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psalm 1
Haystack bible commentary"Stacks and stacks of commentary...."
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The entire collection of Psalms was entitled “Praises” in the Hebrew text, and later, rabbis often designated it “The Book of Praises”. The Septuagint (LXX; the Greek translation of the Old Testament), labeled it “Psalms”. Compare “the Book of Psalms” in the New Testament (Luke 20:42; Acts 1:20). The Greek verb from which the noun “psalms” comes basically denotes the “plucking or twanging of strings”, so that an association with musical accompaniment is implied. The English title derives from the Greek term and its background. The Psalms constituted Israel’s ancient, God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16), “hymn book”, which defined the proper spirit and content of worship. -Bible Study
 CS Lewis
The world rings with praise—lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favorite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favorite game—praise of weather, wines, dishes, actors, motors, horses, colleges, countries, historical personages, children, flowers, mountains, rare stamps, rare beetles, even sometimes politicians or scholars.
I had not noticed how the humblest, and at the same time most balanced and capacious minds, praised most, while the cranks, misfits, and malcontents praised least. The good critics found something to praise in many imperfect works; the bad ones continually narrowed the list of books we might be allowed to read. The healthy and unaffected man, even if luxuriously brought up and widely experienced in good cookery, could praise a very modest meal: the dyspeptic and the snob found fault with all. Except where intolerably adverse circumstances interfere, praise almost seems to be inner health made audible. Nor does it cease to be so when, through lack of skill, the forms of its expression are very uncouth or even ridiculous. Heaven knows, many poems of praise addressed to an earthly beloved are as bad as our bad hymns, and an anthology of love poems for public and perpetual use would probably be as sore a trial to literary taste as Hymns Ancient and Modern. I had not noticed either that just as men spontaneously praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: “Isn’t she lovely? Wasn’t it glorious? Don’t you think that magnificent?” The Psalmists in telling everyone to praise God are doing what all men do when they speak of what they care about. My whole, more general difficulty about the praise of God depended on my absurdly denying to us, as regards the supremely Valuable, what we delight to do, what we indeed can’t help doing, about everything else we value. C. S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms (orig., 1958; 1986), 94-95. The matter of the first Psalm, which may be looked upon, in some respects, as the text upon which the whole of the Psalms make up a divine sermon -Charles Spurgeon
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July 15, 2024: Christopher Ash wrote: Because I want these blessings, I must bend my zeal with unflagging effort to attain them (even though I can never succeed), just as the troubled Martin Luther did before his rediscovery of justification by faith alone through grace alone. (Incidentally, it seems likely that Luther rediscovered this ancient truth in the Psalms before he found it in Galatians, Romans, Hebrews, and elsewhere.) But with Christ, I rejoice that, first and fundamentally, Christ himself is the blessed man of Psalm 1; Christ is the righteous man of Psalm 15; Christ has the pure heart called for in Psalm 24. It is Christ who fulfills the high calling of the Psalms, Christ who can sing them with perfect assurance, Christ who ascends to the Father, and Christ alone who brings me there. The Psalms set before us unnumbered blessings. Each one of them is yours and mine in Christ. 
The Book of Psalms is a part of the Bible many of us are not familiar with. It consists of a collection of verses that can be read aloud, or silently, as prayers. The Christian sage Richard Rohr points out that while there are 150 psalms in the Bible, a full third of them are “psalms of lament,” an expression of grief or sorrow.
It’s probably no surprise that you rarely hear these verses in church and Rohr believes this is because “we think they make us appear weak, helpless, and vulnerable, or show a lack of faith. So we quickly resort to praise and thanksgiving. -Tom Rapsas |
Zorek Richards
January 16, 2025: Z-NOTED
--FOR THOSE CHRISTIANS WHO STRUGGLE:
For you folks who may be struggling with your relationship with God, you need to come to a point where you realize that there is nothing you can do. When Jesus said it is finished, he meant it is finished.. He will take care of the details. Also, the source for most problems when it comes to reconciling ourselves to Jesus is in our head. "In our head" is a major battleground. Take notice as you struggle that no one has to say anything and God does not pronounce you as "too troubled to deal with"...and instead you react to the voices in your own mind. Present yourself as a living sacrifice and, truly: He will take care of all the details. Draw near to Him and He WILL draw near unto you. I have been studying and meditating on Psalm 1 this week and though it is a short chapter in Psalms it says a whole lot: "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
Let God take you to a place where you delight in the word and you do not use it to beat yourself up with it, as many Christians do. And always remember the words of Jesus Christ: It is finished. Try as you may there is NOTHING you can do...and the good news, and why it is called good news, is that Jesus did it for you.
--FOR THOSE CHRISTIANS WHO STRUGGLE:
For you folks who may be struggling with your relationship with God, you need to come to a point where you realize that there is nothing you can do. When Jesus said it is finished, he meant it is finished.. He will take care of the details. Also, the source for most problems when it comes to reconciling ourselves to Jesus is in our head. "In our head" is a major battleground. Take notice as you struggle that no one has to say anything and God does not pronounce you as "too troubled to deal with"...and instead you react to the voices in your own mind. Present yourself as a living sacrifice and, truly: He will take care of all the details. Draw near to Him and He WILL draw near unto you. I have been studying and meditating on Psalm 1 this week and though it is a short chapter in Psalms it says a whole lot: "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
Let God take you to a place where you delight in the word and you do not use it to beat yourself up with it, as many Christians do. And always remember the words of Jesus Christ: It is finished. Try as you may there is NOTHING you can do...and the good news, and why it is called good news, is that Jesus did it for you.
==psalm 1:1:
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"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." -Psalm 1:1
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Blessed does not mean happy. Blessed is much deeper than that state of quality of deep inner happiness. It is not dependent on outward circumstances. Not dependent on how you feel. Blessedness is something God establishes within. “Walk” means direction. “Counsel” means plans or purposes. Wicked people are rebellious to God and sinners are comfortable in their rebellion. Scoffers actually mock and stand against God, or “sitteth” which means to “take the position.” The beatitudes, “blessed is the man,”…was the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. The Psalm verse lists three different things progressively worse than the other.
Like many of the psalms, it contrasts the "righteous" person (tzadik צדיק) with the "wicked" or "ungodly" (rasha` רשע) or the "sinner" (chatta' חטא). The righteous person is one who takes care to know the laws of God and so has good judgment and avoids bad company. The result is the ability to withstand difficult times in life supported by God's protection. On the other hand, the wicked person's behavior makes them vulnerable to disaster, like chaff blowing away in the wind. The point that the wicked and the righteous will not mingle at the judgment is clearly stated by the writer. The path the wicked have chosen leads to destruction, and at the judgment they receive the natural consequences of that choice.
Enduring Word Bible Commentary:
i. First, it means the righteous man knows how to discern the counsel of the ungodly. Many fail at this point. They do not even consider if counsel is godly or ungodly. They hear advice, or theories about their problems, and they find themselves agreeing or disagreeing without considering, “Is this godly or ungodly counsel?” ii. The righteous man is also discerning enough to know the counsel of the ungodly can come from one’s own self. Our own conscience, our own mind, our own heart, can give us ungodly counsel. iii. The righteous man knows where to find completely godly counsel: Your testimonies also are my delight and my counselors (Psalm 119:24). God’s word is always the best counselor, and godly counselors will always bring the truth of God’s word to help someone who wants counseling. |
June 26, 2023: Paul Tripp says: Psalm 1 confronts us with this temptation that all of us have to be increasingly comfortable with the counsel of those who do not offer life, who cannot deliver it. Maybe that’s Netflix or Hulu or Instagram or Twitter or TikTok. You always have to ask yourself, “What counsel am I submitting myself to? What view of life is influencing me?” And there’s this picture of growing comfortability: first we’re walking with this kind of counsel, then we’re standing, and then we’ve relaxed in, we’re sitting, we’re growingly comfortable with counsel that cannot give us life. Where is life to be found? Well, according to the Psalms is to be found in God’s law. For us that means God’s Word. And the center theme of God’s Word is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, how do I enter into this life? Well, Psalm 1 answers that question, “…by meditating in the Word.” I mean, there are probably three steps of meditation. First, that means the study of that Word. It means then asking the question, “How does God’s word then apply to my life, my situations, my relationship, my work?” And then, “What does it look like for me then to live that out?” June 27, 2013: Worship Arts Conservatory posted: How can I be blessed by God? Psalm 1:1-2
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The law is not made for a righteous man,” says the Apostle. But it is one thing to be in the law, another under the law. Whoso is in the law, acteth according to the law; whoso is under the law, is acted upon according to the law: the one therefore is free, the other a slave. Again, the law, which is written and imposed upon the servant, is one thing; the law, which is mentally discerned by him who needeth not its “letter,” is another thing. “He will meditate by day and by night,” is to be understood either as without ceasing; or “by day” in joy, “by night” in tribulations. For it is said, “Abraham saw my day, and was glad:” and of tribulation it is said, “my reins also have instructed me, even unto the night.” --Augustine of Hippo
“Blessed” means truly happy and favored by God (as in Psalm 1:1). Our society defines the good life by accumulation of possessions, by personal achievements and autonomy. But the good life is actually found in seeking the true God, keeping his ways, and being happy in him. -Brian Tabb
The psalmist notes that those who embrace God’s word are blessed. The Hebrew term for blessed in this context differs somewhat from the one used for God’s blessing Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. In Psalm 1:1, the individual who chooses to embrace God’s word is described as “happy.” Here, the Hebrew directly translates as “happy.” I feel joy when I wholeheartedly choose to embrace God’s word. So happy are all who choose not to walk in the counsel of the wicked. The Hebrew word here has the same meaning as in Jeremiah 23:18, where the prophet asks: “Who has stood in the council of the Lord to see or to hear His Word?” The idea implied is that people are happy if they do not listen to other people who claim they know better than God. As believers, we are to reject anyone’s testimony who remotely boasts that they know more than God. We delight in God’s word, because in it we find God’s instructions for living and life more abundant and free. --Chuck Hartman
..With Christ, I rejoice that, first and fundamentally, Christ himself is the blessed man of Psalm 1; Christ is the righteous man of Psalm 15; Christ has the pure heart called for in Psalm 24. It is Christ who fulfills the high calling of the Psalms, Christ who can sing them with perfect assurance, Christ who ascends to the Father, and Christ alone who brings me there. The Psalms set before us unnumbered blessings. Each one of them is yours and mine in Christ. --Christopher Ash
==psalm 1:2:
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But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night
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The Hebrew word hagah (meditate) used in Psalm 1:2 appears about 25 times throughout the Old Testament. It’s variously translated as “meditate,” “utter,” “plot,” “talk,” “ponder,” “mutter,” and “muse.”
His delight is in the law of the Lord, or the “hard stuff.” When one meditates upon it, it becomes a part of them. Biblical meditation is not accomplished by eliminating thought but by redirecting thought to the Word of God. The Hebrew word for “meditate” (hagah) means “to utter sounds, to speak.” It often appears in synonymous parallelism with zakar, “To remember, call to mind,” and stah, to consider, ponder.” To meditate then, is to recall all that God has said and done. Meditate includes audible recitation, and it is to be done continually “day and night.”
Joshua 1:8: This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate upon you in the watches of the night. (Psalm 63:5–6)
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April 11, 2023: Davy Ellison wrote at the Gospel Coalition: If we’re studying Titus, we may note the repetition of “sound,” which appears five times over three chapters in the ESV. This word’s meaning is obviously important to understanding Titus’s message. Alternatively, we may choose a word that we think people in our context understand differently from the original hearers, like “meditate” in Psalm 1:2. November 6, 2022: David Mathis said at Desiring God: the kind of reading God intends for his servant is meditative — slow, unhurried, enjoyable feeding on the text, at the pace of the text, rather than the pace of the world. Pondering God’s words. Rolling them around in the mind long enough to get a sense of them on the heart. Such daily meditation on the words of God is what God so memorably expects of Joshua as he becomes Israel’s new leader in Moses’s place: This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. (Joshua 1:8) So too, generations later, when Israel finally had its king, the first psalm celebrated where the godly king would find his sense and wisdom to rule: “His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2). And not only the king, but every man of God: “Blessed is the man . . .” (Psalm 1:1). |
“And he shall be like a tree planted hard by the running streams of waters” (ver. 3); that is either Very “Wisdom,” which vouchsafed to assume man’s nature for our salvation; that as man He might be “the tree planted hard by the running streams of waters;” for in this sense can that too be taken which is said in another Psalm, “the river of God is full of water.” Or by the Holy Ghost, of whom it is said, “He shall baptize you in the Holy Ghost;” and again, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink;” and again, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that asketh water of thee, thou wouldest have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water, of which whoso drinketh shall never thirst, but it shall be made in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” Or, “by the running streams of waters” may be by the sins of the people, because first the waters are called “peoples” in the Apocalypse; and again, by “running stream” is not unreasonably understood “fall,” which hath relation to sin. That “tree” then, that is, our Lord, from the running streams of water, that is, from the sinful people’s drawing them by the way into the roots of His discipline, will “bring forth fruit,” that is, will establish Churches; “in His season,” that is, after He hath been glorified by His Resurrection and Ascension into heaven. For then, by the sending of the Holy Ghost to the Apostles, and by the confirming of their faith in Him, and their mission to the world, He made the Churches to “bring forth fruit.” “His leaf also shall not fall,” that is, His Word shall not be in vain. For, “all flesh is grass, and the glory of man as the flower of grass; the grass withereth, and the flower falleth, but the word of the Lord abideth for ever. And whatsoever He doeth shall prosper” that is, whatsoever that tree shall bear; which all must be taken of fruit and leaves, that is, deeds and words. --Augustine of Hippo
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January 22, 2018: Steve Pettit wrote at Bob Jones University: Meditation involves a 24/7—“day and night”—focus on the Scripture. This means seeking to understand the Bible’s meaning as well as its application to us personally. The Spirit of God makes the Word of God satisfying to the soul of man. The Scriptures are “sweeter than honey” (Ps. 119:103) and “more to be desired [desirable] are they than gold” (Ps. 19:10). In some contexts the word meditate can be translated growl or groan or moan. It conveys the idea of muttering. Perhaps you know someone who walks around mumbling to himself. We tend to view such behavior as socially odd. But the reality is that all of us talk to ourselves inside our heads all the time. There is a mental discussion going on continuously. Some people simply express parts of their dialogue audibly. This mental conversation is meditation. God blesses us as we mull over His words day and night. The reason this way of life makes one so happy is that is fulfills the purpose for which we were created. God’s first command to man was to “be fruitful” (Gen. 1:28). Psalm 1 describes the happy man as being “like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Ps. 1:3). Fruit bearing is the result of deep roots’ finding an abundant supply of nourishment from underground streams of water. God’s Word is an all-sufficient, eternal supply of empowering grace for all of life. Even during difficult, seemingly barren times, the Word will sustain life. A fruitful life is a blessed life. So David states that God’s way to happiness is being separated from the world, saturated with the Word, and fruitful and successful in doing God’s will. Jan 8, 2020: Rod Benson wrote at Good Faith Media: Those who take the narrow but virtuous road will increasingly “prosper.” Their work will bear fruit. God will bless it. They are like a graceful tree beside a billabong, with leaves that do not wither, though all else withers. Their branches are laden with healthy fruit, in abundance, true to the tree’s intended nature and fulfilling its purpose. This is a tree that flourishes in all weather conditions, that withstands scorching fire, tearing wind, pressing flood and crushing drought – for the blessing and joy of others. You and I should aim to be that tree and follow the psalmist’s advice on how to do so:
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==psalm 1:3:
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And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not whither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
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Fruit is seasonal. God’s granted measurement of “prosper” is not to be measured in material things. “Planted” is a participle of a Hebrew verb which actually means “to transplant,” not merely “plant.” This is rich and significant. “To plant” means to cause to take root, to become firmly established for the purpose of stability, nutrition (food and water), growth, and eventually production. “To transplant” includes the above, of course, but it also includes taking a plant out of one environment and placing it into another which is more conducive to production, growth, and stability. Like taking wild trees growing in barren and desert-like conditions and carefully transplanting them in rich prepared soil by streams of water. The children of God constantly flourish, and are always watered with the influences of divine grace, so that whatever may befall them is conducive to their salvation; while, on the other hand, the ungodly are carried away by the sudden tempest, or consumed by the scorching heat. And when he says, he bringeth forth his fruit in season, he expresses the full maturity of the fruit produced, whereas, although the ungodly may present the appearance of fruitfulness, they produce nothing that comes to perfection.
 Arthur W Pink
"He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers" (Psalm 1:3). Here we have the "blessed" man's Fertilzation. But notice very carefully, dear reader, what precedes this. There must be a complete break from the world--separating from its counsel or policy, from fellowshipping its votaries, and from its pleasures; and there must be a genuine subjection to God's authority and a daily feeding upon His Word—before there can be any real fruitfulness unto Him.
"He shall be like a tree." This figure is found in numerous passages, for there are many resemblances between a tree and a saint. He is not a "reed" moved about by every wind which blows, nor a creeper, trailing along the ground. A tree is upright, and grows heavenward. This tree is "planted"—many are not—but grow wild. A "planted" tree is under the care and cultivation of its owner. Thus, this metaphor assures us that those who delight in God's Law are owned by God, cared for and pruned by Him! "Planted by the rivers of water." This is the place of refreshment—rivers of grace, or communion, of renewing. Probably the more specific allusion is unto "and a Man shall be as a hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land" (Isaiah 32:2). That refers to Christ, and tells us that just as a tree derives life and fruitfulness from the adjacent river—so the believer, by communion, draws from the fullness there is for him in Christ. "Which yields its fruit in season." This is an essential character of a gracious man, for there are no fruitless branches in the true Vine. "In season," for all fruits do not appear in the same month, neither are all the graces of the Spirit produced simultaneously. |
August 27, 2020: Ben Collins wrote: After years of pastoral ministry, and after meeting with dozens of men, here’s one lesson I have learned: Christian men know and feel that they should be reading the Bible. Generally speaking, we don’t need to be told that we need to read the Bible. And yet most men, myself included, get lazy and lonely in their Bible reading, and end up burdened by guilt and shame. Other men, myself also included, get serious and strategic in their Bible reading, but end up burdened by pride and self-righteousness. How do we find the narrow path between avoiding Bible reading and boasting in it, between negligence and arrogance? How do we become the Psalm 1 man who “who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:1–2)? February 20, 2025: Katie Laitkip wrote: The fastest way to kill a houseplant is to forget it’s there, and the fastest way to kill your love for God’s Word is to disregard it. When did you last water your heart with God’s Word? In the midst of your busy life, have weeks (or months) passed since you’ve spent time soaking up the truth of Scripture? Grab your Bible, and read Psalm 1:2–3. Now read verse 2 again but personalize it: [My] delight is in the LORD’s instruction, and [I meditate] on it day and night. If you haven’t spent time in God’s Word in a while, it’s probably not because you’ve consciously chosen to ignore it. It’s likely that you’ve lost your delight. Think back to the last time you were excited about Scripture: what were those circumstances? Why do you think it stirred your heart? Don’t wait for your feelings to return. Fight for delight. Make a new Scripture watering plan to follow. Pick a time and place, and every time you sit down, commit to asking God to revive your wonder for His Word. (Reading and praying Psalm 119 back to the Lord is a great place to start!) |
==psalm 1:4:
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The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
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The ungodly are the opposite of the righteous. Rather than being a sturdy oak, they are "like the chaff which the wind drives away." To be severed from the word of God is to have no root, no nourishment, no fruit, no real life. Chaff has no root and is blown away easily by the wind.
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“The ungodly are not so,” they are not so, “but are like the dust which the wind casteth forth from the face of the earth” (ver. 4). “The earth” is here to be taken as that stedfastness in God, with a view to which it is said, “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance, yea, I have a goodly heritage.” With a view to this it is said, “Wait on the Lord and keep His ways, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the earth.” With a view to this it is said, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” A comparison too is derived hence, for as this visible earth supports and contains the outer man, so that earth invisible the inner man. “From the face of” which “earth the wind casteth forth the ungodly,” that is, pride, in that it puffeth him up. On his guard against which he, who was inebriated by the richness of the house of the Lord, and drunken of the torrent stream of its pleasures, saith, “Let not the foot of pride come against me.” From this earth pride cast forth him who said, “I will place my seat in the north, and I will be like the Most High.” From the face of the earth it cast forth him also who, after that he had consented and tasted of the forbidden tree that he might be as God, hid himself from the Face of God. That his earth has reference to the inner man, and that man is cast forth thence by pride, may be particularly seen in that which is written, “Why is earth and ashes proud? Because, in his life, he cast forth his bowels.” For, whence he hath been cast forth, he is not unreasonably said to have cast forth himself. --Augustine of Hippo
==psalm 1:5:
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Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
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In the congregation of the righteous - Be reckoned or regarded as belonging to the righteous. That is, in all the places where the righteous, as such, are assembled, they will have no place: where they assemble to worship God; where they meet as his friends; where they unitedly participate in his favor; when, in the last day, they shall be gathered together to receive their reward, and when they shall be assembled together in heaven. The sinner has no place in the congregations of the people of God. --Barnes
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Don Carson
Now if you look at the psalm closely, if you have your Bibles in front of you, you discover it’s broken into three unequal parts. Verses 1 through 3 describe the righteous. Verses 4 and 5 describe the unrighteous. Then verse 6 is a final summarizing contrast. If you go back to verses 1 through 3 describing the righteous, they’re described negatively in verse 1, what they’re not like, what they don’t do.
“Blessed are those who do not walk in step with the wicked …” That is, they’re walking along, and they are marching beside them. They are coordinated with them. They’re picking up advice and counsel from them. If you do that long enough, you might “… stand in the way that sinners take,” stand in the way of people. That’s not an easy translation. Almost all our English translations say something like that. The trouble is in Hebrew, to stand in someone’s way does not mean in English what we mean when we say stand in someone’s way. To stand in someone’s way in English means to impede them, to block their path. Robin Hood and Little John on the bridge, each standing in the other’s way. One of them ends in the stream. In Hebrew, to stand in someone’s way means to have your feet in their moccasins, to do what they do, to be indifferentiable from them. You’re not blocking them. You’re where they are. You stand in their way, which is why this version has it somewhat periphrastically “to stand in the way that sinners take.” You’re now where they are. If you do that long enough, you might sit in the company of mockers. Now you’re in your La-Z-Boy chair. You pull the lever, look down your long self-righteous nose at those ignorant, stupid, right-winged, bigoted Christians. The very first verse of the very first psalm says blessed are those who don’t do these things. It’s describing them negatively.
-Don Carson; Gospel Coalition; The God Who Is There Part 6 The God Who is Unfathomably Wise
“Blessed are those who do not walk in step with the wicked …” That is, they’re walking along, and they are marching beside them. They are coordinated with them. They’re picking up advice and counsel from them. If you do that long enough, you might “… stand in the way that sinners take,” stand in the way of people. That’s not an easy translation. Almost all our English translations say something like that. The trouble is in Hebrew, to stand in someone’s way does not mean in English what we mean when we say stand in someone’s way. To stand in someone’s way in English means to impede them, to block their path. Robin Hood and Little John on the bridge, each standing in the other’s way. One of them ends in the stream. In Hebrew, to stand in someone’s way means to have your feet in their moccasins, to do what they do, to be indifferentiable from them. You’re not blocking them. You’re where they are. You stand in their way, which is why this version has it somewhat periphrastically “to stand in the way that sinners take.” You’re now where they are. If you do that long enough, you might sit in the company of mockers. Now you’re in your La-Z-Boy chair. You pull the lever, look down your long self-righteous nose at those ignorant, stupid, right-winged, bigoted Christians. The very first verse of the very first psalm says blessed are those who don’t do these things. It’s describing them negatively.
-Don Carson; Gospel Coalition; The God Who Is There Part 6 The God Who is Unfathomably Wise
“Therefore the ungodly rise not in the judgment” (ver. 5): “therefore,” namely, because “as dust they are cast forth from the face of the earth.” And well did he say that this should be taken away from them, which in their pride they court, namely, that they may judge; so that this same idea is more clearly expressed in the following sentence, “nor sinners in the counsel of the righteous.” For it is usual for what goes before, to be thus repeated more clearly. So that by “sinners” should be understood the “ungodly;” what is before “in the judgment,” should be here “in the counsel of the righteous.” Or if indeed the ungodly are one thing, and sinners another, so that although every ungodly man is a sinner, yet every sinner is not ungodly; “The ungodly rise not in the judgment,” that is, they shall rise indeed, but not that they should be judged, for they are already appointed to most certain punishment. But “sinners” do not rise “in counsel of the just,” that is, that they may judge, but peradventure that they may be judged; so as of these it were said, “The fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall then suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” --Augustine of Hippo
==psalm 1:5-6:
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Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
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The remainder of the first Psalm has three thoughts--the real nullity of such lives, their consequent disappearance in "the judgement," and the ground of both the blessedness of the one type of character and the vanishing of the other in the diverse attitude of God to each. Nothing could more vividly suggest the essential nothingness of the "wicked" than the contrast of the leafy beauty of the fruit-laden tree and the chaff, rootless, fruitless, lifeless, light, and therefore the sport of every puff of wind that blows across the elevated and open threshing floor.
Such is indeed a rue picture of every life not rooted and drawing fertility from Him. It is rootless; for what hold-fast is there but Him? Or where shall the heart twine its tendrils if not round God's stable throne? Or what elsewhere than on the enduring Rock? "The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous (therefore it shall last). The Lord knoweth not the way of the wicked (therefore it shall perish)." The way which the Lord knows abides. "Know" is, of course, here used in its full sense of loving knowledge, care and approval, as in "He knoweth my path" and the like sayings. The direction off the good man's life is watched m guarded, approved, and blessed by God. Therefore it will not fail to reach its goal. They who walk patiently in the paths which He has prepared will find paths of peace, and will not tread them unaccompanied, nor ever see them diverging from the straight road to home and rest. |
“For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous” (ver. 6). As it is said, medicine knows health, but knows not disease, and yet disease is recognised by the art of medicine. In like manner can it be said that “the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous,” but the way of the ungodly He knoweth not. Not that the Lord is ignorant of anything, and yet He says to sinners, “I never knew you.” “But the way of the ungodly shall perish;” is the same as if it were said, the way of the ungodly the Lord knoweth not. But it is expressed more plainly that this should be not to be known of the Lord, namely, to “perish;” and this to be known of the Lord, namely, to “abide;” so as that to be should appertain to the knowledge of God, but to His not knowing not to be. For the Lord saith, “I Am that I Am,” and, “I Am hath sent me.” --Augustine of Hippo
God is said to "know" those of whom he approves, and. on whom he "lifts up the light of his countenance." The wicked he does not "know;" he "casts them out of the sight of his eyes" - "casts them behind his back;" refuses to acknowledge them. God "knows the way of the righteous," and therefore they live and prosper; he does not know the way of the wicked, and therefore the way of the (wicked, or) ungodly shall perish (compare the beginning and end of Psalm 112.). --Pulpit Commentary