The Psalm of the Word (Part 21): Reverence

The Psalm of the Word

Princes persecute me without cause,
But my heart stands in awe of Your words.

I rejoice at Your word,
As one who finds great spoil.

I hate and despise falsehood,
But I love Your law.

Seven times a day I praise You,
Because of Your righteous ordinances.

Those who love Your law have great peace,
And nothing causes them to stumble.

I hope for Your salvation, O Lord,
And do Your commandments.

My soul keeps Your testimonies,
And I love them exceedingly.

I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies,
For all my ways are before You.

(Psalm 119:161-168)

In this lesson, we will focus on the idea of reverence. If we fear God, we should hold His word in the highest regard. This will necessarily lead us to respond in a certain way toward His word.

We Should Stand in Awe of God’s Words

Princes persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of Your words” (Psalm 119:161).

The word translated awe is the word for fear. Depending on the context, it could mean frightened or reverent (for God). In this context, this is about reverence and respect for God.

We are familiar with the concept of fearing God. The wise man wrote, “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Peter told the household of Cornelius, “In every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him” (Acts 10:35). Referring to the need to fear God, Jesus said, “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). If we fear God, that will lead us to do certain things:

  • We will respect God for who His is. In order to “offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe,” we must recognize that He is “a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29).
  • As we revere God, we will obey Him. Again, we are expected to “fear God and keep His commandments” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).
  • We should tremble before Him, knowing His ability and willingness to punish the wicked. Reminding the brethren of the Israelites who were punished by God, the Hebrew writer said, “Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it” (Hebrews 4:1). God’s people were led out of Egypt but perished in the wilderness. This should serve as an example to us to “not crave evil things as they also craved” (1 Corinthians 10:6).

Just as we stand in awe of God, we must also stand in awe of His words (Psalm 119:161).

  • We must show the same respect for God’s word that the people did when Ezra read the book of the law to them. “When he opened it, all the people stood up” (Nehemiah 8:5). They were willing to listen “from early morning until midday” (Nehemiah 8:3). This indicated the respect they had for God’s word.
  • Respect for God’s word must result in obedience. In the same example, when the people learned God’s word, they obeyed it (Nehemiah 8:8-18). We cannot know how to please God apart from His word (cf. Deuteronomy 29:29; 1 Corinthians 2:11-12).
  • We should tremble at His word as it is “able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). We will be rewarded or punished based upon how we measure up to this standard (Revelation 22:12-15, 18-19).

We Should Praise God for His Words

I rejoice at Your word, as one who finds great spoil” (Psalm 119:162).

Seven times a day I praise You, because of Your righteous ordinances” (Psalm 119:164).

We rejoice at God’s word because it is valuable. We have seen this already in this psalm: “Therefore I love Your commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold” (Psalm 119:127). In another psalm, David explained in more detail why the word of God is valuable: “The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward” (Psalm 19:7-11). Notice what the word of God does:

  • God’s word restores the soul, bringing us back into a right relationship with God.
  • God’s word makes us wise so that we might know what we should do.
  • God’s word rejoices the heart, bringing us true joy.
  • God’s word enlightens the eyes, so that we might gain understanding.
  • God’s word endures forever and will not pass away.
  • God’s word is true and righteous, providing the perfect standard for us to follow.

David then wrote, “Seven times a day I praise You” (Psalm 119:164). There are many reasons to praise God, but in this context, he was focusing on the word of God. Seven is a complete number. Rather than referring to an actual number of times he would praise God, he described himself as being completely and continually given to praise. This should describe us as well. “Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).

We Must Recognize the Distinction Between Truth and Error

I hate and despise falsehood, but I love Your law” (Psalm 119:163).

We must first recognize that there is a difference between truth and error (cf. 1 John 4:6). Truth is objective, not subjective. “The sum of Your word is truth” (Psalm 119:160). God’s law – not whatever man might think – is the way of truth. Remember the example of Naaman. When he was told to do something he did not expect to have to do, he was upset and said, “Behold, I thought…” (2 Kings 5:11). We must remember that what we think is irrelevant if it is contrary to what God has said.

Our attitude should not be one of compromise, tolerance, or double-mindedness when it comes to handling truth and error. David said, “I hate and despise falsehood” (Psalm 119:163). We must be able to say the same as well. If we firmly believe that God’s word is the truth, that will affect our attitude toward error. Remember the reasons why we praise God for His word (Psalm 19:7-11). Error does the opposite of truth.

  • As the truth restores our soul, error separates us from God.
  • As the truth makes us wise, error makes us (or keeps us) foolish.
  • As the truth rejoices the heart, error causes sorrow.
  • As the truth enlightens the eyes, error darkens our understanding.
  • As the truth endures forever, error passes away.
  • As the truth provides us with the perfect standard of righteousness, error leads us down a path of wickedness.

As we consider this list, we can clearly see that it is a serious matter for us to distinguish between truth and error.

We Enjoy Peace as We Follow God’s Word

Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble” (Psalm 119:165).

Though we have “great peace” as we follow God’s law (Psalm 119:165), that does not necessarily mean we will enjoy peace in the world (cf. Psalm 119:161). Paul warned, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). Jesus told His apostles, “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

What kind of peace do we have by following God’s word? First, we enjoy peace with God. John wrote, “God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. […] But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7). As we obey God, we have fellowship with Him.

Second, we enjoy the peace of a good conscience. The wise man told his son, “Keep sound wisdom and discretion” (Proverbs 3:21). If his son would do this, he said, “When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet” (Proverbs 3:24). We can rest easier at night when we have nothing in our lives of which we should be ashamed.

Third, we enjoy the peace that comes from hope. Paul wrote, “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” (Romans 15:4). It is comforting to be able to look to God’s word, see how He has always kept His promises, and know that we can be assured of a reward (cf. Hebrews 6:17-18).

We Obey God’s Word in Light of Future Judgment

I hope for Your salvation, O Lord, and do Your commandments. My soul keeps Your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly. I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You” (Psalm 119:166-168).

The psalmist looked forward to salvation (Psalm 119:166); but in order to be saved, he needed to obey the Lord. He stated his commitment to doing this: “I…do Your commandments. My soul keeps Your testimonies… I keep Your precepts” (Psalm 119:166-168).

He also recognized the fact that nothing in his life was hidden from God: “For all my ways are before You” (Psalm 119:168). God will hold all of us accountable for what we have done. As we must be in awe of God’s word, we must also be in awe of God. This necessarily involves the fear of the Lord – “It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31) – so that we will obey Him. Remember the words of the wise man: “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14). Knowing this is awaiting us, we must obey God’s word.

Conclusion

We need to have a great respect for God and His word (Psalm 119:161). This must lead us to humbly obey the instructions He has given.


This entire series is available in paperback. Click on the link for more information – The Psalm of the Word: A Study of Psalm 119.


.