“Blessed is the man who walks not in the council 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
Oh, I would encourage you to memorize these opening verses of the Book of Psalms, to memorize them and to meditate on them. To do what this verse is saying to do, verse two. To delight in the law of the Lord, and on His law to meditate day and night.
We pray that by God’s grace we will saturate our souls with meditation on God’s Word day and night.
The picture is God’s blessing on the man, on the woman, who is so fixed on His word, on His law, on His truth, His instructions revealed to us, His revelation of Himself, so fixed on God’s word that we are thinking about it when we wake up in the morning, when we go to bed at night.
This Verse Delights in the Nourishment of God’s Word
And the implication is all throughout the day, like continually meditating on God’s word because we delight in it, because it’s like Psalm 19 describes, and Psalm 119 describes. It’s like food for our souls. It’s our feast on a daily basis. We don’t live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Just as we delight in food, actually more than we delight in food, we delight in God’s word. It is good. Oh, it is a treasure to be cherished. It is a guide for our life. It is nourishment to our soul. Yes, it is a gift of God’s grace that we need more than daily bread. More important than breakfast today. One that is more important than lunch today. More important than dinner today, is delighting in, feasting on, meditating on the word of God.
Is this the way? Is this the way you view God’s word in your life? And if it’s not, I just want to encourage you to pray for this kind of delight in the law of the Lord. Ask the Lord for this. And pray this, and then think through, “Okay. How can I meditate on this word day and night? How can I make sure at the beginning of my day to fill my mind with God’s word? At the end of the day, to fill my mind with God’s word in a way that saturates the whole course of my day with God’s word?”
Psalm 1:1–2 Encourages Intentional Growth in God’s Word
I guarantee you that if you are intentional about meditating, fixing your mind, your heart on God’s word in the beginning of your day, at the end of your day, and thinking through how can that saturate your life during the day, I guarantee you, you will see, discover, experience this word as delightful. Full of delight.
I just encourage you and challenge you. I promise you, you spend time in the word like that, and do that day, after day, after day, after day, you will experience the blessing of God. That’s what Psalm 1:1–2 is saying. Blessed is the one whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. That’s a promise. That’s a promise from God. So, I encourage you to take Him up on that promise.
I hope this podcast is helpful toward that end, but don’t let this be all. Let it drive you. Let this word, today particularly, drive you to think through what is a meditation on God’s word needs to look like in your life, day and night, and all throughout the day in a way that you experience the blessing of God. I trust you want to experience the blessing of God. Here’s the way to do it. Blessed is the man, the woman, whose delight is in in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 1:1–2 Thanks God for the Goodness of His Word
Oh, God, we pray for this blessing. God, I pray over everybody who’s listening to this right now. Each person, God, may then know your blessing, the fullness of your presence, and your power, and your promises in their life as they meditate on your word, as they delight in your word. God, I pray for an ever-increasing delight in your word in them, in me. God, I pray for an ever-increasing delight in your word. Your word is so good, oh, God. We confess that together right now. Your word is good. It is delightful.
We pray that you would forgive us for missing out on its delight, for looking to so many other things, filling our mind, our time with so many other things that are nowhere near as delightful as your word. God, we pray that you would cause our minds, our hearts, to be fixed on your word, today, and tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and we trust that as we do, as your word is constantly before us in a Deuteronomy four and six kind of way, that your word, God would saturate our minds, would saturate our relationships, and that as a result we would grow in love for it. We would see its beauty more, and more, and more in our lives.
This Verse Prays for the Gospel to Be Spread
Oh, God, I pray for that over the people who are listening to this right now. God, I pray for that. We pray for that together over people who don’t have knowledge of your word right now. God, people who’ve never even heard your word, your Gospel, your truth revealed, who’ve never seen a Bible, who don’t know the delight that is found in your word.
We pray especially for the Rajput people in Pakistan. Oh, God, 17 plus million of them in Pakistan and spread throughout India. Rajput men, and women, and children who don’t have your word right now, who don’t know how delightful your word is, who don’t know your blessing that is found in your word. God, may your word be proclaimed. May your word be made known among the Rajput in Pakistan, 17 million of them, hardly any believers.
Psalm 1:1–2 Trusts in the Power of God’s Word
God, please change that. Cause many people there to believe your word. Cause your word to go to them that they might know your blessing, they might know your love, they might know the delight that is found in your word. God, help us who have your word to experience the fullness of your word, and use our lives, use our churches to make your word known in the world, we pray. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
