"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments: His praise endureth forever."
Psalm 111:10
This psalm (111) is the first of the “Hallelujah Psalms” (111-118). In 111, the Psalmist tells of God’s “acts and attributes” (vv. 2-9) and finishes with the reverence toward God needed to learn and possess His wisdom. [1]
We learn from our verse today where wisdom begins. This is only the starting point; gaining more wisdom requires a right relationship with the LORD, our Creator, Savior, and Sustainer. His works for us are awesome!
“Splendor, majesty, enduring righteousness, grace (= ill-deserved favor), compassion, covenantal faithfulness, truth, and justice characterize God and His works” [2] (Eerdmans).
Indeed, He is most worthy of all our worship and honor! Hallelujah! Praise Him!
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”
“The Fear of the LORD”
Solomon wrote of the “fear of the LORD,” and he pointed to the fact that it is essential to God’s child when he said –
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7).
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10).
“The fear – True religion. Beginning – Is the only foundation of, and introduction to, true wisdom” [3] (Wesley).
The Psalmist agrees with Solomon’s point of view. The “fear of the LORD” is vital for every child of God. But what is this, “fear of the LORD?”
“The Hebrew idea of yir’ah (fear of Yahweh) referenced here seems to lie somewhere between “respect” and “terror.” Wisdom is a practically focused skill in living. Fear of God and wisdom are frequently combined and are thus viewed as synonyms. Wisdom is always connected to ethical responsibilities before God” [4] (FSB).
“Reverence for God; respect for his law, his will, his government, himself; the fear of offending him, which will lead us to do right. This fear is not that of a slave; it is not mere dread; it is not terror. It is consistent with love and springs from it. It is consistent with calmness of mind and promotes it. It does not produce terror, but rather delivers from it, and preserves the mind from alarms” [5] (Barnes).
Why should God be “feared?” “Fearing Him” is the supernatural result of understanding who He is, what He has done, and what He can do and will do in the future. Undoubtedly, He must be feared by any sane and thinking individual. Sadly, the “natural man” does not see God in this light.
“Recognizing the greatness of God’s works, one should appropriately fear Him. God should be regarded with respect, reverence, and awe. This proper attitude of the creature toward the Creator is the beginning of wisdom. Wisdom cannot advance further until this starting point is established” [6] (EWC).
“Is the Beginning of Wisdom”
“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28).
“The foundation, the origin, the commencement of being truly wise. It is so. There is no true wisdom which does not recognize the being, the perfections, and the claims of God. The highest wisdom – the most lofty endowment of man – is that he “may” know and honor God” [7] (Barnes).
This is only the beginning of wisdom.
“Jehovah has revealed Himself as One Who is to be feared; to fear Him, therefore, is the starting point of all true wisdom…” [8] (CB).
“A good understanding have all they that do his commandments.”
“A Good Understanding”
Or “good success” [9] (see Strong).
The ancient Hebrew word translated as “good understanding” in our text is a word with rich meanings.
“It ‘may’ denote, therefore, understanding, wisdom, knowledge, success, prudence; and it is true in regard to “all” of these – for the fear of the Lord, or true religion produces them “all.” It is not necessary, therefore, to endeavor to ascertain precisely which of these is the meaning here” [10] (Barnes).
A man with “good understanding” is a blessed man –
“And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3).
Man’s idea of wisdom often does not measure up to God’s standards. But –
“People who follow Him and His standards have good understanding. Worship and obedience will then be accompanied by praise that belongs to Him” [11] (BKC).
“That Do His Commandments”
It is an essential distinction between thinking about doing God’s commandments or even talking about them – the person who God blesses is the one who actually does what God says.
“Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people” (Deuteronomy 4:6).
“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” (John 13:17).
“Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city” (Revelation 22:14).
“That do His commandments … That do the things connected with the fear of the Lord; that is, who obey God” (Barnes).
“They only are wise, that fear God, and none have understanding, but they that obey His Word” [12] (GB).
“Obedience to God proves that our judgment is sound” [13] (Spurgeon).
“His praise endureth forever.”
Believers, after our salvation, we begin learning to praise and worship God here on earth. Upon our arrival in Heaven, we will continue praising Him eternally.
“All the attributes of Jehovah which demand man’s praise are, like His righteousness (Psalm 111:3), eternal. Thus the Psalmist rounds off his song by returning to the thought with which he began it and gives the reason for the Hallelujah prefixed to it” [14] (CB).
“That is, the foundation for His praise endures to all eternity; or is unchangeable. As God is always the same, so there is, as derived from His being and perfections, always the same foundation for praise. As there will always be created beings who can and will appreciate this, so it will be literally true, as it should be, that his praise “will” be celebrated forever” [15] (Barnes).
The Hebrews saw that God’s blessing is tied to one’s obedience to what He said in His Word.
Quote: “In vain does any man pretend to be wise who does not fear the Lord; and he who fears the Lord departs from evil: he who lives in sin neither fears God nor is wise” [16] (Clarke). “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).
[1] Eerdmans, Gordon D. Fee, and Robert L. Hubbard Jr., eds., The Eerdmans Companion to the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2011), 346–347.
[2] Eerdmans, ibid.
[3] JWN – John Wesley. John Wesley’s Notes on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[4] FSB, John D. Barry, Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, et al., Faithlife Study Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), Ps 111:10.
[5] BNB – Albert Barnes. Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[6] EWC – David Guzik. Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword.
[7] BNB, ibid.
[8] CB – Cambridge Bible, the electronic Bible notes in eSword.
[9] HGD – James Strong. Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries, the electronic version in eSword. The word “śekel, śêkel” in verse 10 is, “From … [‘sâkal’] intelligence; by implication success: – discretion, knowledge, policy, prudence, sense, understanding, wisdom, wise” (Strong).
[10] BNB, ibid.
[11] BKC, Allen P. Ross, “Psalms,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 874.
[12] GB – The Geneva Bible, Translation Notes, in the electronic version in eSword.
[13] EWC, ibid.
[14] CB, ibid.
[15] BNB, ibid.
[16] ACC – Adam Clarke. Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.