Psalm 19

 

Through beautiful poetry, Psalm 19 declares that God has revealed His glory to us through creation and His word.  Creation proclaims the glory of God day and night through all the earth to the ends of the world (verses 1-6); and the word of God even more perfectly reveals the glory of the covenant LORD (verses 7-11).  In light of God's glory, the psalmist responds by recognizing both his unintentional sins as well as his presumptuous sins (verses 12-13).  He ends with a prayer that the spoken words of his mouth and the internal meditations of his heart would be offerings acceptable to the LORD (verse 14).

Following are some reflections that may be beneficial to consider when meditating on this psalm:

  • Verses1-6
    • Reflect on times when you have looked upon the beauty of nature and marveled at the majesty and glory of God.
    • Many of the pagan nations worshiped the sun, but this psalm clearly says that the sun is just part of all creation proclaiming the glory of the Creator.  Based on verses 4-6, what are some things that the sun specifically reveals about the Creator?
    • What do passages like Romans 1:18-20 and Romans 10:18 (in which Psalm 19:4 is quoted) tell us about the revelation of God?
  • Verses 7-11
    •  In what ways do the synonyms and descriptions for God's word in these verses enhance our understanding of God's revelation?
    • Do I truly consider God's word as more precious than fine gold and sweeter than honey?  How is that reflected in my attitude toward reading, meditating on, studying, and obeying Scripture?
  • Verses 12-14
    • Take time in prayer to ask forgiveness for unintentional and presumptuous sins in our lives; and then place on the altar, as an offering to God, the words of our mouths and meditations of our hearts.

If you would like to meditate on this psalm through music as well, following are links to YouTube videos:

  • "Psalm 19" by Terry Butler - Vineyard Music (Psalm 19:14):  Link
  • "Psalm 19 (The Heavens Declare)" by The Psalms Project:  Link


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