Like many parents, we used to read stories to our children when they were young. Children never tire of hearing the same stories again and again, and the more they hear the same story, the more they seem to love it. As we grow older, however, that changes. We may have our favourite book or film, but normally prefer a new story to an old one. However, there’s one story that a believer, no matter their age, never tires of. It’s the story of the wonders of our salvation. “They are pondered by all who delight in them” (Psalm 111:2).

In Psalm 111, the psalmist remembers God’s wonderful works of salvation. He invites God’s people to join him in wholehearted praise to God. These people are the “upright” (v. 1). They are godly believers who have been saved and transformed.

The exodus from Egypt and the events that followed were Israel’s great salvation story. After God set His people free, He provided food in the wilderness (v. 5). He gave them the promised land (v. 6). He gave them his life-enriching Law which would bring them prosperity in the land (v. 7). All these deeds were expressions of God’s redemption. Notice how the psalmist sometimes describes in the present tense these deeds that happened in the past. What God did in the past still transforms lives in the present. For us, Jesus died 2,000 years ago, but His blood still washes clean our sins and we live in the power of His resurrection today.

Why did God save Israel? For the same reason He saved us—His love. The psalmist quotes Israel’s foundational confession about God: “The Lord is gracious and compassionate” (v. 4; see Exodus 34:6). More than that, the Lord is faithful and just, holy, and awesome. No wonder that “eternal praise” is due to Him (Psalm 111:10).

What’s our response to God’s glorious deeds? It’s to fear the Lord (v. 10). This fear is not a knee-knocking terror, but it’s also more than just respect. The psalm tells us that the fear of God is expressed in following His precepts. It’s a life of obedience lived in response to God’s grace, while knowing that “God will bring every deed into judgment” (Ecclesiastes 12:14). Such fear is the essential foundation for making sense out of life in this world. It provides us with “good understanding” (Psalm 111:10). If we want to be a wise, successful, happy, and blessed father, mother, husband, wife, parent, child, employer, or employee, we must fear the Lord.

Psalm 111 praises God for His salvation and describes His many wonders. But what does the life of the saved man or woman who is upright look like? The answer will be given in the next psalm.