Take away from me scorn and contempt,for I have kept your testimonies. Psalm 119:22 ESV This verse seems to be a natural follow-up to the previous one. Having remembered that God rightly rebukes the insolent ones who bring the LORD’s curse upon themselves by wandering from His commandments, the psalmist now pleads for a different, …
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You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones,who wander from your commandments. Psalm 119:21 ESV The LORD rebukes the insolent, accursed ones. The fact that they are accursed implies that this rebuke is not merely corrective. God rebukes and disciplines His people as an earthly father does with his children. Yet His rebukes lead to life. They …
My soul is consumed with longingfor your rules at all times. Psalm 119:20 ESV Because each of Psalm 119's twenty-two stanzas contains eight verses, we conclude the first half of gimel with our meditation upon this verse. The relationship between the two lines of this verse is much more immediate than many of the ones …
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I am a sojourner on the earth;hide not your commandments from me! Psalm 119:19 ESV Having already referred to himself as God’s servant, the psalmist now calls himself a sojourner. In the ancient world, a sojourner was quite different from being a modern-day tourist. Today, we are able to go to the other side of …
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Open my eyes, that I may beholdwondrous things in your law. Psalm 119:18 ESV In this verse, we find the second of the psalmist’s prayer for direct intervention from the LORD of this stanza. After praying for God to deal bountifully with him, he now prays for God to open his eyes that he may …
and spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the LORD your God and rejoice, you and your household. Deuteronomy 14:26 ESV This intriguing verse is found within the context of Moses providing instructions for tithing. The primary command …
The wicked flee when no one pursues,but the righteous are bold as a lion. Proverbs 28:1 Why do the wicked flee when no one pursues them? Their guilt keeps them from all peace. They are constantly on the run because they know that others have reason to pursue them. Or at least their own conscience …
Deal bountifully with your servant,that I may live and keep your word. Psalm 119:17 ESV With this verse, we begin Psalm 119’s third stanza, which is titled gimel because each verse begins that Hebrew letter. Like Beth (verses 9-16), Gimel (verses 17-24) continues the psalmist’s prayer for God’s instructing grace to guard him, while also …
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I will delight in your statutes;I will not forget your word. Psalm 119:16 ESV The psalmist concludes the second eight-verse stanza of Psalm 119 with this two-fold resolution, which he begins by reiterating the theme of verse 14. Just as the psalmist previously resolved to rejoice in God’s testimonies more highly than in all riches, …
I will meditate on your preceptsand fix my eyes on your ways. Psalm 119:15 ESV In the penultimate verse of this stanza, the psalmist continues to his resolutions for how he will store God’s Word in his heart and guard his way with it. Just as he has determined to declare and delight in the …
B. C. Newton 