Read Psalm 119 at Bible Gateway.
psalm 119 introduction 2014 sep 29
psalm 119:1-16 chiastic structure 2014 sep 30
psalm 119:17-32 chiastic structure 2014 oct 01
psalm 119:33-48 chiastic structure 2014 oct 02
psalm 119:49-64 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 03
psalm 119:65-72 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 20
psalm 119:73-80 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 21
psalm 119:81-88 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 22
psalm 119:89-96 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 23
psalm 119:97-104 reverse parallelism 2014 oct 24
psalm 119:105-112 chiastic structure 2014 oct 27
1a) Psa 119:113-115a, You are my hiding place / I love Your law:
1a) Psa 119:113a, I hate the double-minded;
1b) Psa 119:113b, But I love Your law;
central axis) Psa 119:114a, You are my hiding place and my shield;
2b) Psa 119:114b, I hope in Your word;
2a) Psa 119:115a, Depart from me, you evildoers;
1b) Psa 119:115b, For I will keep the commandments of my God!
1c) Psa 119:116a, Uphold me according to Your word, that I may live;
central axis) Psa 119:116b, And do not let me be ashamed of my hope;
2c) Psa 119:117a, Hold me up, and I shall be safe;
2b) Psa 119:117b, And I shall observe Your statutes continually;
2a) Psa 119:118-120, You put away the wicked / They stray from Your statutes:
1a) Psa 119:118a, You reject all those who stray from Your statutes;
1b) Psa 119:118b, For their deceit is falsehood;
central axis) Psa 119:119a, You put away all the wicked of the earth like dross;
2b) Psa 119:119b, Therefore I love Your testimonies;
2a) Psa 119:120, My flesh trembles for fear of You, And I am afraid of Your judgments. {p}
David says something interesting: “My flesh trembles for fear of You, and I am afraid of Your judgments.” This is real fear, not just respect or reverence as some have said it means. The apostle said,
For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Heb 10:26-31
It is wisdom to love the Lord with all our hearts, minds, and strength, and at the same time, to tremble in fear of His judgments. Which one of us, when as children we were tempted to do something wrong, but for the thought of our fathers’ discovering it and his displeasure, and the punishment which would come? We loved him and he loved us, but fear of punishment caused us to make a wise choice and resist the temptation to do wrong.
David’s fear was of straying from the Lord’s statutes. To stray is not to reject outright. It starts by going along the lighted path of God’s ways as we saw yesterday. But then something distracts the attention, and we veer a little this way or that, always coming back to the path, or at least keeping it in sight. But then we wake up one day and find ourselves on a road we do not want to be on, with the rest of the wicked. Thus every feast day, every memorial in time, comes with its own admonition to pay heed and remember what must be remembered, to take stock and ensure the fire on the altar of our hearts has not gone out, but is burning continually! Then He becomes our hiding place and shield in the time of judgment! ♥
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