JUNE 24 PSALM 119

June 24 BIBLE BLOG
Psalm 119, as we continue BOOK FIVE, is the granddaddy of all psalms. It is 176 verses long. To put this in perspective; all eight of the psalms we looked at yesterday totaled just 105 verses!  It is both the longest psalm and the longest chapter in the Bible. I used to think of Psalm 119 as long and boring; now I find it a powerful source for meditation and prayer! To help you enjoy this psalm more, here are some unique features of this marathon poem:

• It is a poem with which to honor, appreciate, and meditate upon the word of God. Nearly every one of the 176 verses contains some word that references the Bible. Along with the word, word, look for words like law, testimonies, statutes, promises, commandments, rules, precepts, and judgments. They represent the translators’ efforts to reflect the rich set of Hebrew words the author uses. This is a song of highest praise for the word of God, the scriptures! But the author gave himself a special challenge in the creation of this work of art:
• It is also an acrostic poem. What is an acrostic? Here’s a famous one: GRACE, acrostically speaking, is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Here’s another, more germane to Psalm 119:  The BIBLE = Book of grace (Acts 14:3), Inspired (2 Timothy 3:16), Book of light (Psalm 119:105), Leads me (Psalm 119:133), Everlasting (Matthew 24:35). [I got this from scripturelady.com] But Psalm 119 is a special alphabetic acrostic. The writer took the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet and asked himself:  Am I able write eight lines of praise for God’s word for each letter of my alphabet?  The answer is, “Yes!” for 22 x 8 = 176! The first 8 verses in the original language, Hebrew, each begin with the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet, aleph. Most English translations include the Hebrew letters at the beginning of each section of eight verses just to remind us of all of the poet’s hard work! 
• It is a poem full of quotable and memorable stuff!  Note the promised blessings at the beginning. Note the promise of purity to those who store up God’s words in their hearts (vv. 9-11). Count how many times the word “delight” is used; is God’s word your delight? Notice what the psalm writer has to say about God’s “goodness” in vv. 65-72 (teth). Count the number of times you read the word meditate or meditation; do your take time to meditate on God’s word? And if you memorize just one verse of this psalm, memorize Psalm 119:105, Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Tomorrow, we begin the Psalms of Ascent!


Your brother in the Word,

Pastor Gary