Psalm 119

Reading or singing through the book of Psalms helps us accomplish many faith tasks. The Psalms provide words for thankfulness to God. The Psalms give voice to our laments (and help us to sing the blues.) The Psalms help us to praise our God and King. And the Psalms are there for instruction in faith. Biblical scholars call these didactic psalms. It does us well to learn their lessons.

The longest and most complex poem in the book of Psalms is Psalm 119. It contains one eight-verse stanza for each letter in the Hebrew alphabet. That means that the basic lesson of the psalm is repeated over 20 times.

Listen to the lesson in this stanza:

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
¹⁰⁶ I have sworn an oath and confirmed it,
to observe your righteous ordinances.
¹⁰⁷ I am severely afflicted;
give me life, O Lord, according to your word.
¹⁰⁸ Accept my offerings of praise, O Lord,
and teach me your ordinances.
¹⁰⁹ I hold my life in my hand continually,
but I do not forget your law.
¹¹⁰ The wicked have laid a snare for me,
but I do not stray from your precepts.
¹¹¹ Your decrees are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.
¹¹² I incline my heart to perform your statutes
forever, to the end

God’s word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. We should know and follow God’s word. Reading the Psalms helps us to do just that.

Prayer

Thank You, God, for leaving a roadmap for me in the Bible. Help me to read, know, and follow Your word each and every day, as I walk the path of discipleship, following my Lord and Savior, Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.