Title: Now I Keep Your Word / Psalm 119
Psalm 119, which contains today's text, is referred to by some commentators as "The Great Psalm." There are good reasons to call this Psalm 119 that way.
The first is its "length". Psalm 119 is so long that it cannot be compared with other Psalms among all 150 Psalms. There is no chapter longer than this, not only in the Psalms, but throughout the Old and New Testaments.
The second is its literary excellence. To be more precise, it is the sophistication of the technique of writing. Psalm 119 can be said to be a bundle of eight-line psalms of Psalm 22. In other words, according to the order of the 22 letters of the Hebrew language, 22 poems in which every 8 verses all start with the same letter were combined to make a total of 176 verses. This shows that Psalm 119 was made with great care. This Psalm 119 is a monument to Hebrew literature, according to the commentator who called it the "Great Psalm."
Third is the importance of the subject. Just as there is no objection among commentators that this psalm is a psalm of praise to God's Word, the subject of this psalm is the Word of God. The author of this psalm wrote "evidence," "commandment," "law," "law," "way," "law," "decree," "ordinance," (teaching, commandment, law, promise, way, precept, decree). , rule), etc., this "word" means a great teaching from God, and there is nothing more important to man than this word of God. I would call it "The Dash".
The fourth is the excellence of its expression. In other words, Psalm 119 can be said to be a "Great Psalm" in the sense that it is the best expression of experience, assurance, and gratitude for the truth and power of God's Word.
As I said earlier, this Psalm 119 is a great psalm of praise to the great Word of God. Among the 176 verses that make up this psalm, any of the words “Word,” “Testimony,” “Commandment,” “Law,” “Law,” “Road,” “Law,” “Law,” and “Ordinance” appear once The main character that overwhelms this psalm is the Word of God to the extent that there are not many verses that are not omitted. However, because of the greatness of the word and the praise for it that overwhelm us, we must not miss seeing another protagonist in this psalm, one man. He is the one who is spoken of in the first person singular "I" in every verse of this psalm. It doesn't really matter if that "I" is actually the writer of this psalm, or if he's a character he's invented in this poem. The problem is to see a person standing before God's word, that is to say, a person standing before God through the medium of God's word, a person praying and praying to God. Knowing who that person is will bring this Psalm 119 closer to our lives.
We are all people who have lived apart from the Word of God. There are so many of us who have lived by doing wrong things without keeping the word of God knowingly or knowingly even though we say we believe. But God is always good toward us, and His Word is always true and faithful to us. Therefore, living according to the word of God is a true and blessed life. Even if there may be temporary hardships, disadvantages, and inconveniences, we must live by keeping the Word of God. “Now I keep Your word”, I hope that this will be a confession of faith and a commitment to life for all of us.