Psalm 119:129-136

 Psalm 119:129-136

Pe

He pleads for protection from the ungodly while shedding floods of tears for them.

This section of the Psalm has some of the most profound thoughts in all of Scripture.  The poet begins with “Thy testimonies are wonderful.”  That phrase itself is profound.  The Word of God becomes more beautiful and profound the more it is contemplated.  It is marvelous, but there is a strangeness about it; it is pleasing at a glance but draws us into deeper contemplation that is more than casual observation.  It is compelling in its allure to us.  The more we consider the Word, the more we want to know and keep it.  For many, the stagnation of our discipleship is that we have too casually glanced at the Word and not allowed ourselves to be drawn into it.  The poet/disciple finds that his soul, a powerful descriptive word of the passion of the living being, observes the Word of God.  This “observation” is more than watching but carries the implication of “keeping” or “guarding”; it is as if the Word has become the apple or center of his eye or gaze.

This reaction is understandable when we consider that the Word is able to give light and simple understanding.  The more he has of the Word, the more he desires the Word.  It is working on him like an addiction except for his benefit. In each of the verses 132-134, the poet/disciple expresses his great desire and then confidently speaks of what he expects God to do.  This is no name and claim, personal, financial, or temporal blessings; rather, it is the desire to move more deeply into the will of God, to become what God wants him to be.  Each verse is a duality, with the first line expressing a plea and the second line showing what God can do.  This is an expression of positive prayers being answered.  Those who love God and want more of Him will receive more of God.  Those who desire holy living according to God’s Word will not be dominated by iniquity.  Those who wish to keep God’s Word will be freed from oppression by which man would attempt to prevent that.  A note here is wise.  Verse 134 is not necessarily a formula for political liberty. It may be that the disciple is redeemed for rescue not into political liberty, but into the liberty of not caring about public opinion or not caring about the things lost because of loyalty to God.  Verse 134 may have more to do with the work God does in us than the work He does around us.  Verse 135 refers back to the Aaronic blessing and the ideal of God’s smile on us.  Sometimes our presence or arrival brightens the face or eyes of a loved one.  We can tell by their expression that they love us and are delighted to see us and be with us.  The poet/disciple wants that experience, but it immediately turns to learning the statutes of God.  As God delights in us, we want to know Him and His ways better.  Apathy or disinterest in the Word of God is a symptom of a deeper relational problem we have with Him.  

This marvelous passage concludes with the poet/disciples in tears.  As he experiences the joy of God, his heart breaks for the ungodly.  He has a never-ending stream of tears because men do not keep the Word of God.  His sorrow is not that they live in ways offensive to him, but that they are missing the joy of their Creator.  How unlike so many disciples today who are more concerned about winning the culture war or getting “bad” people to behave in given ways.  The poet/disciples are deeply sorrowful that their opponents are missing the joy of God’s Word and the life He has for them.  

“Call me Lord, to care deeply about those who do not know Your word. AMEN”

Psalm 119:121-128

 Psalm 119:121-128 

Ajin 

He is oppressed, but God will not allow him to be crushed. 

Like many of Jesus’ parables, the poet in this section uses the metaphor of wealth to teach commitment to the God he serves.  However, there is the possibility that in this section of the poem he moves beyond metaphor to concrete.  In verse 122, the poet asked that God Himself be his “surety,” or, we might say, mortgage.  The promise of repayment for a life faithfully lived is to come from God because the disciple has sought God and God’s will faithfully.  The disciple remains in a persecuted state but doesn’t stop seeking a higher level and more faithful commitment to God.  This is no casual curiosity, but it is rather a passionate effort so focused that his eyes fail because he has been looking so long and so hard for the Lord.  But rather than complain, the disciple sees this life of learning the Lord’s statutes as an expression of God’s loving kindness or mercy.

Verse 126 is a pretty bold statement.  The disciple makes a declaration that it is time for the Lord to act.  He has moved from a request to a declaration.  In keeping with seeing God as his mortgage pledge, he is now asking God to “act.”  This is one of the words used in the account of God’s creation of the universe.  This is the word used when the creation account says, “God made…” It has the implication to make something out of what already exists or to fashion one thing from another.  (As opposed to creating out of nothing.) This new or remade reality, which the disciple is asking for, motivates him to love the Lord’s commands.  He loves the commands more than the apex of godless greed, gold, or fine gold.  Perhaps this is more than a mere metaphor.  It is entirely possible that for this poet/disciple this is a real choice.  He could have chosen the low road and become a wealthy individual, but he has elected the way of the Word of God.  He has enjoyed a different kind of wealth, a wealth of soul that allows him to understand in ever-growing ways the Lord’s will.  He says he “esteems right all Thy precepts.” This is not a claim of perfect knowledge of all that God has said.  This word is used to describe the way a man looks at a woman and is able to identify her as beautiful.  The poet/disciple here looks at the way of God’s precepts and laws and is able to recognize that they are indeed beautiful and right and fitting.  Because of seeing how wonderfully they fit, he is able to have a hate of the ways that would lead him away.  

“Lord, grant me the grace of seeing and loving Your Word. AMEN”

Psalm 119:113-120

Psalm 119:113-120 

Samech  

The poet abhors and despises those who turn from God.

There will be a necessary segregation in the life of the disciple.  The disciple rejects those who are not loyal to God and His word with a faithful heart.  The double-minded person is attempting to both adhere to the Word of God and live as if the Lord’s command did not apply to him.  This double-minded individual is attempting to find safety in being on both sides; in contrast, the disciple has made the Lord his protection, his hiding place, and his shield.  

The disciple banishes the evildoers.  Notice that the double-minded man is not, in fact, a neutral. The double-minded man is actively practicing evil; there is no neutral position, and trying to be neutral is in fact an act of evil.  The poet expels these kinds of people from his company.  The word “Depart” in verse 115 is more than a simple command to go away.  This word is passionate to the point that it can carry an aggressive or violent overtone.  It was on one occasion translated “beheaded.”  The absence of these double-minded evildoers is necessary for the disciple to faithfully observe the Lord’s commands.  If any disciple allows double-minded hypocrites and evildoers to be his influencers or guides, it will be impossible for him to remain faithful to God. Our best hope is to see to it that the Word and those who are submissive to it are the stimulus for our lives.

In verse 118, the poet tells us that the deceitfulness of the wicked is useless.  That word "useless" is more potent than we first might expect.  The point the poet is making is that all the councils, plans, and machinations of the wicked are ultimately self-destructive.  Not only will these plans fail, but they will ultimately turn out to be the ruin of their conspirators.  Understanding the contrast between these wicked plans and the trustworthiness of God’s word, the poet is moved to greater affection for the Lord’s way.  He is in fear, both in that he holds the Lord with a reverent awe and is terrified of the idea of being on the wrong side and finding himself condemned by the Lord’s righteous judgment.  

“Lord, forbid it that I would have those who influence me be double minded. AMEN”

Psalm 119:105-112

Psalm 119:105-112 

Nun

He has sworn faithfulness to the word in the midst of his persecution. 

This portion of the Psalm has what is undoubtedly the most familiar phrase of this Psalm: “Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”  Having spent our entire lives with almost unlimited access to electric lights and good roads, we cannot appreciate the importance of this phrase.  For the ancient who was traveling a difficult, unknown, and dangerous path in the dark, the presence of a torch was vital.  Pits, cliffs, caverns, and hairpin turns are just a few of the life-threatening obstacles a traveller might face.  It was only in the most desperate circumstances that one would travel in the dark.  The light was a matter of life and death.  The path of being a disciple is no easy walk; the way is narrow, difficult, and filled with danger.  The world, the flesh, and the powers of darkness are arrayed against us and would gladly ruin us.  We can’t see the dangers that are set in ambush without the brilliant light of God’s law. 

In this section the poet says, “I am exceedingly afflicted,” and later, “My life is continually in my hand.” The disciple who is not prepared to suffer and even die for the cause is not fit to be a follower and will eventually slip away.  The disciple who would stay loyal must have more than stubborn determination.  Stubborn determination will only take you so far. Added to this virtuous resolve must be the delight and joy of the Word of God.  The poet will not “forget Thy law” and has “not gone astray from Thy precepts” because he has, in addition to great determination, a delight in the Lord’s testimonies.  He says in verse 111, “For they are the joy of my heart.”  It is when the holy will of God transitions from rules, laws, and obligations to be metamorphosed into the love, delight, and joy of our hearts that we will find the strength to remain faithful even under extremely difficult circumstances. That love will power our obedience, “Forever, even to the end.” 

“Lord, help me to grow in my love for your word. AMEN”

Psalm 119:97-104

Psalm 119:97-104 

Mem 

The Word of God provides him wisdom greater than the difficult circumstances. 

In this passage the poet declares that the Word of God has given Him wisdom, insight, and understanding. (Verses 98-100)  Each of these words carries an important and distinct nuance.  The first, wisdom found in verse 98, refers to the ability to make correct moral judgments, to know if something is right or wrong.  The second translated “insight” (NASB) carries the idea of being prudent or having the capacity to perceive things.  It is the word that described what Eve was wanting when she took the forbidden fruit.  The third attribute is “understanding”, and it has the implication of having a broad base of knowledge from which to make decisions.  While all these words are similar, they each carry a unique and specific area of insight.  

The poet is given, by the superior wisdom provided by the Word of God, an advantage over three groups of people: his enemies, his teachers, and his elders.  The poet faced active opposition from an enemy that was open and aggressive.  The enemy here is overt and active in the attacks on the poet.  Some of the teachers in the poet’s life had left the truth and had begun to stray away from the Word of God. Teachers that are misguided end up misleading their pupils. By faithful study of the word, the poet is secured from the danger of being misled.  The word translated “aged” (NASB) is a rare word in the O.T., being used only twice.  It would more literally be translated “the ancients.”  The wisdom of all the great thinkers of history is inferior to the broad base of knowledge provided by the Word of God.

The practical help of the Word of God when facing the active hostility of the enemy, the misguiding influence of the teachers, and the too-general-to-be-helpful guidance of the ancients helps the poet to be restrained from the evil way and not turn aside from the ordinances of God.  The Word of God is self-reinforcing in the right path for our lives.  It shows us the right way, and when we follow the right path, it shows us how it has benefited us and what next steps ought to be taken.  We might call it an upward spiral of wisdom, advantage, and blessing.  And as a result, the poet describes the word as sweeter than honey.  In ancient Israel they did not have the intense or commonly used sweeteners of today.  The intensity of honey was the most powerful sweetness that most people ever experienced.  That was a taste they would never forget.  The Word of God is even more memorable, and as a result the poet gains wisdom, insight, and understanding, which results in a hatred for every false option presented to him.

“Lord, help me to crave Your word. AMEN”

Psalm 119:89-96

Psalm 119:89-96 

Lamed

Without the eternal, sure, mighty Word of God, the poet would despair.

The poet is able to endure the hardships because of his confidence in the Law of God.  In this section, he takes a step back and looks at the big picture for just a moment.  He looks at the universe and, in seeing the physical sciences, develops what was once called natural law.  How is it that the whole of creation exists and continues to exist so reliably?  It does so at the Word or Law of God.  Our understanding of the universe is very different from that of the poet, but the principle remains the same.  If God can create and make such a massive and complex universe by His word, then His word is more than able to guide us in the difficulties of life.  In these first three verses of this passage, the poet is finding strength in the evidence of God’s power, and then that power revives or renews him.  In fact, had he not been able to get a little better picture, he might have collapsed under the attacks of his enemies.  His enemies can no more destroy the ordinances of God than they can pull the universe apart.  

Since it is God’s ordinances that make and rule the universe and form the foundation for the poet’s life, the poet, as long as he is shaping his life by God’s ordinances, is as solid and secure as the universe itself.  The poet offers a couple of contrasts and then a marvelous conclusion.  The contrast is the dual circumstances of life: he belongs to God because of his commitment to God’s precepts and testimonies, but at the same time the wicked are trying to destroy him.  Then comes a marvelous statement: “I have seen a limit to all perfection; Your commandment is exceedingly broad.”  The poet understands that the expanse of creation has a limit; that there is a limit to the physical universe.  We understand that limit is further away than the poet might have expected.  The creation will of necessity be less than the Creator.  But the character, power, beauty, and holiness of God expressed in His laws, word, or command is without any such limits. 

“Lord, as I view Your great power in the universe encourage me to be strong in You. AMEN.

Psalm 119:81-88

Psalm 119:81-88 

Kaph 

In his trouble the disciple sighs, "How long!" 

With eternity in his heart, the disciple is nevertheless faced with the struggles of the temporal.  The first four verses of this section all begin with a question or a statement about the duration of his suffering.  We must never lose sight of the fact that God not only has control of the nature of our hardships but also their depth and duration. As poet is asking about that duration; he feels that he is nearing the end of his strength.

In the first four verses there is a line that is out of our experience. In verse 83, he writes, “…I have become like a wineskin in the smoke…” The ancient practice of using leather skins as bottles is what is suggested here.  When out of use, the skin would be hung from some high point in the tent or house.  With no chimney, the rising smoke would blacken, dry, and shrivel the bottle. The wineskin that hung in the smoke was out of use and irrelevant, and if left long enough, it would begin to crack and become useless.  Those who persecute the poet would like to set him aside to become an irrelevance to society and community.  The very existence of a disciple, then and now, is apt to be a bother to those who oppose God’s law.  He upsets their conscience and in one way or another makes them uncomfortable.  They would rather the disciple be set aside, forgotten, and made useless. 

It is worth noting a connection in verse 86 that at first may seem to be a departure or a disconnect but is consistent throughout history.  How does the faithfulness of God’s commands have anything to do with a persecution with a lie?  Because God’s commands are faithful, consistent, forever trustworthy, and true, there is no doubt that those opposed to them will always resort to falsehood.  The faithfulness of God’s Word and the faithful adherence of the disciple to that Word will always cause those who are opposed to God’s Word to oppose the faithful disciple.  Sometimes those who follow God act surprised that they experience oppression.  Rather than reacting with surprise, we ought to follow the pattern of the poet.  

He responds by pleading for help, revival or renewal, and mercy.  He does this for the reason that he can keep the testimony of Thy mouth.  It is one thing to suffer; it is another thing to ask for strength to endure so that we can, at some point in the future, be comforted by the Word.  But here the poet asked for help so that he can be faithful to God’s Word.  It is not self-interest that motivates him, but rather, the love for the Word of God.

“Lord, help me to hang on. AMEN”