applies strong Bible doctrine at the deepest level will be honored with eternal rewards in heaven.
112:10 When the wicked see this, they will worry; they will grind their teeth in frustration and melt away; the desire of the wicked will perish.
The first acrostic is the Hebrew letter resh, which is the English “r” sound. The Hebrew word is רָ֘שָׁ֤ע (rasha), meaning “evil.” Evil beings do not want men studying Bible doctrine at the deepest level. An evil man cannot physically kill a man with strong Bible doctrine, because God is protecting those who are doing His will. The evil man cannot deceive the man with strong Bible doctrine, because the believer can discern the lie with his biblical wisdom. Therefore, the evil beings have no physical or mental weapon which can harm the believer who masters and applies Bible doctrine.
The second Hebrew acrostic is the Hebrew letter sin, which is the English “t” sound. The Hebrew word is תַּאֲוַ֖ת (taahuat), meaning “desire.” The desire of the wicked is to harm Jesus. Since Jesus is not here on this earth, the wicked turn their destructive tendencies towards His children on earth. However, God’s children are protected by God Himself. The wicked men will attempt to kill and injure Christians, but the wicked will perish and burn in the Lake of Fire forever.