Psalm 119: Resh 153-160

This is the path of Divine Dependence. While an English translation of this octet sounds a little repetitious with the rest of the psalm, the emphasis and tone are quite different. The psalmist tells God he has no place else to go.

He calls for the Lord to notice how pressed down he is, but what he seeks is not mere rescue, for the word also implies pulling up from helpless and arming someone against future attacks. It’s the image of a man who may have lost his armor, but not the Law of His God. The second verse here begins with the verb form followed by the noun form of the same word: “Contend my contention!” It’s a call for God to show Himself as his Father, to fill the role of kinsman redeemer, as He promised in His revelation.

The wicked could search their life long, but genuine moral safety is far from them. That’s because they aren’t searching the one place where safety stands, on the foundation God has established. It’s like a massive fortress standing in plain sight, filled with the mercies of God. The judgments of Jehovah are the source of life.

Everywhere the psalmist goes in this world, they are either nipping at his heels or blocking his path of service, but they cannot force him off the ancient way of God. He could see plainly the fools who thought they were being clever and sneaky. He detested them, trying to sneak past the boundaries of truth instead of guarding those boundaries.

Using the same word for seeing plainly, the psalmist asks that the Lord examine his own heart. Did he not long for more of the divine teachings? God’s divine favor brings a vivid life of glory. Search back as far as the deepest human memories, and anyone can see that God’s truth has stood from before Creation. The long string of Jehovah’s judgments against sin and in favor of righteousness runs off into eternity in every direction.