John Calvin Commentary Psalms 112:7

"He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: His heart is fixed, trusting in Jehovah." — Psalms 112:7 (ASV)

He shall not be afraid when he hears evil tidings. This may appear to be a confirmation of the statement contained in the preceding verse, meaning that the righteous are exempted from the infamous name which the reprobate secure to themselves by their vicious conduct.

Instead, I take the meaning to be that the righteous, unlike unbelievers who tremble at even the slightest rumor, calmly and peacefully confide in God’s paternal care amid all the evil tidings that may reach them. Why are unbelievers in constant agitation? It is because they imagine they are the sport of fortune on the earth, while God remains at ease in heaven.

No wonder, then, that the rustling of a falling leaf troubles and alarms them. The faithful are freed from such uneasiness because they neither give heed to rumors, nor does the fear of them prevent them from constantly invoking God. The children of God may also manifest symptoms of fear at the prospect of impending danger; for if they were altogether regardless of calamities, such indifference would be the result, not of confidence in God, but of insensibility.

But even if they are not able to lay aside all fear and anxiety, yet, acknowledging God as the guardian of their life and following the course of their lives, they entrust themselves to his preserving care and cheerfully resign themselves to his disposal. This is the magnanimity of the righteous, by which, as the prophet declares, they can disregard those rumors of evil that strike others with alarm.

Wisely, too, they rely on God for support; because, surrounded on all sides by innumerable deaths, we would sink into despair if we were not sustained by the confidence that we are secure under God’s protection. Genuine stability, then, is what the prophet here describes, and which consists in reposing with unshaken confidence in God.

On the other hand, the presumptuous confidence with which the ungodly are intoxicated exposes them all the more to the indignation of God, because they overlook the frailty of human life and in their pride of heart madly set themselves in opposition to him. Therefore, when they shall say, Peace and safety, then shall sudden destruction come upon them, (1 Thessalonians 5:3). But a sense of calamities, while it alarms and disconcerts the faithful, does not make them faint-hearted, because it does not shake their faith, by which they are rendered bold and steadfast.

In a word, they are not insensible to their trials, but the confidence that they place in God enables them to rise above all the cares of the present life. Thus they preserve calmness and composure of mind, and wait patiently until the right time comes for taking vengeance on the reprobate.