An acrostic poem contains units of text each of which begins with a letter of the alphabet according to a conventional order. Psalms 111 and 112 fit this definition. It is impossible to prove, but easy to imagine, that both come from the same hand.
Psalm 112 picks up where Psalm 111 leaves off. The one who fears the Lord is to be like the Lord. The goodness and beneficence of both is emphasized. The theological anthropology expressed in Psalm 112 is the following: the one who fears God will be as good, kind, and beneficent as God is. The translation I offer follows the Hebrew and makes this clear.
The prosody of the psalms, like their content, interlock. It seems likely that the poet deliberately achieved stylized totals of lines, versets, and stress units across the length of the combined psalms.
Just completed my own study of 111-112. An interested with it affinities to 119 and what it tells us about "the end of the Psalter Collection. Found your comments on the unity of 111-112 supportive for my reasoning.
Posted by: Michael Tan Creti | March 18, 2008 at 04:12 PM
Glad to hear it, Michael. I wish you the best in your research.
Posted by: JohnFH | March 19, 2008 at 08:18 AM