By Rony Kozman, Ph.D.
Assistant professor of Biblical Studies, Samford University
Meditate on God’s Word
Psalm 1:1–6, Philippians 4:8
Meditating on Scripture provides blessing and delight. (Ps. 1:1–3)
Psalm 1 and 2 may be taken together as the introduction to the entire psalter. Psalm 1 is about the blessed man who meditates on God’s law, and Psalm 2 is a coronation psalm about God’s anointed king.
Several themes and phrases tie both psalms together. Psalm 1 begins by describing the blessed man as the one who meditates on God’s instruction. Psalm 2 closes by describing as blessed those who take refuge in God’s anointed king (2:12). Like the theme of blessings, the idea of meditation is also in both psalms. In Psalm 1:2, the blessed man meditates on God’s law, and in Psalm 2:1, the people meditate on vanity as they array themselves against God’s anointed king of Israel.
What is the significance of reading these two psalms together? Both are about God’s anointed king of Israel. The blessed man who flourishes if he meditates on God’s law is Israel’s king. He would have a copy of the law of Moses (God’s covenant with Israel), and he was expected to read it.
God commanded Joshua (the leader of the people) to meditate on the book of the law both day and night (Josh.1:8), which is very similar to Psalm 1:2.
The flourishing of God’s king and the people depended on their meditation on and obedience to God’s law. If the king keeps God’s law, he and Israel will receive the blessings of keeping God’s covenant. They will flourish in the promised land and defeat foreign nations who attack Israel’s king (Ps. 2). But if the king does not meditate on God’s law, the result will be the curses of the covenant which include the king’s and the people’s destruction.
Meditating on Scripture helps us pursue righteous living. (4–6)
Throughout Scripture, the repeated problem is that Israel’s king and people have not kept the covenant. In contrast to this, Jesus is the faithful King (Son of David), and He is faithful Israel. Jesus was faithful to God’s law.
He is the “blessed man” of Psalm 1 who faithfully meditated on God’s law.
The result of Jesus’ fidelity to the covenant is that He successfully launched God’s kingdom and defeated rulers who arrayed themselves against the kingdom of God — sin and death.
We share in Christ’s reign as we entrust ourselves to Him and follow His instructions. We must follow His example, meditate on Scripture and seek to obey God’s commands.
The faithful King of Israel who did that successfully teaches us how to keep God’s instructions as we follow and learn from Him. And as we follow Jesus’ example, teaching and fidelity to Scripture, we also live lives that flourish in God’s kingdom (Matt. 4:1–11; 5:1–10).
Meditating on Scripture keeps us focused on the right thoughts. (Phil. 4:8)
Meditating on Scripture orients our thoughts and our hearts towards God’s kingdom. As we go about our days and nights, we are influenced by the things of the world and by the allure of sin, all of which seek to turn our allegiance away from Christ’s kingdom.
Regularly reading Scripture and attending to its teaching reminds us of the things of the kingdom of heaven and the flourishing life that belongs to those who keep the wisdom of God and of Christ which is found in Scripture.
Scripture orients us to the things that are noble, right, excellent, true and admirable, and Scripture reminds us of their superior value and the better life and Kingdom to which they (and we) belong.
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