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He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever\u2014holy and awesome is his name. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise. (Psalm 111:9-10)

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Psalm 111 praises God for his great works\u2014two of them mainly\u2014God\u2019s work of fulfilling his covenant of promise to Abraham and God\u2019s work of giving his covenant of law to Israel.\xa0

Many of the works named in the first part of the psalm correspond directly to God\u2019s work of saving Israel from Egypt, providing for them through the desert, and bringing them safely into the land of promise.\xa0 Our God is a God of redemption, faithful to his covenant and promises.

But God has given his people not only a covenant of promise, but also a covenant of law.\xa0 While wandering through the desert, God discipled his people into the ways of his commandments.\xa0 Commandments that, over many long years in the desert, the people learned to quite literally walk out in their lives day by day.\xa0 Our God is a God who commands a trustworthy, faithful, and upright way in which to walk and live.\xa0

The beauty of this psalm is that it draws both of these great works of the Lord together\u2014both his covenant of promise and his covenant of law\u2014and then reflects on them.\xa0 The things that God himself did on Israel\u2019s behalf as he fulfilled his promise to them is the very thing that God calls them to do in response through his commandments.\xa0 God has redeemed and commands his people to redeem.\xa0 God provided for his people and commands them to provide for one another.\xa0 God has been faithful and commands his people to be faithful.\xa0 God is trustworthy and commands his people to be trustworthy.\xa0

We have been taught to pray \u201cyour kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.\u201d\xa0 This psalm would suggest that the way to know, understand, and live the kingdom and will of the Lord is to watch what he himself has done and to follow in obedience after what he himself has commanded.\xa0 For: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.\xa0

This fear of the Lord is also the beginning of praise.\xa0 When we watch and learn from the fearsome and marvelous deeds of the Lord and when we follow his precepts, we cannot help but say thank you.\xa0 We cannot help but marvel at the way he lovingly saves and mercifully provides for us and so return some awe and wonder his way.\xa0 All his people who have watched and followed this, their God have done just that for centuries and will continue to do so into and through the day his kingdom comes\u2014for \u201cto him belongs eternal praise.\u201d

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