PSALM 1
1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
This psalm has been a cherished one for many of the saints of God over the centuries and millenia and God has used it mightily in my own life. I find myself coming time and time again back to this simple but profound psalm. It is a beatitude and speaks of blessing or happiness. God pronounces the means by which a person will know true spiritual blessing.
Firstly, it starts by stating the negative. No one is blessed who walks in ungodliness (anything against God’s character and word) and it is interesting to note the progression here. You see it starts with walking, then standing and finally sitting. The world has its own wisdom and counsel and to be blessed, we must be far from that or else very soon we will find ourselves standing and then finally partaking.
On the other hand, the truly blessed person is one who finds his counsel in the law of God (His revealed will, the Scriptures) and He meditates or basically delves deeply into His word. This is not the casual attitude of grabbing a quick 5 minutes read here and there because we are too busy to make time but rather a deliberate attempt to know what God desires and making it our goal to conform our lives to this. How often do we seek God’s will in every aspect of our lives. How we work, how we use the gifts He has given us, how we seek a spouse, how we treat others, how we evangelize, how we forgive, how we give to His work, how we run our home. Indeed everything should be brought to His word and humbly and faithfully applied and in that we can know that God’s blessing is upon us.
The psalmist then contrasts the end of the righteous (those living like above) and that of the ungodly who refuses to be ruled by God’s word. Do not fret Dear Reader when it seems like by the world’s standards, the ungodly are doing well or prospering. God will vindicate His own at the due time. There is eternity ahead. Have a blessed week. Go serve your King!!!
Hi! Is this Psalm 1? Thank you for sharing!
Hello! Indeed it is. I have edited the post slightly to make sure the Psalm number is clear to all. Thanks for the prompt and do visit us often 🙂