Psalm 119:27

January 28, 2023

(This is an entry from a devotional commentary I am working on from Psalm 119 entitled God and His Word. The introduction can be found here, successive entries have covered the 22 sections of the Psalm, and following entries verse by verse.)

"Make me understand the way of Your precepts,

So I will meditate on Your wonders.”

I am intrigued by this verse. First, because it is intensely practical, asking You to show me ‘how do I do this?’ Second, because it anticipates wondrous works accomplished by Your word in me that I can look forward to meditating on. ‘Way’ is the Hebrew דֶּרֶךּ, Derek: A masculine noun meaning path, journey, way. I think immediately of Job 23:10: "But He knows the way I take; When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.’ May I understand my way, even while knowing that I can’t fully understand it, Proverbs 20:24. These are the 3 verses in the Scripture with both ‘understand’ and ‘way’ (Psalm 119:27, Proverbs 14:8, Proverbs 20:24). Understand is the Hebrew בִּין, biyn: A verb meaning to discern, to perceive, to observe, to pay attention to, to be intelligent, to be discreet, to understand; in the causative sense, to give understanding, to teach; in the reflexive sense, to consider diligently…In the final analysis, only God gives and conceals understanding (Isa 29:14).’ Back to Job 23:10, it is only He who fully knows my way; mine is to have the discernment to trust Him.

‘…the surest way of keeping up our communion with God is by learning his statutes and walking intelligently in the way of his precepts. See 1Jn 1:6, 1Jn 1:7. 3. The good use he would make of this for the honour of God and the edification of others: “Let me have a good understanding of the way of thy precepts; give me a clear, distinct, and methodical knowledge of divine things; so shall I talk with the more assurance, and the more to the purpose, of thy wondrous works.” We can talk with a better grace of God's wondrous works, the wonders of providence, and especially the wonders of redeeming love, when we understand the way of God's precepts and walk in that way.’[1]

‘Give me a deep insight into the practical meaning of thy word; let me get a clear idea of the tone and tenor of thy law. Blind obedience has but small beauty; God would have us follow him with our eyes open.. Our understanding needs enlightenment and direction- he who made our understanding must also make us understand…he is not concerned about the subtleties of the law, but the commonplaces and everyday rules of it, which are described as “the way of thy precepts.”… we take it to mean that in proportion as David understood the word of God he would meditate upon it more and more. It is usually so; the thoughtless care not to know the inner meaning of the Scriptures, while those who know them best are the very men who strive after a greater familiarity with them, and therefore give themselves up to musing upon them.’[2]

[1] The Pulpit Commentary, on Psalm 119:27, e-Sword edition, with emphasis

[2] Spurgeon, Charles Haddon, Treasury of David, on Psalm 119:27, e-Sword edition