Psalm 1
The Blessed Man
The book of Psalms has been deeply cherished as the prayer and song book for the people of God for over three millennia. It gives voice and vocabulary for the whole range of human life and emotion. From cloud high joys to face-in-the-mud disappointments, it gives us language and space to rejoice and lament. The Psalms do not shy away from the reality of life in a broken world but bring the pains and joys from that world to the Source of reality and life. Let’s look at the opening Psalm:
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither –
whatever they do prospers.4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Psalm 1, which acts as the front door to the Psalter, paints a portrait for us. The picture is of the truly ‘blessed’ man. This is done through the construction of three sharp contrasts:
The faithful and the wicked (1-2)
The fruitful & sturdy tree and the fruitless & insubstantial chaff (3-4)
The safe and the perishing (5-6)
This is done to both caution us from following in the steps of the mocker but also to enthuse us to continue walking in the way of the truly blessed man.
What does it mean to be ‘blessed’? Happy covers some of the ground. And yes, it involves our happiness in the presence of the Lord, but it is still much more. We might translate it something like “Flourishing is the man…” To flourish is to grow, blossom and thrive. The blessed one is the one who prospers in his life in this world because he remains with God.
In v1-2, the distinction is made with those who choose friendship with the world (see James 4.3). Rather than mimicking the wicked, sinners and mockers, the blessed one meditates on the law because his delight is in it. When we think of ‘law’, we think of stuffy court rooms and funny white wigs. But the word here is Torah. It means teaching. It refers not just to legal code but the whole word of God. It refers to instructions for burnt offerings AND the story of Israel’s redemption from slavery. It speaks of the Ten Commandments AND the covenant God made with Abraham, both precepts AND promises. Ultimately it all about God’s dealings with his people.
The word to ‘meditate’ literally means to mutter. The imagery is someone speaking the truths of God’s word to themselves over and over again. The popular picture of meditation from other religions is to empty the mind. But in the Bible it means to fill the mind with God’s truth. Eugene Peterson translates it as chewing on God’s word. It’s not a pill that we swallow in pain but a full banquet for us to feast on, as we taste all the rich flavours.
The man who meditates on the Torah is then likened to a tree, a tree that has been purposefully positioned by an abundant source of water from which to drink, as it bears fruit (James 1.21). Do you see what he is implying? The Torah of the LORD is like fresh water, which refreshes and sustains the soul. The word is the source of our flourishing. But those who do not sink their roots into the stream of God’s word will dry up. In the storm, the blessed man stands firm while the wicked will be blown away as insubstantial chaff.
With the end of the righteous and wicked, the Psalm closes. That the LORD knows them means he goes with, guides and guards the righteous. But the wicked’s refusal to walk with the LORD, means they walk away from the waters of life and will perish in the judgement.
As we travel through the Psalter, we must remember that first and foremost, the Psalms are primarily about Christ (see Luke 24.44-47; John 5.39-40). He is the one, who though he never walked in the way of the wicked bore the judgement we deserved, so that we would not perish but have life through the gospel. And so, we abide in Jesus, because in Christ, God has “blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing” (Ephesians 1.3).
Glory be to the Father, who knows the way of the righteous.
Glory be to the Son, the perfectly Righteous One.
Glory be to the Spirit, who refreshes by the word.