DESIRE FULFILLED; MEDITATION REWARDED

Bill Fitzhenry's Thoughts For Today…

Understanding important truths from the Bible….

Psalm 119:1-3 KJV

 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.

² Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.

³ They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.

ESV

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord!
² Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart,
³ who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!

The believer loves the law of God.  He may fail to study it therefore misunderstand it.  He may err in applying it, but it is so integral to the Christian life he cannot ignore it.

Again let me state that ignorance of the law, failure by the pulpit to teach it, the confusion between legal righteousness and faith righteousness, and outright ignoring its demands, is a primary cause of the low state of church.

The 119^th Psalm begins with the “blessed man”.  In this beginning there is a twofold description of this man.  His blessing is a divine prerogative.  But it is directed to the ones “who walk in the law of the Lord,” and those “keep His testimonies.”  A Puritan said, “As Psalm One is a door to all the Psalms, vs. 1-2 of this Psalm is the door by which it is entered.”  This is meant to inform the reader that ’the blessed“ is the elect from God’s side and the believer from the human side.  And it is inclusive.  Those who do not fit or refuse this description of the Psalm do not fit under the twofold title Elect and believer.

The ESV has done an excellent service to translation here.  It does not have a period at the end of vs two, but extends the sentence through vs three.  Verse three can be understood as the summation of vs 1-2.  In this summary the conduct of the “blessed” is described.  In their everyday conduct “iniquity” is foreign to them.

They are the same one who in Psalm 1:1 are separated from the world in all their conduct.  This conduct is to “walk in His ways”.  It is the same as “the path of the just” in Proverbs 4:18.  Again James 1:25 tells us this is not legalism but liberty.

Psalm 119 should be our confession and prayer.  Please read Matt. 5:17-19.