Monthly Archives January 2015

Vs. 16 — I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.

Thomas Manton:

Delight preventeth forgetfulness; the mind will run upon that which the heart is delighted in; and the heart is where the treasure is, Mat. 6:21. … What a man delighteth in he will be talking of; so should you at home and abroad: (Manton, T. (1872). The Complete Works of Thomas Manton (Vol. 6, p. 148). London: James Nisbet & Co.)

John Piper:

So the Bible is the Word of God, and the Word of God is no trifle. It is the source of life and faith and hope and freedom and guidance and wisdom and comfort and assurance and victory over our greatest enemy. Is it any wonder, then, that those who knew best said, “The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart” (Psalm 19:8)? “I will delight in thy statutes, I will not forget thy word” (Psalm 119:16). “Oh, how I love thy law, it is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97). “Thy testimonies are my heritage for ever, yea, they are the joy of my heart” (Psalm 119:111). “Thy words were found, and I ate them, and thy words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I am called by thy name” (Jeremiah 15:16). But are we to pursue this joy like Christian Hedonists? Are we to throw the kindling of God’s Word on the fire of joy? Are we to pursue our holy pleasure by meditating on the Word of Christ? Indeed, we are. For the Lord himself has said, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you and your joy may be full” (John 15:11). (Piper, J. (2007). Sermons from John Piper (1980–1989). Minneapolis, MN: Desiring God.)

Prayer:

O’ God, You are my God, and I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word. Father, You have given me a joy in Your word. I cannot explain why or how, but the evidence is plain. I know that this love for Your word is not a manufactured love. It is not an earned love for Your word. I thank You for making Your word spring in heart. I also ask for help to remember what You teach me. May Your statutes by rooted into my heart so that they cannot leave.

Vs. 15 — I will meditate on Your precepts, And contemplate Your ways.

William Gurnall:

Shall God leave but one book to his church’s care and study, and shall it not be read? Shall we be told there is so rich a treasure laid up in this mine, and we continue so beggarly in our knowledge, rather than take a little pains by digging in it to come by it? The canker and rust of our gold and silver, which is got with harder labor than is required here, will rise up in judgment against many, and say, “You could drudge and trudge for us that are now turned to rust and dust, but could walk over the field of the word, where an incorruptible treasure lay, and would lose it rather than your sloth!” (Ritzema, E., & Vince, E. (Eds.). (2013). 300 Quotations for Preachers from the Puritans. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.)

Prayer:

O’ Lord, I will meditate on Your precepts, and I will contemplate Your ways. I will because I want to, more so because I need to. Your precepts–those responsibilities that You have put before us, I will take seriously. Give me understanding in them, and also in all of Your ways. Holy Spirit, feed my wife and children the desire to meditate on Your precepts and ways. Let their minds understand and be fed, that they may continue to walk with You and see Your grace at work.

Vs. 14 —  I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches.

Delight in the word of God is a sure proof that it has taken effect upon the heart, and so is cleansing the life. (Spurgeon, C. H. (2009). The treasury of David: Psalms 111-119 (Vol. 5, p. 160). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)

Yes, O’ Lord, I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. Father God, I prefer to hear and rejoice in the way of Your testimonies and Your acts than any of man’s accomplishments. When I hear of the great things that You have done and are doing in the hearts and lives of men, I rejoice as men do when finding great earthly treasures. Your testimonies are rich and eternal, far more valuable than the gold and silver of this land and this life. Blessed be the God who does great and mighty things among the sons of men. Our hearts are Yours to fill with eternal riches.

Vs. 13 — With my lips I have declared all the judgments of Your mouth.

Comments from Thomas Manton:

For the coherence of these words, you may refer them either to the 11th or 12th verse. If to the 11th verse, there he speaks of hiding the word in his heart, and now it breaks out in his tongue. First it must be in the heart, and next in the tongue.  (Manton, T. (1872). The Complete Works of Thomas Manton (Vol. 6, pp. 118–119). London: James Nisbet & Co.)

Comments from Charles H. Spurgeon:

Lips which have been used in proclaiming God’s statutes are sure to be acceptable when pleading God’s promises. If we have had such regard to that which cometh out of God’s mouth that we have published it far and wide, we may rest quite assured that God will have respect unto the prayers which come out of our mouths. (Spurgeon, C. H. (2009). The treasury of David: Psalms 111-119 (Vol. 5, p. 160). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)

Prayer:

O’ God, with my lips I have declared all the judgments of Your mouth. And God, continue to fill my heart with Your righteous judgments so that my lips cannot resist from sharing and teaching them. Grant me courage and boldness that I be not ashamed of Your judgments, that is, Your truth and righteousness. Let the truth from heaven go out to the four corners of the earth that Jesus Christ may be gloried and praised.

Vs. 12 — Blessed are You, O Lord! Teach me Your statutes.

Comments from Thomas Manton:

… ‘Blessed art thou, O Lord;’ that is, Thou art the object of my blessedness; my blessedness lieth in the enjoyment of thee; therefore teach me thy statutes. If God be our chiefest good and our utmost end, it concerns us nearly to learn out the way how we may enjoy him: John 17:3, ‘This is life eternal, to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.’ It concerns believers to study that wherein their eternal happiness consisteth, and what is the way to get it: ‘Thou art blessed, and therefore teach me thy statutes.’ (Manton, T. (1872). The Complete Works of Thomas Manton (Vol. 6, p. 108). London: James Nisbet & Co.)

Prayer:

Father God, Blessed by Thy Name! You are my God and Lord, and there is no other God besides Thee. Your statutes are perfect. Man’s ways fall short and are corrupted by imperfect hearts; they are at best limited by the finiteness of mortality and therefore short of all knowledge, righteousness, and truth. I need Your statutes to lead me in this life and to lead me to the life to come. Teach me Your statutes. I do not ask this for myself alone, but also for my family, for my church, and for all the saints. Teach us Your statutes, O’ Lord.