Psalms 19:1

The Bible says in Psalms 19:1-6, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.[2] Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.[3] There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.[4] Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,[5] Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.[6] His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.” There are many evidences of the existence of God. These verses talk about the evidence of creation. When you see a painting by Rembrandt, you know that Rembrandt existed. When you see a watch, you know there was a watchmaker even though you have never seen the watchmaker. God is always speaking through His creation. God is saying, “I exist, and I made all these beautiful things. I designed them all, and I planned them all.” Both in the beauty of the day and in the beauty of the night, God’s message goes forth. What language does God use when He speaks forth from His Creation? God uses a universal language that all people in all the earth can understand. As it says in verse 3, “There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.” Notice that in the last three verses three things are mentioned as an example of the wonderful things and beautiful things that God has created. In verse five “a bridegroom coming out of his chamber” is used as an example of God’s wonderful creation. God created a man and a woman and it is a beautiful gift from God when they become joined in marriage. Marriage between a man and a woman has a great symbolism to it: it symbolizes the love of Christ for a believer.

At the end of verse 5 David spoke of a second thing in creation that has a symbolism to it when he wrote, “rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.” There is rejoicing in life. There are many things to enjoy because God made life enjoyable and pleasurable. Athletics are very enjoyable. When a young person is given physical strength as a gift from the mind of God, and then has the opportunity to use that strength in athletic competition, that also is God’s creation. That situation causes so much pleasure for people that spectators by the millions enjoy watching young men and young women as they display their athletic talents. The Apostle Paul compared athletic competition to the Christian life. He wrote in First Corinthians 9:24-27, “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.[25] And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.[26] I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:[27] But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

In Psalms 19:4-6 the Bible is also talking about the sun as being one of the objects of God’s creation to notice. We cannot ignore the sun. It shines all around us every day. And the earth is in perfect position in its distance from the sun to support life. Any closer and it would be way too hot and any farther away and it would be way too cold. That is not a coincidence: it is God and His infinite wisdom and His creative work. If evolution was responsible for life, then life would have evolved on other planets too that would be just right for the heat or the cold on those planets.

The Bible says in Psalms 19:7, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.” In this context “the law” represents the Word of God. The law is part of the Word of God. And this verse also mentions “the testimony of the LORD.” Both of the phrases, “the law of the LORD” and “the testimony of the LORD,” emphasize the source of these words that we have in the Bible. The source is the LORD. God has given us His Word, and His Word is “perfect.” There are no errors and no mistakes in the Word of God. One value of the Word of God is its work of “converting the soul.” There are two ways in which the Word of God converts the soul. The first has to do with salvation when a person first turns to Christ to accept Jesus as Savior and to start following Christ. This can only happen by the Word of God. We would not know the gospel if it were not for the Word of God. The Word of God tells us the truth, and our hearts are touched and we turn to Jesus. As it says in Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

Psalm 19:7 says, “the testimony of the LORD is sure.” In other words, it is something you can be certain about. There is a lot of uncertainty in this world. There are a lot of opinions. With the Word of God, you have something that you can be certain about and that you can rely on. After all, it is “the testimony of the LORD,” and everything that God says is true.

The Bible says in Psalms 19:8, “The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.” This verse tells us that the Word of God is right and pure. Every person should want to do the right thing. The Word of God will tell you what is right. It will tell you what to do to stay on that straight and narrow path. By telling us that the Word of God is “pure,” we are being told that it is clean completely: there is nothing in the Word that is wrong or that is untrue. God gave the Word. This verse also tells us two of the important benefits we get from the Word of God: “rejoicing the heart” and “enlightening the eyes.” If you want more joy in your life, spend more time in the Bible. The Bible tells you about God’s unconditional love, and forgiveness, and power. The Bible tells you that the future is safe in God’s hands. The Bible gives you good thoughts. The Bible tells you how wonderful heaven will be. The Bible tells you the story of Jesus. The Bible tells you what to think about. If you want to have more joy and happiness, get into the Bible more. The Bible also gives us enlightenment. You are what you believe, but you do not yet believe everything that you need to believe. You do not yet know everything that you need to know. The Bible is the answer. The Bible will tell you which way to go in life. The Bible will open your eyes to truth. The Bible will enlighten you to glorious things about Jesus and salvation and God’s will.

The Bible says in Psalms 19:9, “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” This part of Psalms chapter nineteen has been giving many different descriptive words for the Word of God: “law,” “testimony,” “statutes,” “commandment,” and “judgments.” But the first part of verse nine uses a word that has to do with what our attitude should be to the Word of God and to God Himself: “fear.” “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.” To honor the Bible, and love the Bible, and seek to have the Bible a part of your life, you must “fear” the Lord. God is just and holy. We are sinners in danger of judgment. And we are weak and in need of God’s mercy. The reason to seek God’s mercy through faith in Christ is because if you do not find mercy, then you will be heading to judgment. But if you fear the Lord and His judgment, you will come to Jesus and be cleansed. And then you will live forever. That is why “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.” If you seek the Lord Jesus and His mercy, part of your honest motivation is to seek that which is “true and righteous.” You will find what is true and righteous in God’s judgments: nowhere else.

The Bible says in Psalms 19:10, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” The first part of this verse talks about the value of the Bible. The Bible is not only the most important book in the world, it is the most valuable book. It is not only the most valuable book, it is more valuable than “much fine gold.” If you value the Bible the way that you should, then it will be demonstrated by how much the Bible is a part of your life. For example, are you a part of a Bible-teaching church where you can hear the Word of God with other believers every week? Do you have a Bible reading program, and are there Bible verses that you memorize and think about? The Bible is compared to gold, and it is also compared to honey in this verse. The Bible is just what your soul needs. The Bible is sweet to the soul. It tastes good to the soul because every word comes from God. The Bible is not only the dessert, it is also the main course. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”

The Bible says in Psalms 19:11, “Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.” There are many dangers in life: moral and ethical and spiritual dangers. You need to be warned so that you will not fall into a pit. One of the values of the Bible is that it warns us of the things that will hurt us or even ruin us. For example, it says in Proverbs 1:10, “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.” It says in Proverbs 2:16-18, “To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;[17] Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.[18] For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead.” It says in Proverbs 3:1, “My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:” It says in Proverbs 20:1, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” The Ten Commandments say, “Remember the Sabbath Day,” “Thou shalt not lie,” “Thou shalt not steal,” “Thou shalt not kill,” “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” “Honor your mother and your father.” These commandments all warn of the terrible consequences of what will come when we fail to obey these commandments. One reason for the commandments is so that we will obey them and have the good results.

The Bible says in Psalms 19:12-13, “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults. [13] Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.” We are dependent upon God’s mercy more than we know. We sometimes sin even when we do not know that we are sinning. Always confess your sins when you are aware that you have sinned, but make sure that you know what King David knew: you probably have other sins of which you are not even aware, for which you also need forgiveness. But once we learn to rely upon God’s forgiveness through the blood of Christ, be careful to never take his forgiveness for granted. Do not make the serious mistake of purposely sinning, thinking that God will forgive you anyway. God wants you to improve your life and live a holy life. God may decide to give you some consequences of your evil deeds even while He forgives you. These “presumptuous sins” are an insult to God, and David said that such sins are “the great transgression.” Some Christians sin so much that God decides to take them off the earth. It says in First John 5:16, “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he should pray for it.”

It says in Psalms 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.” There are two other types of sins that Christians need to be aware of and get under control: their words and their thoughts. Words are powerful. Words can build up or they can tear down. The right words can be very, very good, and the wrong words can be very, very evil.

You can also sin just by what you think about, if you allow sinful thoughts to make a nest in your head. One way of having the right thoughts is to have the right diet of the Word of God: hearing Bible-teaching sermons, reading the Word, meditating upon it, and memorizing scripture. We cannot over-emphasize the importance of our thoughts in the life of faith and following Jesus. It says in Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus.” It says in Romans 12:2, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, all thy soul, all thy mind, and all thy strength.” It also says in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

___________________________________________________