Psalms · psalm 119 of 150
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Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible, with 176 verses, and is an alphabetic poem of twenty-two stanzas of eight verses, one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It is a long meditation on the word of God, called law, testimonies, precepts, statutes, commandments, rules, word and promise, mixed with prayer in affliction, and it ends with the psalmist as a lost sheep asking the Lord to seek him.
Psalm 119 has no title and the text does not name its author; some attribute it to David and others think of a later writer, perhaps in the exile or after, but there is no certainty. It is in Book V of the Psalms, after the Egyptian Hallel. Its form is a complete acrostic: each of the twenty-two stanzas of eight verses begins, in Hebrew, with the same letter in each of its verses, from Aleph to Taw.
The psalm revolves around the word of God, which almost every verse mentions with one of eight terms: law, testimonies, ways, precepts, statutes, commandments, rules and promise. It begins with a blessing for those who walk in the law of the Lord (Aleph, vv. 1-8) and asks how a young man can keep his way pure, by guarding the word and storing it in the heart (Beth, vv. 9-16). It asks God to open his eyes to behold wondrous things from his law, for he is a sojourner on the earth (Gimel, vv. 17-24).
Throughout the poem the psalmist is persecuted and afflicted. His soul clings to the dust and he asks to be revived by the word (Daleth, vv. 25-32), asks for teaching and that his eyes turn from worthless things (He, vv. 33-40) and declares that the Lord is his portion (Heth, vv. 57-64). He acknowledges that it was good for him to be afflicted so that he might learn God's statutes (Teth, v. 71), and that the law is worth more than thousands of gold and silver pieces (Teth, v. 72). He loves the law and finds it sweeter than honey (Mem, vv. 97-104), and the word is a lamp to his feet and a light to his path (Nun, v. 105). He hates the double-minded (Samekh, vv. 113-120), weeps streams of tears because others do not keep the law (Pe, v. 136), and declares that the unfolding of God's words gives light and understanding to the simple (Pe, v. 130).
The last part speaks of crying out and peace. He cries out with his whole heart (Qoph, vv. 145-152), asks the Lord to see his affliction (Resh, vv. 153-160), praises the Lord seven times a day and those who love his law have great peace (Shin, vv. 161-168). It ends with a plea that his cry come before the Lord and that his lips pour forth praise, and with the final confession: I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commandments (Taw, vv. 169-176).
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
A young man keeps his way pure by guarding God's word, and the psalmist stores it in his heart so that he might not sin against God. Memorizing and treasuring Scripture is a defense against sin.
It was good for the psalmist to be afflicted so that he might learn God's statutes. He does not say suffering is good in itself, but that God used affliction to teach him and draw him to his word.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Scripture does not light up the whole future at once but the next step, enough to walk with God.
The psalm ends with the confession of having gone astray like a lost sheep and the plea that the Lord seek his servant. Whoever has loved the word most admits that he still needs the shepherd's grace.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. — Psalm 119:1
Answer: By guarding God's word. — Psalm 119:9
Answer: God's word. — Psalm 119:11
Answer: To have been afflicted, so that he might learn God's statutes. — Psalm 119:71
Answer: As a lamp to his feet and a light to his path. — Psalm 119:105
Answer: With the confession of having gone astray like a lost sheep and the plea that the Lord seek him. — Psalm 119:176
Psalm 119 invites us to read the Bible with love and not only out of duty. In a small group we can take one stanza per meeting, read it slowly and underline what it says about God's word and what the psalmist asks for. Its combination of praise and petition is a model: we speak with God from what God has said.
The psalm is also honest about difficulty. The psalmist suffers, is mocked and feels tired, and still returns to the word. For Christians, God's word culminates in Christ, the Word made flesh (John 1:14), and loving Scripture is a way of loving him. And the final confession reminds us that no study replaces grace: we still need the shepherd to seek us.
Psalm 119 ends with a lost sheep asking to be sought. Psalm 120 opens a small collection, the songs of ascents (Psalms 120-134), with the cry of someone who lives among people who hate peace.
Because of its alphabetic structure: each of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet heads a stanza of eight verses, and the 176 verses exhaust the alphabet. That form seeks to express that God's word covers the whole of life, from the first letter to the last.
It uses eight main terms: law, testimonies, ways, precepts, statutes, commandments, rules and promise. Almost every verse contains one of them. Though they carry different nuances, all speak of God's revelation to his people.
For the psalmist the law is not only a list of rules but the teaching and instruction of God, which reveals his character and guides life. That is why he loves it, meditates on it and finds it sweet. Christians read it in the light of Christ, who fulfilled it.