In this section of Psalm 111, we continue from verse 6 onwards. The entire psalm is a song of praise for Hashem's governance in His world, and the verses before us focus on two central themes: the giving of the Land of Israel to the Jewish people as an expression of the Holy One, Blessed be He's power and the truth and justice of His governance, and the precepts of Hashem, which are the pillars and foundation of the world. At the conclusion of the psalm comes the great realization: the beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem.
כֹּחַ מַעֲשָׂיו הִגִּיד לְעַמּוֹ לָתֵת לָהֶם נַחֲלַת גּוֹיִם׃ (ו) - "The power of His deeds He declared to His people, to give them the heritage of nations." (6)
The Radak makes a wondrous observation: although the Holy One, Blessed be He, showed Israel wonders in Egypt, great deeds and miracles through which they were redeemed, the primary revelation of "the power of His deeds" was in declaring to them that He would give them the heritage of nations. In other words, the conquest of the thirty-one kings upon entering the Land was greater than the miracles of the Exodus from Egypt. When Hashem drove out seven great and mighty nations from here, He performed miracles for them that surpassed even the Exodus from Egypt.
This is demonstrated by the words of Moshe Rabbeinu: "Lest the inhabitants of the land from which You brought us out say: 'Because Hashem was not able to bring them into the land...'" The nations could accept that the Holy One, Blessed be He, was able to strike Egypt, but from there to conquering the Land from seven nations and thirty-one kingdoms - for that, in their view, He lacked the power. It was clear even to them that a far greater power was required here: taking them out of Egypt was one thing, but bringing them into the Land was deemed "out of inability." He had the power to release them from slavery, but not to drive nations from their land and grant it to the Jewish people.
Therefore, "The power of His deeds He declared to His people, to give them the heritage of nations" - and part of the miracle was the declaration itself, the fact that He "declared." For if one engages in battle against someone, it is possible that by happenstance, through a momentary surge of strength, he might defeat a stronger opponent. But when one declares it in advance and establishes that he is destined to defeat the greatest and mightiest nations, that already reflects true strength and invincibility, not mere chance. The power of His deeds is evident from His advance declaration: you will receive the heritage of nations. What appeared to the nations as impossible, the Holy One, Blessed be He, declared beforehand: you will enter the Land.
The Midrash expounds: "The power of His deeds He declared to His people" - that the Holy One, Blessed be He, recorded the account of Creation to make known that the earth is His, He created it, and it is within His power to settle in it whomever He wishes, uprooting these and settling those. This is the very first Rashi at the beginning of the Chumash: lest the nations of the world say, "You are robbers, for you conquered the land of the seven nations," we therefore say, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" - the Holy One, Blessed be He, created everything; by His will He gave it to them, and by His will He took it from them and gave it to us.
Presumably, why did the Torah need to recount the entire narrative of Creation? It could have begun with the first commandment, with "This month shall be for you the head of months." Rather, it comes to teach that everything originates from Him, blessed be He, and consequently there is no basis for the accusation, "You are robbers" - a claim heard to this day, even from a fifth column within our own midst, alleging that we conquered the land of seven nations.
There is a story of a Jewish actor who plays the character of an Arab, who related an instructive anecdote in an interview. He arrived at a left-wing demonstration protesting "against the occupation." He asked one of the demonstrators where he lived, and the man replied: in Rechovot. The actor, in his Arab persona, said to him: "Ah, my grandfather lived in Rechovot; you conquered that place, get out of there!" That person tucked his tail between his legs and slipped away. The obvious question arises: you speak of occupation - why is living in Rechovot acceptable? Is Tzahala acceptable? Is Tel Aviv acceptable? And only Judea and Samaria are forbidden? When an Arab comes to him claiming the land "of our father," suddenly everything changes, and wherever he himself lives is considered entirely legitimate.
מַעֲשֵׂי יָדָיו אֱמֶת וּמִשְׁפָּט נֶאֱמָנִים כָּל פִּקּוּדָיו׃ (ז) - "The works of His hands are truth and justice; all His precepts are faithful." (7)
The Malbim connects verse 6 with verse 7: "He told the power of His works to His people" - and what are His works? "The works of His hands are truth and justice." "He remembers His covenant forever" refers to the covenant Hashem forged with the Patriarchs to grant them the heritage of the nations, and through this He made known the power of His works, for the works of His hands are truth and justice. The power within the deed is the power of truth and justice, which is the internal force that sustains all of creation. The Malbim offers an analogy: creation is like a body, while truth and justice are like the soul - the vital spirit of creation. If there are no truth and justice, creation is considered a lifeless corpse.
Proof of this is what happened to the seven nations. They corrupted this very foundation: truth, justice, and sanctity, as it is stated, "You shall not do according to the practices of the land of Canaan." And what did this cause? They were considered as dead, which is why the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded, "You shall not let any soul live." What sustains life is truth and justice, and when there is no truth and justice, nothing remains but a body without a soul. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, brought the Jewish people here, who possess truth and justice, so that they can endure in the Holy Land.
Truth, says the Malbim, is the reality of Hashem, His oneness, and genuine faith. Justice is interpersonal law and righteousness between man and his fellow. Both are essential to the existence of creation, and in these matters even the gentile nations are held accountable. Regarding justice, even a gentile is accountable - one of the Seven Noahide Laws is to establish courts of law. While they are not required to adjudicate according to Torah law, there must at least be law and order; otherwise, there is anarchy, where "men would swallow one another alive." When there was no justice, as in Sodom where the law was thoroughly corrupted, Sodom was overturned in an instant. If there are no truth and justice, creation has no vitality; therefore, the Canaanites, who violated truth and justice, had to be eradicated, just as one removes a corpse that has no internal strength or soul.
From here you see that Hashem's precepts are faithful and endure inherently. Ibn Ezra explains that "all His precepts" refers to the Torah's teachings and mitzvos, and "faithful" means that they are planted in the heart of every person, like a steadfast planting.
The Radak explains: Lest you say there was injustice here, that the Holy One, blessed be He, came upon a tranquil nation dwelling at peace and expelled them all - of this it is said that it was an act of truth and justice. Truth, because it was promised to Avraham Avinu, and Hashem fulfilled His promise and validated His word. Justice, because their deeds were corrupted. Our Sages noted that Avraham Avinu did not inherit the land immediately because "the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full" - their measure of guilt was not yet full. But once their measure was filled and we arrived in the land, we conquered them. Thus, even the promise the Holy One, blessed be He, made to Avraham was contingent upon the sins of the nations dwelling here, and the moment they filled their measure of guilt, the Holy One, blessed be He, cleared them out and gave the land to us.
Thus: truth is the fulfillment and validation of the promise to Avraham; justice is that Hashem judged the nations for the corruption they committed, "the iniquity of the Amorite is full," and only then did He drive them out of their land. The Radak adds: that land is holy ground, and it is unthinkable that those who commit such abominations should remain and dwell in it, as it is written, "the strange gods of the land," and as it is written, "Because of the wickedness of these nations Hashem your God is driving them out before you, and to confirm the word that Hashem swore to your forefathers." Here you have truth and justice, and this is "all His precepts are faithful" - all His commands are trustworthy, with no injustice in them.
This is also the reason cited by the Ramban regarding Sodom, which was overturned on account of their sins. The Ramban asks: Did they not commit injustices elsewhere that were just as grave? Why, then, was Sodom specifically overturned? He answers: Because Sodom is the King's palace, situated within Eretz Yisrael, and desecrating the King's palace is judged on an entirely different scale. Therefore, it was impossible to leave them here, even though in other places around the world people may well have acted just as corruptly, as it is said, "You shall not do according to the practices of the land of Egypt," showing that they corrupted their ways there as well. But Eretz Yisrael is the King's palace.
The Land, as has often been said, has a sensitive stomach: if it consumes something that is not entirely wholesome, it vomits it out. Therefore, to all those who threaten, "We will go to Argentina, we will go to Germany" - no problem, the Land will vomit you out as well. You are not threatening anyone; you are merely creating a situation where it becomes clear that the Land has spewed you out. The Land vomits out transgressors; it vomits out those who defile it, because it is a holy place and holy ground.
סְמוּכִים לָעַד לְעוֹלָם עֲשׂוּיִם בֶּאֱמֶת וְיָשָׁר׃ (ח) - They are upheld forever and ever, made in truth and uprightness. (8)
Rashi explains: His precepts rest upon strong support, meaning that His mitzvot are established upon a firm foundation and reinforced with punishments and warnings. For if a person tells you not to do something, yet possesses no means to ensure that you comply - like a court without police officers to enforce its rulings - the matter will not endure. But here there is strong backing, reinforced by punishments and warnings: whoever deviates from the way of Hashem will be stricken.
The Jewish people as a nation has witnessed this countless times: when they strayed from the path, He brought Cushan-rishathaim upon them, and when they repented - "and the land was tranquil for forty years." This was a recurring cycle that repeated itself continuously. Thus, the precepts of Hashem are upheld and reinforced, possessing firm and unyielding support.
Rashi further explains: the scriptural passages are juxtaposed one next to the other in precise order. "They are upheld forever and ever" (semuchim) serves as the source and basis for the hermeneutical method known as semuchin (juxtaposition) - that from the fact that Scripture places one subject adjacent to another, we derive a principle. As we see in the weekly parashah: why did the Torah juxtapose the captive woman of beautiful appearance (eishet yefat to'ar) to the stubborn and rebellious son (ben sorer umoreh)? To teach you that through a captive woman, a rebellious son will be born to him. And why did the Torah juxtapose the laws of dishonest weights to "and Amalek came"? To teach that one who cheats with weights brings Amalek upon himself. So it is in many instances - juxtaposition teaches foundational halachic principles. This is the meaning of "semuchim forever and ever": the sections are arranged alongside one another in exact order so that we may expound them.
This is what Shlomo says: "His legs are pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold" - his legs represent that upon which he leans and depends, and "pillars of marble" signifies resting upon something firm and unshakeable. And the Radak explains "they are upheld forever and ever" - they will not falter and will not stumble: the mitzvot and precepts of Hashem stand firm forever and ever, for they are fashioned in truth and an upright path, and those who walk in them and observe them will never stumble.
It is written in the holy sefarim that we have no guarantee that whoever fulfills a mitzvah will receive a good reward in this world - "today to perform them, and tomorrow to receive their reward." However, the early authorities did write that we are unequivocally guaranteed that no mitzvah can ever harm a person. It is impossible that tomorrow it will be discovered that binding tefillin straps on the arm caused everyone who did so a physical reaction that led to illness. No mitzvah harms a person. Certainly, only good can come from it, but that reward of goodness is not guaranteed in this world - for if it were guaranteed, we would perform mitzvot purely for their immediate benefit. What we are promised is that no harm will ever come to us by virtue of performing a mitzvah.
Incidentally, there are several matters where today we observe, even from a scientific standpoint, how the mitzvot bring only good. The practice of brit milah and the removal of the foreskin is well known to have health benefits, and even in the British royal family it was customary to circumcise every newborn male. It is recommended from a medical perspective as well, benefiting both the circumcised male and his wife, as it prevents illnesses and infections.
The same applies to the laws of family purity. For years it was known that Jewish women did not suffer from certain uterine cancers. The reason: that form of cancer is triggered when insufficient time elapses between the cessation of bleeding and marital relations, while the tissue is still like an open wound, leading to infections that cause serious diseases. But since Judaism mandates waiting seven clean days (shiv'ah neki'im), that wound has sufficient time to scab over and heal, thereby preventing disease. Doctors note that only in recent decades, when tragically many ceased observing taharat hamishpachah, have illnesses once found almost exclusively among non-Jews begun to appear among Jews as well.
Similarly, NASA found that the fabric that absorbs radiation at the highest rate is a garment containing a blend of wool and linen together. Yet one must understand: this is not why the Torah commanded, "Do not wear shatnez." For if someone produced shatnez while ensuring it absorbed no radiation, would it then be permitted? Certainly not. Rather, the point is that all the mitzvot are for our ultimate benefit, and the guarantee is that no harm will ever result from fulfilling them. "I have not seen a righteous person forsaken, nor his children begging for bread" - do not think that being righteous will cause you to be forsaken or beg for bread. This is "they are upheld forever and ever, made in truth and uprightness": one who walks in the path of Torah is secure and steadfast, and will not fall.
The Malbim explains "they are upheld forever and ever" - they are the eternal supports of the world, the pillars and foundations upon which the world leans and depends. "Were it not for My covenant day and night, I would not have set the statutes of heaven and earth" - if the mitzvot and the Torah were to cease, the world could not exist. The pillars of heaven trembled - until when? Until the sixth of Sivan. As Chazal taught regarding the verse, "the sixth day, and the heavens and the earth were completed": why does it say "the sixth"? This refers to the sixth of Sivan. Until then, the world was precarious and unstable, but once the sixth of Sivan arrived and we received the Torah, the world became firmly established. Prior to that, there was a constant concern that the world would revert to void and chaos if Israel did not accept the Torah. Thus, it is the mitzvot and the Torah upon which the entire world leans.
And why? "For they are wrought in truth and uprightness." That which is said, "all His precepts are faithful" - because they are wrought in truth, and truth is faithful: an enduring, genuine reality that never changes. And the reason they are the supports of the world is that they are wrought with uprightness. Uprightness, equity - as it is written, "I judge with equity; it is I who uphold its pillars" - uprightness is the foundation of the world, and upon it the world stands. If there is no integrity, the world ceases to function.
Therefore, we see great meticulousness regarding integrity and just conduct, even among the nations. The Holy One, blessed be He, does not destroy the nations for sins between man and God; but if sins between man and his fellow flourish among them - theft, robbery, dishonesty - the Holy One, blessed be He, destroys the world. And why? Because the world cannot endure like that. The world is built on fairness and integrity, and if the decision is made not to conduct affairs with honesty, it cannot be sustained even for a moment, and even a non-Jew then loses his right to exist. This is the meaning of "I judge with equity; it is I who uphold its pillars": these are the pillars upon which the earth rests, and the "equity" - meaning the Torah, which straightens and refines man - forms the pillars of the world.
פְּדוּת שָׁלַח לְעַמּוֹ צִוָּה לְעוֹלָם בְּרִיתוֹ קָדוֹשׁ וְנוֹרָא שְׁמוֹ׃ (ט) - He sent redemption to His people; He commanded His covenant forever; holy and awesome is His Name. (9)
Metzudat David explains that "redemption" refers to the Exodus from Egypt, and "He commanded" means that they should remember His covenant forever - that is, the Torah - "for holy and awesome is His Name." This corresponds to "I am the Lord your God Who brought you out of the land of Egypt," from which follows "You shall have no other gods before Me." The entire Exodus from Egypt was intended so that we would remember Hashem's mitzvot and revere Him, for holy and awesome is His Name.
The Holy One, blessed be He, is holy, and He sanctified us: "You shall be holy." "Holy" means set apart; Hashem separated us from the nations: "Sanctify yourselves and be holy, for I am holy, the Lord Who sanctifies you." Therefore, "He sent redemption to His people" - to take them out of Egypt and set them apart from the nations: "This day you have become a people." Through this, we are distinguished and endowed with our unique stature, so that just as Hashem is holy, the Jewish people, His nation and heritage, also received this level of holiness.
The Malbim explains that "He sent redemption to His people" was by virtue of the "precepts" mentioned earlier - the mitzvot. By the power of the mitzvot Hashem commanded, He sent redemption to His people, and on this condition He redeemed them: in order that you observe His commandments. As is well known, the angel of the sea argued: "These are idol worshippers and these are idol worshippers!" and the reply was: "These are destined to accept the Torah." Our entire merit to be redeemed, everything that was split open before us, was because we were destined to receive the Torah. On that basis, "He sent redemption to His people."
And why? "He commanded His covenant forever" - so that they would uphold the covenant, the Torah, "for holy and awesome is His Name," thereby sanctifying His Name in the world. "You are My servants, and not servants to servants": the Holy One, blessed be He, brought us out of the house of bondage so that we would be servants to Him. If we do not observe His precepts, we will return to servitude, as it is written: "Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and gladness of heart for the abundance of everything, therefore you will serve your enemies" in nakedness and destitution.
And just as the Holy One, blessed be He, said that He would remember the covenant forever through the truth and justice He declared to His people - thereby validating the covenant He made with Avraham to give us the land - so too, the enduring preservation of the covenant depends on our observing the mitzvot. This is stated explicitly: "He gave them the lands of nations... that they might keep His statutes." When they did not keep His statutes, exile occurred. We returned after seventy years, and once again He gave us the lands of nations so that we might keep His statutes; once again they did not keep them, and we were exiled. The entire reality of the exiles stems from the fact that receiving the land is solely "that they might keep His statutes." If not, we are not fitting and worthy of it, and from this, exile ensues.
Rabbeinu Bachya explains that "He sent redemption to His people" refers to the future redemption, a redemption followed by no subjugation. Notice that the word pedut (redemption) here is written malei (full spelling), with a vav. By contrast, regarding Egypt it says, "And I will set redemption (pedut)" - written chaser (lacking), without a vav, because that redemption was temporary rather than complete, lasting only until the next exile. But here, referring to the final redemption, it is spelled in full. One might also suggest that this is the vav of "Behold, I send you Eliyah the prophet" - as it is noted regarding Yaakov that an extra vav appears in his name, held in safekeeping for Eliyahu the prophet until the redemption. We join this vav with the word pedut, making the redemption complete and whole.
In the sefer HaKatuv LeChaim, this is explained based on Chazal's teaching that it is through the merit of berit milah that we merit redemption from exile: "As for you, also, by the blood of your covenant I have sent forth your prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water" (Zechariah 9:11). This connects to the wondrous words of the Ramban, which have been noted on several occasions: the Torah informs us that at the end of their exile, the Jewish people will abandon all the mitzvot except for one mitzvah that everyone will observe - berit milah.
Yet, if one had asked a thousand years ago, when everyone observed all the mitzvot, which mitzvah would be the first that people would abandon, the answer would surely have been: berit milah. Why take a child and perform a painful surgical procedure on him - for what purpose? Other mitzvot that are more comfortable and easier would seemingly be kept, whereas circumcision appears to be the least logically intuitive mitzvah. And yet, in reality, people circumcise their sons. Even the most estranged secular Jews continue to make a berit for their children. No matter what they say or argue, if you ask them why, they cannot explain it.
A well-known public figure was once asked whether she had circumcised her son, and she answered yes - "but if it were today, I would not have done it." And yet, she did it anyway. This is what is meant here: "He sent redemption to His people" - and in what merit will this redemption come? In the merit of "He commanded His covenant forever," because everyone still observes the mitzvah of berit milah.
Chazal already provided an explanation for why this particular mitzvah is so scrupulously maintained: every mitzvah for which the Jewish people sacrificed their lives (mesirat nefesh) is still firmly held in their hands, while mitzvot for which they did not sacrifice their lives are not firmly held. As an example, the Gemara mentions the mitzvah of tefillin, where an officer pursued Elisha Ba'al Kenafayim, who took off his tefillin; when asked, "What is that in your hand?", he replied, "The wings of a dove" (Shabbat 49a). In contrast, regarding berit milah: "Why are you being led out to be executed? Because I circumcised my son" (Mekhilta, Shemot 20:6). We see that they were willing to give their lives for it, even though it is not one of the three cardinal sins for which one is obligated to die rather than transgress. And because they held onto it with utter devotion, it remains firmly held in their hands for all generations.
רֵאשִׁית חָכְמָה יִרְאַת יְהֹוָה שֵׂכֶל טוֹב לְכָל עֹשֵׂיהֶם תְּהִלָּתוֹ עֹמֶדֶת לָעַד׃ (י) - The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem, good understanding to all who perform them; His praise endures forever. (10)
The Ibn Ezra explains that since the verse previously mentioned that "awesome is His Name," it now tells you: "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem" - the essential foundation is the fear and reverence of the awesome God. "Good understanding" belongs to all who fulfill His precepts; anyone who performs His mitzvot has good understanding. And "His praise endures forever" - the letter vav of tehillato ("its praise") refers back to the "good understanding," meaning that the praise of this good understanding is that it endures forever. He also cites in the name of Rabbi Moshe that the plural suffix of oseihem ("those who do them") refers back to wisdom and fear: whoever puts both wisdom and fear into practice as required possesses good understanding.
The Radak explains that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem, and Hashem commanded this from the very outset. Where do we see this? In the verse, "You shall fear Hashem your God, and Him you shall serve, and to Him you shall cleave" (Devarim 10:20) - showing that fear is primary, the beginning and the foundation. The fear of Hashem means the observance of the Torah and mitzvot, while wisdom refers to intellectual inquiry, contemplation, and deep reflection in order to understand the entire work of creation.
And if you ask why one needs to know this, the Radak answers: because this is the service of God, blessed be He, through which man comes to recognize his Creator. When a person studies the work of creation and the order of the cosmos, he comes to recognize the greatness of Hashem. Therefore, this follows "and Him you shall serve": when one contemplates this wisdom, he removes mundane material concerns and this lowly world from his heart and cleaves to Hashem. Then, "and to Him you shall cleave" is fulfilled in him, as his soul is bound to the supernal realms. He then comes to truly know His Name, leading to "and by His Name you shall swear," as the verse concludes. For if someone does not know the Name of Hashem and does not recognize His supreme stature, how could he swear by His Name? That would be a dishonor to Hashem's Name. But when one truly knows the Name of Hashem and swears by His Name, it reflects the immense reverence and honor in which he holds Hashem's Name.
Notice that Scripture places fear before everything else: "You shall fear Hashem your God," and only afterward, "and Him you shall serve, and to Him you shall cleave, and by His Name you shall swear." This is because fear must precede wisdom. One who engages in wisdom delves into profound investigations, and if this does not stem from fear of Heaven, he is liable to fall into heresy. But if it stems from the fear of Hashem, then "anyone whose fear of sin precedes his wisdom, his wisdom will endure" (Avot 3:9). If not, his intellect can lead him into distortion and conclusions contrary to piety. Therefore, a person must only begin to engage in deep intellectual inquiry and philosophical reflection after he has acquired fear of Heaven; otherwise, pursuing such wisdom can only cause him to stumble and distance him from true faith.
When a person contemplates the Torah, the Radak explains, he discovers within it the paths of wisdom, as it is written: "For this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations" (Devarim 4:6). This is true not only of the mitzvot that appeal to human reason, but even of the chukkim (statutes), where one might wonder about their underlying logic - regarding which Hashem states, "It is a decree I have enacted" - even within them, one who deeply contemplates will find their profound reasons clarified.
Let us give an example: A baby must be circumcised at eight days old, and this is a chok - "And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised." Today, science has discovered that the time when blood-clotting agents reach their highest level is precisely the eighth day. Had we circumcised the child on the first or second day, the clotting agent would not yet have reached its peak level, and it is very possible that the child would die as a result of circumcision. And what is a baby who dies as a result of circumcision? A child whose blood-clotting mechanism is inactive. Even today, there are people who lack this clotting agent in their blood and take medication; if they receive a cut on their finger, the blood will flow and never clot, so they are given medication to supplement the clotting agent. Such was the condition of a baby who died as a result of circumcision: due to a lack of clotting agent, he bled until he died. As noted, the clotting agent reaches its maximum at eight days of age. This exemplifies the Radak's words, that even in chukim that appear to have no rationale - the wise person who reflects upon them will find their reason clear and elucidated.
Yet again, when we speak of a "reason," one must understand that this reason does not determine the halachah. If you want a difficulty on this: Canaanite servants are circumcised at birth, for the law of circumcising on the eighth day was stated only regarding Israel - and yet their clotting agent has not yet reached its peak level! Rather, the reason does not dictate the halachah, for as the Ben Ish Chai explains, for every reason that is stated, there are a hundred more esoteric reasons (al pi sod), and many more profound reasons of which we are completely unaware. "If I knew Him, I would be Him." Can a person truly say, "Can you find out the deep things of God? Can you find out the limit of the Almighty?" Could any human claim to have reached the ultimate end and to now comprehend the reasons behind the Torah? Certainly not.
Heaven forbid that we should think that "And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised" was commanded merely because of the blood clotting. It is the exact opposite: because the Holy One, Blessed is He, desires that circumcision take place on the eighth day, He created reality such that the blood-clotting agent reaches its peak on the eighth day. The Holy One, Blessed is He, does not issue mitzvot according to the nature of the world - the world was created according to the Torah, and the Torah preceded the world by 974 generations.
The Malbim explains that "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem" - the starting point of wisdom and its root is the fear of Hashem. As we have explained several times according to the Malbim's approach, the concept of "Chochmah" (wisdom) refers to a divine capacity received from Him, blessed be He, for resolving moral questions: what is right and what is wrong, what is ethical and what is unethical. Man cannot arrive at this wisdom on his own, for in any such matter one person will argue that a certain action is moral, while another will argue that the exact opposite is moral.
Both the right and the left claim to champion morality: the right asserts that we must conquer and that it is our right - claiming this is morally just; while the left asserts that we must not conquer - claiming that this is morally just. In other words, for anything one says, moral justifications can be found. How, then, can one know what is truly moral and what is not? Chochmah is a plumb line descending from Him, blessed be He: from Hashem we received the definition of what is moral and what is not. Wisdom is received from the Master of Wisdom, and its laws and roots are not established through rational proofs - human intellectual proofs cannot serve as evidence to determine what is moral and what is not.
Desire and the evil inclination, says the Malbim, incite a person not to act in accordance with wisdom, but rather to do whatever he desires rather than what the Torah prescribes for him. Therefore, fear is the restraining force that keeps a person in check: through fear of Heaven, a person will dread transgressing the ways of wisdom and will fear doing anything that the Holy One, Blessed is He, commanded not to do.
And this is "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem": the very starting point of living by wisdom is to possess fear, for if there is no fear - why on earth would a person follow the paths of wisdom? He would simply do whatever he pleases rather than what morality dictates. "A good understanding have all those who perform them" - the Malbim explains that "those who perform them" refers back to the precepts (pikudim) mentioned earlier: whoever performs these precepts will find good understanding there. Proper and fitting conduct consists of keeping the mitzvot, which directs a person onto the correct, straight path, and the spirit of Hashem will enlighten him to comprehend their reasons and secrets. Then "His praise endures forever" - he will find eternal bliss within them, "and praise is fitting for the upright."
We have concluded chapter 111. We learned that "He declared the power of His works to His people" - the very act of foretelling the gift of the heritage of nations is a revelation of His power, and the account of Creation was written to announce that the earth is His, and that by His will He took it from them and gave it to us. "The works of His hands are truth and justice" - truth and justice are the soul of creation, without which it is like a lifeless body; therefore the Canaanites were eradicated and the land was given to Israel in truth (fulfilling the promise to Avraham) and in justice (for the iniquity of the Amorite was full). "They are steadfast forever and ever" - the precepts of Hashem are reinforced with penalties and warnings, the scriptural sections are juxtaposed so that lessons may be derived from them, and they are the pillars of the world, performed in truth and uprightness. "He sent redemption to His people" - redemption was granted on condition of keeping the mitzvot and from the covenant, and in the merit of Brit Milah, for which Israel gave their lives, the complete redemption will come. And finally, "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Hashem" - fear precedes wisdom, and whoever fulfills the precepts of Hashem merits good understanding and eternal bliss, and his praise endures forever.