Bible Strands
Psalms 112:4
Light dawns in the darkness for the upright—for the gracious, compassionate, and righteous.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist declares, to an unspecified audience, the character and outcome of the upright person within an acrostic wisdom psalm (Psalms 112).
The words — זָ֘רַ֤ח (zarach) is the verb for the sun rising; the light does not merely exist but breaks through the darkness (H2224).
The thread — Psalms 97:11 pairs light on the righteous with gladness on the upright; Job 11:17 reverses darkness into morning; Colossians 3:12 names the same disposition cluster (compassion, kindness) as a command to the elect.
Why it lands — The verse binds "light" to three specific traits—gracious, compassionate, righteous—rather than to a single act of piety, asking the reader to check whether those dispositions are actually present.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
Cross-references
- Job 11:17 Your life will be brighter than noonday; its darkness will be like the morning.
- Psalms 97:11 Light shines on the righteous, gladness on the upright in heart.
- Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
- Isaiah 58:10 and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will go forth in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday.
- Luke 6:36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
- 1 John 3:7 Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.
- Psalms 106:1 Hallelujah! Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.
- Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.
- 1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.
- Psalms 37:6 He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun.