I’ve never given much thought to how hymn books are arranged. I know they have Christmas sections and Easter sections, but the rest of it has always been a mystery that I had little interest in solving. Similarly, I never thought much about how the Psalms were arranged. But, after discussing this first psalm with my small group, I have changed my mind. The Psalms are likely not arranged in some kind of special pattern that, if you count backwards in series of seven, you can decode the day of the second coming. However, this first psalm is certainly not random, but is indeed the thesis statement and perfect introduction to the Book of Psalms.
Psalm 1 is the thesis of the Book of Psalms:
Blessed is the one who dwells with God's word
This first major theme that this Psalm highlights is the blessed, godly man and how he contrasts with the ungodly. What struck me for the first time during this study was that the righteous man is first defined by what he is not. He “does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scoffer.” Each of these verbs is active and continuous. I tried to find out what tense it is in the Hebrew, but I couldn’t. It is translated like the present perfect tense, though, as in something that is ongoing and not about to stop anytime soon. The godly man does not, therefore, spend his time communing with the ungodly, sinners, or scoffers. Now, we know that Jesus “receives sinners, and eats with them” (Luke 15:1-2), so how do these concepts fit together? I think that one of the biggest themes of the Psalms is that righteousness or blessedness does not come from one’s actions, per se, but from what (or whom) one is seeking. This is highlighted in the next characteristic of the blessed man.
“His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night.” The only positive characteristic of the blessed man that we are given is that he meditates and delights in the law of the Lord. That’s it! Now, there is quite a lot contained in that delight, surely, and anyone who spends much time understanding the law will probably keep it pretty well. However, the law of God does not always refer to the moral or ceremonial laws given by God. Indeed, to the Pharisees Jesus replies, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? (John 10:34). This is a direct quote from Psalm 82:6! Now, I know this is getting a bit circular, but the Psalms are not part of the moral or ceremonial law literature in the Bible: they are meditation poetry. “Law,” then, does not always directly refer to the commandments of God, but to his whole word. The Word of God is to be our delight and our meditation. (And yes, Leviticus is still a part of that. Loving the Word of God really means to love all of it, even the repetitive, ceremonial law parts!)
Biblical meditation is focused on God, his law, and his word.
Now, we all know what it means to delight in something. We have all seen a child delight in the xylophone toy; she will sit and enjoy the xylophone for several minutes (an eternity in toddler terms) laughing as the sounds get higher and lower in pitch at her whim. Yet, “meditation” is a trickier word. It conjures images of Buddhist monks, yoga instructors, and ringing gongs. In its basic form, meditation is about focus, and while Eastern meditation is aimed at “nothing,” Biblical meditation is focused on God, his law, and his word. When we “meditate” on God’s precepts day and night, we are focusing on (or chewing on) God’s word throughout our day. Tim Keller says that meditation is the form of prayer where God starts the conversation, and it teaches us how to apply God’s law to our lives.
We can expect God’s word to always bring us strength and nourishment, but we cannot always expect to be bursting with the fruit of our labors.
This meditation on God’s word is illustrated by the tree in verse 3. This tree is planted by the rivers of water and his leaf does not wither. I may not be a botanist, but I do know that roots carry water and nutrients to the tree, and that if the roots are dry, the leaves will be dry not long afterwards. In the Bible, the river is usually a life-giving source. (In Genesis 2, a river flows through Eden and waters it. In Revelation 22, the river of life flows from the throne of God.) In the context of this Psalm, the tree (the righteous man) derives strength from the river (the law of God) constantly. Thus, his leaf does not wither - i.e. he is full of life at all times. However, the fruit that he brings forth is not constant: it is only in season. The dry and wet seasons may not affect the vibrancy of the tree, but they certainly affect the fruit. So, in our lives, we can expect God’s word to always bring us strength and nourishment, but we cannot always expect to be bursting with the fruit of our labors. Regardless of the fruit you see now, continue in God’s word, continue to apply it to your life, and continue to delight in who God is. When the time is right, the fruit will come.
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