Psalm 112: The Rewards Of Righteousness

I have never been one to advocate the pursuit of righteousness simply for the blessings that it brings.  That sounds too mercenary to me.  As Christians, we should do the right thing because God commands it and we agree with Him about what is good.  As His children, we want to please Him.  However, it should be noted that there are "fringe benefits" that often come from doing the right thing.  Psalm 112 celebrates the rewards of righteousness in contrast to the woes of the wicked.

After a word of praise, the psalmist immediately states that the righteous are "happy" (vs. 1).  Here's a list of the blessings that come from following God's commandments:

• Mighty descendants (vs. 2).
• Wealth and riches (vs. 3).
• Inspiration to others (vs. 4).
• Good character (vs. 4).
• Remembered forever (vs. 6).
• No fear (vs. 7-8).
• Will be victorious (vs. 8).
• Given honor (vs. 9).

These blessings do not extend to the wicked, however.  The psalmist says that they "gnash their teeth and melt away; the desire of the wicked comes to nothing" (vs. 10).

I don't believe that these are ironclad guarantees given to the righteous.  Rather, it is more like proverbial wisdom that, in general, these are the benefits that come from doing the right thing.  God has structured the universe in such a way that faithfulness to Him has blessings that spill over to other areas of our lives.