Psalm 1:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

NIV: but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.

NASB: But his delight is in the Law of the Lord, And on His Law he meditates day and night.

CSB: Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.

NLT: But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.

KJV: But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

NKJV: But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.

This verse continues to describe the blessed man. Whereas verse 1 takes a negative tone (Psalm 1:1), this strikes a positive tone. Verse 1 describes what the blessed man does not do, verse 2 describes what he does. As in verse 1, the context here applies to all people, not only males or men.

The blessed person delights in the law of the Lord. The Hebrew word translated "delight" is related to a word that can mean "to bend." The blessed person "bends" towards God. His or her inclination is to meditate on God's Word. Instead of letting the words of the ungodly influence one's thinking, a blessed person wants God's words to influence his or her life. Reading and obeying the Scripture is extremely important to the blessed person. Such a person doesn't merely give God's Word a cursory reading or an occasional reading—he or she digs into it, whether it is daytime or nighttime.

Worthwhile meditation does not require a person to empty his or her mind. Scripture does not support the idea of self-emptying in meditation—godly meditation means filling the mind with Scripture. To meditate on Scripture involves pondering what the Bible teaches about God's character. It involves thinking deeply about what His Word teaches about ourselves and others. As we meditate, we cherish the promises and precepts we find in the Bible, we heed its commands, we confront our sins and confess them, and we conform our thoughts to God's thoughts.

The blessed person is not influenced by the words of the ungodly, but is deeply influenced by God's words.

Psalm 1:1–3 teaches that those who properly respect God's Word will enjoy spiritual prosperity and spiritual success. This first half of Psalm 1 stands in stark contrast to the second half. These words echo what God promised Joshua, if he would meditate upon God's Word and obey it (Joshua 1:6–9). Psalm 119 also teaches the importance of devoting oneself to God's Word and the blessings that accompany that obedience.

This psalm begins by describing the man who is blessed. He doesn't keep company with a bad crowd. Furthermore, the Word of God governs his thought life. Both day and night he thinks about what God has disclosed in His Word. He thoroughly enjoys spending time in reading and pondering God's Word. His devotion to Scripture produces fruit in his life. In a spiritual sense, he is like a tree whose roots are nourished by a stream. He enjoys vitality and success. His life of blessing and productivity stands in stark contrast to the lives of the wicked. What their lives produce is as worthless as the chaff that the wind blows away. When God separates His people from the wicked, the wicked will fall in the judgment. The Lord is fully aware of the lifestyle of His righteous people as well as the lifestyle of the wicked, so His judgment will be just. The Lord will sentence the wicked to eternal perdition.

Psalm 1, typically ascribed to David, stresses the importance of ordering one's life according to God's Word. This emphasis sets the tone for the rest of the collection of psalms. Themes in this passage echo the early chapters of Proverbs, with an emphasis on seeking godly wisdom. Psalm 1's emphasis on meditation on and obedience to God's Word parallels God's instructions to Joshua when He commissioned Joshua to lead Israel into the Promised Land (Joshua 1:6–9). Its teaching about the blessing of obedient believers and the disastrous end of the wicked parallels the blessings and curses we read about in Deuteronomy 28. New Testament passages that emphasize the link between devotion to God's Word and righteous living include Matthew 7:24–27; Colossians 3:16–17; 2 Timothy 3:16–17; James 1:19–25; and 2 Peter 1:19–21.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.