A Daily Study of Psalm 119 (NKJV)
Meditations and Prayers Relating to the Law of God
“Psalms 119 is an acrostic to end all acrostics! There are twenty-two strophes (paragraphs), corresponding to the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the strophes has eight lines (verses), and every one of the lines in each strophe begins with the appropriate Hebrew letter marking that stanza.” – Coffman(1)
Every paragraph contains these words pertaining to God’s Laws:
Law of the Lord or Your Word– Body of prophetic, legal and moral directives (Mosaic Law)
Testimonies – Witness (God never asks us to believe anything that He does not give us evidence (testimony) for.)
Precepts – Command or order respecting moral conduct
Statutes – Something prescribed, prescribed task
Commandments – order by authorities
Judgements – Act of deciding a case, ordinance
PSALM 119:49-56 Z Zayin (hebrew letter)
“Remember the word to Your servant, upon which You have caused me to hope. This is my comfort in my affliction, for Your word has given me life. The proud have me in great derision, yet I do not turn aside from Your law. I remembered Your judgments of old, O LORD, and have comforted myself. Indignation has taken hold of me because of the wicked, who forsake Your law. Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage. I remember Your name in the night, O LORD, And I keep Your law. This has become mine, because I kept Your precepts.
Hi-Lite the “Law” words (listed above).
What do ungodly people do? Underline
- :51 “proud have me in great derision”- We should not be surprised when ungodly people mock the righteous
- :53 “the wicked, who forsake Your law”
How does the Psalmist feel about the wicked? Put brackets around the phrase
- :53 <”Indignation has taken hold of me because of the wicked”> -Loving the wicked is hard because we feel indignation for the sinful behavior and the consequences of it. Like God, we should love the sinner but hate the sin.
What does the Psalmist remember? Hi-lite in another color
- :49 “Remember the Word”
- :52 “I Remember Your judgments”
- :55 “I remember Your name” – What does remembering God’s name involve? I think It has to do with worshipping Him. What does Jesus say about our Father’s name? “Hallowed be Your name” – Matthew 6:9. Being so full of awe and respect for our Heavenly Father that we cannot help but worship Him.
What does God’s word do for us? Hi-lite in another color
- :49 “caused me to hope” – Unlike the hopeless philosophies of the world, God and His Word is hopeful, FULL of hope, and gives one who trusts and depends on God a hopeful outlook on everything.
- :50 “this is my comfort”, “given me life” – (Cross reference: 2 Cor. 1:3 “the God of all comfort”)
- :52 “comforted myself”
- :54 “have been my songs”