The third section of Psalm 119 is entitled gimel,
the third letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The theme of these eight verses is
seen in the first verse, 119:17, “Deal bountifully with your servant, that I
may live and keep your word.” This request unfolds over the next seven
verses. The word “deal bountifully” is the first word in verse seventeen and is
the Hebrew word gamal. This word is rich in meaning. It is used to describe
being rewarded, bearing fruit, a child being raised up and maturing from breast
milk to solid food. AMEN!
This request describes the spiritual growth that
God desires for us to have, but He wants us to want it first, which is a sign
of it. One of the ways of God is that He wants you to ask Him for what He wants
to give you. Jesus taught this in the Sermon on the Mount when He said, “…your
Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:8.
Another thing to notice with this request is
that it has a purpose clause attached to it, “…that I may live and keep your
word.” Some will call this a result clause. It is a request with a
result. God loves these kinds of requests because they are not just asking for
things He wants to give, but things that will accomplish His will. This is like
the little boy who asked his father for $20, so that he could go to the store
to buy a Mother’s Day gift!
Another way to pray this verse is to pray,
“Lord, according to Your word, there is only one way for me to live and keep
you word, and that is if You grant me spiritual growth and fruitfulness. And
so, grant me spiritual growth and fruitfulness, so that I can live and keep
Your word!”
The next request is an echo of the first, “Open
my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of you law.” As God gives
you spiritual growth, your eyes are opened to more and more of His eternal
truth. His word becomes more and more amazing. The word “law” is the Hebrew
word torah,
and means instructions. God’s word reveals His instructions for living in such
a way that you learn to love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength
and your neighbor as yourself. Jesus said this was the first and greatest
commandment and the second was like it. He said that all of the Law and the
Prophets rests upon these two. The next two verses are a confession of the need
for the eye-opening request, “I am a sojourner on the earth, hide not
your commandments from me. My soul is consumed with longing for your just
decrees at all times.”
The next three verses introduces an important
understanding in spiritual growth; the opposition to it. As you learn to pray
from God’s word, you will learn how to identify the enemies of God and how to
pray against them. In these verses, the opposition is identified as those who
are insolent, accursed, who wander away from God’s word, the scornful, those
full of contempt, and the powerful who take advantage of God’s people. These
words and others like them will come up again and again in this psalm.
These enemies fall into one of three categories,
the world, the flesh, the devil. They are not people; they are powers,
spiritual powers bent on stealing, killing, and destroying everything that God
has done and loves, which include you. Prayer is a mighty weapon that defeats
them, if you learn how to wield it.
This section ends with a beautiful statement
describing the wonderful result of asking for more light, “Your testimonies are my delight,
they are my counselors.” The word “delight” is a delightful word. It is
the Hebrew word shahshooah, which means pleasing, delightful, pleasurable. This
is everything that God’s word is to Himself. He delights in His own word and
will. Imagine how different it would have been if Adam and Eve would have seen the
pleasing and delightfulness of the counsel from God’s word rather than turning
to a tree for wisdom.
God loves it when you ask Him for spiritual
growth and fruitfulness with an ever-increasing eye-opening joy in His word. It
pleases Him, which is what it means to worship the Father in spirit and truth.
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