Psalm 119:66
(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.)
"Teach me good discernment and knowledge,
For I believe in Your commandments."
‘Teach’ has the sense of training for war. Good discernment and knowledge come in no small part from the affliction the Lord uses in our lives (Psalm 119:67, Psalm 119:71). Discernment and knowledge are by nature ultimately good (Proverbs 16:20, Proverbs 19:8). ‘Good’ is the Hebrew ‘טוּב, ṭûḇ: A masculine noun meaning property, goods, goodness, fairness, and beauty. The root concept of this noun is that of desirability for enjoyment.’ Discernment is the Hebrew ‘טַעַ ם, ṭa‛am: a masculine noun meaning taste, judgment, discernment, discretion.’ The word is used only thirteen times in the Old Testament but is a key word when considering the concept of taste, perception, or decree. It is used to describe the experience of taste:’; this is the only use of this word in Psalms. Knowledge is the Hebrew ‘דַּעַת, da‛aṯ: A feminine noun meaning knowledge, knowing, learning, discernment, insight, and notion. The word occurs forty of its ninety-one times in Proverbs as one of the many words associated with the biblical concept of wisdom. ‘ Surely Your word shapes my affections and directs my paths (Psalm 119:103-104).
‘A sight of our errors and a sense of our ignorance should make us teachable. We are not able to judge, for our knowledge is so sadly inaccurate and imperfect; if the Lord teaches us knowledge we shall attain to good judgment, but not otherwise. The Holy Ghost alone can fill us with light, and set the understanding upon a proper balance: let us ardently long for his teachings, since it is most desirable that we should be no longer mere children in knowledge and understanding.’[1]
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