May my heart be blameless in your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame!

Psalm 119:80 ESV

In the last two verses, the psalmist focused on the insolent and the godly. In 78, he prayed that the insolent would be put to shame because they wronged him with falsehood. In 79, he prayed for those who fear Yahweh to turn to him and learn of God’s testimonies. Now, in verse 80, he makes a prayer for himself that his heart would be blameless.

This is similar to his earlier prayer for keeping his way pure (v. 9), but the word way signifies outward actions. Here the focus inward: the heart. Blameless is the same word used when commanding the sacrificial animals to be without blemish. That is what the psalmist wants to be true of his own heart, the very core of his person and identity.

Of course, we know that we will always be at war against sin in this life, so we will never be fully and completely blameless. Nevertheless, this ought to be the cry of all God’s people. We long for the day when our hearts are truly and completely free from sin. We should desire perfect obedience to God’s commands, not simply outwardly but even from our very thoughts and intentions.

One day, when Christ returns, that desire will come to pass. Though we are given new hearts through the regeneration of the Holy Spirit in this life, we will one day be raised to life with new, glorified bodies that are no longer even capable of sinning.

Lord hasten that day!

Notice now the second line: that I may not be put to shame. While this may seem to be a selfish prayer, I do not think it is. Properly understood, the shame that the psalmist dreads is the opposite of God’s favor. He shudders at the very thought of standing in the presence of God in the shame of all his sin. Instead, he wants the second line of the Aaronic blessing to be true of him: that God’s face would shine upon him and be gracious to him.

It is what Lewis calls the unique glory of the inferior receiving the favor of the superior. We see this in the pleasure felt by a dog upon hearing “good boy” from its master or in a student being commended by a beloved teacher. It is the desire of all children of God that will be expressed to us in the word: “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your master.”

The beauty of reading the psalm in light of the New Testament is that we know that Christ has fully purchased our favor before the Father. Though Christ alone was blameless at all times in His heart and actions, He freely gave Himself as a sacrifice for our sins to purify and cleanse our hearts. In Him, we now stand before the Father blameless in Christ, waiting for the day when we are resurrected into eternal glory, the joy of our master.