#DailyDevotion The Words Of The LORD Open His Ways To Us
Psalm 119 129The truths (edah) You wrote are wonderful; that’s why I keep them. 130Your word (dabar) is a door that lets in light and helps the simple person understand. 131I open my mouth wide and pant. as I long for Your commandments (mitsvah). 132Turn to me and be merciful to me as is right (misphat) for those who love Your name. 133Make my steps firm by Your word (imrah), and don’t let wrong have control over me. 134Free me from the oppression of men, and I will follow the way You want me to live (piqqud). 135Let Your face shine on Your servant, and teach me Your laws (choq). 136Tears stream down from my eyes because others don’t follow Your teaching (torah).
The first three verses here seem to form some sort of unit. We start off with the written truths i.e. the covenant stipulations. They are wonderful to the psalmist which is why he keeps them. Wonderful, this is the same word the LORD tells Sarah when she laughed, “Is anything too wonderful for the LORD?” As Christians, we have a New Covenant, Christ Jesus’ body and blood given and shed for us for the forgiveness of sins. In this covenant the LORD calls us His People and He calls Himself our God. He forgives our sins and remembers them no more. He places His teachings in our hearts so no one need teach us, “Know the LORD!” Our part in this is to eat, drink and remember what the LORD has done for us. Wonderful indeed are His truths.
His word is a door that lets in light to help the simple person understand, Jesus says in John 10, “7…I tell you the truth, I am the Door for the sheep… 9I am the Door. If anyone comes in through Me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.10 …I came so that they will have life and have it overflowing in them.” Jesus is the Word of God and He is the Door of God. He is the Light of God who gives understanding even to the simple. If we trust Him and do what He teaches, anyone can gain understanding thereby from the Almighty. The light that comes from Him gives us eternal life.
The psalmist longs for the LORD’s commandments. His mouth is open wide and panting. I’m trying to envision this. The best I can come up with is you see a person who is drop dead gorgeous and your mouth just opens and you are locked in on them. So should we be when we read the will of our LORD for us in the Scriptures.
The ESV translates vs. 132 as “as is your way.” Our translation has “as is right.” It’s an interesting translation for mishpat. It is used as an attribute here. It’s been used that way before. So the LORD’s is misphat and that mishpat is to be turning and being merciful to those who love His name. Of course if you hate His name, then you won’t be able to see that. It will appear to you He is turning away or towards you in anger. But it is His will to turn to you and be merciful to you.
We want the LORD’s word to make our steps firm so we do not let evil rule over us. If we serve sin, it will be our master. In modern parlance, one addiction leads to the next and worse and worse levels of those addictions (sins). Jesus’ word can free us from those addictions and keep us from going back to them if we continue in His promises, who He is to us and what He has done for us. In similar fashion, we are freed from the oppression of men when the life of the LORD is most important to us. It doesn’t mean they won’t make life difficult, but we don’t have to do as they say.
The LORD’s face is gracious to us as He teaches us how to live our lives under Him. It should sadden us when we see others don’t follow His teachings, particularly those who were raised in them. Our prayer should be for their return to His rest.
Heavenly Father, grant that we may always have Your light. May we in our love for You see Your gracious turning to us with mercy. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.