I developed a habit of sorts a few years back concerning the reading of the Psalms. Let me preface this by saying that I have written whole posts on how the wonder....I'll use that word....the wonder of the Psalms evaded me for most of my Christian life. The Psalms were the Word of God....and certainly beautiful....and there were also a lot of memory verses if one wished.....but the wonder and the awe was missing....but now that it has finally hit home.....I find myself in the Psalms all the time....often dwelling on one particular Psalm for weeks and even months.
So....I'm currently dwelling in the 119th Psalm.....the longest Psalm in the Bible....twice as long as any other.....and the longest chapter in the entire Bible.
There are about a dozen different words in this Psalm that are used over and over and over again...those individual words meaning roughly the same thing.....for example.....the word statutes is in the 119th Psalm 22 times.....precepts 21 times....commandments 22 times....ordinances 16 times....testimonies 23 times....thy law 24 times.....and thy Word 41 times.
At first this repeating of words was almost a distraction.....and then it became an attraction where I would look for them and meditate over them.....and now....to me anyway....and I'm sure I'm not alone....they are appearing as part of an overall message....but to whom (?).....some say Solomon.....as David most likely wrote this 119th Psalm.....but surely it's a message to everyone in every age....and to us also in 2019!
It's as if David.....if it was indeed David.....is warning us....telling us over and over what we must do in these perilous times. So what would that be? It seems very clear to me....live in the Word....dwell in the Word....meditate on the Word.....learn from the Word....for 'salvation' is there....and God's 'loving kindness'....and His 'wonders.'....and His 'law'....and His 'righteous judgments'....and His 'ways.'
This....once dull and obtuse....to me....Psalm....is now pointed and sharpened and powerful. I had a pastor at one time who lived in the Psalms.....and also preached from the Psalms often....for Christ is everywhere in the Bible....and this pastor would also reference the Psalms often....so I put two and two together....'godly Christian minister'....'reads Psalms all the time'....plus....'I need godliness in my life'....equals....'maybe I should read the Psalms more.'
This isn't the first time that I posted encouragement to readers on regularly reading the Psalms in their daily Bible study....but I hope that it at least might cause you to meditate a little bit on the structure and the overall message of the Psalm that you are reading.....and how it might pertain to us today. A wonderful book on this would be The Flow Of The Psalms....wonderfully written and researched by O. Palmer Robertson.
So....I'm currently dwelling in the 119th Psalm.....the longest Psalm in the Bible....twice as long as any other.....and the longest chapter in the entire Bible.
There are about a dozen different words in this Psalm that are used over and over and over again...those individual words meaning roughly the same thing.....for example.....the word statutes is in the 119th Psalm 22 times.....precepts 21 times....commandments 22 times....ordinances 16 times....testimonies 23 times....thy law 24 times.....and thy Word 41 times.
At first this repeating of words was almost a distraction.....and then it became an attraction where I would look for them and meditate over them.....and now....to me anyway....and I'm sure I'm not alone....they are appearing as part of an overall message....but to whom (?).....some say Solomon.....as David most likely wrote this 119th Psalm.....but surely it's a message to everyone in every age....and to us also in 2019!
It's as if David.....if it was indeed David.....is warning us....telling us over and over what we must do in these perilous times. So what would that be? It seems very clear to me....live in the Word....dwell in the Word....meditate on the Word.....learn from the Word....for 'salvation' is there....and God's 'loving kindness'....and His 'wonders.'....and His 'law'....and His 'righteous judgments'....and His 'ways.'
This....once dull and obtuse....to me....Psalm....is now pointed and sharpened and powerful. I had a pastor at one time who lived in the Psalms.....and also preached from the Psalms often....for Christ is everywhere in the Bible....and this pastor would also reference the Psalms often....so I put two and two together....'godly Christian minister'....'reads Psalms all the time'....plus....'I need godliness in my life'....equals....'maybe I should read the Psalms more.'
This isn't the first time that I posted encouragement to readers on regularly reading the Psalms in their daily Bible study....but I hope that it at least might cause you to meditate a little bit on the structure and the overall message of the Psalm that you are reading.....and how it might pertain to us today. A wonderful book on this would be The Flow Of The Psalms....wonderfully written and researched by O. Palmer Robertson.
