I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and
one of the greatest lyrics in the world. C.S. Lewis
The Works and the Word of
God. For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And
their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. (v.1)
I love nature. I love the sky; the splendor of the sunrise and
sunset. Those who know me will tell you I am always watching the sky. I love
the majesty of the moon and the glory of the stars. Summer storms hold my
attention; my eyes to the skies for the likely funnel cloud. Thunderstorms
are one of my favorite things. There is something about the sky that entices my
mind—so this verse is one of my favorites. The poetry of this verse comes to
mind often as I witness God’s glory displayed in the heavens. I can’t watch a
thunderstorm or a sunset over the Rocky Mountains where I live, without the
prose of this verse invading my thoughts. Elohim created the world in Wisdom
and by His Power.
“The vast heavenly bodies orbiting with flawless
precision in the skies are a clear manifestation of the infinite wisdom and
power of the Creator.”[1]
It is He
who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And
by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens (Jeremiah
10:12).
By faith we
understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible (Heb.
11:3).
For by Him all
things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-- all things have been
created through Him and for Him (
Col. 1:16).
In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart
from Him nothing came into being that has come into being (Jn.
1:1-3).
Day to day pours forth speech, And night to
night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice
is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, And
their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for
the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a
strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the
heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing
hidden from its heat. (vv. 2-6).
Do the heavens have a voice? Can they speak? No, the heavens
cannot communicate with man, but they do move man to speak and give praise to
the One that created them.
“The heavens possess no means of verbal communication.
Yet, the inner soul of man, through the perception of his spirit and intellect,
can discern their message clearly.”[2]
There is an order to this universe; set by the only Wise God,
and displayed in the heavens. Every day the sun will rise, and each evening it
will find its home beyond the horizon; beckoning from slumber the other side of
the planet that slept while we were awake. Night after night the sun will set
and the moon will take its place; a constant display of the order of creation,
and the Glory and Wisdom of God.
God spoke and it was good. He created the world by His Word; so David is
able to make the correlation between the sun and the Torah. Its rising
is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of
them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat (v.6). God’s Word
will never pass away—you cannot hide from the truth of the Word:
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your
presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed
in Sheol, behold, You are there. If
I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will
lay hold of me. Psalm 139: 7-10 NASB
Suddenly, David shifts in his poetry from the celestial to
the Torah. The shift seems so impulsive; almost like a misplaced metaphor. Further
reflection reveals that David’s poetry is in sync; comparing the light and
warmth of the sun to the Torah.
“The Torah plays the role of the sun itself within the
present creation.”[3]
The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring
the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise
the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing
the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening
the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The
judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous
altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter
also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Your
servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. (vv. 7-11).
The law of the
Lord is perfect, and by living according to God’s law, the soul is restored.
His precepts are perfect. I love David’s heart concerning God’s law. David prayed
this before the New Testament; for the most part, the Law was the Pentateuch,
the first five books of the Bible, which most people find arduous—David deemed life-giving.
David considered the law to be food for the soul, worth more than gold, and
like honey dripping from the mouth. He loved the law, and by living according
to its precepts, understood its rewards. It is truth and it renders justice. The
law makes the heart rejoice, and enlightens the eyes to God’s Wisdom. God longs
to dwell in His people—we are the Mishkan Elohim—the Tabernacle of God. We are the
temple the Holy Spirit.
“The notion of YHWH dwelling in the Temple has not been
abandoned, but it is translated into the notion of his dwelling with his
people—within his people, wherever they are—through their study and heartfelt
practice of the Torah. Through that same Torah, his people discover not only
that he can be their ‘refuge,’ the ‘place’ where they are at home, but that he
will make his home with them, within them.”[4]
Now, David makes another shift into personal prayer. He
prays for God to help him against the temptation
of sin.
Who can discern his errors? Acquit me
of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;
Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, And I shall be
acquitted of great transgression. (vv. 12-13).
No matter how hard we try to live right, we all commit sins
of ignorance. But if we confess our sins He
is faithful to forgive us of our sins.
“One hardly needs to add that this poet is wholly free
from self-righteousness and the last section is concerned with his ‘secret
faults.’ As he felt the sun, perhaps in the desert, searching him out in every
nook of shade where he attempted to hide from it, so he feels the Law searching
out all the hiding-places of his soul.”[5]
Our best efforts to live perfectly prove grueling. Though we
try to live according to God’s Word, who can be so careful that he never sins
unintentionally? No matter how hard we try to live right, we all commit sins of
ignorance.
David desires to live as close to God as he can. His heart
longs to be righteous in His sight. He asks God to also keep him from presumptuous
sins. We must never believe the lie that we do not sin, or become lax with “smaller”
sins. The beloved disciple admonishes us, that if we
say we don’t sin, we are liars and Gods truth is not in us. We must remain humble before God knowing
that we are all sinners in desperate need of a Savior.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my
heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer
(v. 14).
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[1] “Psalm 19,” In Tehillim: The Book of Psalms, edited
by Nosson Scherman and Meir Zlotowitz, 239, Vol.1 (Brooklyn: Mesorah
Publications, 1995), 239.
[2] Ibid., 240.
[3]
N.T. Wright, The Case For The Psalms: Why They Are Essential (New York:
HarperOne, 2013), 105.
[4]
Ibid., 107.
[5]
C.S. Lewis, Reflections On The Psalms (New York: HBJ Publishers, 1958),
64.
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