Reflections on Psalm 119: 33-40

I've treasured psalm 119 since the first time I read it, even without being fully able to articulate what, exactly, struck me about it. There is so much therein to be meditated upon and savored. Yet I think I understand the essence that has captivated me: the psalmist's humble and God-entranced (to borrow Piper's synonym for "worship-ful") heart.

The author of psalm 119 knows God's word, knows His righteousness, and knows his own shortcomings and fallibility despite his sincerely passionate love of that word and longing to be obedient to it.

He understands God's word as a gift, as something to be cherished and learned deeply, and lived fully and completely.

He knows that he loves the LORD, that he delights in the law, but he also knows his flesh and the battle that rages. He knows his weakness and that the only way he can find that delight is by the LORD reviving him, leading him, and showing him His goodness over and over.

He understands his need for God in order to obey, to grow, to live, to delight. He has RELIANCE upon the LORD .



Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes, And I shall keep it to the end. (It is evident that the psalmist knows the word - there are pieces of scripture throughout the psalm, yet again and again he pleads for God to teach him them. He understands his need of God's constant leading and deepening.)

Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart. (a reliance upon God. Such longing and desire for obedience - just give me understanding, LORD, and I shall keep Your law..but I need You to give me understanding!)

Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. (Even though he delights in walking in truth before God, he can only do that by the grace of God making him do so! We taste that the Lord is good and gracious because He makes us taste Him as so! To many He tastes bitter and offensive! But even when His words are honey to our lips, we need Him to spoon feed us Himself or we will not eat, because we need Him to sustain us.)

Incline my heart to Your testimonies, And not to covetousness. (Even when we know and love our LORD beyond explanation, we forsake Him easily. We need Him to preserve us in His grace and truth.)

Turn away my eyes from worthless things, And revive me in Your way. (In light of Christ, all other things are worthless - sinking sand. Revival is a gift from God, a convicting to remember your first love, repent of where you are at, and return to your first love. Other versions replace "revive" with "preserve." Our preservation requires a revival because we are continually fluctuating and only God's direct intervention sustains us in His grace.)

Establish Your word to Your servant, Who is devoted to fearing You. (I am devoted to fearing You, LORD, but the only way I can be devoted is if you establish Your word to me. There is such humility in the psalmist. Such submission to, and dependence upon, the LORD.)

Turn away my reproach which I dread, For Your judgments are good. (throughout the psalm, the author contrasts believers and unbelievers, and how each respond to him: the believers with brotherly love and appreciation - like-minded-ness; the unbelievers with hatred and persecution. The psalmist trusts God's justice, and understands the benefit of affliction for the glory of God.)

Behold, I long for Your precepts; Revive me in Your righteousness. (again, I am awed and inspired by the psalmist's humility and passion for God's word and glory. Here is a man wholly unsatisfied with mediocrity, luke-warm-ness, and stagnancy. He wants continual deepening and growth in knowing and loving his LORD. May we all have such longing to love and glorify Christ, our LORD and Savior; more today than we did yesterday, and more tomorrow than we do today. Knowing our wickedness and failure is not reason to lament, but reason to rejoice! God's grace is sufficient and in His mercy we are clothed in His righteousness!)