Blessed are those who fear the Lord,
    who find great delight in his commands.

Blessing and delight drench the soul of all who get it, who enter in to the joy of His commands, who find freedom from all other fears in the reverent fear, wonder and awe of God Himself.

Their children will be mighty in the land;
    the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Our lives, lived openly, authentically, genuinely, and generously before our children impact them and others. There are generational implications of upright living.

Wealth and riches are in their houses,
    and their righteousness endures forever.

As truth measures riches, riches about. As eternity measures time, righteousness endures. As life fades, the legacies of life perpetuate. 

Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
    for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous.

Who are these for whom light dawns? They are those who stand up straight in a twisted world. They are those who walk steady and strong in the midst of rigid indifference to the needs of people. They are gracious. They are compassionate. They are rightly aligned with God and mankind.

Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
    who conduct their affairs with justice.

God rewards the generous soul. It is not a formula. It is not an enticement to deeper greed. The generous person may come to the end of her road like John Wesley who made sure that his last dime was distributed to the poor so that he would die penniless, but rich and declare in his dying breath, "The best of all is that God is with us."

God loves justice because God is love and justice is what love looks like in our treatment of other people.

Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
    they will be remembered forever.

To be upright and unshaken is to be strong at the roots, bendable at the trunk and branches. and always growing. It is to leave an impact that will not be forgotten even if our name fades or the details of our lives are obscured by time and tide.

They will have no fear of bad news;
    their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.

We can get so preoccupied with the news that we are constantly in an inner uproar. But it need not be so. We need not and must not be fearful of the happenings around us. As we remain steadfast in faith, integrity, hope, love, and truth, trusting God, we will be steadied and sustained. We press on. 

Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear;
    in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.

It is an inside job, an inner working. Our hearts are secure. That is the secret of fearlessness. We know who God is and in God, we know who we are. Purpose drives us from within. We believe in the ultimate outcome of triumph.

They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor,
    their righteousness endures forever;
    their horn will be lifted high in honor.

If we love what God loves and do the work of God among the poor, the broken, the wounded, the lonely, and the oppressed, God will bless that righteousness. God will cause that work to live beyond us and be life giving in the world. Count on it.

The wicked will see and be vexed,
    they will gnash their teeth and waste away;
    the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.

You do not have to worry about the wicked. You do not have to actively pursue them or vindicate yourself. Truth and consistency will do that for you.

Perhaps through the vexing curse of their own wickedness and the frustration of their inability to find what they are looking for, they may be convicted of the futility of their ways and come to faith.

Many have.

Our job is to keep on in the light that is dawning for us in the darkness – no matter how dark it gets.