Psalm 119:137-144
Tsadhe
137 Righteous are you, O Lord,
and right are your rules.
138 You have appointed your testimonies in righteousness
and in all faithfulness.
139 My zeal consumes me,
because my foes forget your words.
140 Your promise is well tried,
and your servant loves it.
141 I am small and despised,
yet I do not forget your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is righteous forever,
and your law is true.
143 Trouble and anguish have found me out,
but your commandments are my delight.
144 Your testimonies are righteous forever;
give me understanding that I may live. (ESV)
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
The psalmist has an untouchable joy because he is so focused on God’s commands! This isn’t the usual perspective in trouble and distress! If people are in some kind of trial or hardship their disobedience of God’s commands is viewed as understandable and even expected because of the strain of the circumstances. I love how the psalmist’s devotion to and delight in God’s commands and obedience to them doesn’t waver because of difficult circumstances. His heart is set on God’s Word.
James 1:2-3 has this same perspective, and commands us to have joy obeying God’s commands in tough circumstances. When I have trouble I need to delight in obeying God’s commands even more in an opportunity to endure in trusting him. This is a really good reminder for me today!
Ps 119:144 Your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live.
No matter what personal circumstances we find ourselves in, it’s always best to rest on the Rock of Christ – even when we are hurting or have horrible events. Our attitude should be like Job: we should seek God’s understanding at all times, especially during trial. And Phil 4:6-7 shows us the way and the result that the Psalmist calls out! 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
When God makes a promise, He will make sure that He carries out what He said He would. So EVERY SINGLE time that God says He will do something, it He WILL do it. He might not do it right away, but He will do it eventually. Some promises, might take a very long time to be fufilled. God promised Abraham waaaaaay back then that He would make his descendants as numerous as the sand. Look at all the Hebrew people today, proof of His promise completed. We can know for 100% without a doubt that He will always keep His promises.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
God is forever and so are His words He speaks. He gave us a law to follow and we need to follow it with our whole heart. :]
***REMEMBER TO OBEY OUR GOD’S COMMANDS***
138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
Sometimes, I know it is for me, it’s hard to fully trust God with EVERYTHING. But as it says here, his statutes are righteous and FULLY trustworthy.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
like this verse cause its saying God
is everlasting
and all his laws are true
we need to obey his laws!
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
Through tough times, the psalmist still obeys and finds delight in God commands. I struggle most when I am going through tough times. I need to be like the Psalmist. I need to find a way to change that, that’s through God’s Word.
138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
God commands are just like him. They are always applicable and always there. They do not change. We should get in the habit of following them and once we get into the practice of doing so, it will get easier and easier because they are always the same, and always need to be followed. God has set out his commands very clearly and is very specific about what to do and what not to do.
144 Your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live.
His Law, Word, commands etc. are ALWAYS right, into eternity. Isn’t that encouraging? I love it because in a world where rules change, and things change His Word is constant and everlasting! It is through those things that we gain more wisdom that we might live!
NEW BLOG :) click on my name…
144 Your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live.
This is such a great verse. God’s commands and the Word of the Bible are going to be true forever. He has always kept His commands and his laws will continue forever. No matter what might change in our planet, the Word of God continues forever. Through this Word God has fulfilled and given us the understanding that we will live forever if we put our faith in Jesus Christ. Through Him we can live forever worshipping our Lord and Savior.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
People everywhere are “searching” for “truth.” What that really means is they are looking for some justification to act/believe whatever THEY want to. They are not really looking for absolute TRUTH. The only place to find truth is in God’s Word…but this isn’t what people want because the Bible shows them what they are doing wrong and tells them they need to change. It is so comforting to know that every morning when I read my Bible I’m reading truth…I don’t need to go searching for it and it is not going to change for me. God’s righteousness is forever and his Word is true. I need to change so that my life matches with the truth I read.
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
Jesus promises that “in this world you will have trouble. But take heart I have overcome the world.” John 16:33b
It is not a question IF troubles and distress will hit us, it is a matter of WHEN. Will we be ready for them? How will we respond when they hit us? If we are relying on the Word and doing everything we can to put it into practice, when the troubles come, we will overcome them. When the rain comes down, the streams rise up around us, and the winds beat against us, we will remain standing. This is because our life sits on the solid foundation of the Rock. However, if we have been relying on ourselves and have not been reading the Word and putting it into practice we will fall with a great crash. This is because our foundation was of sand (Matthew 7:24-27).
No matter how good our life is right now, we have to realize that prosperity is fleeting. Troubles will come someday. It would be wise to build our lives on rock and not sand.
I like the phrase “untouchable joy” that Christa used to describe the Psalmist. God’s word should fill us up with confidence because it is the one real, lasting thing in an otherwise fleeting world. We can be assured that his words and commands are as pure and righteous as he is. The Psalmists love and trust of God’s words is so strong that anyone who ignores them is like an enemy to him in comparison.
143 “Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.”
What an awesome attitude the Psalmist has here! Even though he’s troubled and distressed in tough times, he finds happiness in the Lord’s commands. Wow! This is how we should respond to trials and affliction: reliance on God and delight in his Word!
141 Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.
This verse reminded me of a book I’m reading right now called Tortured for Christ!! This pastor of an underground church in communist Romania was put in prison numerous times, but he chose to continue to obey God’s word and follow Him no matter what happened!! His attitude reflected that of the psalmist in this verse. It reminded me to pray for missionaries everywhere being tortured for their faith and that we would keep the same attitude when being persecuted. :D
*deep breathing* man it is so good to be back on here! I seriously haven’t been on a computer for a while! and what better way to start then on SOTD! :D
Nice comments everyone and Kelsey I never noticed that, that is something! makes me go “hmmmm” :D
Like many of you guys have said God is righteous along with all of His laws, perfect in every way. It made me think of all the commands that God gives us and how Jesus was able to follow alllllllllll of them! Isn’t that amazing? I have trouble following one in a day! wow Lord you are amazing! :) We can trust God because He just CANT break a promise, it’s not possible for Him. He and His law are everlasting and His Word will always stand!
143 “Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.”
I gotta say this was quite convicting for me! Lord when trouble and distress come upon me, I want you to be my comfort and delight along with Your Word that I may always be joyful the way You call me to be! and verse 141 is amazing God! :D
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
these are good verses God we need to see spread the word of God.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
Thank God that he is always with us. It gives us security to know that we will always be in his thoughts. He loves us so much and honestly we should have an intense desire to obey him. Since his law is always true, we know how to please him. He makes it easy for us to understand and gives us all the laws and what he wants, no questions asked. Only those who truly love him will try to obey these laws that he has set before us.
144 Your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live.
We need to thank GOD daily for his gift of eternal life. We don’t deserve it, we shouldn’t have it but through JESUS CHRIST we can live. We no longer have to depend on the law for our salvation, we can’t. Only GOD can free us.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
mmmmmmmm.. i just love how this verse reminds us that God is everlasting! His mercy, His love, His righteousness is everlasting!! They will never fail!! (:
My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.
This verse reminds me of a conversation I had with my son late last night. While he was at work, he began a two hour discussion with an openly homosexual female. He consistently presented the biblical truth as he witnessed but the girl always responded with disbelief. As the evening came to an end, she stated that the Christian faith has a bad reputation because Christians are always pushing their beliefs and are intolerant of others views. What is sad about that statement is that she failed to see witnessing as an act of love, showing care and concern for the salvation of others.
The psalmist has also found himself in a situation where Gods word is being ignored. Regardless of the rejection the psalmist is experiencing, he refuses to forget Gods instructions. That is so encouraging to me. We can’t let people’s lack of regard for God’s word, to discourage us from continuing to proclaim it! If we truly love God, we will be prepared to speak the truth in love, even when people don’t choose to listen to a word we say.
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
I agree with Christa! God’s word does give us untouchable joy. This joy is not affected by other people or circumstances, because we are delighting in somthing that will never change. God’s word is eternal, so we can delight in it forever.
This SOTD is wonderful.
“141 Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.”
We never “forget” God or his Word and Law, for it is constant. When we follow them, we recognize them, and He delights in us following him. And even when we sin, we do not forget his precepts, for they will haunt us until we repent and right our wrongs, and even then we will not forget. When we follow His word, we are filled with boundless joy, unlimited happiness, and are enveloped in His embrace. When we sin, we (hopefully) feel sadness, pain, and aches within our hearts because we (again, hopefully) realize that what we did was sinful and wrong, and that we cause Him sadness and hurt because we were meant to live for so much more than a materialistic, lustful, sinful life.
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
In the hard times in life look for God! He will always be there no matter what the circumstance and the word will be right there by him to reassure and comfort you even more! He will never stop loving you for trusting him =D
138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
It is soooo awesome that God and the Bible are entirely righteous and trustworthy. This makes banking my life on the Bible pretty worthwhile!
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
when i read this verse i thought about how at times we find it a burden to do what is right and obey His commands but as his servants we are to love them and obey them gladly.
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
No matter what when God makes a promise He will come through with it. Do what is right. We are Gods servants and when God has come through with the promise we love Him. We love God no matter what .
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
This is a good reminder! The Bible is full of fulfilled prophecy. God has proven that he keeps his promises. Those promises are something we can ALWAYS be sure of- no matter how uncertain everything else is.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
God’s holiness last forever. We should not invest our time and our hearts in temporary things of this world when we can be serving God. Think about it: Orange County, or Heaven..? Heaven!
139 My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
This sounds like someone who works hard, even to the extent of being worn out. This brings about a question: Are we literally wearing ourselves out for the gospel? Being worn out is like coming home after a day of packed whatever (sports, school, work…), when we feel so tired that we collapse from lack of rest. Can we say that this is our drive for the sharing the gospel? This is pretty difficult, but could we at least make a decent effort to glorify our redeemer by taking to heart his last commission. I believe all of us, including me, should have an attitude like that of Paul’s.
“However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” (Acts 20:24).
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
When we are going through tough times, we need to realize that we can turn to God’s word to lift us up and help us through anything. <333
143.) Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands are my delight.
Christ, great point on this verse, how during trials it is acceptable for people to disobey here and there…but we need to have the attitude of the psalmist here and ALWAYS be following God’s commands whatever the circumstances.
v. 139
The work ethic in this verse is encouraging. To be working so hard that you are literally worn out and push yourself to the limit of exhaustion even when people are ignorant to the Gospel.This is a great verse!
138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
This verse is an encouraging reminder that God is always faithful! If He has promised something in His Word, it will come true because His statutes are fully trustworthy. This reminder is especially comforting when I think about my salvation. I am saved not because of my righteousness, but because of Christ’s mercy (Titus 3:5-6). I can rest daily knowing that God is completly faithful and forgiving to me even when I am unfaithful!! Praise the Lord for His mercy and grace!
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
This what i love about God, His word has never been proven wrong! a lot of people don’t know that, but i think it’s pretty interesting.
141 Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
Even though sometimes we may feel lowly or put-down, we should never forget God’s word. Like it says in verse 142 “Your righteousness is everlasting…” God’s righteousness and love is everlasting. So whenever we are feeling put-down by this world, we need to remember that our God’s righteousness is everlasting and will never let us down or disappointed.
139 My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
I really liked this idea of being worn out from zeal for the Gospel. The psalmist talks about how good and righteous God’s Word is, and he then says he has zeal because there are people who ignore the Word, even though it is the truth. I want to be like the psalmist and wear myself out to exhaustion, not for school or other things, but become exhausted by evangelizing so that people might see the truth of God’s Word and come to repentance.
139 My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
This verse is really good. Its true that our enemies ignore our words, but its those words that plant those seeds in their hearts. Just because we don’t seem like what were doing is making a difference, doesn’t mean its not.