John Calvin Commentary Psalms 97:11

"Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart." — Psalms 97:11 (ASV)

Light has been sown for the righteous. He confirms the truth just advanced, and anticipates an objection which might be brought against it. We have seen that the Lord’s people are often treated with the utmost cruelty and injustice, and would seem to be abandoned to the fury of their enemies.

The Psalmist reminds us for our encouragement that God, even when He does not immediately deliver His children, upholds them by His secret power. In the first clause of the verse, there is a double metaphor. By light is meant joy, or a prosperous issue (according to a phraseology common in Scripture), as darkness denotes adversity.

The latter metaphor of sowing is rather more difficult to understand. Some think that gladness is sown for the just, as seed which, when cast into the ground, dies or lies buried in the earth for a considerable time before it germinates.

This idea may be a good one; but perhaps the simplest meaning of the words is the following: that though the righteous may be almost banished from the world, unable to venture out in public, and hidden from view, God will spread abroad their joy like seed, or bring forth to notice the light of their joy which had been concealed.

The second clause of the verse is an exegesis of the first — light being interpreted to mean joy, and the righteous such as are upright in heart. This definition of righteousness is worthy of notice: that it does not consist in a mere outward appearance, but comprehends integrity of heart, more being required to constitute us righteous in God’s sight than our simply keeping our tongue, hands, or feet from wickedness.

In the concluding verse, he exhorts the Lord’s people to gratitude. Looking upon God as their Redeemer, they should lead a life corresponding to the mercy they have received and remain content under all the evils they encounter, with the consciousness that they enjoy His protection.