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What do you delight in? I delight in spending time with my husband. I delight in tacos and moose. I delight in the sound, smell, and sight of waves lapping the sand. There are many things we may delight in. We often attach our happiness and hope to what we delight in. The psalmist shares his delight – something that eclipses all other delights.
Lamedh
89 Forever, O Lord, your word
is firmly fixed in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
you have established the earth, and it stands fast.
91 By your appointment they stand this day,
for all things are your servants.
92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have given me life.
94 I am yours; save me,
for I have sought your precepts.
95 The wicked lie in wait to destroy me,
but I consider your testimonies.
96 I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment is exceedingly broad. [1]
Psalm 119:89-96
“Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens” (vs 89). The psalmist declares that God’s Word is eternal and unchanging. It is forever and firmly fixed.
Charles Spurgeon wrote, “After tossing about on a sea of trouble the Psalmist here leaps to shore and stands upon a rock. Jehovah’s word is not fickle nor uncertain; it is settled, determined, fixed, sure, immovable. Man’s teachings change so often that there is never time for them to be settled; but the Lord’s word is from of old the same, and will remain unchanged eternally.”[2]
Jesus taught: “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matthew 5:18). An iota refers to the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. A dot refers to a tittle which “is a small mark in a Hebrew letter, somewhat like the crossing of a ‘t’ or the tail on a ‘y.’”[3] Not the tiniest bit of God’s Law will pass away until all is accomplished.
Paul instructed Timothy: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). The Holy Spirit inspired men to write God’s Word, but the words are the very words of God being breathed out.
“Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast. By your appointment they stand this day, for all things are your servants” (vs 90-91). God in His faithfulness has preserved His Word through past, present, and future generations. God created the earth and all things by His word. He sustains all things by His word. We tend to think of the earth as permanent, but creation cannot compare to the enduring Word of God. God’s Word is outside of creation.
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8).
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35).
God’s Word endures eternally, but we also see that “The Psalmist looked at the created order and understood that all creation ultimately serves God and His purpose. The earth, which He established and which abides, obeys His word.”[4]
“If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life” (vs 92-93). The psalmist views God’s Word as a delight not a burden. He has known God more fully through His Word. The psalmist hasn’t simply gained knowledge, but he has enjoyed fellowship with God.
The psalmist delights in God’s Word. He asserts if God’s Word had not been his delight, he would have perished in his affliction. God’s Word is his hope, comfort, encouragement, strength, and life because it is God’s very words breathed out. Delighting in God’s Word brings us to our loving Father who cares for, loves, and provides for us. He is our refuge, strength, and guide. As we saw above, God teaches, reproves, corrects, and trains us through His Word. God’s Word is life.
Forget in the psalms generally implies disobedience. Whether the psalmist is pledging to never disobey God’s Word or just to remember God’s Word, reading, meditating on, memorizing, and talking about God’s Word will help us never forget, and help us to obey especially as we view God’s Word as a delight.
“I am yours; save me, for I have sought your precepts. The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, but I consider your testimonies” (vs 94-95). There are many “God is…” and “God does…” truths in these two verses. We belong to God. He alone can save us. The psalmist isn’t looking to his own strength, but to God’s. God hears and answers our cries. God is merciful towards us. The wicked are nothing before God. God and His Word are our refuge. The psalmist’s foundation is God’s Word. He knows and has confidence in God because he knows God’s Word.
“I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad” (vs 96). God’s Word is exceedingly greater and will always be greater than anything in creation. God’s Word was before creation, it sustains creation, and it endures eternally when creation passes away. Creation is limited and imperfect. God’s Word is not bound. It is perfect. “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul” (Psalm 19:7a).
I confess I do not always delight in God’s Word. There are parts that are difficult to read like long genealogies or the numerous laws in Leviticus, but guess what? When Psalm 119 refers to God’s law (plus seven other related words), he likely had only Genesis through Judges or Ruth available. Our church has been going through the book of Judges on Wednesday nights. It’s dark and full of selfish, sinful people doing what is right in their own eyes. Yet, the psalmist wrote that if God’s law had not been his delight, he would have perished in his affliction.
We can delight in all books and chapters of God’s Word because God is revealed in every part. That long list of hard-to-pronounce names reveals God’s faithfulness and attention to detail and order (as well as things I’m not aware of). The slew of laws that seem strange to us reveal God’s holiness and perfect wisdom and care. Like the psalmist, we can grow in our knowledge of and fellowship with God through the entirety of His Word.
Jesus delighted in God’s Word. He read it, learned it, memorized it, shared it, obeyed it. When we avoid God’s Word or think of it as a burden, by God’s mercy and grace, we still have Jesus perfect record of delighting in God’s Word. Instead of skipping over the hard sections or avoiding God’s Word altogether, we should ask God to help us delight in His Word.
Reflection
1. What do you delight in? How does it compare to God’s Word when you think about finding your happiness or placing your hope in it?
2. Give specific examples of how God’s Word has been your hope, comfort, encouragement, strength, and life.
3. How has God’s Word deepened your fellowship with Him?
4. How has God’s Word taught, reproved, corrected, and trained you? Be specific.
5. What is one step you can take to grow in your delight of God’s Word?
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ps 119:89–96.
[2] David Guzik, Psalms, David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible (Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik, 2013), Ps 119:89–91.
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