The first half of this stanza contained a turning point for the psalmist. His writing held a note of joy and love for God’s Word like nothing else so far. He gives five reasons for this joy, four of them in this second half. Read it for yourself in Psalm 119:101-104:
With the majority of the psalmist’s reasons for joy contained in the latter half of this stanza, it’s worth refreshing our memory of the first reason, listed in the first half, and mentioned in three different ways.
As discussed in the last post, the first reason the writer loves the Word of God so much is that it is the source of all true wisdom. This reason is significant that he devotes half of this stanza to exploring it, comparing spiritual wisdom with worldly knowledge.
In this second half, he lists four more reasons for the joy he receives from God’s Law.
Path Of Obedience
The second reason the psalmist gives for loving God’s Word is that it keeps him on the straight and narrow. The writer uses the word picture of a path, just as Jesus did later, when he spoke of the wide path and the narrow path, in Matthew 7:13-14.
This is not the first time Psalm 119 has used path imagery. We saw it back in verse 9, when the psalmist asked, “How can a young man keep his way pure?” That passage looked at it in a positive light; this one looks at the negative side, “How can I stay off the wrong path?”
What we can see here is that studying God’s Word a not just a good way to stay on the right path; it is the only way. To walk in any way other than God’s way is sin, and to keep ourselves from sin, we need to stay focused on the way that God leads us. And only God’s Word gives us the needed information to live in such a way.
God Teaches Us
The third reason the psalmist loves God’s Word is because God himself is the teacher. What we receive in the pages of scripture are the very words of God, communicated to us through various means and dozens of different people. But it all comes directly from the very breath of God, as we see in 2 Timothy 3:16-17.
God’s Word Is Sweet
The fourth reason given by the psalmist is that God’s Word is sweet to his taste. This is almost identical to what David wrote in Psalm 19:10, indicating that either David is the author of Psalm 119, or he is acquainted with David’s writing. I’m sure that the writer had certain passages in mind when he wrote this description, passages that he held dear, that he loved to reread and meditate on.
Of course, all of Scripture is God’s Word to us, and we should study it in whole. But there are specific passages that stand out to us, that we cling to in times of need, that bring us needed refreshment and encouragement, that challenge us to grow more into the likeness of Christ. Those passages are definitely sweet to our tastes.
Hate What Is Wrong
The fifth and final reason the psalmist gives for his love and joy for God’s Word goes back to the imagery of the path. Because he – and you and I – loves God’s Law, he must, of necessity, hate that which stands opposed to it. God’s Word leads him to love not only the right way, but to shun and avoid that which is wrong. Paul said it like this in Romans 12:9: “Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.”
With these thoughts in mind, perhaps we should reevaluate why we love God’s Word. It may be for these same reasons. Or, we may have a few others to add to this list. Either way, it would be good to take a moment and examine our motives, our love, our source of joy, when it comes to God’s Word.
So take a look at your reasons. But more importantly, take some time and spend it in the Word.
Question: What reasons do you have for loving God’s Word? Have you even thought about your reasons? If not, take some time and list them out. You can leave a comment by clicking here.