Psalm 119:81-88 “Kaph”
Psalm 119:8181 My soul longs for your salvation;
I hope in your word. (ESV)
The psalmist again expresses his joy at God’s word and God’s mercy. Does my soul faint for God’s salvation? We who are saved from the second death, do we realize the full meaning of His salvation the way the psalmist, who know only the promise of Christ, does? Does the idea that God saved us make us faint?
Again, also, is the idea of God’s word as His promise and our hope.
Psalm 119:8282 My eyes long for your promise;
I ask, “When will you comfort me?” (ESV)
Despite many prayers over many years, I am not a morning person. I don’t know if I ever will be. I am, however, a night owl. For this reason, I often do my Bible study at night, before going to sleep. But still, many nights, I neglect my duty because I’m “too tired.”
Not the psalmist. He searches the word of God until his very eyes fail. He seeks God’s comfort until his eyes can no longer look at the text. Ironically, the comfort of God is an area I find my own faith weak – too much, I worry, I trouble myself over tomorrow, I am anxious for far more than nothing. If only I would search His word, like the psalmist, until my eyes failed me.
Psalm 119:8383 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes. (ESV)
The first part of this verse is obscure to those of us who have never aged wine in skins – which I’m guessing includes most of the readership. John MacArthur says this:
Just as smoke will dry out, stiffen, and crack a wineskin thus making it useless, so the psalmist’s affliction has debilitated him.
David is describing his “affliction.” Yet despite his troubles, David remembers God’s statutes. It is easy, sometimes, to blame our misfortunes on Him. But just because we are in the midst of difficulty, doesn’t mean we should ignore God’s commandments. Like David, we must remember them always.
Psalm 119:8484 How long must your servant endure?
When will you judge those who persecute me? (ESV)
It is interesting that David pairs the idea of his own mortality with his desire for justice. And indeed, we shall not know the true, full measure of God’s justice until we come into His presence.
Psalm 119:8585 The insolent have dug pitfalls for me;
they do not live according to your law. (ESV)
Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown explain “pits” as “plots for my destruction.” The ESV uses the term “pitfalls” here, the NCV “pits to trap me.” Those who try to trap us are, as the psalmist says, not in accorance with God’s law. If they were, they would not try to trap us!
Psalm 119:8686 All your commandments are sure;
they persecute me with falsehood; help me! (ESV)
Here the psalmist again shows a contrast, this time between the faithfulness of God’s commandments, the persecution of the ungodly. He rightfully cries to God for help, and with appropriate boldness, as well – he knows God’s commandments are faithful.
Psalm 119:8787 They have almost made an end of me on earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts. (ESV)
Even in the face of death, David does not forsake God’s law.
Psalm 119:8888 In your steadfast love give me life,
that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth. (ESV)
He asks God for revival, for strength, through His mercy. And for what end? So that David may keep God’s word and not sin against Him. Oh, that this would be our prayer as well! Amen.
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