Psalms 1 Study Notes: The Two Ways
The opening psalm contrasts the person who avoids the company of the wicked and delights in God's law with those who reject it. The righteous are pictured as a fruitful, well-watered tree, the wicked as windblown husks, and the Lord watches over the way His people walk.
General
In 1:1-2, what marks the blessed person besides the company he avoids?
Answer: He delights in God's law and ponders it constantly
Psalm 1 describes the blessed person first by what he refuses: he does not take advice from the wicked, linger among sinners, or settle down among scoffers (1:1). Then comes the positive mark: his joy is in God's law, and he turns it over in his mind at all hours (1:2). Blessed here means truly well off in God's sight. God told Joshua to keep the written law on his lips and think on it continually (Joshua 1:8), and another psalmist says God's law fills his thoughts all day because he loves it (Psalm 119:97).
- Psalm 1:1-2 (BSB)“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.”The psalm opens by describing the blessed person first by the company he refuses and then by his love for God's law.
- Joshua 1:8 (BSB)“This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.”God charged Joshua to keep the Book of the Law on his lips and ponder it continually, the same habit Psalm 1 praises.
- Psalm 119:97 (BSB)“Oh, how I love Your law! All day long it is my meditation.”Another psalmist shows that constant meditation on God's law springs from love for it.
Theological
According to 1:1-2, what positive trait defines the blessed man after the three negations?
Answer: He delights in God's law and ponders it constantly
The opening beatitude moves through three negations, walking, setting foot, and sitting, which trace a gradual settling into ungodly company (1:1). Its positive counterpart is delight in the torah of the LORD, meditated on continually (1:2). Such meditation is the fruit of love for God's revealed word rather than grudging duty (Psalm 119:97), and it echoes the charge given to Joshua as Israel entered the land (Joshua 1:8). The psalm that heads the Psalter thus presents the godly life as shaped by God's instruction.
- Psalm 1:1-2 (BSB)“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.”The psalm opens by describing the blessed person first by the company he refuses and then by his love for God's law.
- Joshua 1:8 (BSB)“This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.”God charged Joshua to keep the Book of the Law on his lips and ponder it continually, the same habit Psalm 1 praises.
- Psalm 119:97 (BSB)“Oh, how I love Your law! All day long it is my meditation.”Another psalmist shows that constant meditation on God's law springs from love for it.
General
True or False: Psalm 1 ends by grounding the two different outcomes in the LORD's watchful care over the way the righteous walk.
Answer: True
This is true. The final verse gives the reason behind everything before it: the LORD keeps watch over the course of the righteous, while the course of the wicked ends in ruin (1:6). The difference between the two ways rests finally on God's own care, not on human strength. Jesus likewise speaks of two ways, one broad and leading to destruction, one narrow and leading to life (Matthew 7:13-14). Nahum calls the LORD a stronghold who looks after all who rely on Him (Nahum 1:7), and Paul says the Lord recognizes His own (2 Timothy 2:19).
- Psalm 1:6 (BSB)“For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”The closing verse grounds the two outcomes in the LORD's care for the righteous and the ruin of the wicked.
- Matthew 7:13-14 (BSB)“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.”Jesus also sets out two ways, one leading to destruction and one leading to life.
- Nahum 1:7 (BSB)“The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of distress; He cares for those who trust in Him.”Nahum describes the LORD as a stronghold who looks after those who rely on Him.
- 2 Timothy 2:19 (BSB)“Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.””Paul affirms that the Lord recognizes and keeps His own, the same intimate care Psalm 1:6 describes.
Theological
True or False: Psalm 1:6 grounds the destinies of the two ways in the LORD's protective regard for the righteous.
Answer: True
This is true. The for of 1:6 supplies the ground of the whole psalm: the LORD watches over the path the righteous walk, while the course of the wicked ends in ruin. The security of the righteous rests on God's covenant care, not on their own steadiness, which is why Scripture can speak confidently of God preserving His people. Jesus draws the same two-ways contrast (Matthew 7:13-14), Nahum describes the LORD as a refuge who looks after all who rely on Him (Nahum 1:7), and Paul grounds the church's stability in the Lord's knowledge of His own (2 Timothy 2:19).
- Psalm 1:6 (BSB)“For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”The closing verse grounds the two outcomes in the LORD's care for the righteous and the ruin of the wicked.
- Matthew 7:13-14 (BSB)“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.”Jesus also sets out two ways, one leading to destruction and one leading to life.
- Nahum 1:7 (BSB)“The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of distress; He cares for those who trust in Him.”Nahum describes the LORD as a stronghold who looks after those who rely on Him.
- 2 Timothy 2:19 (BSB)“Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.””Paul affirms that the Lord recognizes and keeps His own, the same intimate care Psalm 1:6 describes.
General
What does the image of the well-watered tree in 1:3 portray?
Answer: The steady fruitfulness of the one rooted in God's word
The tree in 1:3 stands for the blessed person of 1:1-2. Because it is set beside a constant water supply, it bears fruit at the right time and keeps its leaves green. The person who feeds on God's word is nourished in the same steady way. Jeremiah uses this picture for the person whose confidence rests on the LORD, whose roots reach the water so that drought does not stop the fruit (Jeremiah 17:7-8), and Jesus teaches that fruit comes from remaining joined to Him (John 15:5). The promise of prospering describes God's blessing on the life of the righteous in general. It is not a guarantee of wealth or freedom from trouble, since other psalms show faithful people suffering (Psalm 73:13-14).
- Psalm 1:3 (BSB)“He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.”The blessed person is compared to a well-watered tree that bears fruit in its season.
- Jeremiah 17:7-8 (BSB)“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit.”Jeremiah uses the same image of a tree by the water for the one whose trust rests on the LORD.
- John 15:5 (BSB)“I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.”Jesus teaches that lasting fruit comes from remaining joined to Him, the source of life.
- Psalm 73:13-14 (BSB)“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in innocence I have washed my hands. For I am afflicted all day long and punished every morning.”A faithful psalmist describes daily affliction, showing that the promise of Psalm 1 is not a guarantee of an easy life.
Theological
In 1:3, what is the well-watered, fruitful tree an image of?
Answer: The steady fruitfulness of the one rooted in God's word
The simile of 1:3 portrays the blessed man of 1:1-2: planted beside channels of water, he yields fruit in season and does not wither. Rootedness in God's word produces stability and fruitfulness. Jeremiah applies the same image to the one whose trust is in the LORD (Jeremiah 17:7-8), and Jesus locates all fruitfulness in union with Himself (John 15:5). The clause about prospering states the general pattern of God's blessing on the righteous, not a formula of material success; the Psalter itself records the faithful afflicted day after day (Psalm 73:13-14).
- Psalm 1:3 (BSB)“He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.”The blessed person is compared to a well-watered tree that bears fruit in its season.
- Jeremiah 17:7-8 (BSB)“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit.”Jeremiah uses the same image of a tree by the water for the one whose trust rests on the LORD.
- John 15:5 (BSB)“I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.”Jesus teaches that lasting fruit comes from remaining joined to Him, the source of life.
- Psalm 73:13-14 (BSB)“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in innocence I have washed my hands. For I am afflicted all day long and punished every morning.”A faithful psalmist describes daily affliction, showing that the promise of Psalm 1 is not a guarantee of an easy life.
General
In 1:4-5, what is the result of the wicked being like chaff?
Answer: They will not hold their ground when judgment comes
Chaff is the light husk that blows away when grain is tossed in the air at harvest, worthless and without weight. The wicked are pictured that way, in sharp contrast to the rooted, fruitful tree (1:3-4). Therefore they will not stand when God judges, and they have no place in the gathering of the righteous (1:5). John the Baptist uses the same harvest picture: the Messiah gathers the wheat and burns up the chaff (Matthew 3:12). Hosea likewise pictures those who turn from the LORD to idols as chaff blown off a threshing floor (Hosea 13:3).
- Psalm 1:4-5 (BSB)“Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.”The wicked are compared to chaff, and so they cannot endure God's judgment or belong among the righteous.
- Matthew 3:12 (BSB)“His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.””John the Baptist uses the same threshing picture, with the chaff separated from the wheat and destroyed.
- Hosea 13:3 (BSB)“Therefore they will be like the morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes, like chaff blown from a threshing floor, like smoke through an open window.”Hosea pictures those who forsake the LORD for idols as chaff blown from the threshing floor, gone under God's judgment.
Theological
What consequence does 1:5 draw from the chaff simile of 1:4?
Answer: They will not hold their ground when judgment comes
The wicked, unlike the rooted tree, are chaff, the weightless husk driven off in winnowing (1:4). The inference follows with a therefore: they will not endure in the judgment, and sinners will have no place in the congregation of the righteous (1:5). The judgment in view is God's own verdict, and the separation of the righteous from the wicked is His act. John the Baptist applies the threshing floor to the Messiah's work of separation (Matthew 3:12), and Hosea uses the chaff image for those who abandon the LORD for idols (Hosea 13:3).
- Psalm 1:4-5 (BSB)“Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.”The wicked are compared to chaff, and so they cannot endure God's judgment or belong among the righteous.
- Matthew 3:12 (BSB)“His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.””John the Baptist uses the same threshing picture, with the chaff separated from the wheat and destroyed.
- Hosea 13:3 (BSB)“Therefore they will be like the morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes, like chaff blown from a threshing floor, like smoke through an open window.”Hosea pictures those who forsake the LORD for idols as chaff blown from the threshing floor, gone under God's judgment.