Psalm 119:170

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

My Supplication
This is an interesting word, supplication. The word means to ask or to pray for in deep humility and in earnest, a sincere prayer, truly brought about by experience of great trial.  David had had many trials, and he is here asking God for deliverance.

God has many ways of deliverance. He can deliver us from trails in removing the trials from us, giving much comfort and peace; or he can give us strength to endure the trials with that same comfort and strength. I believe David had experienced both; therefore, he is ready to quickly, and without reservation, plead again and again for that same deliverance. Read of these in the books of 2 Samuel and also in the Psalms.

Psalm 18:17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.

Deliver me according to thy word
David does not desire that God deliver him from his trails in just any way but that they be delivered accord to God's word, that is, God's divine judgment and accord to His plan. That is because  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path, Psalm 119:105. 

But this is probably not a request for a deliverance from physical suffering or great human trials but a deliverance from the stress of sin in which Satan can have a victory and cause more discouragement and heartache. God had given David a promise as recorded in Psalm 50:15 And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

God gives us the same promise, that those who come to him by faith, knowing who He is and that He is a rewarded of them that diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6), that he will deliver from all sins -- Heb. 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

To the believer the promise is that, if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse -- 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

Psalm 119:169

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

Let my cry come before thee . . .
This is the cry of a seasoned believer, yet it is a cry of desperation. This can be a cry of supplication or entreaty, or it can be a cry of praise or joy, like the cry of an excited child who sees balloons for the first time, or the cry of a child in need. We cry out to God for help in time of weakening spiritual culture, yet we cry out to Him in praise for our salvation and our daily sustenance.

O LORD
Where else can we cry except to our Lord, Jehovah? He is our Creator and our Sustainer. It is in Him that we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).  Can we call out to our Lord in covetousness? Can we cry out to Him in our desire for more earthly things? No, we must cry out to him in thanksgiving and praise and for our necessities both earthly and spiritually.

. . . give me understanding
We need understanding to perceive spiritual things, for only God can teach us these thing. We cannot, in our own earthly bodies and minds, conceive the thoughts of God nor comprehend the depth of his riches: Rom. 11:33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

. . . according to thy word
Jesus said to his Father in John 17:17 " . . . thy word is truth," so we understand truth from God's word. We have understanding from God's word. We must be constant in our reading and studying God's word, for it is there that we find the great depth of God's opinion about life and death, his understanding of everything, and his provision for us as his children.

Psalm 119:168

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

I have kept thy precepts  
 David had kept God's precepts and testimonies (his word) as best he could, for we all know that he failed to do it perfectly. It was never said about David, as it was about Jesus, "who knew no sin." David knew his own shortcomings and testified of them, but his whole-life purpose and reason in the main was to please God and to keep his commandments. It is also our purpose in life to keep God's commandments; and, even though we cannot completely keep this desire, we should, however, long to and work to keep all the commandments of God.

First, we must know the commandments, and David had no problem with that; he knew God's commandments. Many today do not keep God's commandments, because they do not know them and are not interested in learning them. Therefore, many cannot say "I have kept thy precepts." We have all fallen so short of God's glory in this that we do not deserve even a small portion of his grace, but God is merciful, who brings grace to our hearts and cleanses us from all our sins (1 John 1:7).

... for all my ways are before thee.
There is a positive and negative aspect to this clause. Positively, God knows our ways and can and does lead us in them:  Psalm 25:4 Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths.  We do not know, on our own, how to walk, how to think, and what to do in God's Kingdom; He must provide the knowledge and wisdom needed to serve Him properly.

Negatively, God knows our ways in the sense of our error. He knows our sins. He watches us at all times and knows our very thoughts, our intentions (Heb. 4:12). We must, then, walk circumspectly and righteously as He teaches us through His Holy Spirit and remember Phil. 2:12-13 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.  13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 

Psalm 119:167

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

kept thy testimonies
David has kept the Lord's testimonies, God's word. He has kept it in his heart and has guarded it, observed it, and heeded it as a man, for no one can keep God's word perfectly. David was only a man, but he desired to be faithful to the word of God and was on the level of men, who often break God's commandments and shame his testimonies.

The reason for his faithfulness to the word of God is that he loves it. 1 John 2:5 says, But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. This love, then, is God's love, planted into the believer's heart with a warm interest in the word of God.

I love them exceedingly.
David loves every word of God's testimonies. He does not pick and choose which ones he wants to obey and which ones he wants to dismiss as unimportant. All of God's word is true and is given by inspiration, so every word of God is true and pure (Prov. 30:5). Therefore, every word is to be loved and obeyed by believers.

May God prick our hearts by his grace to love His word and to obey is testimonies (commandments). Without His word we are empty of spiritual food for growth.  

Psalm 119:166

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

hoped for thy salvation 
 In our day the word hope has been weakened to mean a desire that may or may not come, but this word hope has a stronger connotation. Our hope in Christ is both steadfast and sure (Heb. 6:19). It is not something that we wish to have if everything works out all right.

The psalmist hoped for God's salvation. Anyone who hopes for salvation receives it, Titus 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; Salvation is eternal life, and it comes with a certainty that is included in the meaning of this word hope.

and done thy commandments  
Notice that salvation is God's salvation, not David's. Also, the commandments are God's, not ours. We have had enough of the traditions of men (Gal. 1:14), and the tradition of the elders (Matt. 15:2); now we must turn our attention to the commandments of God. It is His word and His work that account to something, not our own feeble efforts.

If we, then, have His salvation, it is imperative that we do His commandments. This is not a choice but a commandment. Jesus said in John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. This is a sobering thought and should shake us to the core and cause us to, first, hope in God's salvation and, second, to be determined to keep God's commandments. 

Eccles. 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 

Psalm 119:165

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

Great peace have they  
There is a quietness, a stillness, a calmness and settled assurance that comes upon every believer in Christ, for he is our peace (Eph. 2:14). This is a peace that passes all understanding (Phil. 4:7). No one has that peace except those who put their trust in Jesus, the Messiah of God. This peace is not simply the absence of aggression or war, but this peace is a calmness that entertains the patience (endurance) that accompanies our walk with Christ.

which love thy law
Every believer must have a love for the law of God, the word of God. Those who do not spend time in reading the Bible and knowing it are left to their own feeble opinions and men's philosophies. Men cannot bring peace through opinions; only God's law can bring this wonderful peace of which the psalmist speaks here. Not only are we to read the word, but we are also to love the word, and the more we read it the more we will love it.

nothing shall offend them
If we put our confidence in the word of God instead of man's ideas, there is nothing, whether it be man's attitude, his persecutions against God and believers, his changing of the word of God, his false gospel, his false Jesus, his false spirit, that can make any believer fall or stumble, which definition is found in this word offend. We cannot stumble (be offended) through false teachers no matter how influential they are, if we continue to trust the word of God for our strength and our rule of obedience to Christ. Romans 8:38-39 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,  39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 119:164

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

Seven times The seven times a day does not mean literally seven times but rather many times or consistent times, regular worship and praise to God, who has given benefit to all believers and honored Himself with our creation, our recreation in salvation, and our security in Christ.

Praise is beneficial and honorable and comely for believers. We have a wont to pray and to honor and praise our God for benefits for the day, not looking back upon days gone nor looking forward to days coming, but rather praise God today for today's benefits and provisions both promised and provided by God.

We praise Him for who He is, and we praise Him for what he does. He judges both our enemies and ourselves, which manifests his perfect righteousness. We love and praise Him for that.

Thy righteous judgments
God's judgment upon the wicked is sure and perfect. We are neither to neglect nor shun the righteous judgments of God, and we should never forget that judgment comes upon the righteous as well as the wicked. God is always right in His judgments.

Psalm 119:7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.