#DailyDevotion The Word Of The LORD Endures Forever

Psalm 119 ⁸⁹O LORD, Your word (dabar) stands forever firm in heaven. ⁹⁰You are faithful through all the ages. You formed the earth, and it continues to stand. ⁹¹By Your decrees (misphat) they stand firm today because all things serve You. ⁹²If I hadn’t been delighted in Your teaching (torah), I would have perished in my misery. ⁹³I will never forget Your directions (piqqud) – by them You gave me a new life. ⁹⁴I am Yours — save me, because I’ve studied how You want me to live (piqqud). ⁹⁵The wicked have waited for me, to destroy me, but I want to understand the truths (edah) You wrote. ⁹⁶I have seen how everything perfect comes to an end, but Your commandment (mitsvah) extends very far.

Here we see the enduring character of the Word of God. The LORD’s Word stands forever firm in heaven. It does not change. It cannot be moved. No one can add or subtract from it, though many try. This includes both the LORD’s commands and also His promises. The LORD Jesus Christ is faithful to His word. While we can’t see the heavens, we can see the earth. He makes the comparison to something we can understand. The LORD formed the earth and it continues to stand. It seems to us ancient and eternal. If this lesser thing seems so, how much more the greater thing that created it. The world and all that is in it stands firm because of the LORD’s decrees. Paul writes in Col. 1, “¹⁶since in Him was created everything visable and invisable in heaven and on earth — thrones, lords, rulers, or powers — everything was created by Him and for Him. ¹⁷He was before everything, and He holds everything together.” Hebrews writes in ch. 1, “³He Who shines with God’s glory and is the Expression of His Being sustains everything by His mighty Word.”

All the teaching (torah) of the LORD gives us delight. At least, it should. Speaking narrowly, that would be the first five books of the Bible, though the author may be speaking more broadly here. But in those first five books we see the LORD’s gracious creating all things for the good of humanity and then creating humanity itself. We see how gracious He is when He preserved us through Noah. We see His mercy as He creates a holy people to give His word to and to preserve and promulgate it among the nations that travel through His nation. He disperses His people throughout the nations so at the right time the Apostles will have bases throughout the world to preach the Messiah, the Savior of the world has come. This keeps him from perishing.

Verses 93 and 94 both use the word piqqud. We wouldn’t normally think of precepts giving us new life. Yet some of those directions would be the sacrificial system in which the LORD promises to be good to Israel. It would be like the pastor directing someone to baptism, absolution and the LORD’s Supper to receive God’s grace. Now all the directions God gives us point us to a life different from the one innate in our sinful flesh. This new life is a life not centered on self but on the LORD and our neighbor, pleasing one by helping the other.

We cannot worry about the wicked. We have the LORD’s truths which promise us eternal life and a new world which we will inherit. They will pass away but the Word of the LORD last forever. Many things come to an end, even that which seems perfect to us but it has its limits. The LORD’s mitsvah however is broad. It never has a limit to how it applies to us. This is because it is eternal in nature. God’s will is eternal. It never goes out of style. It is of unlimited duration. Since this is so, we should regularly meditate upon it. Let it give us understanding of the Eternal One who gave it. By the Spirit’s working in us, it will give us delight and joy for all His wisdom manifested there.

Heavenly Father, by Your Holy Spirit, give us understanding and then delight in all You have revealed to us in Your Word, Your Son Jesus Christ, so we may have life and light all our days meditating on Your revelation. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.