The Blessedness of Bible Lovers (Psa 119.165)

Great peace have they which love thy law:
And nothing shall offend them (Psa 119.165).

In this world’s present misery and our natural fear of future misery through a consciousness of our sins and guilt, the Lord makes promises whose full benefits are in some measure postponed, but which become the basis for a believer’s solid hope. This hope inspires us to pursue him doggedly throughout our lives with the full expectation that our persevering spiritual chase will finally be amply rewarded.
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On Glorifying God for the Bible (Psa 119.164)

Seven times a day do I praise thee
Because of thy righteous judgments (Psa 119.164).

The Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650 alters the wording of our text only slightly for singing, and with beautiful effect:

Sev’n times a-day it is my care
to give due praise to thee;
Because of all thy judgments, Lord,
which righteous ever be.

As everyone raised upon the Shorter Catechism knows, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever” (#1). Toward the fulfillment of this, the very purpose for our existence, the Lord has given us Holy Scripture, indispensable for our spiritual recovery. Our original fitness and inclination to worship the Lord as creatures in his image was horribly degraded by the fall, but the gospel of Jesus Christ, that biblical evangel, becomes a word of quickening and renewal to God’s elect when it pleases him to recreate his sacred host for eternal service. And when we have been saved by means of God’s Word, we come to appreciate, being illumined by the Spirit of light, that the Bible is one of his greatest gifts to us, besides being the sphere where his glory shines brightest.
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Beloved Truth (Psa 119.163)

I hate and abhor lying:
but thy law do I love (Psa 119.163).

True religion is a matter of the heart and stirs one’s deepest feelings, arousing both profound detestation and intense approbation and craving for God and his righteousness. Jonathan Edwards made a convincing case for this proposition in his masterful work entitled, “A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections.”1 To quote him, “True religion, in great part, consists in holy affections.”2 Edwards first calls upon 1 Peter 1.8 for supporting testimony, which remarks upon the Christian’s relationship with Christ in this way: “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.” Intellectual apprehension of truth and consent to it there must be—that is indispensable—but if we remain cold and unmoved with respect to truth and error, if we feel no attraction toward the one and aversion to the other, then we can be very sure that we have experienced nothing or next to nothing of what it means to be a sincere Christian.
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Elation over Scripture (Psa 119.162)

I rejoice at thy word,
As one that findeth great spoil (Psa 119.162).

Some choice experiences of this fleeting life are useful as similes to describe the feelings of truly pious souls with respect to God’s dealings with them. In the very nature of things, the physical illustrations must of necessity fall short of their spiritual counterparts, yet because we can more easily relate to the former, they are useful for pointing us in the right direction, helping us grasp the saint’s blessedness even if we have not yet experienced it ourselves, or only to a small degree.
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Courageous Through Scripture (Psa 119.161)

Princes have persecuted me without a cause:
But my heart standeth in awe of thy word (Psa 119.161).

Godly courage is the universal mark of true believers. Once a cowardly sinner has experienced a grace-wrought inner transformation so that he is fundamentally turned from the fear of idols to love of the true and living God, then you may behold a man of radically changed loyalties. “The people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits;” though no less a terrifying ruler than Antiochus Epiphanes1 opposes them, yet they are prepared to die for their faith (Dan 11.32).
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Nothing More Sure (Psa 119.160)

Thy word is true from the beginning:
And every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever (Psa 119.160).

More than any other Psalm, the 119th exults in God’s word written. Almost every one of its 176 verses mentions it in one way or another, and relates it to a myriad of other things. Select terms from across the vivid spectrum of the Hebrew vocabulary describe it: variously translated as law, testimonies, precepts, statutes, commandments, judgments, and word. Its inherent worth, consummate wisdom, practical counsel, and saving effects are all loftily praised in this psalm. This extended passage could aptly be entitled, “In Celebration of God’s Word.”
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Oh, For More Spiritual Life! (Psa 119.159)

Consider how I love thy precepts:
Quicken me, O LORD, according to thy lovingkindness (Psa 119.159).

Dead things do not struggle for life, and the unconverted do not sincerely pray for their personal revival. The very hunger and thirst for righteousness, where it exists, is evidence that the craving one shall be filled (Matt 5.6), and that the living Spirit has already begun a good work that he intends to crown with perfect life (Phil 1.6).
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Righteously Grieved by Sinners (Psa 119.158)

I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved;
Because they kept not thy word (Psa 119.158).

“Mind your own business.” “Judge not.” “To each his own.” How does these slogans strike you? Do you generally agree or disagree with these sentiments?
Personally, I am torn. For me, it all depends how they are intended. Each one is either right from the Bible or very close to its maxims, and yet the one who quips them today may mean something very wrong.
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Courageous Faith (Psa 119.157)

Many are my persecutors and mine enemies;
Yet do I not decline from thy testimonies (Psa 119.157).

David testifies of his courageous faith to the praise of God’s glory, the encouragement of his fellow believers, and the consternation of his opponents. What a tribute to God’s grace and power that he takes sinners in bondage to the fear of man and makes them his undaunted worshippers! What an inspiration to us that such men have stood firm in biblical fidelity against all the opposition of this world, sometimes even to martyrdom! And what frustration their opponents have felt that these stalwarts would not bow to the prevalent idols with the rest of mankind!
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God’s Compassion and Faithfulness (Psa 119.156)

Great are thy tender mercies, O Lord:
Quicken me according to thy judgments (Psa 119.156).

A well-founded hope for the future seems in short supply these days. Just last night, a mother in New York seems to have deliberately driven her van with all four of her children aboard into the Hudson river after a domestic dispute. Only her ten-year-old son escaped drowning and was able to tell the authorities what had happened.1 Who knows exactly what were her motives? Still, she clearly did not have a well-founded hope for the future.
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