"Their hearts are steady, they will not be afraid..."
In the midst of so much uncertainty and disorientation and threat to our moral/civic foundations, the Psalmist gives us a Monday-morning word of resoluteness. Those who delight in God's commandments--those who are gracious, merciful, and righteous--need not fear evil tidings.
This psalm brings to mind the famous phrase used by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: "the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Psalm 112 reminds us that a "bend toward justice" happens because people who love and serve the Lord "rise in the darkness," "conduct their affairs with justice," and "[give] to the poor." Psalm 112 calls us out of a complacent assumption that things will just naturally get better. Though God is indeed always at work bringing about good in creation, we are called to be "those who fear the Lord" and to act so that God's commandments will be fulfilled.
After you read the psalm, listen to the resoluteness in Maya Angelou's own reading of her poem "And Still I Rise."
Psalm 112
1 Praise the Lord! Happy are those who fear the Lord, who greatly delight in his commandments.
2 Their descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in their houses, and their righteousness endures forever.
4 They rise in the darkness as a light for the upright; they are gracious, merciful, and righteous.
5 It is well with those who deal generously and lend, who conduct their affairs with justice.
6 For the righteous will never be moved; they will be remembered forever.
7 They are not afraid of evil tidings; their hearts are firm, secure in the Lord.
8 Their hearts are steady, they will not be afraid; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.
9 They have distributed freely, they have given to the poor; their righteousness endures forever; their horn is exalted in honor.
10 The wicked see it and are angry; they gnash their teeth and melt away; the desire of the wicked comes to nothing.