Unless otherwise stated, all citations are taken from the New International Version (NIV).
This is a psalm of praise and wisdom. Some scholars[1] hold that Psalm 19 was spliced together by a later author-editor. On their view, the psalm must have been written by different authors because the psalm uses different names for God. In verses 1-6, the author used the term “God” (ʾĕlōhîm), but in verse 7-11, he uses the term “LORD” (yhwh). However, we disagree with this view. The different uses of God’s name fit with the notion that “God” (ʾĕlōhîm) is his title for Creator, while “LORD” (yhwh) is the title for God as the Covenant-Maker (see comments on Gen. 2:4). Likewise, the emphasis on general revelation and specific revelation forms a unifying theme of God’s speech to humanity.
Many have found this psalm to be among their favorites. Regarding this psalm, C.S. Lewis wrote, “I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world.”[2]
General revelation (vv.1-6)
(19:1) The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
“Declare… proclaim.” The terms are in the participial form, which means that they “keep on declaring… keep on proclaiming.”[3]
(19:2) Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
“Speech… knowledge.” General revelation gives us “knowledge” about God’s nature, but it doesn’t tell us about the heart of God. General revelation gives propositional truth about God, but specific revelation gives personal, life-giving truths about God. To illustrate, if you inspected a Model-T Ford, you would know that an engineer had designed it. But if you want to really know about Henry Ford, you’d need to meet him or read his biography.
“Night after night they reveal knowledge.” Kidner comments, “Knowledge is well matched with night, since without the night skies man would have known, until recently, nothing but an empty universe.”[4]
(19:3) They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
Much like body language, God speaks through creation without making a sound.
(19:4) Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
The spread of general revelation is truly global. VanGemeren writes, “To those who are inclined to hear, revelation comes with no regard for linguistic or geographical barriers, even to the ends of the world.”[5]
(19:5) It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
David uses this psalm as a polemic against the worship of the sun. People in the ancient world worshipped the sun. Not so in Judaism. God created the sun (Gen. 1:14-19), and he keeps it on a closed circuit that obeys the laws he instantiated. Furthermore, the existence of the sun shows us God’s power—namely, whoever created the sun must be extremely powerful. Jacobson and Tanner write, “This psalm stresses that the sun is not a god but something created by God. It is God who set it in the heavens. The sun runs the circuit that God has appointed for it.[6]
“Like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber.” VanGemeren[7] understands this imagery to refer to a groom “glowing” after consummating his marriage on his wedding night. We are more inclined to agree with Wilson[8] and Kidner[9] who understand this to mean that the groom is shining with excitement on his wedding night as he travels to see his wife. Under this view, the groom leaves his house with his friends and family to go visit his future wife and ask for her hand in marriage from her father. This would be a public celebration—much like the movement of the sun through the sky.
“Like a champion rejoicing to run his course.” If a warrior ran across the battlefield like this, he was publicly showing his courage and bravery. This is similar to the public display of the sun in the sky.
(19:6) It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.
David doesn’t appear to be making an argument from design, but an argument from analogy (as in the previous examples of the groom and the warrior). He’s saying that nothing is hidden from the sun’s heat, and so nothing is hidden from God. C.S. Lewis writes, “As he has felt the sun, perhaps in the desert, searching him out in every nook of shade where he attempted to hide from it, so he feels the Law searching out all the hiding-places of his soul.”[10]
Special revelation (vv.7-11)
God revelation through nature gives knowledge, but his revelation through Scripture is perfect. This is an argument from the lesser to the greater.
(19:7) The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
“The law of the LORD” doesn’t refer exclusively to the Ten Commandments—though it includes them. The term “law” (tôrâ) is “the comprehensive term for God’s revealed will.”[11] Therefore, it refers to God’s revelation through Scripture.
“Making wise the simple.” The law of the Lord (i.e. the Bible) is like a defibrillator for our souls. His word can be trusted to make us wise.
(19:8) The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
“Giving joy to the heart.” God gives us direction because it brings us joy (Jn. 10:10). VanGemeren writes, “The heartfelt joy is equivalent to inner peace and tranquility, as one loves God with all his heart, i.e., with his innermost being.”[12]
“The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.” They are light a flashlight in the dark. VanGemeren writes, “Yahweh has made the sun for light in creation and has given his word for light in redemption.”[13]
(19:9) The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the LORD are firm, and all of them are righteous.
“The fear of the LORD.” Wilson writes, “To ‘fear Yahweh’ is to assume an appropriate attitude of humility, loyalty, and absolute dependence on Yahweh.”[14] We find true humility when we fear (or respect) God.
“The decrees of the LORD are firm, and all of them are righteous.” We might take for granted that God’s laws and decrees are “righteous.” However, in the ancient Near East, the people had a difficult time knowing if the deities were trustworthy and what they desired at all. Wilson writes, “One of the most difficult aspects of pagan, polytheistic religion in the ancient Near East was the lack of assurance about what the god (or gods) demanded… The gods were notoriously changeable and could manipulate, trick, and overpower one another; thus, humans could never be certain which god would rule at the moment or what exactly that god might demand… the demands of the gods could change from situation to situation.”[15] These morally deranged deities were much like grandiose humans—powerful but fallen.
(19:10) They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.
“More precious than gold.” The Scriptures are more valuable than our most precious commodity: gold. Pastor Joe Focht asks the hypothetical question, “If someone offered you all the gold in Fort Knox if you could never read the Bible again, what would you say?”
“They are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb.” The Scriptures aren’t just valuable, they are pleasurable. Honey was the sweetest food they had at the time.
(19:11) By them your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
We are both protected and rewarded for them. Note that David keeps saying that this only applies to the “servant” of the Lord. If we aren’t willing to serve God, the word imparts none of these benefits.
When have you read the Scriptures and been “warned” about something in your life, or been prevented from making a huge error?
Will we learn from God’s revelation?
(19:12) But who can discern their own errors? Forgive my hidden faults.
Just as the sun leaves nothing hidden, God’s word sees right into our hearts. These “hidden faults” refer to unintentional sins that we don’t see (Lev. 4:2ff; Num. 15:22-26).
(19:13) Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.
These “willful sins” refer to the obvious sins that break from God’s word and plague our conscience. David doesn’t want to be a slave of sin (Jn. 8:34).
(19:14) May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
This verse ties the two halves of the psalm together. VanGemeren writes, “The Lord revealed his word in speech and written forms accessible to people. In turn the psalmist, as a redeemed creature of God, prays that his expressed and unspoken words may be acceptable to his God.”[16]
He wants his time with God to be pleasing to him. He’s showing up wanting to meditate on what God wants, rather than just getting a perfunctory “daily time.”
Questions for Reflection
Read verses 1-6. According to these verses, what do we learn about God by viewing his creation?
Read verses 7-11. According to these verses, what does God desire to bring us as we read his word?
Read verses 12-14. What is the psalmist’s reaction to God’s revelation?
Paraphrase of Psalm 19
“I communicate my power and presence through creation—the sun, moon, and stars. Day or night, anywhere on earth, you can see my glory in what I made. Most people worship the sun as a god. But I’m the God who created the sun! I put it on a fixed path to bring regularity to nature. The sun and a mighty warrior have something in common: both show their glory when they move through the sky or across the land. This is the way I communicate with others.
“But nothing compares to my written words! My word brings restoration, wisdom, enlightenment, value, and a great reward! You can’t see what’s wrong with your life, but my word can guide you. Spend time meditating in my word, and watch as it changes your life!”
[1] Rolf A. Jacobson and Beth Tanner, “Book One of the Psalter: Psalms 1–41,” in The Book of Psalms, ed. E. J. Young, R. K. Harrison, and Robert L. Hubbard Jr., The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014), 203.
[2] C.S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms (New York: Harvest Book; Houghton Mifflin, 1958), 62.
[3] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 179.
[4] Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 115.
[5] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 180.
[6] Rolf A. Jacobson and Beth Tanner, “Book One of the Psalter: Psalms 1–41,” in The Book of Psalms, ed. E. J. Young, R. K. Harrison, and Robert L. Hubbard Jr., The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014), 208.
[7] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 181.
[8] Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms, vol. 1, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 364.
[9] Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 116.
[10] C.S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms (New York: Harvest Book; Houghton Mifflin, 1958), 64.
[11] Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 117.
[12] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 182.
[13] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 182.
[14] Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms, vol. 1, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 368.
[15] Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms, vol. 1, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 368-369.
[16] Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991), 183-184.