God's Word Stands Forever

Psalm 119:89-104

Today we have our weekly visit into the Book of Psalms.  Today’s passage comes from the longest psalm in the Book of Psalms, and by far the longest chapter in the Bible.  This psalm is divided into 22 sections of eight verses, each one beginning with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet.  In just about every verse of this lengthy psalm is a word or synonym for God’s law, such as law, precept, testimony, commandment, ordinance, judgment, etc.  I have selected a few verses from our passage to take a closer look at.

The first verse we’ll look more in-depth at is verse 89, “Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.”  God’s Word, the Bible, is settled in heaven.  It stands firm and is unchangeable forever.  This is how important the Bible is.  It is not just a book with some good ideas and philosophies.  It is God’s Word, firmly fixed in heaven.  God will honor His Word.  Everything He has said will come to pass, and we can rely on that.

We can trust God’s promises, trust His forgiveness, trust the future that He has in store for us.  God is not a man, like us, and He does not lie (Numbers 23:19).  His Word is His bond, and it is anchored in heaven.  We can trust and believe it.  It is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).  Despite so many countless attacks over the centuries, the Bible, God’s Word, is still standing strong.  No one has been able to prove it wrong or invalid, and nor will they ever.  God’s Word will not change, and is always spiritually relevant.

Let’s next take a look at verse 92, “Unless Your law had been my delight, I would then have perished in my affliction.”  When we are in the middle of our times of trouble and affliction, we should not just sit and wallow in our misery.  God’s Word can sustain us with joy and delight.  Our soul can be revived by God when we recall all He has done for us and for others.  We can fill our minds with God’s Word and promises when in the middle of periods of darkness and find His light.

In verses 98 - 100 we read, “You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me.  I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.  I understand more than the ancients, because I keep Your precepts.”  When we spend time studying God’s Word, it will give us wisdom and understanding, more than our enemies and people of the world.  We can have spent years of studying in universities, but without knowing God and His truths, we have nothing.  Yet studying God’s Word will bring us His wisdom, the wisdom of the Creator of the whole universe.  True wisdom is beyond and more than just amassing knowledge.  It is applying that knowledge into one’s life, allowing what God teaches to guide us.  The wisdom of God always far surpasses the wisdom of man.

The last verse that we will look at from our Scripture passage today is verse 103, “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.”   Here the Scriptures uses the metaphor of taste to describe our experience of God, just as it does in Psalm 34:8.  Taste indicates a deep experience beyond the senses of seeing or hearing.  Here God’s Word is said to be sweeter than honey.  Honey is one of the oldest and most natural sweeteners.  It has also been known from ancient times to have medicinal use.  People have used it in treating burns and wounds, in coughs and sore throats, and other medicinal uses.  Like honey, God’s Word is sweet to our souls and of good help to us, as well.  Through God’s Word, we can deeply know that His love and salvation will transform and sustain us.

Though it is a long psalm, Psalm 119 is well worth reading in full.  It teaches us just how important God’s Word, the Bible is for us.  As we read and study the Scriptures, not just this psalm, but all of Scripture from Genesis through to Revelation, we will find that it is, indeed, sweeter than honey.