WAW
November 16, 2011
Oak Park Baptist Church – Wednesday Bible Study Series
Psalm 119:41-88 (ESV) – 6 of 22
41Let Your steadfast love come to me O Lord, Your salvation according to Your promise;
Here we find the psalmist seeking God in an intimate manner. He is crying out for the love of God… that steadfast, faithful, kind and good love of God to wash over him… quite literally he is saying for the love of God to ‘enter into him’ OR to ‘go into him’ as a river flowing into the ocean… a never ending supply of love flowing from God INTO his life, his heart, his attitudes…
This also reveals the psalmists confession of his LACK of love for those around him, he lacks that love so he cries out to God to provide it for him, so that he can “THRU HIS LAW” love those around him…
When the psalmist cries out here to “O Lord”– it is the Hebrew word - Yehovah (Jehovah) which can also be translated as Adonai… both mean “the existing One” the one who has always been and will be forever. This was a proper name used for God by the Hebrews.
This brings in focus the picture that is painted of Jesus in the book of Revelation… as He is presented there as the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the One who was, and is and is to come… This passage allows us to see a clearer picture of Jesus as God!
Here in the context of this verse the psalmist makes a statement about God’s salvation (for him) and when he says this he is speaking of his own spiritual deliverance in light of God’s promise through His law… The psalmist realizes that it is thru His word… thru the commandment of God that he can be saved, and so he is claiming the promise of salvation from God’s word!
Salvation – Hebrew word teshu’-‘ahh which can represent salvation by God through human means OR it can represent salvation from a strictly spiritual perspective
42then I shall have an answer for him who taunts me, for I trust in Your word.
This verse leads us to remember the man (JOB) who suffered greatly and was taunted by his friends and family that there was sin in his life and he needed to repent… do you remember that story?
Job’s wife tells him to simply curse God and wait for ultimate death, and her implication was that there was NO hope for Job because there must be a tremendously egregious sin that God was punishing him severely for…
However, Job trusted greatly in the Word of God and the promise of salvation God has given him in His law… Job hung to that promise and eventually we find Job being delivered in the physical realm, but the implication here in this passage is also spiritual as well…as the psalmist desires to be able to give an answer those who doubt his faith in God and trust in the Word or Law of God… Job had an answer and it was that he trusted in God, the psalmist is seeking an answer and he seeks it from the Word of God…
The Hebrew word here for answer is hahn-ahh which means to have a specific answer for the question being asked… it means that one is to be prepared to witness to or for a specific thing when asked or challenged about it… the psalmist was obviously facing critics in his allegiance to God’s law, and he was seeking confirmation from God in the form of answers to his critics…
Here the psalmist reveals that those who oppose him not only disagree with him but they also Taunt (Hebrew Word, kah-raff’) which means to defy someone or something… to taunt it or them mercilessly. The implication from the psalmist here is that he is being ridiculed and belittled for his faith and trust in the law of God.
But his faith in God is unwavering and he expresses that with his mention of Trust here in this verse. The word here is the Hebrew word: bawh-tak’ which means to have full confidence in a thing, to be secure about a thing, to be bold in proclaiming a thing because of your faith in that thing… in other words the psalmist FULLY TRUSTED God’s plan and law to lead him and guide him in life.
Here the psalmist is proclaiming that this ‘law’ he trusted so much was not a law of man, but was a Word from God. The Hebrew word he uses here is dawh-bahh which means in this saying is in context with God’s literal words or utterances… in full agreement with the law of God!
43And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for my hope is in Your rules.
The psalmist was faithful TO the law of God and trusted completely in it… so much so that he did not want to lose it… here he literally asks God to not rip it from his mouth… please don’t take it from me because your Law brings hope into my life!
The Hebrew word here for Take – is naht-sal’ which means to be torn out or torn away from something. So what we can see here is that Here the psalmist is NOT wanting that to happen… His plea to God is that the ‘words of truth’ NOT be torn away from him…
Now when he says ‘words of truth’ what does he mean, well the
Hebrew word for ‘words’ here is dah-bah’ which implies the actual words of a person, their speech or sayings… in this case it is the actual words of truth which implies the Words, speech or sayings of God himself…
The actual words of God are Truth is what the psalmist is implying in this verse… the Hebrew word for truth is the word em-meth’ which means a firmness or faithfulness, a sureness or reliability, a stability… something upon which one can rely and have faith in because of its surety… such as the divine instruction of God’s law. The psalmist is confident in the truth of God’s words… expressed exclusively through God’s Law…
mouth – Hebrew word = peh’ …Here in this application… in this context… this is referring from where the word of truth is emanating… The psalmist wants the word of truth coming OUT of his mouth in teaching others, and he does NOT want that word of truth taken from him or from his mouth!
Here in this context it implies a trust in God’s law to deliver on His promises and the psalmist is remaining faithful to those promises because of his ‘hope’ in God providing deliverance IN them…
Hebrew word here is yah-haal’ and is translated here as hope – actually means hope, but can also be translated as ‘waiting’ or ‘tarrying’ for a thing… Here we see the psalmist admitting that he is fully willing to ‘wait’ on God’s promises…
This word rules –is one of those words used to describe the Law of God… it is the Hebrew word – mish-paht which can also be translated as ordinances, customs or judgments… here it is used as a descriptive term for the ordinances God has laid forth… they are ‘rules’ set forth for holy living and must be adhered to… a template for life…
44I will keep Your law continually, forever and ever,
The implication here is that the psalmist is seeking to get across the point that he takes the Law of God seriously… the Hebrew word = shah-mahr’ which means to guard or keep watch over and to observe a thing. We can see that the psalmist is so serious that he is willing to put his own reputation on the line for God’s law. He is promising to guard the Law and see that it is observed, by himself, his family and all who will hear him…
Hebrew Word = tor-ahh’ which means Law – also means instruction. It can mean instruction from God or from man but the context of this psalm the implication from the psalmist is that this instruction will come from God to him…to guide and direct his steps…
Hebrew word is tahh-meed translated by the ESV as continually actually means a continuity within, or the perpetuity of a matter, to stretch a thing out… and here the psalmist is speaking of his desire to be consistent in his taking of God’s law into his heart, and to KEEP on being consistent in his service to God in all matters and areas of life…
Forever is the Hebrew word oh-lahm and it represents an extremely long period of time, sometimes it is translated as ‘everlasting’ and carries with it the meaning of a time without end… ever is the Hebrew word ad which means in perpetuity, or without end… put together there is an implication of a never ending time or ETERNITY we have to look forward to…
45and I shall walk in a wide place, for I have sought Your precepts.
Walk – literally translates to way of life, how one conducts his or her life
Wide Place – Hebrew word here is rah-hahv’ which can also be translated as liberty or broad.
The implication here is that the psalmist has great liberty because of his pursuit of God’s law… the term broad or wide place could represent a well marked path on which one has a sure footing… the sureness of the law makes the pathway seem wider, so there is a liberty to the one who pursues this path…
Sought – Hebrew word = to seek or inquire about… in this context it is seeking after the Law of God or studying intently the law of God to seek out its meaning and application to his life!
Precepts – Hebrew word – peek-hooood which can also be translated as statute or commandment, once again placing importance and priority on the commandments of God in the life of the psalmist, and ultimately in the lives of ALL believers!
46I will also speak of your testimonies before kings and shall not be put to shame,
Speak – Hebrew word dawh-bahr which in this context means to declare… The psalmist was NOT shy and was willing to speak boldly about the law of God… in fact he is willing to be used by God to speak
Hebrew word = ay-dah’ is the word translated as Testimonies which means witness or testimony and this particular term is always used in conjunction with the Law of God. The testimonies of the faithful one…
Before Kings – this phrase means to present before royalty or to be in the sight of in the knowledge of royalty or those lifted up into a position of authority. To be known before them… In other words, the message will be known to those in authority and they will know it is from you…
The psalmist is saying that it does not matter to whom he speaks, regardless of their social standing he will proclaim God’s word… God’s testimony and they will know he is speaking the word of God.
Hebrew word = boo’sh which means ashamed – but can also mean to be confused, confounded, OR to become dry or disappointed. Here the psalmist is saying that in God’s Word he will never be left confused or confounded by God’s law.
That he will never be disappointed or down because of God’s word, but he will continue to be fed and his thirst for truth will continue to be met by God, at all times… another aspect would be that in all situations he knows that God will never put him in a place of shame because of His word. He may be persecuted because of God’s law, but not ashamed.
47for I find my delight in Your commandments, which I love.
Here we find that God’s word brings delight to the heart of the psalmist. And that he revels in the Commandments – which in Hebrews means– Mits-vah which is a command and can relate to a human command but in this context relates to the commands of God as relating to God’s Law…
Which – Hebrew word = ash-‘er meaning in which or because… here in this context it speaks of the great love the psalmist has for the commands of God… it could be translated as ‘because I love your commands so…I am going to take great delight in them…’
Love – Hebrew word = aw-hav’ is a general term for love in the Hebrew language… it speaks to the love one person has for another or the love humanity has for God… can even relate to the love God has for humanity. but it does reveal a great affection for the object of the emotion… which in this case is the Law of God… the psalmist is revealing his affection for God’s laws in his life…
48I will lift up my hands toward Your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on Your statutes.
This Hebrew phrase I will lift up my hands represents a total submission to the commands of God. It is a picture of true worship… and complete and total surrender to God’s law in his life.
Meditate – Hebrew word = see-ahck which means to ponder upon, to consider, to study, to contemplate over, to think deeply about… in the context of this passage and of this entire chapter we see that this is the psalmist revealing how important the law of God is to him… so important that he is going to meditate on it in great depth! When we meditate on something in our lives it reveals its importance within our lives…
Here in this stanza of this psalm, the psalmist gives the reader many themes to dwell upon. He reveals in several way how much he LOVES the law of God and how much gladness it brings to his heart… Let’s review what he has said about the Law of God…
It reveals love of God flowing OUT of the Law INTO our hearts…
The salvation of God revealed through and brought forth in obedience to His law…
The rebuttal to skeptics and the relief from taunts because of the surety of God’s law…
The permanence of God’s law when implanted into our lives… and grounded in our hearts…
The psalmist’s earnest desire to be continually obedient to God’s law, reveals a heart of submission and a trust in the Law of God to guide and direct his steps
The psalmist’s declaration of his liberty within the law, indicating His firm standing when in obedience to the Law
Finally the final 3 verses here reveal the psalmist realization that he can speak the law of God to anyone… regardless of their position, the Law of God is for ALL people, and the psalmist paints the picture of complete surrender on his part toward the Law of God because it is in what He delights… and loves
How ‘in love’ with God’s word are you? How much affection to you show God’s love in your life? It will show in how much priority it has in your life… if you are reading it daily and putting it into practice in your life… then it reveals your love for it… but if you are casually using it for your own advantage and toss it aside when it is not convenient… this also reveals your lack of love for the word or law of God. Pray/Dismiss…
