“So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.”
The final affirmation that the righteous shall say "Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on the earth" articulates the theological conclusion that flows from witnessing divine vindication. The acknowledgment of reward for the righteous establishes that righteousness is not futile but that it leads to blessings and vindication. The affirmation of God's earthly judgment indicates that justice is not deferred to some distant eschatological future but is executed in history itself. This verse closes the psalm with the assertion that witnessing divine judgment restores confidence in divine justice and the ultimate meaningfulness of righteous living.
Church Fathers on Psalms 58:11
1. The words which we have sung must be rather hearkened to by us, than proclaimed. For to all men as it were in an assemblage of mankind, the Truth cries, “If truly indeed justice ye speak, judge right things, you sons of men” Psalm 57:1. For to what unjust man is it not an easy thing to speak justice? Or what man if questioned about justice, when he has not a cause, would not easily answer what is just? Inasmuch as the hand of our Maker in our very hearts has written this…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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