by Charles Spurgeon
105. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
106. I have sworn, and I wilt perform
it, that I will keep thy
righteous judgments.
107. I am afflicted very much: quicken
me, O LORD, according
unto thy word.
108. Accept, I beseech thee, the
freewill offerings of my mouth,
O LORD, and teach me thy judgments.
109. My soul is continually in my
hand: yet do I not forget thy
law.
110. The wicked have laid a snare
for me yet I erred not from
thy precepts.
111. Thy testimonies have I taken
as an heritage for ever: for
they are the rejoicing of my heart.
112. I have inclined mine heart
to perform thy statutes always,
even unto the end.
105. “Thy word is a lamp unto my
feet, and a light unto my path.”
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet.”
We are walkers through the city of
this world, and we are often called
to go out into its darkness; let us never
venture there without the light-giving
word, lest we slip with our feet.
Each man should use the word of
God personally, practically, and
habitually, that he may see his
way, and see What lies in it. When darkness
settles down upon all around me,
the word of the Lord, like a flaming
torch, reveals my way. Having no
fixed lamps in eastern towns, in old time
each passenger carried a lantern
with him, that he might not fall into the
open sewer, or stumble over the
heaps of ordure which defiled the road.
This is a true picture of our path
through this dark world: we should not
know the way, or how to walk in
it, if Scripture, like a blazing flambeau,
did not reveal it. One of the most
practical benefits of Holy Writ is guidance
in the acts of daily life: it is
not sent to astound us with its brilliance, but to
guide us by its instruction. It
is true the head needs illumination, but even
more the feet need direction, else
head and feet may both fall into a ditch.
Happy is the man who personally
appropriates God’s word, and practically
uses it as his comfort and counselor,
— a lamp to his feet. “And a light
unto my path.” It is a lamp by
night, a light by day, and a delight at all
times. David guided his own steps
by it, and also saw the difficulties of his
road by its beams. He who walks
in darkness is sure, sooner or later, to
stumble; while he who walks by
the light of day, or by the lamp of night,
stumbleth not, but keeps his uprightness.
Ignorance is painful upon
practical subjects; it breeds indecision
and suspense, and these are
uncomfortable: the word of God,
by imparting heavenly knowledge, leads
to decision, and when that is followed
by determined resolution, as in this
case, it brings with it great restfulness
of heart.
This verse converses with God in
adoring and yet familiar tones. Have we
not something of like tenor to
address to our heavenly Father?
Note how much this verse is like
the first verse of the first octave, and the
first of the second and other octaves.
The seconds also are often in unison.
106. “I have sworn, and I will perform
it, that I will keep thy righteous
judgments.” Under the influence
of the clear light of knowledge he had
firmly made up his mind, and solemnly
declared his resolve in the sight of
God. Perhaps mistrusting his own
fickle mind, he had pledged himself in
sacred form to abide faithful to
the determinations and decisions of his
God. Whatever path might open before
him, he was sworn to follow that
only upon which the lamp of the
word was shining. The Scriptures are
God’s judgments, or verdicts, upon
great moral questions; these are all
righteous, and hence righteous
men should be resolved to keep them at all
hazards, since it must always be
right to do right. Experience shows that
the less of covenanting and swearing
men formally enter upon the better,
and the genius of our Savior’s
teaching is against all unnecessary pledging
and swearing; and yet under the
gospel we ought to feel ourselves as much
bound to obey the word of the Lord
as if we had taken an oath so to do.
The bonds of love are not less
sacred than the fetters of law. When a man
has vowed, he must be careful to
“perform it”; and when a man has not
vowed in so many words to keep
the Lord’s judgments, yet is he equally
bound to do so by obligations which
exist apart from any promise on our
part — obligations founded in the
eternal fitness of things, and confirmed
by the abounding goodness of the
Lord our God. Will not every believer
own that he is under bonds to the
redeeming Lord to follow his example,
and keep his words? Yes, the vows
of the Lord are upon us, especially
upon such as have made profession
of discipleship, have been baptized into
the thrice-holy name, have eaten
of the consecrated memorials, and have
spoken in the name of the Lord
Jesus. We are enlisted, and sworn in, and
are bound to be loyal soldiers
all through the war. Thus, having taken the
word into our hearts by a firm
resolve to obey it, we have a lamp within
our souls as well as in the Book,
and our course will be light unto the end.
107. “I am afflicted very much:
quicken me, O Lord, according unto thy
word.”
“I am afflicted very much.” According
to the last verse, he had been
sworn in as a soldier of the Lord,
and in this next verse he is called to
suffer hardness in that capacity.
Our service of’ the Lord does not screen
us from trial, but rather secures
it for us. The Psalmist was a consecrated
man, and yet a chastened man; nor
were his chastisements light; for it
seemed as if the more he was obedient
the more he was afflicted. He
evidently felt the rod to be bruising
him very grievously, and he pleads
before the Lord the greatness of
his affliction as a reason why he should be
sustained under it by an increase
of his inner life. He speaks not by way of
murmuring, but by way of pleading;
from the very much affliction he
argues for very much quickening.
“Quicken me, O Lord, according unto
thy word.” This is the best remedy
for tribulation; the soul is raised
above the thought of present distress, and
is filled with that holy joy which
attends all vigorous spiritual life, and so
the affliction grows light. Jehovah
alone can quicken: he has life in himself,
and therefore can communicate it
readily; he can give us life at any
moment, yea, at this present instant;
for it is of the nature of quickening to
be quick in its operation. The
Lord has promised, prepared, and provided
this blessing of renewed life for
all his waiting servants: it is a covenant:
blessing, and it is as obtainable
as it is needful. Frequently the affliction is
made the means of the quickening,
even as the stirring of a fire promotes
the heat of the flame. In their
affliction some desire death; let us pray for
life. Our forebodings under trial
are often very gloomy; let us entreat the
Lord to deal with us, not according
to our fears, but according to his own
word. David had but few promises
to quote, and many of these had been
recorded in his; own psalms, yet
he pleads the word of the Lord; how
much more should we do so, since
to us so many holy men have spoken by
the Spirit of the Lord in that
wonderful library which is now our Bible!
Seeing we have more promises, let
us offer more prayers, and let us exhibit
more of the quickening power of
the Word.
108. “Accept, I beseech thee, the
freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord,
and teach me thy judgments.”
“Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill
offerings of my mouth, O Lord.”
The living praise the living God,
and therefore the quickened one presents
his sacrifice. He offers prayer,
praise, confession, and testimony: these,
presented with his voice in the
presence of an audience, were the tribute of
his mouth unto Jehovah. He trembles
lest these should be so ill uttered as
to displease the Lord, and therefore
he implores acceptance. He pleads that
the homage of his mouth was cheerfully
and spontaneously rendered: all his
utterances were freewill offerings.
There can be no value in extorted
confessions God’s revenues are
not derived from forced taxation, but from
freewill donation. There can be
no acceptance where there is no
willingness; there is no work of
free grace where there is no fruit of
freewill. Acceptance is a favor
to be sought from the Lord with all
earnestness, for without it our
offerings are worse than useless. What a
wonder of grace that the Lord will
accept anything of such unworthy ones
as we are!
“And teach me thy judgments.” When
we render unto the Lord our best,
we become all the more concerned
to do better. When we know that the
Lord has accepted us, we then desire
to be further instructed, that we may
be still more acceptable. After
quickening we need teaching: life without
light, or zeal without knowledge,
would be but half a blessing. These
repeated cries for teaching show
the humility of the man of God, and also
discover to us our own need of
similar instruction., Our judgment needs
educating till it knows, agrees
with, and acts upon, the judgments of the
Lord. Those judgments are not always
so clear as to be seen at once; we
need to be taught in them till
we admire their wisdom and adore their
goodness as soon as ever we perceive
them.
109. “My soul is continually in my hand: yet do 1 not forget thy law.”
“My soul is continually in my hand.”
He lived in the midst of danger. He
had to be always fighting for existence
— hiding in caves, or contending in
battles. This is a very uncomfortable
and trying state of affairs, and men are
apt to think any expedient justifiable
by which they can end such a
condition: but David did not turn
aside to find safety in sin, for he says,”
Yet do I not forget thy law.” They
say that all things are fair in love and
war; but the holy man thought not
so: while he carried his life in his hand,
he also carried the law in his
heart. No danger of body should make us
endanger our souls by forgetting
that which is right. Trouble makes many a
man forget his duty, and it would
have had the same effect upon the
Psalmist if he had not obtained
quickening (verse 107) and teaching (verse
108). In his memory of the Lord’s
law lay his safety; he was certainly not
forgotten of his God, for his God
was not forgotten of him. It is a special
proof of grace when nothing can
drive truth out of our thoughts, or
holiness out of our lives. If we
remember the law even when death stares
us in the face, we may be well
assured that the Lord is remembering us.
110. “The wicked have laid a snare
for me: yet I erred not from thy
precepts.”
“The wicked have laid a snare far
me.” Spiritual life is the scene of
constant danger: the believer lives
with his life in his hand, and meanwhile
all seem plotting to take it from
him by cunning if they cannot by violence.
We shall not find it an easy thing
to live the life of the faithful. Wicked
spirits and wicked men will leave
no stone unturned for our destruction.
When all other devices fail, and
even hidden pits do not succeed, the
wicked still persevere in their
treacherous endeavors, and, becoming
craftier still, they set snares
for the victim of their hate. The smaller species
of game are usually taken by this
method, by gin, or trap, or net, or noose.
Wicked men are quite indifferent
as to the manner in which they can
destroy the good man; they think
no more of him than if he were a rabbit
or a rat. Cunning and treachery
are always the allies of malice, and
everything like a generous or chivalrous
feeling is unknown among the
graceless, who treat the godly
as if they were vermin to be exterminated.
When a man knows that he is thus
assailed, he is too apt to become
timorous, and rush upon some hasty
device for deliverance, not without sin
in the endeavor; but David calmly
kept his way, and was able to write,
“Yet I erred not from thy precepts.”
He was not snared, for he kept his
eyes open, and kept near his God.
He was not entrapped and robbed, for
he followed the King’s highway
of holiness, where God secures safety to
every traveler. He did not err
from the right, and he was not deterred from
following it, because he referred
to the Lord for guidance, and obtained it.
If we err from the precepts, we
part with the promises; if we get away from
God’s presence, we wander into
the wilds where the fowlers freely spread
their nets. From this verse let
us learn to be on our guard, for we, too, have
enemies both crafty and wicked.
Hunters set their traps in the animals’
usual runs, and our worst snares
are laid in our own ways. By keeping to
the ways of the Lord we shall escape
the snares of our adversaries, for his
ways are safe and free from treachery.
111. “Thy testimonies have I taken
as an heritage for ever: for they are
the rejoicing of my heart.”
“Thy testimonies have I taken as
an heritage for ever.” He chose them as
his lot, his portion, his estate;
and what is more, he laid hold upon them
and made them so — taking them
into possession and enjoyment. David’s
choice is our choice. If we might
have our desire, we would desire to keep
the commands of God perfectly.
To know the doctrine, to enjoy the
promise, to practice the command
— be this a kingdom large enough for
us. Here we have an inheritance
which cannot fade and cannot be alienated;
it is for ever, and ours for ever,
if we have so taken it. Sometimes, like
Israel at their first coming into
Canaan, we have to take our heritage by
hard fighting, and, if so, it is
worthy of all our labor and suffering; but
always it has to be taken by a
decided choice of the heart, and grip of the
will. God’s election must be our
election. What God gives by grace we
must take by faith.
“For they are the rejoicing of my
heart.” The gladness which had come
to him through the word of the
Lord had caused him to make an
unalterable choice of it. All the
parts of Scripture had been pleasing to
David, and were so still, and therefore
he stuck to them, and meant to stick
to them for ever. That which rejoices
tile heart is sure to be chosen and
treasured. It is not the head-knowledge
but the heart-experience which
brings the joy.
In this verse, which is the seventh
of its octave, we have reached the same
sweetness as in the seventh of
the last eight (103). It is worthy of
observation that in several of
the adjoining sevenths delight is evident.
How good a thing it is when experience
ripens into joy, passing up through
sorrow, prayer, conflict, hope,
decision, and holy content into rejoicing.
Joy fixes the spirit: when once
a man’s heart rejoices in the divine word, he
greatly values it, and is therefore
for ever united to it.
112. “I have inclined mine heart
to perform thy statutes always, even unto
the end” He was active and energetic
in ruling his own heart: not only
could he say, “I am inclined,”
but, “I have inclined.” He was not half
inclined to virtue, but heartily
inclined to it. His whole heart was bent on
practical, persevering godliness.
He was resolved to keep all the statutes of
the Lord, with all his heart, throughout
all his time, without erring or
ending. He made it his end to keep
the law unto the end, and that without
end. He had by prayer, and meditation,
and resolution made his whole
being lean towards God’s commands;
or as we should say in other words
— the grace of God had inclined
him to incline his heart in a sanctified
direction. Many are inclined to
preach, but the Psalmist was inclined to
practice; many are inclined to
perform ceremonies, but he was inclined to
perform statutes; many are inclined
to obey occasionally, but David was
inclined to obey always; and, alas!
many are inclined for temporary
religion, but this godly man was
so inclined that he felt bound to all eternity
to perform the statutes of his
Lord and King. Lord, send us such a
heavenly inclination of heart as
this: then shall we show that thou hast
quickened and taught us. To this
end create in us a clean heart, and daily
renew a right spirit within us,
for only so shall we incline in the right
direction.
Many have declined who once seemed
inclined to better things; may the
Lord so rule our hearts that we
may never lose our whole-hearted
inclination towards holy living!
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