In verse 161 the psalmist says, “My heart standeth in awe of thy word.” We also should stand in awe of the Word of God. Concerning it, we should be in fear and trembling (v. 120). Paul used such an expression both in 1 Corinthians 2:3 and in Philippians 2:12.
Verse 31 says, “I cleave unto thy testimonies” (Heb.). The King James Version uses the word stuck. We need to stick ourselves to the Word of God, to cleave to it.
With the psalmist, we should not forsake God’s Word (v. 87), not swerve from it (vv. 51, 157, Heb.), not turn aside from it (v. 102), and not go astray from it (v. 110, Heb.). Swerving from the Word is different from turning aside from it. To turn is to go in another specific direction, but to swerve is to veer off without direction, regulation, or control. On occasion, certain things will happen to cause us to swerve away from the Word of God. But we should not swerve from the Word, turn aside from it, or go astray from it.
Verse 59 says, “I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.” Instead of turning aside from the Word, we should turn our feet unto it.
At least twenty-eight times in Psalm 119 we are encouraged to keep, observe, practice, and do the Word of God. For example, verse 33 says, “Teach me, O Jehovah, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end” (Heb.). In verse 69 the psalmist says, “I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart.” The psalmist used all these different verbs to show how he handled the Word of God.
Verse 1 says, “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of Jehovah” (Heb.), and verse 32 says, “I will run the way of thy commandments.” The psalmist walked in the Word and ran the way of the Word. This indicates that he lived according to the Word of God.
I am very fond of verse 48: “My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will muse upon thy statutes” (Heb.). Here we see that first the psalmist loved the Word; second, that he welcomed the Word; and third, that he enjoyed it and mused upon it. We also need to love the Word of God, receive it with warmth, and muse upon it and enjoy it. Through such an enjoyment of the Word, we shall worship God, talk to Him, pray to Him, and converse with ourselves before Him. Sometimes we may shout or cry; at other times we may delight ourselves in the Word or give ourselves a command. We shall enjoy the Word of God not only in the Lord’s presence, but also with His presence. We should never separate the Lord’s Word from the Lord Himself. As we muse upon His Word, we enjoy the Lord and have fellowship with Him. We speak to Him, and He speaks with us. Thus, there is spiritual traffic between us and the Lord.
Those who seek the Lord and become one with Him by enjoying His Word will automatically have a life that corresponds to the law, as God’s testimony, for they will be infused with the Lawgiver. The one who gives the law will become their living.
We have seen that God’s intention in the book of Exodus was to bring His people into such an enjoyment of Himself and to such a condition before Him. God brought them to the Mount of God so that they could receive His word. Having received the word, they could then muse upon it, pray to the Lord, worship Him, and have fellowship with Him. God gave the law to His people in such an intimate way, again and again referring to Himself as “Jehovah your God.” Therefore, as we consider the “day” aspect of the law, we see that God gave the law to His people in the way of enjoyment. Because it is God’s word, it is God’s breath. Those who receive the law of God in this way breathe God into them by musing upon His Word.