Psalm 119:71

April 18, 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.)

"It is good for me that I was afflicted,

That I may learn Your statutes."

In the scope of Teth, we see a radical redefinition of what is good compared with our inclinations. ‘You have dealt well’ (v.65). How so? According to Your word, but magnified and focused in affliction, whether that be through Your sovereignty in difficult circumstances, or with difficult people - in this case, crafty, arrogant liars (v. 69). The pressure within and without grows us (see Romans 5:1-5, Romans 8:28-30, James 1:2-4 among many others!). Hope in a perfect result! See the notes on v. 67. ‘It is good’ because ‘You are good and do good’ (v.68). ‘Good’ here is a variation of what we see in vv. 65 (‘well’) and v.68, it is the Hebrew ‘טוֹב, ṭôḇ: A verb meaning to be happy, to please, to be loved, to be favored, to seem good, to be acceptable, to endure, to be valuable, to do well, to do right…while the psalmist asserted that it was good for him to have been afflicted, for thereby he learned the Lord's decrees (Psa 119:71).’ The sinfulness of our hearts reveals that this must be a primary means of seeing and seeking Your goodness. ‘Learn’ is the same as ‘teach’ in v.68, is common in Psalm 119, and has a sense of training. I think of the regular angst of this life. Am I as eager to rid myself of sin as I am to rid myself of pain? Father, how sweet this is in that it drives me to see and to seek You. "Yield now and be at peace with Him; Thereby good will come to you." (Job 22:21) How would I yield without affliction? And how would I receive Your goodness without yielding to it?

‘Waters of a full cup are wrung out to God's people, Psa 73:10. 2. That it has been the advantage of God's people to be afflicted… Therefore God visited him with affliction, that he might learn God's statutes; and the intention was answered: the afflictions had contributed to the improvement of his knowledge and grace. He that chastened him taught him. The rod and reproof give wisdom. [Proverbs 29:15]’[1]

‘Even though the affliction came from bad men, it was overruled for good ends… It was not good to the proud to be prosperous, for their hearts grew sensual and insensible; but affliction was good for the Psalmist. Our worst is better for us than the sinner's best. It is bad for sinners to rejoice, and good for saints to sorrow… We prayed the Lord to teach us (Psa 119:66), and now we see how he has already been doing it. Truly he has dealt well with us, for he has dealt wisely with us… To be larded by prosperity is not good for the proud; but for the truth to be learned by adversity is good for the humble. Very little is to be learned without affliction. If we would be scholars we must be sufferers.’[2]

[1] Henry, Matthew, Commentary on the Whole Bible, on Psalm 119:71, e-Sword edition

[2] Spurgeon, Charles Haddon, Treasury of David, on Psalm 119:71, e-Sword edition