Psalms 119:1–16

The opening verses present the theme of the whole psalm — the blessedness of those who walk through this world in "the way" marked out by the Lord in His law, who "keep" His testimonies, and seek Him with the whole heart.

We have read in Psalm 118:19–20, "Open to me the gates of righteousness… This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it." But who are the righteous? Psalm 119 answers that question. It shows what will be true of Israel when God writes the law on their hearts (Jer. 31:33)… Psalms 1, 32, 41, 112 and 128 all begin with this same word blessed… In the first Psalm we read of someone delighting in the law of the LORD. Here we see how completely that can be true.

The word for "Blessed" in the Hebrew is plural. So it describes the "abundant blessings" that belong to all true believers in Christ: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" (Eph. 1:3).

They were not always "perfect". Once they were sinners, every one going his own way, dead in trespasses and sins. But Christ gave Himself as a sacrifice for sin, to redeem sinners from both the guilt and the power of sin… The word "perfect" has the meaning of "blameless, complete, whole, entire, sound".

God pronounces this blessedness on "the undefiled in the way." The world is full of defilement. There is only one path in the world… which can be undefiled; that is, God's law… It is the way wholly formed of God's expressed will for man's walk in this world. They "walk in the law of the LORD." There is a delight in what is right, in what is not defiled by sin or the world; but that which is right is found in walking in the law. It is a perfect rule, according to God, in this world for a living man.

At Sinai the law came to men in the flesh, and they loathed it, rebelled against it; in Psalm 119 the writer delights in the law of God. Clearly he has been born again. He tastes ahead of time the blessing Israel will have in a future day, when the Lord will say, "I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds" (Heb. 10:16).

Though we are not "under law but under grace," we still delight in it; and we fulfil its righteous requirements as we walk according to the Spirit. The believer can even now sing, "Oh how I love your law!" — for he has been brought to rejoice in the One who has magnified that law, and who has borne its curse for him upon the tree.

Notice that the whole Psalm, except the first five verses, is in the singular. The writer first says that the undefiled in the way are blessed, setting out that certain fact as his theme. Then he exclaims: "Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!"—his personal ways.

But who are the righteous? Psalm 119 answers this question. It shows what will be true of Israel when God writes His law on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33)… Psalms 1, 32, 41, 112 and 128 open with this same word blessed. In other psalms the title describes the saint in one way or another. This is because God's estimate of people here is very different from the world's. And now in Psalm 119 we learn some of the marks of anyone truly entitled to such a name.

Verse 2: EDUTH = Testimonies. It is a revelation, or a revealed psalm… The word EDAH = Precept and occurs 14 times, in the plural. It means a testimony, or a repetition, an attestation or witness, a constant witness to Jehovah's will.

Remember what we said about this word "testimonies"? It testifies what God is, and it also shows me what I ought to be. Before we can "keep" His testimonies, we must first have received them, accepted them, and be willing to obey.

To have the law written on the heart is not a natural state but a supernatural one, a work of divine grace. And this law is not merely arbitrary, a bare expression of authority. It is also a "testimony," and the awakened conscience responds to it. In it God declares Himself. So to "keep His testimonies" is to "seek Him with their whole heart." For such people everything matches the real nature of things: they do not twist them.

Notice that they seek "Him"; they seek to please Him, to be more like Him. This is not a merely "intellectual" activity, but it is a question of the whole heart being engaged. My heart yearning after Him day by day, all day long. "You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart," is the wonderful promise (Jeremiah 29:13).

You should earnestly seek to be whole-hearted in your Christian life and testimony. Notice how many times the phrase "whole heart" occurs in Psalm 119. It carries the thought that thoroughness must mark all who have to do with God. This was true above all in the Man, Christ Jesus. He could say, in the fullest sense of the words, "Zeal for your house has consumed me." He was consumed with the desire to do the will of the Father Who sent Him.

This connects itself with the desire after Himself. They seek Him with the whole heart. This is the general character of the effect of the law written in the heart. The practical effect is plain: they "do no iniquity." The heart is set right in purity, and they also do no evil, no wrong towards others. Instead of their own will and defiance towards God, "they walk in His ways." The heart recognises God's authority and accepts it with diligence, and the heart's desires go out towards it.

They walk in the way of the Lord's law — not the ten commandments, but as the New Testament tells us, "the law of liberty" (James 2:12), which involves the new birth. Only those born again will keep His testimonies, seeking the Lord with their whole heart (v. 2). They respond willingly to His commandment to keep His precepts diligently, not giving in to iniquity, but choosing God's ways (vv. 3-4).

(vv. 1-3) The opening verses present the theme of the whole psalm — the blessedness of those who walk through this world in "the way" marked out by the Lord in His law, who "keep" His testimonies, and seek Him with the whole heart.

The "way" for man is simply the way of Jehovah's law; and "happiness" is to be perfect in it. How blessed it is just to have the settled awareness in the soul that this alone is happiness. To be delivered from the misery of one's own will, one's own way — the very definition of sin (Isa. 53:6) — what a complete deliverance that is! ... With such people everything matches the real nature of things. They do not twist it: "they practise no perversity; they walk in His ways." His ways must be safe, holy, and happy.

When God writes His law on the heart, the people He speaks of will have hearts that never forget what He has commanded. This is certainly not the natural condition of anyone. It belongs only to those of whom He can also say, "Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more." Psalm 119 is the fervent expression of a heart so blessed.

This connects with the desire for God Himself. They seek Him with the whole heart. This is the general character of the effect of the law written in the heart. The practical effect is clear: they "do no iniquity." Their heart is not only morally right and undefiled; they also do no evil or unrighteousness — no wrong to others. Instead of following their own will and scoffing at God, "they walk in His ways." The heart recognises God's authority, accepts it diligently, and desires it.

Negative: "… they … do no iniquity …" As they "keep" His testimonies, and seek the Lord with their whole heart, staying close to Him, they do not sin. It is not characteristic of a true Christian that he practises sin. Instead, an act of sin in a believer's life counts as an "accident", completely unlike his position. "… if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous …" (1 John 3:9; 1 John 2:1).

Positive: "… they walk in His ways." They walk with Him, and in His strength. He is the "way" in which they walk; like Him. "Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked" (1 John 2:6). Our "walk" shows the effect of "abiding" in Him.

We see then that the form of this psalm cannot apply to the Christian. He never expects to be completely forsaken. In one particular case he may apply this, when he knows he has followed his own will. But the general principle teaches us much, because it shows what God works in the heart to shape its moral character.

There is first of all complete submission. Remember what a "commandment" is: an order given by God with full authority. Whether to Adam or to Noah, they had to submit. Adam did not, but Noah did submit. Are we willing to submit our will to His will? This submission is not imposed upon us, we are not forced to submit to our Lord Jesus! That would be the obedience of a slave. No, it is because we love Him that we willingly and gladly submit to Him.

Verse 4: PIK-KOO-DEEM = Precepts (or Commandments). It occurs 21 times through the psalm (always in the plural). It means a charge given to us by God for which we are responsible, "to place in trust", or "to take oversight".

The verse continues: "…to be kept diligently." There is nothing superficial about this submission! It is not a partial submission, but complete. There is no reserve, no holding back part, no hesitation, but a glad and whole-hearted surrender.

We must not pick and choose. We tend to take up the commandments and precepts that suit us, but this is really self-will. What right do we have to select some precepts from the word and neglect others? None at all. To do so is, in principle, simply self-will and rebellion. What business has a servant to decide which of his master's commands he will obey? Surely, none at all. Every commandment carries the master's authority, so it has a claim on the servant's attention. And we may add: the more fully a servant obeys, giving respectful attention to every one of his master's commands, however small, the more he strengthens his position and grows in his master's confidence and esteem.

"You have commanded Your precepts" — the separate applications of God's principles — "to be kept diligently." God does not speak in plain, definite terms and then put up with us treating His words lightly. And that is not in the least what grace means. Nothing God has spoken is unimportant. Obedience is always what matters, and an obedience we can set limits on claims for us a wisdom higher than God's.

But the God whose sons we are is holy, and demands in His children obedience. He would have us recognise His authority. If we stand in His grace, we are also under His government. We are just as much the subjects of His kingdom as we are the objects of His favour. We are as much His servants under His control as we are His sons in liberty… Knowing that I am His son makes me cry, "Abba, Father." Knowing that I am under Him makes me say, "Lord, what do You want me to do?"

It is not Christian to obey Christ merely because we must. Christ never obeyed like that. If someone only does a thing because he knows he will be punished if he does not, that shows his heart is not in it — he does not want to obey. Christian obedience is wanting to do a thing because it is the will of God. The Holy Spirit gives us the power for that by setting Christ before our hearts.

Then there is a complete giving up of self. This is a prayer! It is the deep longing of the heart expressed in a sigh! There is a deep sense of complete weakness, and of our own inability to do anything that is pleasing and acceptable to God. Here is a cry for aid, for help, for power! Surely the Lord hears such a sigh! Surely the Holy Spirit will direct you and me to "keep Your statutes," to do His will and not our own! A "statute" is a direction from God to secure our obedience, or to stop disobedience.

"Oh that my ways were directed." This is not only seeing God's ways — what the heart approves as right in itself. It is the desire that the actual course of life be ordered to keep God's statutes; our will is not satisfied, but turned towards God's. Here a man feels his dependence about the course of his life, and longs for it to be directed.

With the blessedness of God's way before his soul, the psalmist turns to God in prayer. He admits God's authority to "command," and our responsibility "to keep" His precepts. He also longs to meet that responsibility. Aware of human weakness, the godly man looks to God to direct his ways, so that he may keep God's statutes (v. 5).

How different is the spirit of Psalm 119. At Sinai the law came to men in the flesh, and they loathed it and rebelled against it; in Psalm 119 the writer delights in the law of God. Clearly he has been born again.

It is we who need to be taught wisdom. So the heart cries out: "Oh that my ways" — my goings in the path — "may be directed to keep Your statutes: then I shall not be ashamed when I have respect to all Your commandments." And it looks ahead to His judgments — His decisions in the court of conscience. These so approve His righteousness that learning them will produce a spirit of praise in an upright heart.

It was a time when Israel had gone wrong. So here there is a special looking to God not to give them up completely. We see that the form of this psalm cannot apply to the Christian. He never expects to be completely forsaken. In a particular course of action he may apply it, when he knows he has followed his own will. But from the general principle we may learn much, as to what is worked in the heart regarding its moral disposition.

Here is complete confidence. "Then" — it follows! He has learned from experience. He has learned from past mistakes. He has learned that he will not be ashamed, when he has "respect" for all the Lord's commandments! He says, in effect: "Yes, looking back I am ashamed of those times when I acted in self-confidence and in my own strength and wisdom, and failed miserably. But now I have learned not to have this self-confidence, but to have complete confidence in the Lord."

Shame does not come from people's disapproval. It comes from a conscience that is not good according to God's revealed will. But this way is complete, and it is the only one. Whatever is outside it is not clean — it is the world, which God hates. We must be in it in will, heart, and way. Otherwise we are out of it, and so ashamed — if the will of the heart is right. If my mind and soul have discerned the excellence of God's way, then my conscience makes me ashamed when I am out of it in every respect.

The blessedness of God's way is before his soul, so the psalmist turns to God in prayer. He admits God's authority to "command," and our responsibility "to keep" His precepts. He also longs for this responsibility to be met. Aware of human weakness, the godly man looks to God to direct his ways, so that he may keep God's statutes (v. 5). Walking this way, he keeps a good conscience (v. 6). When the conscience is good, praise flows, not from formal lips, but from an upright heart (v. 7).

We must learn not to pick and choose when it comes to the Lord's will for us. All His ways are blessedness and peace, all His will is good and acceptable and perfectly suited to our needs.

We are called to obey God's word as a whole — "All My law" — not just the part of it we prize most. When a believer follows only his favourite lines of truth, he is not strong and very courageous in obeying the whole of God's word. Some believers have selected certain portions of God's word for their obedience, the ones most agreeable to them, and so have in effect built a revised Bible!

No — it is we who need to be taught wisdom. So the heart cries out: "Oh that my ways" — my steps in the path — "may be directed to keep Your statutes: then I shall not be ashamed when I have respect for all Your commandments." The heart also foresees that His judgments — His decisions in the court of conscience — will so approve His righteousness that learning them will produce a spirit of praise in an upright heart.

We see, then, that the form of this psalm cannot apply to the Christian. He never expects to be utterly forsaken; in a particular course he may apply this, when he is conscious of having followed his own will. But from the general principle we may learn much, as to what is worked in the heart regarding its moral disposition.

With the blessedness of God's way before his soul, the psalmist turns to God in prayer. He admits God's authority to "command," and our responsibility "to keep" His precepts. There is also a longing desire to meet that responsibility. Aware of human weakness, the godly man looks to God to direct his ways, so that he may keep God's statutes (v. 5). Walking this way, he keeps a good conscience (v. 6). And when the conscience is good, praise flows, not from formal lips, but from an upright heart (v. 7).

The judgments of His righteousness are the decisions He makes about right and wrong. They express and carry out the righteous character of God. We have much to learn about His "judgments." We must learn that He always judges righteously — never on a whim, and never with prejudice, as men judge. We must learn from Him now on earth how to judge as He does. Then later, when we reign with Him a thousand years, we shall be able to put into practice what we have learned. Whatever He thinks best is good and right, even when He must discipline as a tender and compassionate Father. One day we shall stand before His judgment seat to be rewarded, and there we shall praise Him with uprightness of heart for all His righteous judgments.

It is we who need to be taught wisdom. So the heart cries out, "Oh that my ways" — my walking in the path — "may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments." And it looks ahead: His judgments — His decisions in the court of conscience — so approve His righteousness that learning them produces a spirit of praise in an upright heart.

Real, deep desire is clear in verse 5, "Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!" If so, the psalmist would not be ashamed when he looked at all God's commandments. Instead he would praise the Lord, not in mere ritual, but in uprightness of heart, gladly learning God's righteous judgments (v. 7). So he has a settled purpose: "I will keep your statutes."

Psalm 119 has 176 verses, and no fewer than 174 of them mention the law of God under different names — law, commandments, precepts, testimonies, judgments, statutes, ordinances, word, way, path. Whatever name the law goes by, it is no longer condemnation and death threatening, but perfect delight and liberty. The writer bursts out, "My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times" (v. 20) — "Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous rules" (v. 164).

But it was a time when Israel had erred. So here there is a special looking to God not to give them up completely. We see from this that the form of this psalm cannot apply to the Christian. He never expects to be completely forsaken. He may apply it in a particular case, when he knows he has followed his own will. But we can learn much from the general principle, as what is worked in the heart about its moral disposition. Verses 1-8.

Having cast himself upon God, the psalmist can say with confidence, "I will keep Your statutes," though recognizing past failure, which leads to the cry, "do not utterly forsake me!"

"I will keep Your statutes…" is what the Psalmist said he would do. "Keeping" means to observe and put into practice. His "statutes" are His directions, given to get our obedience. "If you love me, you will keep my commandments," the Lord Jesus said (John 14:15)… So God provides what we need to do what He asks. All this will keep us humble. We realize that by ourselves we can do nothing, as the Lord Jesus said: "…apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

The last verse is an appeal to divine government not to go far away from one who had in heart to keep the divine statutes.

Thus he has firm purpose, "I will keep Your statutes." If so, it is impossible that God would forsake him utterly (v. 8).

Another part of this state of heart is a full will and purpose to obey and keep what God has ordered or appointed. It is what carries God's authority, not simply what is morally right or wrong. But this was a time when Israel had gone wrong. So here there is a special looking to God, asking Him not to give them up completely. We see then that the form of this psalm cannot apply to the Christian. He never expects to be completely forsaken. He may use these words about some path he has taken, when he knows he has followed his own will. But we can learn much from the general principle — what God works in the heart to shape its moral character.

The Psalmist finishes this first section of eight verses with a prayer: "do not utterly forsake me!" But we who believe now, in this time of grace, have no reason to think that the Lord will ever abandon us. The Holy Spirit will not leave us and will not be taken from us, for He remains with us forever (John 14:16). This should not make us careless. It should encourage us to keep going with this constant prayer: "Lord Jesus, keep me close to Yourself."

Here is a soul with a question! He has tried to walk in a way that pleases the Lord, but he feels the defiling influences of the world around him. There has been defilement in thought and imagination. Some believers suffer from unclean thoughts or unclean suggestions from the enemy. This young man had known that kind of defilement. Now he asks the question: "With what" shall I cleanse my way, my heart, my thought life? This verse gives us the first wonderful fact about the Word: it purifies.

The young man is mentioned here because a believer needs this vital instruction at the very start of his path. The subject here is not the cleansing of his sins, but the practical cleansing of his path. Only the blood of Christ cleanses sins, and God does that work for the believer. But the believer is responsible to cleanse his path. This means a daily, practical separation from evil principles. The means of this is clear: it is the Word of God taken to heart that enables one to act with such effect.

The Word of God is that which has cleansing power for the believer. Bear in mind that we are not now speaking of that cleansing which, as guilty sinners, we get when we come to Christ. At that time we were cleansed in a very different way, even by the precious blood of Christ. But as believers we need the continuous washing, not of blood, but of "water by the word."

First, by watchful care to bring all his ways under the searchlight of God's Word.

There is a blessing where Scripture is read and in particular where it is obeyed. … We say to the little ones, we need to say it to each other, "read your Bible, pray every day." Now we can say there is a purifying effect from the reading of Holy Scripture.

In a world where Satan is very active to deceive believers, the young Christian is his special target. So the question the psalmist asked himself matters as much today as in his day. How can a young man — or a young woman — lead a holy and pure life in unholy, sin-stained surroundings? The answer of Scripture is short but enough: by taking heed according to your word. We live in a world where standards and values are changing at an ever-increasing speed. … whether young or old, we need to measure everything by God's plumb line — His Word. That is how we become overcomers in this anti-Christian or post-Christian world.

Purity. Perhaps sexual purity is the most obvious example of this. These words speak especially to young men. But let's not suppose that any of us, whatever our age or gender, is safe from the dangers. The word is clear. And of course purity involves not just what we do, but what goes on in our minds too.

The clothes stand for what touches us — our associations, what we have dealings with, what the world around us sees us connected with. Perhaps people have often seen us in the gambling halls, or in other evil places. All these associations and ways must be "washed."

Here He is "sought with the whole heart"; no guile, but the true desire of the heart towards God. God's commandments are precious, because they make His will known. So the heart that truly seeks Him prays that He will not let it wander from them. The heart looks to God as good, for when He is truly sought there is always some sense of His goodness. That is what distinguishes conversion from mere terror of conscience: desire towards Him, and a sense of goodness in God.

This verse shows us that the Word keeps the believer from wandering from the path of obedience. "With my whole heart I seek you…" We have to be in earnest about it! To rush in and out of the Lord's presence for a little reading and prayer is not what we could properly call a "quiet time." We must take time to be holy. Notice that the second half of this verse is a prayer: "…let me not wander…" We have a prayer in verses 5 and 8, and in this verse too. Prayer and Bible study go hand in hand.

Whole-heartedness is surely due to such a God as ours! "I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart" (Psalm 9:1), "With my whole heart I seek you" (Psalm 119:10), "With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O LORD!" (Psalm 119:145). This is how David loved to speak to his God. Lord, save us all from dead, decent formality in divine things; give us David's spirit.

He also casts himself upon the power of God, so that God will keep him from wandering into paths of his own lust and will. He knows he is weak. He knows that right and honest desires will not in themselves keep him in the path of blessing. So he casts himself with his whole heart upon God (v. 10).

The young man is spoken of, no doubt, because life is strong in him, and the untried world is full of natural attraction… Seeking Him with the whole heart, the soul still has to pray, "Let me not wander."

The verb is "to err," as in Psalm 119:10, 21, 118 and Leviticus 4:13 — to sin through ignorance.

The newborn soul can rightly claim that with his whole heart he has sought the Lord. In keeping with this, he earnestly prays, "let me not wander from your commandments!" (v. 10). How does this happen? By hiding God's Word in his heart. How good indeed to learn verses of Scripture, not merely by memory, but by heart! This will certainly preserve us from sinning against God (v. 11).

It was not the Bible in his hand to read it, or the word on his tongue to speak of it. It was hiding it in his heart that he found effective against sin.

They took it into their knowledge and intelligence, took it into their heart as an invaluable treasure. "I have stored up your word in my heart." That is the right place for it; it is safe there. We need to be on our guard. The birds of the air in the Parable of the Sower stand for real evil spirits. They hover around us, seeking to rob us of the treasure we have received.

The Word of God should not only be a check on our thoughts. It should be their source, which is far deeper. We see it in Christ, the only perfect One. He alone could say, "By the word of your lips I have kept myself from the ways of the violent." "I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." The Word has a preserving power that keeps the feet from sliding. Only those who receive the truth in the love of it know that power. Merely having the word hidden in the memory will not do! There is no preserving power in that. The truth must act on the heart and conscience, separating us from all defilement. Otherwise we cannot experience its preserving power.

The new born soul can rightly claim that with his whole heart he has sought the Lord; and consistently with this, he earnestly prays, "Oh let me not wander from Your commandments" (v. 10). How is this to be accomplished? By the individual's hiding God's Word in his heart. How good indeed to learn the verses of scripture, not merely by memory, but by heart!

Second, by casting himself on the power of God, so that God keeps him from wandering into paths of his own lust and will. He knows his weakness. He knows that right and honest desires will not by themselves keep him in the path of blessing. So he casts himself on God with all his heart (v. 10).

Third, by hiding the Word in his heart, which keeps him from sinning against God in secret.

God's word is a protector from sin — if hidden in the heart. Read, taken seriously, meditated on, remembered — all are involved in hiding it in the heart. Again this takes time, but it helps to protect us from sin. The Lord Jesus is the perfect example of using God's word when under temptation. For each of Satan's temptations He answered with the right scripture. He knew the scriptures, of course, but He also understood how to apply them, and which verses were right for which situation. How vitally important it is that we hide the word in our hearts; there is no better protector from sinning.

These are golden sentences for the present moment. They set forth the true place for the Word — "settled in heaven" and "hidden in the heart." That is not all. They also link the heart to the very throne of God through His own Word. This gives the Christian all the stability and all the moral security that the divine Word can give.

Fourth, by owning the blessedness of the Lord and thus in confidence looking to be taught of the Lord (v. 12).

But now we see the heart in the presence and under the control of God: "Blessed are You, Jehovah." The heart turns to Him with its awareness of its own ignorance and its yearning desire — "teach me Your statutes."

The heart owns the blessedness of Jehovah Himself, known in His ways, His goodness, His mercy that endures forever. There, in the middle of its distress, the renewed heart finds its resource and its rest. "Blessed are You, O Jehovah." This makes the heart look for what He has decreed and ordained, and for divine teaching in it. This looking at God gives courage, and an inner sense of integrity and faithfulness.

The Holy Spirit is our Teacher, and through the instruments that grace uses He can teach us the will of God (John 14:26). So let us echo the psalmist's prayer to the Lord: "…teach me Your statutes." And let us remember what a statute means: "a divine direction to bring about our obedience, and to keep us from disobedience."

We owe it to God to declare what He is. He ought to be known, and what He is ought to be acknowledged. Praise is different in that we speak our sense of what He is to Him.

Such simple, clear facts move the heart also to bless the Lord, who can be relied on to teach His statutes. This being so, our lips are also opened to witness to others, declaring all the judgments of God's mouth (v. 13).

Praise and testimony can only flow from a soul that is taught of God. So the psalmist says, "My lips will pour forth praise, for you teach me your statutes." At once he adds, "My tongue will sing of your word." The psalm opens with prayer, continues in praise, and leads to testimony. This is always the divine order.

MISH-PAHT = Judgment. The word occurs 23 times in the psalm… It means the sentence of a judge, and above all a sentence that imposes a penalty. It is therefore a judicial sentence, a decision the Lord makes.

(vv. 13-16) The young man's way has been cleansed, so now he can bear testimony to others (v. 13). It comes from a heart that enjoys God's testimonies (v. 14), meditates on them (v. 15), delights in them, and keeps them in mind (v. 16).

"With my lips I declare …", the verse begins. The believer may speak in "living echoes of His words …", but the Lord must first be able to speak to us, before we can tell others what He has told us. Before the Lord Jesus can send us out "to preach" He calls us first to "be with Him" (Mark 3:14). Perhaps it is good to ask ourselves: "What do I use my lips for?" Surely not for gossip? How we need to pray daily: "keep watch over the door of my lips" (Psalm 141:3; Job 27:4).

Service flows from confidence in God and from knowing how blessed He is, with the value we place on what God has given… Perceiving divine things, with power and value for them, is what makes us declare them. It is glorifying God. Love to others may go with this, but it is another thing. We owe it to God to declare what He is. He ought to be known, and what He is ought to be acknowledged. Then we hold nothing back: "all the judgments of Your mouth." We are filled with what God is, and with its value, and we speak it out. We may be wise for others' sake, but we value God enough to declare Him fully.

He has already been speaking of what he knew. He declared God's judgments — the decisions God had given about good and evil, right and wrong — and he did it faithfully, holding nothing back. What a great help this is for keeping a clean path: confessing God in all things, and committing yourself fully to all that He has made known of Himself. Indecision invites the assault of evil. It does not honour God, and He cannot honour anyone who is ashamed of Him.

Whatever is in the heart comes out through the lips, and in the life. How important then to have the heart full of the word of God! It should be so full that we have no room for the empty, foolish things of this present evil world… "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." So we can judge what is in the heart by what comes out of the mouth. The tongue is the organ of the heart — the organ of the man.

Verses 13-16: the young man's way has been cleansed, so he can bear testimony to others (v. 13). This comes from a heart that enjoys God's testimonies (v. 14), meditates on them (v. 15), delights in them, and keeps them in mind (v. 16).

Note further: these are testimonies that come from God. They are His definite declaration of His mind and will. They are not a knowledge of God that man boasts of by his own will, or his claim to know what God must be. They are the definite testimonies of God, so man is subject to them, though they also hold him up. It is not man's reasoning, or man's conscience, but the testimonies of God, His own active revelation of Himself, the speaking of His word. Faith simply receives them, and the soul is subject to them as such.

How great a thing this is for keeping a clean path — to confess God in all things, and to give yourself fully to all that He has made known of Himself! An undecided attitude invites the attack of evil. God is not honoured in it, and He cannot honour one who is ashamed of Him. Joy in what is confessed goes with a true confession. So it follows here: "I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches." The mind, too, works on what the heart enjoys. It meditates on God's precepts, and pays attention to His paths.

God's testimonies become the riches of the soul. Owning heaven changes this a little. Yet still, for life here below, the way of God's testimonies is joy — moral joy — as riches would be to men. There is an inward life that busies itself with these things, as well as the activity of duty. There is much in God's testimonies to feed on, digest and learn. We meditate on them, and so we have God's mind — the Holy Spirit's intention in them. So the soul is fed in delight.

As the Lord Jesus Himself says, "I delight to do your will, O my God" (Ps. 40:8), so the believer may say, "I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies as much as in all riches" (v. 14). The believer cannot say that he does the will of God as Christ does. But he has the same attitude toward God's Word as Christ has.

We have already seen that the Word revives us. Yes, we may rejoice in the Word "as much as in all riches"; "as one who finds great spoil"; "for they are the rejoicing of my heart" (Ps. 119:14, 162, 111). But on the other hand it is the holy Word of God that speaks with authority to our hearts and consciences. Are we "trembling" at His Word, and trying to order our lives by it? Or do we try to adjust God's Word to our behaviour when we have already departed from it to some degree?

Several words are used, each meaning the law, but viewed from different standpoints. (1) Law (Torah) — direction, teaching. (2) Testimony (Eduth) — witness, testimony. (3) Precept (Piqqudim) — charges. (4) Statute (Choq) — decreed limit. (5) Commandment (Mitvah) — precept. (6) Word (Dabar) — word, matter, thing. (7) Judgment (Misphat) — judgment. (8) Way (Derek) — trodden path.

In this Psalm it is not the law of bondage, condemnation and death, but "the trodden path" of delight that the renewed man longs to take.

The mind, too, turns of itself to what the heart enjoys. So he meditates on God's precepts, and keeps His paths in view.

Reading fills our minds with truth. Meditation brings that truth home to us in its full force and application. The ox does not only feed in the pastures; it also lies down to chew the cud. In the same way, we need to turn things over in our minds. It is not what we eat that nourishes us, but what we digest. If we meditate on the things of God, and get right into them so that they control us, then our profit, our spiritual growth, becomes plain to everyone.

Meditation and study differ. Study is a work of the brain, meditation of the heart. Study puts the mind to work; meditation puts the affections to work. Study finds a truth out; meditation makes spiritual use of that truth. The one searches for the vein of gold, the other digs out the gold. Study is like a winter sun, with little warmth or influence. Meditation leaves the soul in a holy state. It melts the heart when it is frozen, and makes it drop into tears of love.

The devil is an enemy to meditation. He does not care how much people read and hear, nor how little they meditate. He knows that meditation settles the heart and brings it into a gracious state, and the devil is against that. Satan is content for you to be a hearing and praying Christian, so long as you are not a meditating Christian. He can stand your small shot, as long as you do not load this bullet.

The writer expresses a determination: "I will meditate …". How important it is to be determined about keeping up a daily Bible study! Most Christians are so disorganised that they cannot find time for Bible study — or that is their excuse. We can always find time for something we really want to do! The writer then continues: "… and have respect to Your ways". It is not enough to be interested and to meditate on the Word. We should follow that by putting what we read into practice. To have "respect" is to be willing to obey the Word of God.

So the heart is moved to take time to meditate on God's precepts, not just to agree that they are true. It is moved to contemplate God's ways, not just to observe them (v. 15). Such delight in God's statutes will make a person remember, not forget (v. 16).

CHUQQIM = Statute... It comes from the root to cut into, to hack, and so to engrave, to carve... It has the idea of that which is established, or definite; an appointed portion of food, or task; a definite limit... an appointed law, statute or ordinance. It is therefore a divine direction for my obedience, or to arrest disobedience. It stimulates obedience. It is the Law as a permanent record of God's will.

Happy the heart that finds its joy in the "statutes" of God. Remember that "statute" means a divine direction given for our obedience. What joy there is in obeying Him!

(vv. 13-16) The young man's way has been cleansed, so he can now bear testimony (v. 13). His heart is enjoying God's testimonies (v. 14). It meditates on them (v. 15), delights in them, and keeps them in mind (v. 16).

The section closes with a renewed experience of joy in His statutes. That joy is a sure safeguard against a bad memory.

An affectionate hearer will not be a forgetful hearer. Love helps the memory: Can a woman forget her child, or a bride her wedding clothes? No, they love them too well; if the truths of God were this precious to you, you would think of them day and night. Sometimes a Christian has a weak memory. He cannot recall the very words he hears well enough to repeat them. Even then he keeps their power and flavour in his spirit. Dissolve sugar in wine and you cannot see it, but you can taste it. Eat food and digest it, and you will not find it as you received it. Yet it cheers the man and strengthens him, and makes him more able to walk and work than before. By that you may know it is not lost. So you may taste in his spirit the truths the Christian heard, and see them in his life.

So the heart is moved to take time to meditate on God's precepts, not merely to acknowledge them as true; and to contemplate God's ways, not merely to observe them (v. 15). Such delight in God's statutes will cause one to remember, not to forget (v. 16).

How important that we do not forget what we have read: "I will not forget your word." In verse 11 we saw the need to hide it in our hearts. To store the mind with the Word of God is the way of victory... How can the Holy Spirit bring any word from the Bible back to our memory if we have not first stored it there? Today we say of the computer that it will give you nothing but what you have first stored in its memory yourself! ... So everything really depends on our appetite for the Word of God. The writer of this psalm gives us a good example: he says he delights in the Word of God at least 8 times — see verses 24, 35, 47, 70, 77, 92, 143 and 174.

Psalm 119 has 176 verses. No fewer than 174 of them mention the law of God under different names — law, commandments, precepts, testimonies, judgments, statutes, ordinances, word, way, path... Whatever name the law goes by, it is no longer condemnation and a threat of death. It is perfect delight and liberty.