August 20th
Psalm 119
The
Law of the Lord
Aleph
1: Blessed are the undefiled in the
way, who walk in the law of the LORD. 2:
Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole
heart. 3: They also do no
iniquity: they walk in his ways. 4:
Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently. 5: O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes! 6: Then shall I not be ashamed, when
I have respect unto all thy commandments. 7: I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall
have learned thy righteous judgments. 8:
I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.
Beth
9: Wherewithal shall a young man
cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. 10: With my whole heart have I sought
thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. 11: Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin
against thee. 12: Blessed art
thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes. 13:
With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth. 14: I have rejoiced in the way of thy
testimonies, as much as in all riches. 15:
I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. 16: I will delight myself in thy
statutes: I will not forget thy word.
Gimel
17: Deal bountifully with thy servant,
that I may live, and keep thy word. 18:
Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. 19: I am a stranger in the earth:
hide not thy commandments from me. 20:
My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times. 21: Thou hast rebuked the proud that
are cursed, which do err from thy commandments. 22: Remove from me reproach and contempt; for I have kept thy
testimonies. 23: Princes also
did sit and speak against me: but thy servant did meditate in thy statutes. 24: Thy testimonies also are my
delight and my counsellors.
Daleth
25: My soul cleaveth unto the dust:
quicken thou me according to thy word. 26:
I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes. 27: Make me to understand the way of
thy precepts: so shall I talk of thy wondrous works. 28: My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according
unto thy word. 29: Remove from
me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously. 30: I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid
before me. 31: I have stuck
unto thy testimonies: O LORD, put me not to shame. 32: I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt
enlarge my heart.
He
33: Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy
statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end. 34: Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I
shall observe it with my whole heart. 35:
Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight. 36: Incline my heart unto thy
testimonies, and not to covetousness. 37:
Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken thou me in thy way. 38: Stablish thy word unto thy
servant, who is devoted to thy fear. 39:
Turn away my reproach which I fear: for thy judgments are good. 40: Behold, I have longed after thy
precepts: quicken me in thy righteousness.
Vau
41: Let thy mercies come also unto me,
O LORD, even thy salvation, according to thy word. 42: So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me:
for I trust in thy word. 43:
And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth; for I have hoped in thy
judgments. 44: So shall I keep
thy law continually for ever and ever. 45:
And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts. 46: I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will
not be ashamed. 47: And I will
delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. 48: My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I
have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes.
Zain
49: Remember the word unto thy servant,
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. 50:
This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me. 51: The proud have had me greatly in
derision: yet have I not declined from thy law. 52: I remembered thy judgments of old, O LORD; and have
comforted myself. 53: Horror
hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law. 54: Thy statutes have been my songs
in the house of my pilgrimage. 55:
I have remembered thy name, O LORD, in the night, and have kept thy law. 56: This I had, because I kept thy
precepts.
Cheth
57: Thou art my portion, O LORD: I have
said that I would keep thy words. 58:
I intreated thy favour with my whole heart: be merciful unto me according to
thy word. 59: I thought on my
ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies. 60: I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments. 61: The bands of the wicked have
robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law. 62: At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of
thy righteous judgments. 63: I
am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts. 64: The earth, O LORD, is full of thy
mercy: teach me thy statutes.
Teth
65: Thou hast dealt well with thy
servant, O LORD, according unto thy word. 66: Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed
thy commandments. 67: Before I
was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word. 68: Thou art good, and doest good;
teach me thy statutes. 69: The
proud have forged a lie against me: but I will keep thy precepts with my whole
heart. 70: Their heart is as
fat as grease; but I delight in thy law. 71:
It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes. 72: The law of thy mouth is better
unto me than thousands of gold and silver.
Jod
73: Thy hands have made me and
fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments. 74: They that fear thee will be glad
when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word. 75: I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou
in faithfulness hast afflicted me. 76:
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy
word unto thy servant. 77: Let
thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight. 78: Let the proud be ashamed; for
they dealt perversely with me without a cause: but I will meditate in thy
precepts. 79: Let those that
fear thee turn unto me, and those that have known thy testimonies. 80: Let my heart be sound in thy
statutes; that I be not ashamed.
Caph
81: My soul fainteth for thy salvation:
but I hope in thy word. 82:
Mine eyes fail for thy word, saying, When wilt thou comfort me? 83: For I am become like a bottle in
the smoke; yet do I not forget thy statutes. 84: How many are the days of thy servant? when wilt thou execute
judgment on them that persecute me? 85:
The proud have digged pits for me, which are not after thy law. 86: All thy commandments are
faithful: they persecute me wrongfully; help thou me. 87: They had almost consumed me upon earth; but I forsook not
thy precepts. 88: Quicken me
after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.
Today we are reading Psalm 119. This is a long Psalm so we
will be reading it over a number of days. It’s interesting that from the
beginning the Psalm has been divided into 22 sections which are prefaced by a
letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This Psalm describes the life and journey of a
man of God under the Law. It begins describing the life giving power of Gods
word and ends with the promise that Gods word brings peace and comfort. The
first section is made up of two verses which both describe the path that the
‘Law abiding Jew’ lives faithfully before the Lord. He says that the man who
lives according to Gods word is the object of Gods blessing and he is not
ashamed to look God in the face. He is upright and he keeps the Mosaic law and
has respect for the commandments. He says I will praise the Lord after I have
learned the righteous standards of the Lord. He says I will keep your law, so
do not forsake me completely. This describes how a Jew lives under the law. He
is determined to keep the commandments and he pleads that the Lord won’t
forsake him completely. The christian in contrast has believed that Christ has
kept all the law and suffered the curse of the Law for him and he rests in the
joy of eternal union with Christ. He began saying the blessing of God is on
those who are undefiled. In the Gospel the defiled are brought into forgiveness
of sin and made holy by faith, not in what he has done, but by faith in what
Christ has done for him. In the next verse the Psalmist says that the young man
who lives under the law is cleansed by paying attention to the word of God.
Then he says - pathetically – Do not let me wonder from the commandments. In
the Old Covenant there was no provision to enable the saint from keeping the
commandments apart from the fear of his judgment, which he poured our
abundantly on those who forsook him. So he hides Gods word in his heart to
prevent himself from sinning against the Lord. He blesses the Lord and asks
that the Lord will teach him all the regulations of the Mosaic Law. And he says
not only will I do but I will teach it and I will meditate on the principles of
the Law and I will not forget your word. Notice that this is an honourable
resolution but nevertheless it is only a human resolve, this is evident by the
use of the personal pronoun. The next verse speaks twice of his prayer and the
reasoning’s behind it. And then twice he gives two statements about himself and
the wicked. He asks the Lord to bless him with his bounty so that he can live
to keep the law. He asks that the Lord will open his eyes to see the wonderful
things of the Word of God. He says I am like a stranger to ordinary men so do
not hide your laws from me. He describes a deep longing for the Lord’s law.
This would be because he wishes to know Gods mercies and blessings on his life.
He says of those who are proud that they are cursed to judgment because they do
not keep the commandments. But he says to the Lord bless me because I do keep
the commandments. In the next verse ‘Daleth’ we have two verses that are
prayers for the Lord to preserve his life and to strengthen him in mortal life
but both are uttered in depression at his own mortality. Again it is a prayer
for the righteous man who lives according to law yet it is touched with sadness
and heaviness. The next verse ‘He’ is a plea to the Lord to teach him the way
of the Lord he constantly seeks education in the law as a means of pleasing
God. He promises to keep the law with all his heart but has no permanent
assurance of Gods blessing. How different to the Christian who lives in the
assurance that is accepted in Christ. In ‘Vau’ the Psalmist pleads with the
Lord to strengthen him to keep the law. He has permanent assurance of Gods
eternal blessing everything is temporary and based on his law keeping. He says
if you deliver me then I will be able to tell people of your blessings. In
‘Zain’ the Psalmist pleads that the Lord will not forget to deliver him. His
hope is in the abundance of mortal life and his confidence is only in the
measure in which he is able to keep the law. He says the only thing that gives
him hope is that the word of God is the source of all direction in life. Day
and night he seeks to keep the law. In ‘Cheth’ the Psalmist confesses in prayer
that his godliness is based on his determination to keep faithful to the law.
He says I have stated that I will keep your laws so I ask that you will show me
mercy i.e. that you will not judge me according to my sins. He knows nothing of
the christians justification by faith. He says I did not forget to keep the law
but I turned my feet to walk in his ways. He says, I am the friend of all those
who fear the LORD and obey the Mosaic Law. In ‘Teth’ the Psalmist says at the
beginning the Lord deals with us according to his goodness and he ends saying
the Mosaic Law is good for us. Then in two verses he says the decisions of the
Lord are good. He says before I was afflicted by the Lord I went astray from
the law but the Lord brought me back by the affliction of his curses and now I
keep the law. So you O Lord are good and you do us good. Because I live
righteously, the proud lie against me. It was out of the goodness of God that
he afflicted me, so that I would learn to keep the laws of the Lord. The Law of
the Lord is better to me than thousands of pounds. In ‘Jod’ the Psalmist offers
a prayer for personal instruction and deliverance. He begins asking - teach me,
so that I may learn and at the end he says make me sound in my understanding so
that I may not be ashamed. Under the law the focus was on personal devotion to
the Lord. It was all about ‘I’. Paul the Apostle was more devoted than any of
his associates yet it was all ‘I’ ‘I’ ‘I’, until the day when he met the man
who said ‘not my will’. The Psalmist says that those who fear the Lord will be
glad when they see me, because I have put my trust in the word. He pleads to
the Lord he might continue to live and know Gods mercy. In ‘Caph’ the Psalmist
brings us two verses that express his distress and his complains to the Lord.
He begins saying my soul faints for your deliverance but I am hoping in your
promises. He asks many questions, When will you comfort me? Are my days at an
end? When will you destroy those who persecute me? How different are the words
of Christ when he said pray Gods blessing on those who persecute you. He says
LORD the proud are not right to persecute me! – Help me. He says keep me alive
so that I will testify to your truth.
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