Category Archives: Psalms

Psalm 119:129-136 פ Pe- Mouth

Posted on September 14, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:129-136 פ Pe- Mouth
129 Your statutes are wonderful;
therefore I obey them.
130 The unfolding of your words gives light;
it gives understanding to the simple.
131 I open my mouth and pant,
longing for your commands.
132 Turn to me and have mercy on me,
as you always do to those who love your name.
133 Direct my footsteps according to your word;
let no sin rule over me.
134 Redeem me from human oppression,
that I may obey your precepts.
135 Make your face shine on your servant
and teach me your decrees.
136 Streams of tears flow from my eyes,
for your law is not obeyed.

This is what came to mind when I read the title of these eight verses; Pe – mouth. Luke 6:45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart…For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of…NIV

The “unfolding” words of God are very personal to the Psalmist. They’ve been stored in his heart as surely as if they were written just for him. They have become the song of his heart to be sung aloud for all to hear.

Years ago I heard a Christian linguist say that Hymns were the perfect and complete way to communicate the truth of God’s word and engage the whole brain; one half responds to the music itself and the other to the lyrics.

We don’t have the music that goes along with this Psalm but I bet you know at least part of a hymn or chorus by “heart,” too. Sing!…all by yourself…right there where you are…out loud [you can belt it out or sing it softly]…from your mouth to God’s ears “for the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Qw_uBn9zJfc

 

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Psalm 119:121-128 ע Ayin – Eye

Posted on September 11, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:121-128 ע Ayin – Eye
121 I have done what is righteous and just;
do not leave me to my oppressors.
122 Ensure your servant’s well-being;
do not let the arrogant oppress me.
123 My eyes fail, looking for your salvation,
looking for your righteous promise.
124 Deal with your servant according to your love
and teach me your decrees.
125 I am your servant; give me discernment
that I may understand your statutes.
126 It is time for you to act, Lord;
your law is being broken.
127 Because I love your commands
more than gold, more than pure gold,
128 and because I consider all your precepts right,
I hate every wrong path.

I see a very human characteristic in this man of faith. He’s frustrated. Doesn’t God see the impact his oppressors have on his life? He’s done so much that’s right and yet in this moment his “eyes fail, looking for” how God is going to save him as promised. No wonder he’s thinking in terms of Ayin – eye. He’s focused on what he isn’t able to see.

Verse 124 is the amazing turn-about of this meditation; “Deal with your servant according to your love and teach me your decrees.” The Psalmist has come to the realization it’s not what he sees or doesn’t see that makes him faithful. He’s a faithful servant because he knows God is willing to “deal” with him even though sometimes he’s short-sighted.

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Psalm 119:113-120 ס Samekh – Prop, Support

Posted on September 7, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:113-120 ס Samekh – Prop, Support
113 I hate double-minded people,
but I love your law.
114 You are my refuge and my shield;
I have put my hope in your word.
115 Away from me, you evildoers,
that I may keep the commands of my God!
116 Sustain me, my God, according to your promise, and I will live;
do not let my hopes be dashed.
117 Uphold me, and I will be delivered;
I will always have regard for your decrees.
118 You reject all who stray from your decrees,
for their delusions come to nothing.
119 All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross;
therefore I love your statutes.
120 My flesh trembles in fear of you;
I stand in awe of your laws.

The title and words of this section seem so easy to connect in comparison to some earlier sections. The Psalmist is clear it’s the law, the Word and God’s commands and promises that he relies on.

The fact is, while he writes this confession of faith, the awareness of risk is not lost on him. He seems compelled to mention “them” again too. This isn’t the first time he’s pointed out how God deals with “them.” I wonder if he’s reminding himself that part of his confession always has to be acknowledging the only thing that separates “him” from “them” is verse 117 – Samekh, his prop and support. “Uphold me, and I will be delivered.”

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Psalm 119:105-112 נ Nun – Fish, [tadpole?]

Posted on September 4, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:105-112 נ Nun – Fish, [tadpole?]
105 Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path.
106 I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
that I will follow your righteous laws.
107 I have suffered much;
preserve my life, Lord, according to your word.
108 Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth,
and teach me your laws.
109 Though I constantly take my life in my hands,
I will not forget your law.
110 The wicked have set a snare for me,
but I have not strayed from your precepts.
111 Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.
112 My heart is set on keeping your decrees
to the very end.

I think the Psalmist uses this mysterious title, Nun – fish [tadpole?] to reach the heart through the imagination. The brackets and question mark are from the chart I’ve been using. Who would have ever imagined a Bible study that included learning about tadpoles? It’s a very ordinary image that lets us “see” a path that leads from what is, to what can be. Here’s a few tadpole facts that make me believe this.

The tadpole begins life as a little speck in a very big environment. All it can do for a time is wait to become it’s recognizable self. When it does finally hatch, the tadpole looks and behaves like one thing [a fish] when it is really going to be something else entirely. Only after growth and the passage of time does the tadpole finally become what it was created to be.

We are the speck √
We have the path √ v. 105
Life is the time to learn and grow √ vs. 106-110.
Your “recognizable self” is part of your heritage from God √ vs. 111-112.

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Psalm 119:97-104 מ Mem – Waves, Water

Posted on August 31, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:97-104 מ Mem – Waves, Water
97 Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.
98 Your commands are always with me
and make me wiser than my enemies.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.
100 I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.
101 I have kept my feet from every evil path
so that I might obey your word.
102 I have not departed from your laws,
for you yourself have taught me.
103 How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.

I wondered whether the Psalmist was in his personal Red Sea period when I saw he’d chosen the title Mem [Waves, Water]. His life has been like the Israelites as they came up against that barrier of water that seemed like sure destruction with nowhere to go. He’s personally experienced God opening up a path for him like the parting of those waters to where he is now. This is his response. It reads like a man who’s survived the journey through the sea bed and made it to this lofty place of confidence on the mountain top.

I’m resisting “peeking” ahead to see how his own bottom line of faith, “for you yourself have taught me,” continues to change the focus of his wisdom, insight and understanding.

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Psalm 119:89-96 ל Lamedh – correction, learning

Posted on August 28, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:89-96 ל Lamedh – ox, goad, correction, learning
89 Your word, Lord, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures.
91 Your laws endure to this day,
for all things serve you.
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 preserved my life.
94 Save me, for I am yours;
I have sought out your precepts.
95 The wicked are waiting to destroy me,
but I will ponder your statutes.
96 To all perfection I see a limit,
but your commands are boundless.

There are two important choices in the life of this special man, the Psalmist. The first one is his deliberate choice to believe the faithfulness of God endures no matter what his circumstances are.

Lamedh is his second deliberate choice; perspective. He chooses to accept the reality that correction and learning happen in the circumstances of his life. That’s how he knows firsthand…perfection doesn’t come easy.

It’s all about living life with the perspective of that second choice while depending on the lasting reality of the first one.  It doesn’t just happen, it  has to be deliberate.

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Psalm 119:81-88 כ Kaph – Wing, Palm

Posted on August 24, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:81-88 כ Kaph – Wing, Palm
81 My soul faints with longing for your salvation,
but I have put my hope in your word.
82 My eyes fail, looking for your promise;
I say, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Though I am like a wineskin in the smoke,
I do not forget your decrees.
84 How long must your servant wait?
When will you punish my persecutors?
85 The arrogant dig pits to trap me,
contrary to your law.
86 All your commands are trustworthy;
help me, for I am being persecuted without cause.
87 They almost wiped me from the earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 In your unfailing love preserve my life,
that I may obey the statutes of your mouth.

The Psalmist saw his life with a different comparison; a wineskin. He wasn’t protected by a palace. Wineskins weren’t even used in a palace. They were the travel mug of the day for the person on the move; the fugitive.

A wineskin was strong, to a point, but could easily be ruined if exposed to certain elements. That would leave the traveler at serious risk of losing the very thing needed most to survive. It was from this comparison the Psalmist wrote.

This “wineskin’s” soul longed to be done with waiting for the promised comfort. The smoke of circumstance blurred what his eyes could see right then but he was counting on the unfailing love of Kaph. This was the “wing, Palm” he could trust to lift him away above his circumstances to preserve his life; the word, decrees, precepts and statutes of God that he knew.

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Psalm 119:73-80 י Yodh – Hand [Bent]

Posted on August 21, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:73-80 י Yodh – Hand [Bent]
73 Your hands made me and formed me;
give me understanding to learn your commands.
74 May those who fear you rejoice when they see me,
for I have put my hope in your word.
75 I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous,
and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76 May your unfailing love be my comfort,
according to your promise to your servant.
77 Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight.
78 May the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me without cause;
but I will meditate on your precepts.
79 May those who fear you turn to me,
those who understand your statutes.
80 May I wholeheartedly follow your decrees,
that I may not be put to shame.

I couldn’t help but notice this man who’d captured the heart of God used the word “me” 13 times in these eight verses. There’s another 6 “I’s” and a few “my’s as well. My first reaction was all those references to himself seemed pretty self-absorbed but then I realized they were probably the very reason he’d captured God’s heart.

The Psalmist recognized God’s hand in his life. That hand made his relationship more than desire to know the commands and decrees. That bent hand was the place he could safely put all those “me’s, I’s and my’s” so he could wholeheartedly and shamelessly admit every part of himself was dependent on a hand’s-on God.

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Psalm 119:65-72 ט Teth – Serpent, Snake

Posted on August 17, 2016 | Leave a comment

Psalm 119:65-72 ט Teth – Serpent, Snake
65 Do good to your servant
according to your word, Lord.
66 Teach me knowledge and good judgment,
for I trust your commands.
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I obey your word.
68 You are good, and what you do is good;
teach me your decrees.
69 Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies,
I keep your precepts with all my heart.
70 Their hearts are callous and unfeeling,
but I delight in your law.
71 It was good for me to be afflicted
so that I might learn your decrees.
72 The law from your mouth is more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

Let’s assume the Psalmists’ intention with these mysterious titles is to add another layer of meaning to the words he writes. That layering idea has kept me interested, even looking forward to the next eight verses.

His words are obviously written to let God know what he has learned. “Before I was afflicted I went astray…It was good for me to be afflicted…so that I might learn your decrees…but now I obey your word.”

There had been a “before” in the Psalmists’ life but it’s the “after” he writes about. That’s what brought him to this place of longing to trust, obey and value what God had in mind. Teth could be his subtle reminder that in between that before and after there may “still” be the danger of a serpent hiding in the garden.

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Psalm 119: 57-64 ח Heth – Hedge, Fence, Surround

Posted on August 14, 2016 | Leave a comment

ח Heth – Hedge, Fence, Surround
57 You are my portion, Lord;
I have promised to obey your words.
58 I have sought your face with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.
59 I have considered my ways
and have turned my steps to your statutes.
60 I will hasten and not delay
to obey your commands.
61 Though the wicked bind me with ropes,
I will not forget your law.
62 At midnight I rise to give you thanks
for your righteous laws.
63 I am a friend to all who fear you,
to all who follow your precepts.
64 The earth is filled with your love, Lord;
teach me your decrees.

We have a shelter, we have our defense and now we have a hedge, fence or a surround. Heth is a boundary; “a point or limit that indicates where two things become different. ” Look at the Psalmist, the hero of the song. His theme regularly shifts from complete confidence in his knowledge of God to the awareness, and sometimes even fear, of how vulnerable he is.

God has set himself as the boundary line between those shifts of confidence and vulnerability. It’s that point of Heth from which the Psalmist speaks; “I have promised…I have sought…I have considered…I will hasten,,,I will not forget…I rise to give you thanks…The earth is filled with your love, Lord; teach me your decrees.”

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