09 Responding to Our Satisfying God and His Sufficient Word
Title: How All Should Respond to the All-Satisfying and All-Sufficient God and His Word
Text: Psalm 119:57-64
Preached by Pastor Phil Layton at Gold Country Baptist Church on November 30, 2008
I want to begin where our text begins, talking about satisfaction and contentment:
- Where are you seeking your satisfaction, brothers and sisters?
- In all honesty, would you describe yourself as a content person, satisfied with the lot or portion in life God has given you?
- Would those who were around you this past week or month describe you as a content person, a thankful and stable man or woman who rests not in circumstances but in the sufficiency of God and His Word?
- What in this life truly satisfies? What do you believe you need to be content?
- What portion of this world and its possessions must you have?
57 The Lord is my portion; I have promised to keep Your words. 58 I sought Your favor with all my heart; Be gracious to me according to Your word. 59 I considered my ways And turned my feet to Your testimonies. 60 I hastened and did not delay To keep Your commandments. 61 The cords of the wicked have encircled me, But I have not forgotten Your law. 62 At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You Because of Your righteous ordinances. 63 I am a companion of all those who fear You, And of those who keep Your precepts. 64 The earth is full of Your lovingkindness, O Lord; Teach me Your statutes.
The first verse of our passage today really sets the tone of the whole with the opening line: “The LORD is my portion,” or some translations make it a direct address: “You are my portion, O LORD.” The TEV paraphrase says “You are all I want O LORD.” When the LORD is our shepherd, we should not want or lack outside of Him and His provision. My God supplies all my needs. God is all-sufficient and all-satisfying, and God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. This text is about, and the title and focus of our message is about:
How to Respond to the All-Satisfying and All-Sufficient God and His Word.
#1. Be Content with God’s Sufficiency (v. 57-58)
The word portion (v.57) has been explained as ‘dependence upon for support … an astounding testimony of God’s sufficiency [so that we will] rejoice in the Divine compensation of spiritual resources’[1] rather than the earthly or material focus of so many.
70 Their heart is covered with fat, But I delight in Your law … 72 The law of Your mouth is better to me Than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
Portion is somewhat parallel to inheritance imagery in Scripture
111 I have inherited Your testimonies forever, For they are the joy of my heart.
The inheritance or portion we receive from God is not only sufficient, it is superior to anything in this world, it is supremely satisfying and supremely joy-producing, happiness-inducing, or as v. 11 can be translated “I have treasured Your Word in my heart.”
We have already in past weeks seen the writer of Psalm 119 say he loves God’s Word, longs for the Word, and longs for more longing and deeper desire, and he desperately prays for more eye-opening treasure-discovering soul-satisfying delight in the Word of God, and ultimately in the God of the Word (inseparable in his writing).
So in verse 57, when he writes “The LORD is my portion,” he not only means he is content with what God has provided, he says it is in God Himself that he finds all contentment and satisfaction, in the all-sufficient Savior and sustainer of his soul, for all of life.
Knowing the Lord through His Word as our portion is not only greater than the best this life can offer, it is far greater, it is not only of superior value, but of surpassing value, matchless worth.
Paul understood this. “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8). This fueled his joy and contentment in Philippians 4:
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!
11 … I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. 12 I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. 13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me … 19 And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Abraham understood this principle and was content with God’s sufficiency. While Lot wanted the well watered plain of Jordan and pitched his tent toward the advantages of Sodom, Abraham was satisfied with what God would provide in the desert.
David understood God to be his portion as well, as Ps. 63 records:
1 A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. 2 Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. 3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. 4 So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. 5 My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. 6 When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches,
One of my favorite Puritan writers Thomas Brooks sums up well the biblical illustrations of this mindset in The Transcendent Excellency of a Believer's Portion above All Earthly Portions[2]
‘I would counsel every Christian to answer all temptations with this short saying, "The Lord is my portion" [Ps. 119:57]. O Christian, when Satan or the world shall tempt you with honours, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; when they shall tempt you with riches, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; when they shall tempt you with preferments, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; and when they shall tempt you with the favours of great ones, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; yea, and when this persecuting world shall threaten you with the loss of your estate, answer, "The Lord is my portion": and when they shall threaten you with the loss of thy liberty, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; and when they shall threaten you with the loss of friends, answer, "The Lord is my portion"; and when they shall threaten you with the loss of life, answer, "The Lord is my portion."
O, sir, if Satan should come to you with an apple, as once he did to Eve, tell him that "the Lord is your portion” … or with a wedge of gold, as once he did to Achan, tell him that "the Lord is your portion"; or with a bag of money, as once he did to Judas, tell him that "the Lord is your portion"; or with a crown, a kingdom, as once he did to Moses, tell him that "the Lord is your portion."’
Hebrews 11:24-27 (NASB95) 24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26 considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.
When Psalm 119:57 begins with “The LORD is my portion” it has roots in those time of Moses and Aaron. When God prepared Israel for the Promised Land, He told Aaron (Num 18:20): “You shall have no inheritance in their land nor own any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the sons of Israel.” Deuteronomy 10 and 12 further specified that the priestly line, the line of Levi was not to be given a portion or inheritance of the land in Canaan, but they were given something better: the LORD was to be their portion, in other words their sole supply and satisfaction.
The New English Translation translates Psalm 119:57 as “The LORD is my source of security,” with this footnote: “The psalmist compares the Lord to landed property, which was foundational to economic stability in ancient Israel.” So this includes stability.
The psalmist is saying that, like the Levites, he wants his portion of divine blessing to be God himself since nothing is better and nothing will ever fully satisfy his or anyone else’s heart but God himself. To possess God is truly to have everything.[3]
Charles Bridges said: “The moment that any rival [to God] is allowed to usurp the throne of the heart, we open the door to disappointment and unsatisfied desires.”[4]
The entire history of Israel has been summed up this way:
‘Whenever the people of Israel failed God and turned to idols for help, it was evidence that they did not really believe Jehovah was adequate to meet their needs. In the time of Elijah, Israel tried to remedy the drought by turning to Baal, the Canaanite storm god, but it was the Lord who sent the rain in answer to the prophet’s prayer. When the enemy threatened to invade their land, the leaders of Israel often ran to Egypt for help, as though Jehovah was unconcerned and unable to deliver them. The psalmist in this section makes it clear that the Lord God Almighty is all we need … Believers today have a rich spiritual inheritance in the Lord Jesus Christ, for God’s fullness is in Him and we are “complete in him” (Col. 2:9–10). He is our life (Col. 3:4) and our “all in all” (Col. 3:11). Because we are in Him, we have “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). Our riches in Christ are revealed in the Word, which is our “spiritual bankbook,” and His wealth can never diminish. The psalmist had made promises to obey the Lord (vv. 8, 15–16, 32–34, 47, 106, 115), but that is not how we get our wealth from the Lord. What He provides for us is a gracious gift, not a loan, and we are not required to promise to repay Him (Rom. 11:33–36). Accept the inheritance He has given you, rejoice in it, and trust Him to supply every need.’[5]
Having a faithful good loving LORD as our portion gives us hope.
Lam 3:22-25 (ESV) 22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” 25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
Psalm 16:5-11 (NASB95)
5 The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. 6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me …11 You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
Psalm 17:13-15 (NASB95) 13 Arise, O Lord, confront him, bring him low; Deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword, 14 From men with Your hand, O Lord, From men of the world, whose portion is in this life [i.e, only this life, look at v. 15] …
15 As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.
My dad wrote an email this week from Colorado where my mom had successful surgery for a torn ligament in her leg, and a good report that her tumor was benign:
“We feel in very good hands, especially the Lord holding our hands through this whole ordeal … Before she was rolled out to surgery, I read portions of Psalm 73 before praying with Donna and Dr. Britton:
Psalm 73:23-26 (NIV) 23Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 24You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 142:1-5 (NASB95) 1 Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer. I cry aloud with my voice to the LORD; I make supplication with my voice to the LORD. 2 I pour out my complaint before Him; I declare my trouble before Him. 3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, You knew my path. In the way where I walk They have hidden a trap for me. 4 Look to the right and see; For there is no one who regards me; There is no escape for me; No one cares for my soul. 5 I cried out to You, O LORD; I said, “You are my refuge, My portion in the land of the living.
Augustine said our heart is restless till it finds its rest in God alone.
Spurgeon said in his sermon on Psalm 119:57: ‘Man was made in the image of God, and nothing will satisfy man but God, in whose image he was made … This portion is to the fullest degree, satisfying. Nothing else will ever end the awful hunger of the soul of man, which, like the grave, forever yawns for more. But the infinite God fills the heart and he who has the Lord for his portion has all that he can desire … You may sit down and imagine all that you could have wished—and then if you rightly view your God—you will see that He surpasses all your desires. Never, even in eternity, will you be able to conceive of a joy beyond your God, a bliss surpassing Himself!
Next, dear Brothers and Sisters, the Lord is an elevating portion. A man is gradually changed into the image of that which he loves. He who has his portion in this world grows worldly… We say a man rides a hobby, but after a while the hobby rides the man … Now, if a man seeks his wealth in the things of this life and covets gold, he will become metallic, hard, and unfeeling. He who lives to increase his land soon becomes of the earth, earthy … little better than the mole who burrows through the earth and never looks upon the sun.
Earth, earth, earth—nothing but earth does the carnal heart care for—its faculties are all pressed downward and forced to become adapted for its groveling sphere. Nothing is more debasing than to live for self and, the more a selfish man has, the more base-hearted he becomes.
But if our portion is the Lord, our delight in Him raises our thoughts and purifies our emotions. Covetousness, selfishness, worldliness all vanish when God is All in All to us … If, then, the Lord is my portion, let my song always be of that rich, free, sovereign, boundless Grace which is given to me who deserves Hell, but obtains Heaven![6]
Those who believe the truth of verse 57 will pray like verse 58:
58 I sought Your favor with all my heart; Be gracious to me according to Your word.
Though God is All-sufficient, we are not. “Our sufficiency is from God” (2 Cor. 3:5). We must pray wholeheartedly for God’s favor, not half-heartedly with one hand behind our back clutching sin. The prayer “be gracious to me” is the prayer of an empty-handed spiritually-bankrupt, humble beggar laying at mercy’s gate like Lazarus at the gate of the rich man, or like the blind or lame man begging to be healed by the Lord or His apostles. It’s the prayer of the repentant tax collector Jesus spoke of who would not even lift up his head but in lowliness simply beat his chest while pleading for God’s favor and graciousness, praying very much like this verse: “Lord be merciful to me, a sinner.”
Jesus said that’s the guy who is truly going to heaven, not the self-righteous self-promoting religious hyper-fundamentalist Pharisee who prays and proudly performs his hypocritical “holier than thou” religiosity externally but with no inward love of the Lord, looking good before others on his way to eternal damnation.
After Jesus rebukes those type of false professing believers and false religionists in Matthew 23 with some of the strongest words He ever uttered, He speaks of a different type of “portion” at the end of Matthew 24, where God’s judgment falls and God will “appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (KJV)
If the LORD Jesus is not your portion and all-sufficient all-satisfying Savior in this life, your portion will be with the hypocrites in a place of eternal torment in the next life.
Jesus also mercifully tells us how we can avoid God’s wrath? Pray like verse 58, beg God for mercy and favor and grace to us as sinners!
The phrase for “seek your favor” is used in Ps 45 for seeking the King’s favor and helps us understand what this image entails with its parallel phrases: Because He is your Lord, bow down to him … come with a gift … seek your favor (v. 11b-12).
The Psalmist comes here like Esther before the King, with no claim upon him, knowing that the King’s scepter and sovereign will holds both life and death for the subjects of the King, but seeking the face and favor of the King. We come in the same way with no claim upon our Lord, only a humble request for God to be gracious to us as we bow all the way down before King Jesus as our only hope.
We can only appeal to God’s Word as the end of v. 58 does, there is nothing in ourselves we can appeal to, but there is something in God’s gracious character we can plead for in Christ.
And we can be content with God’s sufficiency. That’s Response #1
#2. Be Corrected by God’s Word (v. 59-60)
59 I considered my ways And turned my feet to Your testimonies.
This consideration of his ways has been described as reflection on the course of life he led; thinking on the guilt of that course; pondering the consequences. It is a pause in the career of sin and folly — a coming to our senses like the Prodigal Son in Luke 15
17 “But when he [the prodigal son] came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! 18 ‘I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.” ’ 20 “So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 “And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.
Lamentations 3:40 (NASB95)
40 Let us examine and probe our ways, And let us return to the Lord.
Ezekiel 18:28 (NASB95)
28 “Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
Spurgeon compared the image of Psalm 119:58 to a sea captain, ‘sailing on a smooth sea and he has given no heed to his bearings. All of a sudden he sees a rock ahead—from this he ought to have been far away—at that sight he shortens sail, looks about him and in consequence of what he sees changes his course, sets a better watch, and is restless until once more he reaches the old familiar channel. Fellow voyager on the sea of life, may not this be your case or mine? It is very likely that at this moment some of us, if enabled by God’s Spirit to think upon our ways, may be led to pause and ponder our bearings. Thus by God’s infinite mercy our course in life may be changed and our character may be altered for the better, so we may once more return to our rest.’[7]
Four Aspects of Obedience have been pointed out in Ps 119:59[8]
Deliberation: “I considered . . .” — Stop and think.
Destination: “I considered my ways” — Where am I headed?
Determination: “And turned my feet . . .” — Deciding to obey God.
Discrimination: “And turned my feet to Your testimonies.” — I am going to follow God’s ways rather than mine or another person’s.
A Puritan once said “if you turn to God, God will turn to you, and you will be happy even if the whole world turns against you.”
Psalm 119 drew the special admiration of Blaise Pascal, the brilliant French philosopher and devout Christian, who loved Psalm 119 and was one of a number of famous people who memorized it. His sister Madame Perier says he often spoke with such feeling about it, “that he seemed transported,” … He used to say that, “with the deep study of life, it contained the sum of all the Christian virtues.” James Boice points out that Pascal ‘called verse 59 “the turning point of man’s character and destiny.” He meant that it is vital for every person to consider his or her ways, understand that our ways are destructive, and then make an about-face and determine to go in God’s ways instead.’[9]
60 I hastened and did not delay To keep Your commandments.
He is not complacent in his walk; he hastens to God’s Word. He knows there is danger in delay. This verse is a sermon to loiterers, to the lazy spiritually, to the spiritual procrastinators, to the lethargic and apathetic. Being slow or slothful or sleeping spiritually is a time we may lose our spiritual strength, like Samson lost his physical strength when he slept and let his guard down.
There almost seems to be a military or soldier mindset here:
v. 59a “I considered” – i.e., ATTENTION. STOP!
v. 59b “and turned my feet” - ABOUT FACE!
v. 60 “I hastened and did not delay” – FORWARD MARCH, QUICKLY! ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!
Verse 60 speaks of obeying commandments, a reminder that disobeying our commanding officer is not an option. In ancient days, no soldier or servant could say “No.” The couldn’t linger or postpone doing the master’s will, and no servant could give excuses or say “I forgot.” Their responsibility is to hear the master’s orders, remember them, and obey them immediately.[10]
When Jesus called His disciples to follow Him, it was “drop everything and follow me now. Leave your boats and nets – today you become fishers of men.” And immediately they responded to the Lord’s call. We are not to hesitate or equivocate when God calls. We are not to pause to look back on our old life with longing like Lot’s wife – we must make haste and flee the wrath to come.
Delayed obedience is a form of disobedience. No decision to obey God actually is a decision against God. Telling God you will obey Him only tomorrow is actually disobeying Him today.
Acts 24:25 (NKJV) 25 Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.”
A more convenient time rarely comes. If you are not yet in the Kingdom of light, a new creature in Christ, today is God’s day for you. Tomorrow ruins thousands, and waiting for “convenient time” has slain her ten thousands. Proverbs 27:1 says “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth”
This is why the book of Hebrews several times says from the Psalms: “today if you hear His voice, do not harden your heart.”
Deuteronomy 30:15-19 (NASB95) 15 “See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; 16 in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. 17 “But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. 19 “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,
Today is the day of salvation, as long as it is called today, life is available to you if you turn from whatever you are trusting in, turn from your sin, and come to trust Jesus Christ alone like the thief on the cross who put his faith in the Lord. Today you can have your eternal destiny changed to Paradise with Jesus as He promised that man that very day. I plead with you to plead with Christ for mercy.
- Today if you hear the Lord’s voice, don’t harden your heart. - Isaiah 55:6 says “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.”
- 2 Corinthians 6:2 says “Behold, now is the acceptable time, behold now is the day of salvation.”
- Scripture warns of a time to come when you will not be able.
- Jesus said “Walk while you have the light, so that darkness will not overtake you” (John 12:35). The door of the ark will close.
- Today if you hear the God’s voice, do not harden your heart.
This has application to true believers as well, which of course the writer of our text was when he wrote. It is possible for even regenerated hearts to become hard, or sanctified consciences to grow weak when we hear and hear God’s Word but don’t obey.
Hebrews 3:13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
All over the Bible we see urgency, present commands, things we must do today, as v. 60 says, to hasten and obey without delay
- Deal with anger today (don’t let sun go down on it, Eph 4:26)
- Flee from immorality, idolatry, youthful lusts; run for you life!
- Forgive today and seek to reconcile today
Mark 11:25 (NASB95) 25“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions.
Matthew 5:23-25 (NASB95) 23 “Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. 25 “Make friends quickly with your opponent …
If God convicts you of a sin within your heart or a sin within this body of Christ here between you and another believer, humble yourself today and seek to deal with your sin today without delay. Today if you hear God’s voice, do not harden your heart.
There’s a 3rd and final response to our All-Satisfying Almighty Savior: #1 was Be Content with God’s Sufficiency, #2 Be Corrected by God’s Word. #3. Be Committed to God’s Ways
61 The cords of the wicked have encircled me, But I have not forgotten Your law.
The man of God is committed to God’s Ways, here God’s law, even in the midst of great persecution that surrounded him.
This imagery of “cords” has been explained as ‘the “snares” which godless men had placed all around him. The psalmists’s enemies were the crafty [hunters]; he was the endangered prey [footnote says “these adversaries are portrayed as hunters setting their snares to entrap the victim”]. Nevertheless, the man of God did not resort to retaliation but to revelation: “Yet (i.e., however, but, etc.) I have not forgotten Your law” (v. 61b).’[11]
62 At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You Because of Your righteous ordinances.
“I shall rise” - The psalmist uses an imperfect verbal form to emphasize that this is his continuing practice. (NET Bible Notes).
He is committed to God’s ways in times of darkness (v. 61) and also God’s praise in times of literal darkness (v. 62). When something is greatly on your mind, you sometimes think of it if you wake up in the middle of the night. This writer’s mind was so greatly fixed on God, his heart was so full with gratefulness and thankfulness, that he just naturally prays and praises God in such times, and apparently even plans to get up to praise at times!
Having a newborn baby boy in your room who wakes up throughout the night is an opportunity for parents to express their love on a human level, but what he’s talking about here far exceeds that (and far exceeds the attitude I usually feel in the middle of the night). I have this week, though, tried to apply this at least somewhat as I usually stay up past midnight for Adam’s last feeding, I’ve been using that time to study and pray and prepare, rather than just watch TV, or fill my time and mind with other things.
If a fellow Christian tells you he has problems sleeping in the middle of the night, don’t tell him to try counting sheep – tell him to try counting his blessings.
Last week we read about Paul and Silas in prison in Acts 16 and it says that at midnight they were literally singing their praises to God. Perhaps they had this very verse in mind as they worshipped?
63 I am a companion of all those who fear You, And of those who keep Your precepts.
The very book of Psalms begins in its first verse speaking of the importance of right companions.
Psalm 1:1 (NASB95) 1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
Unlike the ungodly man who meets his companions at the bar of the drunkard, the godly man wants to meet his companions at the bar of God’s law. He looks for those who fear and hear God and His Word (“hear” in the biblical sense of “obey”).
Proverbs 1 begins with the fear of the Lord as the beginning of wisdom and Proverbs 2 speaks further of the importance of our companions and friends for wise living.
64 The earth is full of Your lovingkindness, O Lord; Teach me Your statutes.
What a great closing line. We’ll pick up on that idea of teaching in next week’s passage.
For now, let me close with reading the words of today’s passage set to song by an unknown writer.
Thou art my portion, Lord; Thy words I ever heed;
With all my heart, Thy grace I seek, Thy promises I plead.
I thought upon my ways, Thy testimonies learned;
With earnest haste, and waiting not,
To Thy commands I turned.
While snares beset my path, Thy law I keep in view;
At midnight I will give Thee praise For all Thy judgments true.
All those who fear Thy Name Shall my companions be;
Thy mercy fills the earth, O Lord; Thy statutes teach Thou me.
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[1] George Zemek, The Word of God in the Child of God, 171)
[2] Originally titled, “An Ark for all God’s Noahs in a Gloomy Stormy Day.”
[3] James Boice, Psalms, 3:1001.
[4] Charles Bridges, Psalm 119, p. 143.
[5] Warren Wiersbe, Be exultant (2004 1st ed.) Colorado Springs, Colo.: Cook Communications Ministries, p. 118.
[6] Charles Spurgeon, “God Our Portion and His Word Our Treasure” (Psalms 119:57), Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Volume 23, Sermon # 1372, Year 1877 http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols22-24/chs1372.pdf
[7] Spurgeon, “Thinking and Turning,” Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Volume 20, Sermon # 1181, Year 1874 http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols19-21/chs1181.pdf
[8] John Phillips, Exploring Psalms, 2:315-16.
[9] Boice, 3:1002.
[10]Wiersbe, 119.
[11]Zemek, 174.