1The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
2Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
3There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
4Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world.
In them He has placed a tent for the sun,
5Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;
It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6Its rising is from one end of the heavens,
And its circuit to the other end of them;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.7The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
8The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
10They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great reward.
12Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.
13Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;
Let them not rule over me;
Then I will be blameless,
And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.
14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm 19)
The first 6 verses of Psalm 19 speak of general revelation. This is what every person to ever live has seen. God’s creation speaks to the existence of a creator God and tells a little about this God, but it doesn’t tell people everything about God. It doesn’t tell what God expects of His creation.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (Romans 1:18-20) {emphasis mine}
Through His creation, God has revealed enough about Himself that we are all guilty of not believing in Him and not submitting to Him as we should. The good news is that He has revealed Himself to us more fully and we can know, trust, and obey Him, although no one has ever done so perfectly, except Jesus Himself.
In verses 7-14, His special revelation is praised and how it is useful to us is elucidated.
The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. (Psalm 19:7-9) {emphasis mine}
Multiple words are used to describe the truth, God’s word, and the Bible: law, testimony, precepts, commandments, fear, & judgments. God’s law, testimony, precepts, and commandments are explicitly spelled out in His written word, the Bible. The fear of the Lord is our right response to that written word and the judgments of the Lord are God’s righteous reaction to our response to His written word.
You’ll notice that His word is described as perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, and true. Everything about God’s word is exactly as it should be. We should long for God’s word. Psalm 42:1 describes how we should feel about God’s word, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.” Instead of wanting to do anything other than read God’s word, we should long to be filled with God’s word. We should seek to live according to God’s word. We should crave the word of God and His righteousness as strongly as we crave food. “Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.” (John 4:34)
Most of us, most of our lives don’t seek God or His word as we should, but some of us do and sometimes we do. David doesn’t just long for God’s word, he takes it a step further. The first 5 references to God’s word are praised with a word and a praise, but his praise is much deeper for “The judgments of the Lord”.
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.
They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great reward. (Psalm 19:9b-11)
How often do we praise God for His judgments? We may think they are “true,” at least with our heads, if not with our hearts, but do we really think “they are righteous altogether” or do we question God’s commands or actions? How many think God’s judgment is “more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold” or “Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb?” Most of us will do just about anything to avoid the judgment of God. We will hide from God to avoid His judgment.
When I was a relatively new Christian, I attended a large church in my home town when I wasn’t away at college. The leader of our college and career small group had what I would consider the greatest gift of exhortation that I have ever experience. Whenever exhortation is mentioned, I think of him. When it came to discussions of right and wrong and how we should live our lives, he never boldly gave a command. He would ask a question. He gently led us to the truth. I knew he was leading me to the truth, but it was very uncomfortable. In the beginning, I’d try to be as hidden as possible. I didn’t want to be asked a question because I knew I was not going to like the answer that I knew was right. I avoided him like the plague. Eventually, I realized how much being around him grew me in faith and righteousness. I learned to love and seek out those piercing questions that were so uncomfortable because they helped me grow.
In the same way, we should all seek out God’s judgment (or at least discipline).
You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;
For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. (Hebrews 12:4-11) {emphasis mine}
We should diligently read God’s word. We should faithfully submit to God’s discipline. We should humbly submit to God’s will.
Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.
Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;
Let them not rule over me;
Then I will be blameless,
And I shall be acquitted of great transgression. (Psalm 19:12-13)
Knowing God’s character and His will can aid us in submitting to Him so we do not transgress against Him. Of course, as Christians, we have the benefit of the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to help us to know, understand, submit, and obey. David didn’t have that benefit, but He knew that submitting to God was in his best interest and He sought God and God called him “a man after my own heart.” That is my heart’s cry. I want to be called “a woman after God’s own heart.”
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)
Through learning God’s word, submitting to His will, being guided by His Spirit, and being covered by His Son my prayer is “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.”
I hope this is your prayer as well.
Trust Jesus.
your sister in Christ,
Christy
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