Sola Scriptura Publications: A Light Unto My Path (Ps. 119)

A Light Unto My Path:

An Exposition of Psalm 119

Part of the incomprehensible miracle of inspiration is that God used the personality, experiences, and even words of each Scripture writer so that the result is not only what the writer wanted to say but also exactly what God wanted to say. There is no better example of this miracle than in the Psalms. We see the whole gamut of human experience—the positives and the negatives—but God is in it all and controlling it all. Sometimes we see a psalmist at the absolute lowest point of his life, and at other times at the highest, but God used it all to convey His truth with absolute precision.

Psalm 119 is such a psalm. We see the writer lofty and low, diligent and discouraged, fearless and frightened, victorious and vanquished. The more we read, however, we discover his secret. While many Christians today are looking for the newest trend for their excitement, or seeking the answers to problems by reading the latest self-help book, the psalmist always went to the Word of God. Why? Because it is there, and there alone, that he found everything: happiness (vv. 1–8), maturity (vv. 9–16), victory (vv. 17–24), therapy (vv. 25–32), consistency (vv. 33–40), confidence (vv. 41–48), and all else.

Simply put, Psalm 119 is devoted to praising the virtues, merits, and sufficiency of the Word of God and demonstrates the author’s total commitment to it. While it cannot compare with a classic such as Charles Spurgeon’s, this book is a complete, verse-by-verse, usually word-by-word, exposition of the Psalm. Because of the pivotal importance of the pulpit ministry, this book is based on a series of messages preached on consecutive Lord’s Day mornings from July 2007 through January 2008. Rich in word studies, clearly outlined, and carefully applied, it is meant to be an encouragement, challenge, and source of growth to God’s people. I pray that reading it will bless your heart as much as writing it blessed mine. (282 pages)

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Contents

	Historical Introductions to Psalm 119..................................	9
	Preface............................................................................	15
	The Unsurpassed Value of the Psalms...............................	17
	Psalm 119: The Sufficiency of God’s Word........................	33
א	God’s Word Brings Happiness (1–8)..................................	51
ב	God’s Word Brings Maturity (9–16)...................................	61
ג	God’s Word Brings Victory Over Adversity (17–24)...........	73
ד	God’s Word Provides Therapy (25–32)..............................	85
ה	God’s Word Produces Consistency (33–40)........................	95
ו	God’s Word Produces Confidence (41–48).........................	105
ז	God’s Word Produces Remembrance (49–56)....................	115
ח	God’s Word Brings Satisfaction (57–64).............................	131
ט	God’s Word Brings Good (65–72)......................................	141
י	God’s Word Provides a Foundation (73–80)........................	151
כ	God’s Word Brings Comfort In Time of Need (81–88)........	161
ל	The Greatness of the Word of God (89–96)........................	169
מ	God’s Word Provides True Wisdom (97–104).....................	179
נ	God’s Word Provides Guidance (105–112).........................	189
ס	God’s Word Confronts the Enemy (113–120).....................	199
ע	God’s Word is Our Assurance (121–128)...........................	209
פ	God’s Word Produces Wonder (129–136)..........................	217
צ	God’s Word Is Always Right (137–144).............................	225
ק	God’s Word Generates Prayer (145–152)...........................	235
ר	God’s Word Heals Affliction (153–160).............................	245
ש	God’s Word Produces Integrity (161–169)..........................	255
ת	The Psalmist’s Final Prayer (169–172)...............................	263
	A Final Chord...................................................................	271
	Appendix: The Scottish Psalter of 1650..............................	273
	Bibliography.....................................................................	277
	About the Author..............................................................	283

Preface

FOR MANY YEARS I have been intrigued, and just plain fascinated, by Psalm 119. It has joined the ranks of Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians as one of my passions. How could the author express so many thoughts on a single theme? How could he accomplish such a feat without just repeating himself over and over? After all, about the best I can do when it comes to strawberries is just keep babbling, “It’s God’s best creation, and I love them.”

Of course, unlike me, the psalmist wrote under inspiration, writing as God empowered him. Part of the incomprehensible miracle of inspiration, however, is that God used the personality, experiences, and even words of each Scripture writer so that the result is not only what the writer wanted to say but also exactly what God wanted to say.

There is no better example of this miracle than in the Psalms. We see the whole gamut of human experience—the positives and the negatives—but God is in it all and controlling it all. Sometimes we see a psalmist at the absolute lowest point of his life, and at other times at the highest, but God used it all to convey His truth with absolute precision.

That is why this Psalm has fascinated me for so long. My chief passion in ministry has for many years been living, defending, and proclaiming the absolute authority and sole sufficiency of Scripture, and that is what this Psalm is about. As we will see, simply put, Psalm 119 is devoted to praising the virtues, merits, and sufficiency of the Word of God and demonstrates the author’s total commitment to it.

I also credit Charles Spurgeon for feeding my curiosity for this Psalm. In his classic exposition of the Psalms, The Treasury of David, he devotes almost 350 pages to Psalm 119, a section that stands by itself as a classic. I humbly quote him at times, for no one has said it better. I also read many other expositions and commentaries in my preparation, all of which were to my benefit and blessing.

What you are about to read, therefore, is the fruit of that labor. While it cannot compare with a classic such as Spurgeon’s, this book is a complete, verse-by-verse, often word-by-word, exposition of the Psalm. Because of the pivotal importance of the pulpit ministry, this book is based on a series of messages preached on consecutive Lord’s Day mornings from July 2007 through January 2008. Rich in word studies,[1] clearly outlined, and carefully applied, it is meant to be an encouragement, challenge, and source of growth to God’s people. I pray that reading it will bless your heart as much as writing it blessed mine.

While there were several possible titles, I settled on A Light Unto My Path because of the critical use of that idea in the psalm itself (vv. 105, 130). As we will note a little later, while the Psalms are practical in general, and this one especially so in particular, there are few things more practical than light. Without light we wander, stumble, and fall, and this psalm provides light for everyday living. For that reason, this book can be used as a daily devotional. By approaching it, for example, either by one verse or one outline section per day, it will provide the reader with about six months of devotional reading.

Finally, one additional feature of this book is the inclusion of each stanza of the Psalm according to the meter of The Scottish Psalter of 1650 at the close of each chapter. One reason for this addition is simply the beauty of poetry. Since most English readers do not understand Hebrew poetry, rendering the words into familiar rhyme and meter helps us understand the original form and intent of the Psalm. Another reason, however, is that this form enables us to actually sing these stanzas. For interested readers, the Appendix explains more about the origins of this Psalter and how to use it in singing. For now, I pray that just the words themselves will be a blessing to you and will help deepen your love and devotion to the Word of God.

The Author

July 2012

[1] Several of these word studies, in addition to several hundred more, also appear in the author’s two books: A Hebrew Word for the Day: Key Words from the Old Testament and, A Word for the Day: Key Words from the New Testament.

Psalm 119: The Sufficiency of God’s Word

Ps. 119:11

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

WHILE IT MIGHT be a ridiculous exercise, if we could pick one verse that is representative of all 176 verses in this Psalm, perhaps it would be verse 11: Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. While we will, of course, deal with it in detail later, we note it here because it strikes us as the essence of what the psalmist is telling us. In the many months of my study of this psalm, this verse seemed to be the key to the whole matter. To hide the Word of God in our hearts is to be totally captive in it, committed to it, and controlled by it. Further, to hide God’s Word in the heart is to recognize that it alone is sufficient to fill that heart with all that is needed for living. While we are struck by verse 105—“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path”—from which we take the title of this book, that verse cannot be true of us unless verse 11 is first true in us. God’s Word cannot be the light unto our path until it is the light within our heart.

Psalm 119 is one of those gems of Scripture that stands out as especially brilliant. This in no way implies that it is “more inspired” than any other part of Scripture, any more than one diamond is “more of a diamond” than any other. Rather we merely mean that its many facets make it unique and make it particularly noticeable. To illustrate, a “facet” is a flat face on geometric shape. Gemstones commonly have facets cut into them to improve their appearances. Traditionally, there are 58 tiny facets in a diamond, each carefully cut and sharply defined, and can be as small as two millimeters in diameter. This precision is essential to the potential beauty of a diamond. In fact, of the four “Cs” of diamond quality (cut, color, clarity, and carat weight), the stone’s overall appearance depends more on cut than on anything else. My personal favorite is the marquee, which is what I bought my wife-to-be in 1973, but there are others, of course.

If we look at Psalm 119 using this metaphor, however, we see more than three times as many facets, a total of 176, in fact. The precise, sharply defined facets in this gem are truly dazzling. They amaze the eye, stimulate the mind, and bless the heart. Why? Because this Psalm is about the most beautiful gem God has given us—His Word.

What is this Psalm about? Simply put, Psalm 119 is devoted to praising the virtues, merits, and sufficiency of the Word of God and demonstrates the author’s total commitment to it. Commentator and 19^th-century Princeton professor, J. A. Alexander, made this profound point:

There is no psalm in the whole collection which has more the appearance of having been exclusively designed for practical and personal improvement, without any reference to national or even to ecclesiastical relations, than the one before us, which is wholly occupied with praises to God’s word or written revelation, as the only source of spiritual strength and comfort, and with prayers for grace to make a profitable use of it.[1]

In sad contrast to the psalmist’s attitude, much of the church today gives only lip service to the Bible. While we have plenty of anemic Sunday School lessons and shallow sermons, what we do not have in abundance is the systematic exposition of Scripture and a thorough commitment to its sufficiency. What we see in this Psalm, however, is a total, complete, and unconditional commitment to Scripture as the sole and sufficient authority in the believer’s life. It is, indeed, “practical and personal.”

So saturated is this Psalm with references to God’s Word, that of its 176 verses, the Masoretes—a group of Hebrew scholars from the sixth to eleventh centuries who copied, preserved, and guarded the text—originally observed that only one verse (122) does not make reference to the Word of God. Verses 84 and 121 are also possible exceptions, unless the word “judgment” is an indirect reference to Scripture. The same is true of verses 90 and 132, unless the words “faithfulness” and “name” (respectively) are also indirect references. In any case, therefore, virtually every verse in this Psalm refers to God’s Word. We will detail this characteristic a little later in our study.

Sadly, there are some readers who view this Psalm as a collection of unconnected thoughts, that it is pointlessly redundant, just repeating the same things over and over. In his classic exposition of the Psalms, The Treasury of David, Charles Spurgeon addresses that accusation:

Many superficial readers have imagined that it harps upon one string, and abounds in pious repetitions and redundancies; but this arises from the shallowness of the reader’s own mind: those who have studied this divine hymn, and carefully noted each line of it, are amazed at the variety and profundity of the thought. Using only a few words, the writer has produced permutations and combinations of meaning which display his holy familiarity with his subject, and the sanctified ingenuity of his mind. He never repeats himself; for if the same sentiment recurs it is placed in a fresh connection, and so exhibits another interesting shade of meaning. . . . Again and again have we cried while studying it, “Oh the depths!”

Indeed, the depths to which the author plunges in this Psalm amaze the spiritual person more and more as he or she reads. Puritan Matthew Henry is correct when he writes: “He that shall read it considerately, it will either warm him or shame him.” If we might humbly add, however, one can read it with both results. It consecrates and convicts; it blesses and blames; it excites and examines. The repetition of certain phrases, in fact, is “comparatively few in number, and their repetition is due to the emphasis [David] desires to put upon them and upon them alone.”[2]

Commentator Franz Delitzsch sums it up well, “Here we have set forth in inexhaustible fullness what the word of God is to a man, and how a man is to behave himself in relation to it.” Psalm 119 drives us to the Word of God and forces us to compare ourselves to it. Before examining each section and verse, therefore, we should take the time to introduce and overview this Psalm by considering four emphases: its construction, creator, characteristic, and content.

The Construction of the Psalm

The structure of this Psalm is one of those amazing features of Scripture. As mentioned in our introduction to the Psalms, it is an acrostic, a literary tool where the first letter of the first word in every verse of a Psalm is a letter of the twenty-two letter Hebrew alphabet in alphabetical order. In Psalm 119, this trait occurs for eight verses before it then changes to the next letter. The result is 22 sections with every verse in the section beginning with the appropriate Hebrew letter. Most Bibles today divide the Psalm into these sections using the corresponding Hebrew letter as a heading. It was “composed for recitation as an ABC,” writes one commentator, “for training the young scribe in the Law.”[3] Interestingly, similar acrostics appear in Proverbs 31:10–31 (the Virtuous Woman) and Lamentations 1–4.

But what significance does this carry today? After all, it matters only in the Hebrew and doesn’t translate into any other language. But there is significance nonetheless. Since the whole point of this literary tool was to aid in memorization—how important it would be to memorize the traits of the Virtuous Women, for example—this demonstrates how important the truth in Psalm 119 really is. Again, as verse 11 puts it, Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. What could be more pivotal than this in the believer’s life? The author knew how essential these principles are, so he made it easier for the reader to memorize them. While it might be a little harder for us to do so without this literary device, the truth herein is no less critical.

The Creator of the Psalm

As to the author of this Psalm, most commentators are agreed that the data is inconclusive. Commentator Albert Barnes recounts a few theories that have been offered. Some speculate, for example, that the author might have been a certain youth who was taken captive by the Assyrians, and who composed the psalm in his captivity. There is no clear evidence, however, that the psalm was composed under those circumstances. Others have supposed that it was written by Jaddua (Neh. 12:22), the high priest in the time of Alexander the Great, during the troubles that then existed in Judea and amidst the opposition of the Samaritans, and was designed to challenge the Hebrews concerning the excellence of the Word of God and the authority of the law. Still another supposes that it was composed in the time of the persecutions under Antiochus for the same reason. Among other suggested writers are Ezra, Nehemiah, Hezekiah, Jeremiah, Malachi, and Daniel, but there is no compelling evidence for any of them.

There are, of course, many who believe David was the author. This opinion is strengthened by observing three points. First, it is certainly Davidic in tone. One of several indicators of this is how the psalmist addresses God. “In every verse but one (115),” A. F. Kirkpatrick observes, “after the first three introductory verses God is addressed; in all but some 14 verses the psalmist addressed God in the first person, or, which is the same thing, as His servant.”[4] Second, it matches David’s personal experiences. As commentator Adam Clarke writes, for example, “Several of the ancients, particularly the Greek fathers, have considered it as an abridgement of David’s life; in which he expresses all the states through which he had passed; the trials, persecutions, succours, and encouragements he had received.” Third, and perhaps most significant, it parallels David’s own words concerning the Word of God in Psalm 19. While John Calvin, for example, was not dogmatic, in his wonderful sermons on this Psalm, he wrote: “As David surpassed all others in point of poetical and devotional talent, I will not scruple occasionally to insert his name.” On the other hand, Puritan Mathew Poole was insistent: “The author of this Psalm was David; which I know none that deny, and of which there is no just reason to doubt.” Spurgeon agreed:

We believe that David wrote this Psalm. It is Davidic in tone and expression, and it tallies with David’s experience in many interesting points. In our youth our teacher called it “David’s pocket book,” and we incline to the opinion then expressed that here we have the royal diary written at various times throughout a long life. No, we cannot give up this Psalm to the enemy [i.e., critics who deny Davidic authorship]. “This is David’s spoil.” After long reading an author one gets to know his style, and a measure of discernment is acquired by which his composition is detected even if his name be concealed; we feel a kind of critical certainty that the hand of David is in this thing, yea, that it is altogether his own.

In any case, while we lean heavily toward Davidic authorship—and fail to see how it could be otherwise—we also agree with Albert Barnes that “it is sufficient to know that it was composed under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and is a repository of truths which will be of inestimable value in all ages of the world.”

The Characteristic of the Psalm

As stated already, the chief characteristic of Psalm 119 is the extolling, praising, and exalting of God’s Word. What is astounding about this characteristic, however, is the variety of ways the author refers to Scripture. He uses, in fact, no less than eight synonyms, each of which carries a little different shade of meaning or emphasis (see also the table on page 37). It is also significant that all eight are used within the first eleven verses, setting the stage for the rest of the Psalm.

First, we encounter the most frequently used term, “law” (25 times). The Hebrew is torāh, a feminine noun meaning “instruction or direction.” It most often refers to a body of teaching, and that is precisely what all Scripture is. Torāh “must be understood to mean all Divine revelation as the guide of life,” writes one commentator. “This it is which kindles the Psalmist’s enthusiasm and demands his allegiance. It is no rigid code of commands and prohibitions, but a body of teaching, the full meaning of which can only be realized gradually and by the help of Divine instruction.”[5]

The first occurrence of torāh is in verse 1: “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD.” It is significant that the Psalm begins with God’s promise to those who love and obey the body of revealed truth He has given. If we obey God’s body of revealed truth, we will be blessed. The opposite, however, is also true; if we do not obey that body of truth, we will be cursed.

Second, there is the term “testimony” (or “testimonies”; 22 times). The Hebrew is ‘ēdāh (or ‘ēdut), another feminine noun originally meaning a “testimony, witness, or warning sign.” It eventually came to be used for a solemn testimony of the will of God, a sober and serious expression of God’s standards for human behavior. Here we read not suggestions or optional proposals, rather God’s absolute standards. It is tremendously significant that the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments are called God’s “testimony” (Ex. 25:16; 31:18; 32:15). Its first occurrence is in verse 2: “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies,” again showing blessing to those who conduct themselves according to God’s standards.

Third, there is the term “precepts” (21 times). The Hebrew here is piqqud, a masculine noun meaning “precept, instruction.” It’s a poetic word, found only in the Psalms and always in the plural, that speaks of injunctions and moral obligations. It comes from a root (paqad) that “expresses the idea that God is paying attention to how He wants things ordered.”[6] It continues to amaze me how church leaders today persist in doing things the way they choose, from creating whatever methods and ministries they deem fit to running the church like they would a corporation. Instead of opening Scripture to see how God wants things ordered, we do what pleases people. The first occurrence of “precepts” in this Psalm is in verse 4, “Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently,” underscoring that God wants things done His way.

Fourth, there is the term “statutes” (21 times). The Hebrew choq (masculine noun) is derived from a verb (chaqaq) that means “to cut, inscribe, or engrave.” Oh, what a word we have here! The old euphemism “set in stone” illustrates it. God’s statutes (or decrees) are engraved in stone, showing their permanence. Its first occurrence is in verse 5, where the Psalmist says: “O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!” God’s Word is not “up for grabs,” not open for debate, not subject to reinterpretation for the times. God’s Word is set in stone!

Fifth, we encounter the term “commandments” (21 times). The Hebrew feminine noun is miswāh, which indicates a clear, definite, and authoritative command. Its first occurrence is in verse 6: “Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.” As we will see in that verse, when we keep God’s Word, when we obey Him implicitly, we will never have to apologize, never need to be ashamed because we have failed to keep that Word.

Sixth, there is the term “judgments” (23 times). The Hebrew mishpāt (masculine noun) indicates a binding judicial decision that establishes a precedent, a binding law. Not only does God’s Word give us precepts,” as noted earlier, but it also provides precedents. Tragically, many Bible interpreters ignore the precedents of Scripture. One graphic example is the clear precedent in Scripture of the primacy of preaching. True biblical and expositional preaching has all but vanished, being replaced by things that are “more appropriate to the modern mind,” it is argued, or “more appealing to the unchurched.” The first occurrence of “judgments” is in verse 7, “I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments,” indicating that we praise God only when we follow the precedents set down in His Word. It is absolutely impossible to praise God fully unless His Word is our sole authority.

Seventh and eighth, there is the term “word,” which actually translates two different Hebrew words in our Authorized Version. The first is dābār (masculine noun occurring 23 times), which means “a word or speech” and is a general term for God’s revelation. The Ten Commandments are referred to in Exodus 34:28 and Deuteronomy 10:4 using this word, which we could translate “the ten words” because these words are exactly what God said. The passion of the Christian should not be the most entertaining speaker of the day or the latest self-help teacher. The believer’s passion should be, “God says.” Its first occurrence in Psalms 119 is in verse 9: “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word,” a clear reference to God’s moral law being the one and only path to right living.

The second Hebrew word translated “word” is ‘imrāh, a rare poetic word that appears more in this Psalm than everywhere else combined. It is more or less a synonym for dābār and simply emphasizes not just a concept or thought but the very words of God. Its first occurrence is again verse 11: Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. In a day when God’s words are more and more being replaced by concepts (“dynamic equivalence”), Psalm 119 underscores that it is the individual words that are crucial. The same principle is underscored in 12:6–7: “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.”

Oh, what depth we see in these words! One writer well summarizes: “With exquisite beauty and with inspired depth of thought the writer of Psalm 119 draws out these varied aspects of the Divine Truth, and presents the law of God in every light in which the experience of a godly man can regard it.”[7] This brings us to one more emphasis in this glorious Psalm.

Eight Synonyms for Scripture in Psalms 119

*Hebrew*	*English*	*Occurrences*
torāh [tor-aw]	Law (instruction or direction)	(25): 1,18,29,34,44,51,53,55,61,70, 72,77,85,92, 97,109,113,116,136, 142,150,153,163,165,174
‘ēdāh (‘ēdut) [ay-daw, ay-dooth]	Testimony(ies) (a solemn testimony of the will of God)	(22): 2,14,22,24,31,36,46,59,79,88, 95,99, 111,119,125,129,138,144, 152,157,167,168.
piqqud [pik-kood]	Precepts (injunctions and moral obligations)	(21): 4,15,27,40,45,56,63,68,78,87, 93,94,100,104,110,128,134,141, 159,168,173
choq [khoke]	Statutes (engraved in stone, showing permanence)	(21): 5,8,12,23,26,44,48,54,64,68, 71,80, 83,112,117,118,124,135,145, 155,171
miswāh [mis-waw]	Commandment(s) (clear, definite, and authoritative command)	(22): 6,10,19,21,32,35,47,48,60,66, 73,86,96,98,115,127,131,143,151, 166,172,176
mishpāt [mish-pawt]	Judgment(s) (binding judicial decision, precedent, binding law	(23): 7,13,20,30,39,43,52,62,75,84, 91,102,106, 108,120,121,132,137, 149,156,160,164,175
dābār [daw-bawr]	Word(s) (a word or speech; a general term)	(23): 9,16,17,25,28,42,43,49,57,65, 74,81,89,101,105,107,114,130,139, 147,160, 161,169
‘imrāh [im-raw’]	Word(s) (the very individual words of God)	(19): 11,38,41,50,58,67,76,82,103, 116, 123,133,140,148,154,158,162, 170,172

The Content of the Psalm

The great expositor Alexander Maclaren (1826–1910) writes this exquisite description of Psalm 119:

There is music in its monotony, which is subtlety varied. Its verses are like ripples on a sunny sea, alike and impressive in their continual march, and yet each catching the light with a difference, and breaking on the shore in a tone of its own. . . . There are but few pieces in the psalmist’s kaleidoscope, but they fall into many shapes of beauty.[8]

Such a truth creates a problem for us mortals, however. So deep, so profound, and so subtle are these “ripples” that the expositor shrinks before them and feels entirely inadequate to comment. In the introduction of his wonderful exposition of this Psalm, for example, Charles Spurgeon records the words of William De Burgh (1860), who in-turn writes of Augustine’s struggle with the depth of this Psalm:

It is recorded of the celebrated St. Augustine, who among his voluminous works left a Comment on the Book of Psalms, that he delayed to comment on this one till he had finished the whole Psalter; and then yielded only to the long and vehement urgency of his friends, “because,” he says, “as often as I essayed to think thereon, it always exceeded the powers of my intent thought and the utmost grasp of my faculties.”

Spurgeon himself also writes of his own struggles in expositing this Psalm:

I have been all the longer over this portion of my task [of writing The Treasury of David] because I have been bewildered in the expanse of the One Hundred and Nineteenth Psalm, which makes up the bulk of this [third] volume. Its dimensions and its depth alike overcame me. It spread itself out before me like a vast, rolling prairie, to which I could see no bound, and this alone created a feeling of dismay. Its expanse was unbroken by a bluff or headland, and hence it threatened a monotonous task, although the fear has not been realized. This marvelous poem seemed to me a great sea of holy teaching, moving, in its many verses, wave upon wave; altogether without an island of special and remarkable statement to break it up. I confess I hesitated to launch upon it. Other psalms have been mere lakes, but this is the main ocean. It is a continent of sacred thought, every inch of which is fertile as the garden of the Lord: it is an amazing level of abundance, a mighty stretch of harvest fields. I have now crossed the great plain for myself, but not without persevering, and, I will add, pleasurable, toil. Several great authors have traversed this region and left their tracks behind them, and so far the journey has been all the easier for me; but yet to me and to my helpers it has been no mean feat of patient authorship and research. This great Psalm is a book in itself: instead of being one among many psalms, it is worthy to be set forth by itself as a poem of surpassing excellence. Those who have never studied it may pronounce it commonplace, and complain of its repetitions; but to the thoughtful student it is like the great deep, full, so as never to be measured; and varied, so as never to weary the eye. Its depth is as great as its length; it is mystery, not set forth as mystery, but concealed beneath the simplest statements; may I say that it is experience allowed to prattle, to preach, to praise, and to pray like a child prophet in his own father’s house?

Still another writes, this psalm “represents in the highest degree ‘the paradox of seeming simplicity overlying fathomless depth.’”[9]

I cannot express how much those statements meant to me the first time I read them, for I confess to the same feeling. I tried preaching through this Psalm several years before this present exposition but stopped after the second stanza. The depth simply overwhelmed me, and I knew I was going to have to grow more as both a Christian and expositor before I could return to it. After a few years, I did return, and I thank God I was able to get through it this time, although I have merely scratched the surface. One of my humble observations of this Psalm, however, is that its content can be simply stated in two propositions: The sole sufficiency of Scripture and the psalmist’s steadfast commitment to Scripture.

The Sole Sufficiency of Scripture

I recently heard this pointed, and true, statement from a leading evangelical leader who is thankfully not of the status quo:

It seems to me that one of the most subtle and dangerous threats facing the Word of God is coming from within the category of evangelical Christianity by people who claim to believe the Bible to be the Word of God but betray a lack of trust in its sufficiency, and therein speak evil of [it]. It has forced me to ask the question, Is the Bible really sufficient for matters of spiritual life? Is it sufficient for the people of God and all the necessary resources for the fullness of living in the will of God? Or do we need to concede that the Bible has some glaring limitations that can only be overcome by wisdom and technique developed by well-meaning people who want to help God out a little bit?[10]

There is, indeed, absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the Bible today is under more attack than ever before in its history. It is attacked by the rationalist, the evolutionist, the sociologist, the socialist, the psychologist and psychiatrist, the philosopher, and every other ilk of society. It is dismissed as irrelevant, old fashioned, inappropriate, and even damaging to people’s self-esteem and society in general. Infinitely more appalling and inexplicable, however, is that it is under attack by so-called evangelicals. From the modern church builder, to the latest entertaining motivational speaker, and on to the rationalistic textual critic, the Bible is simply not the sole, solitary, and sufficient authority for all aspects of faith and practice. In our arrogance, we think we need to help God out a little bit.

In contrast, as one reads Psalm 119, the answers to such problems become so clear that only the blindest (or most rebellious) reader can miss them. There is absolutely no doubt in the author’s mind that the Word of God is solely sufficient in every area of life. Scripture alone was his solace, his satisfaction, his surety, and his sufficiency. Let us consider six areas concerning this sufficiency. We will touch on several verses that we will more deeply examine in our exposition, but we here take a brief tour.

Sufficient for Salvation

The very first thing about this sufficiency is that it can, by itself, save and transform a life. Here is a pivotal truth. Verse 41 declares: “Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation, according to thy word.” Verse 50 echoes, “This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.” “Quickened” translates the Hebrew hāyāh, a verb meaning to be alive, to live, to keep alive. It is used in several ways: to show that an object is safe (Num. 14:38), to indicate that something is reviving (Ezek. 37:5), and to demonstrate that something is flourishing (Ps. 22:26). The Word of God, then, brings life, sustains life, and is our life.

We also read in verse 146: “I cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies.” “Save” is yāsha’, “to save, help, deliver, or defend.” The “underlying idea of this verb is bringing to a place of safety or broad pasture as opposed to a narrow strait.”[11] The Word of God is, indeed, the only place of safety we can ever know.

Again in verse 155 we read, “Salvation is far from the wicked: for they seek not thy statutes,” which demonstrates that salvation simply comes only to those who seek God’s Word. We then read in 166, “LORD, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments,” and again in 174: “I have longed for thy salvation, O LORD; and thy law is my delight.”

This truth is pivotal because many people in our day think that the Bible is simply not enough to bring about change. The Gospel must be repackaged to appeal to people’s “felt needs.” But Scripture alone, the preaching of salvation, is sufficient to bring life and nourish that life. People today are simply getting what appeals to the flesh, not what transforms and sustains the life. As Paul wrote to the Romans: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (1:16). How appalling it is that many today are ashamed of the very thing (and only thing) that is sufficient to bring salvation! This leads to a second principle.

Sufficient for Security

In the Word of God alone we find assurance. Assurance in modern thinking is based on feelings or psychological techniques. But the Word of God alone can assure us. Verse 81 declares, “My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word.” “Hope” is yāhal, to wait, tarry, trust, and hope. It’s used of Noah, for example, as he waited expectantly for the waters to recede (Gen. 8:12). It is used throughout the Psalms to indicate waiting with hope and certainty. It simply means we are expectantly waiting for God to do what He says He will do.

In verse 105 we read, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path,” and in 114, “Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word,” and again in 117, “Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually.” There, and there alone, do we find security.

Sufficient for Satisfaction

People of the world run to many things trying to find joy and relief, such as: possessions, pleasure, passion, and prestige. Tragically even many in the church do the same through mysticism, miracles, and even mindlessness. But the Psalmist testifies that he finds satisfaction only in the Word of God.

Verse 14, for example, declares: “I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches.” As noted earlier, “testimonies” refers to a sober and serious expression of God’s standards for human behavior, as that is what brings real joy. Each of us should ask, “Do I get as excited about hearing the Word of God as I do about all the other things in life? Do I get as excited about it as I do a ballgame, movie or TV program, camping or hunting trip, making money, or anything else?” Is Scripture our number one priority of life? What do we allow to come before it? What do we allow to keep us from faithful attendance in the local church where we are fed the Word? Does the Word alone satisfy our heart to the extent that nothing else is permitted to take us from it?

The Psalmist goes on in verse 47, “And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved,” and then in 50, “This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me,” and again in 54, “Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage,” and still again in 76, “Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word.”

We cannot help but also note verse 28: “My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word.” Strength is not in emotionalism or psychobabble; it’s in the Word of God. In the midst of tremendous adversity, Jeremiah declares, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart” (Jer. 15:16). We should be reminded that Jeremiah, who for more than 40 years preached against Judah’s sin and prophesied of the coming judgment of the Babylonian Captivity if she did not repent, had not one single convert. It didn’t matter if anyone believed or not—Jeremiah preached faithfully anyway. While today much of the church is driven by success, results, and numbers, Jeremiah was driven by the joy of the Word of God and the faithful preaching of it. And if we may dare add, if a preacher is not driven by that alone, he needs to get out of the ministry, for he will destroy the true work of God if he stays.

Sufficient for Simplicity

An attack that has always been, and still is, leveled against the Bible is that it is mysterious, cryptic, and subject to any number of interpretations. Verse 105, however, takes care of that accusation: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Picture yourself for a moment in a pitch-black cave. Do you think that you would consider the flashlight in your hand as mysterious or cryptic, or that you weren’t really sure of its meaning and purpose? Likewise, neither is Scripture obscure and enigmatic. It lights the path. Its commands, decrees, and mandates are clear, unmistakable, and binding. Verse 130 restates: “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” It is the only light there is for life.

Sufficient for Spotlessness

There is absolutely no taint of evil or error in Scripture. As verse 9 declares: “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.” It is pure, pristine, and polished to a gleaming perfection. It, therefore, brings about cleanness in the believer. The Psalmist declares in verse 101, “I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.” As we are permeated by the Word, it reveals the uncleanness in us, whether it be word, deed, action, or attitude. Verse 172 adds, “My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.” If we want to live holy, live right, and live without having to suffer the consequences of sin, we will open the Word of God and obey what it says.

Sufficient for Surety

In a day of unprecedented relativism and no absolutes, even in much of Christianity, the Word of God stands as the only sure source of absolute truth. This is what Peter refers to as a “more sure word of prophecy” (2 Pet. 1:19). “Sure” is the Greek bebaios, which means “fit to tread on, having a firm foundation, durable, unshakeable, sure, reliable, and certain.” Further, used in a legal sense, it meant “valid and legal.” As one Greek authority writes, “Thus the hope and confidence of man is firmly secured as by an anchor, when the object of the trust is the Word of God, which He has legally confirmed with an oath (Heb. 6:16, 19).”[12] So, as long as we cling to the Word, we will be firm, unshakable, sure, and certain.

What makes Peter’s statement so important, however, is the context. In verses 15–18, he writes about his witnessing of Christ’s transfiguration. What a staggering, earth-shaking, unforgettable, unprecedented experience that was! Oh, how many people today talk about “my experience”! Many go on to base their whole lives (and theology) on such experience. But Peter declares here that he, too, had a dramatic “personal experience” but that it cannot even begin to compare with the “more sure word of prophecy,” that is, the written Word of God. Only the Word of God is sure. There is no assurance whatsoever in personal experience. To be driven by experience and feelings is to invite defeat.

That is the Psalmist’s cry as well. In verse 128 he declares, “Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way.” He adds in 142, “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth,” and in 151, “Thou art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are truth.”

Let us also note verse 160: “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.” This surety is “for ever.” It doesn’t “change with the times” or have to be reinterpreted for each different circumstance or era. It doesn’t need to be reedited, redefined, or even retranslated to better conform to human thought, all of which are typical attitudes of our day. God’s Word has always been without error, and it always will be. It is the only source of truth.

Sadly, that is not the general attitude of our day. Instead of surety, everything is up for grabs. We have flooded our Lord’s church with man-made programs, gimmicks, humanistic psychology, worldly marketing, and a plethora of other “helps” just to get “results,” but such results are not lasting ones.

Of many Scriptural examples we could cite of those who just did things God’s way and obeyed His Word without addition or subtraction, Noah is my favorite. Here was a man who appeared to everyone outside his family to be either an eccentric at best or simply “a nut” at worst. Think of it! Though totally land-locked, he built a huge boat, all the while proclaiming it was going to rain, even though it had never rained before! Why would anyone do such a thing? Did God give Noah any signs that it was going to rain? Did He give Noah even a single piece of evidence that what He said about the coming judgment was true? No. So why did Noah do it? Simply and solely because God said to do it. That was enough for Noah; his response to what God said was: “Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he” (Gen. 6:22).

What a contrast that is to our day! How many of us today fear what people will think if we simply obey what God says? We fear that we will appear old-fashioned, behind the times, out of touch, naïve, simplistic, non-intellectual, or just plain silly if we quote the Bible. Not Noah.

Noah, in fact, teaches us another lesson. Notice that he did not build the ark because he saw “a need” for it—there wasn’t a need. There were no large bodies of water nearby, and Noah certainly didn’t live in a port city, so there was absolutely no perceived need for a big boat. In contrast, many today want to go out and “do something” just because they perceive a need. So using human reasoning they think up something to “meet the need.” That is not what Noah did. He simply did what God told him to do, no more and no less. He didn’t form a committee, he didn’t found an organization, he didn’t think up a method for ministry; he simply obeyed God by building the ark and preaching the Word. Likewise, if we would just do what God says to do, the way He says to do it, no more and no less, we will see God’s blessings like never before.

Without doubt, most of Christianity today is totally pragmatic in its approach to ministry. To many, if not most, Christian ministers, “the end justifies the means.” In other words, we can do anything we want because our motive and end result are pure. They, like Charles Finney, D. L. Moody, and others, will “do anything to get a man to God” (Moody’s own words). But is that what we see in God’s Word? Is that what we learn from Noah? No. We see a man doing what God told him to do, no more, no less.

Consider what Noah would do today if he followed modern trends. To be successful, he would build several boats and then do anything to get people on one of them. He’d run an attendance contest, give away balloons with dinosaur pictures on them, put on a stage play to dramatize the coming flood, make people feel comfortable by appealing to their “felt-needs,” sing praise choruses for an hour, have a celebrity give his testimony, and then deliver a ten-minute talk on self-esteem that might begin with the words, “God has a wonderful plan for your life so you really need to get on a boat.” While that might seem a little melodramatic, it is exactly what is happening in modern “ministry.” It is, in fact, if I may be so bold, no less than heresy because it denies God’s power to bring about His results His way. Noah’s ministry was not a pragmatic one; it was a biblical one. He did things God’s way.

The Steadfast Commitment to Scripture

The Psalmist makes his position crystal clear: he is steadfastly, stalwartly, and scrupulously committed to Scripture alone. Tragically, that simply is not true today. The sad fact of the matter is that evangelical Christianity is not wholly committed to Scripture. People truly committed to Scripture will be like the Bereans (Acts 17:10–11), discerning truth from error. People committed to Scripture will not tolerate false teaching (Gal. 1:8–9). People truly committed to Scripture will carry on ministry the way Noah did. To illustrate the Psalmist’s commitment, we’ll only list his attitudes, mentioning only a single verse for each, which we will explore in the exposition to come. The Psalmist’s attitudes to the Word of God were:

q He walked according to it (v. 1).

q He kept it (v. 2).

q He learned it (v. 7).

q He lived it (v. 9).

q He hid it in his heart (v. 10).

q He declared it (v. 13).

q He rejoiced in it (v. 14).

q He meditated on it (v. 15).

q He delighted in it (v. 16).

q He longed for it at all times (v. 20).

q He desired to understand it (v. 27).

q He chose it (v. 30).

q He stuck to it (v. 31).

q He was established in it (v. 38).

q He trusted in it (v. 42).

q He obeyed it continually forever (v. 44).

q He spoke of it before kings (v. 46).

q He loved it (v. 47).

q He did not turn from it (v. 51).

q He found comfort in it (v. 52).

q He thought on it (v. 59).

q He didn’t forget it (v. 61).

q He gave thanks for it (v. 62).

q He believed in it (v. 66).

q He valued it above all else (v. 72).

q He put his certainty in it (v. 74).

q He was not ashamed of it (v. 80)

q He accepted persecution for it (86)

q He did not forsake it (v. 87).

q He sought it (v. 94).

As we begin our exposition of this glorious Psalm, let us each examine ourselves to see if we embrace these attitudes toward the Word of God.

[1] Alexander, 481.

[2] Briggs, 417.

[3] Ibid, 416.

[4] Kirkpatrick, 701.

[5] Kirkpatrick, 700.

[6] Baker and Carpenter, #6490.

[7] Girdlestone, 231.

[8] Maclaren, 244.

[9] Kirkpatrick, 702; citing Dr. Liddon, in The Book of Psalms.

[10] John MacArthur, “The Sufficiency of Scripture,” a sermon preached on the Grace to You radio broadcast, June 22, 2006.

[11] Baker and Carpenter, #3467.

[12] Brown, Vol. I, 658.

Sola Scriptura Publications

A Light Unto My Path (Ps. 119)