Psalms 19 Study Notes: Creation and the Word Reveal God
David celebrates how the sky and the sun display God's glory to the whole earth without words. He then praises the LORD's law as perfect and more valuable than gold, and closes by asking God to cleanse the faults he cannot see, keep him from deliberate sin, and accept his words and thoughts.
General
What two kinds of sin does the psalmist pray about in 19:12-13?
Answer: Faults he cannot see and sins done on purpose
After praising God's perfect law, the psalmist sees his own failures. No one can fully see his own mistakes, so he asks God to cleanse him from hidden faults he is not even aware of (19:12). He also asks God to hold him back from willful sins, sins done on purpose, so they will not rule over him; then he will be blameless (19:13). The human heart deceives itself and is hard to know (Jeremiah 17:9). The law treated deliberate, defiant sin as especially serious (Numbers 15:30-31). Paul tells believers not to let sin reign over them, because they are under grace (Romans 6:12-14).
- Psalm 19:12-13 (BSB)“Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. Keep Your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless and cleansed of great transgression.”The psalmist asks to be cleansed of hidden faults and kept from willful sins.
- Jeremiah 17:9 (BSB)“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”The heart is so deceitful that no one can fully understand it.
- Numbers 15:30-31 (BSB)“But the person who sins defiantly, whether a native or foreigner, blasphemes the LORD. That person shall be cut off from among his people. He shall certainly be cut off, because he has despised the word of the LORD and broken His commandment; his guilt remains on him.””The law treated defiant, deliberate sin as a grave offense against God's word.
- Romans 6:12-14 (BSB)“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires. Do not present the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and present the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”Paul says sin is not to reign over believers, because they are under grace.
Theological
What two categories of sin does the psalmist address in 19:12-13?
Answer: Faults he cannot see and sins done on purpose
The law's perfection exposes the psalmist's imperfection. He asks cleansing from hidden faults, errors he cannot even discern (19:12), and to be held back from willful sins, so that they never become his master (19:13). The distinction echoes the Mosaic law's line between unintentional and high-handed sin (Numbers 15:30-31), and the prayer for cleansing from unknown sin reflects the heart's self-deception (Jeremiah 17:9). The plea that sin not rule over him anticipates Paul's teaching that sin will not master those under grace (Romans 6:12-14), a keeping that God Himself supplies.
- Psalm 19:12-13 (BSB)“Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. Keep Your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless and cleansed of great transgression.”The psalmist asks to be cleansed of hidden faults and kept from willful sins.
- Jeremiah 17:9 (BSB)“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”The heart is so deceitful that no one can fully understand it.
- Numbers 15:30-31 (BSB)“But the person who sins defiantly, whether a native or foreigner, blasphemes the LORD. That person shall be cut off from among his people. He shall certainly be cut off, because he has despised the word of the LORD and broken His commandment; his guilt remains on him.””The law treated defiant, deliberate sin as a grave offense against God's word.
- Romans 6:12-14 (BSB)“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires. Do not present the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and present the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”Paul says sin is not to reign over believers, because they are under grace.
General
According to 19:10-11, why are God's judgments worth more than gold and sweeter than honey?
Answer: They warn God's servant and richly reward obedience
The psalmist says God's judgments are worth more than the finest gold and taste better than honey fresh from the comb (19:10). He gives the reason in 19:11: they warn God's servant of danger, and keeping them brings great reward. Gold stands for what is most valuable, honey for what is most delightful. Another psalm says God's law is better than silver and gold by the thousand (Psalm 119:72) and that His words taste better than honey (Psalm 119:103). Proverbs likewise says wisdom is worth more than silver, gold, or rubies (Proverbs 8:10-11).
- Psalm 19:10-11 (BSB)“They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them indeed Your servant is warned; in keeping them is great reward.”God's judgments surpass gold and honey because they warn and bring great reward.
- Psalm 119:72 (BSB)“The law from Your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.”God's law is worth more than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.
- Psalm 119:103 (BSB)“How sweet are Your words to my taste—sweeter than honey in my mouth!”God's words are sweeter than honey to the psalmist's taste.
- Proverbs 8:10-11 (BSB)“Receive my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold. For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire compares with her.”Wisdom's instruction is worth more than silver, gold, and rubies.
Theological
What reason does 19:11 give for valuing God's judgments above gold and honey (19:10)?
Answer: They warn God's servant and richly reward obedience
Verse 10 ranks God's judgments above the finest gold and the purest honey, the ancient standards of value and delight. Verse 11 supplies the rationale: by them the servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. The word both protects and blesses. Psalm 119 uses the same comparisons (Psalm 119:72; 119:103), and Proverbs sets wisdom above silver, gold, and rubies (Proverbs 8:10-11). The reward is the blessing of walking in God's ways, not a price paid for His favor.
- Psalm 19:10-11 (BSB)“They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them indeed Your servant is warned; in keeping them is great reward.”God's judgments surpass gold and honey because they warn and bring great reward.
- Psalm 119:72 (BSB)“The law from Your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.”God's law is worth more than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.
- Psalm 119:103 (BSB)“How sweet are Your words to my taste—sweeter than honey in my mouth!”God's words are sweeter than honey to the psalmist's taste.
- Proverbs 8:10-11 (BSB)“Receive my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold. For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire compares with her.”Wisdom's instruction is worth more than silver, gold, and rubies.
General
According to 19:1-2, what do the heavens and the skies do?
Answer: They make known God's glory and His handiwork
David says the sky above is constantly telling of God's glory and showing that God made it (19:1). Day after day and night after night, creation keeps speaking about its Maker (19:2). Theologians call this general revelation: what God shows about Himself to everyone through the world He made. Paul says God's unseen qualities, His everlasting might and His deity, are clearly seen in creation, so that people are without excuse (Romans 1:19-20). Another psalm says all peoples see God's glory in the skies (Psalm 97:6), and David elsewhere marvels at the moon and stars as the work of God's fingers (Psalm 8:3).
- Psalm 19:1-2 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.”The sky continually tells of God's glory and shows Him to be its Maker.
- Romans 1:19-20 (BSB)“For what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.”Paul teaches that God's power and nature are clearly seen in what He has made.
- Psalm 97:6 (BSB)“The heavens proclaim His righteousness; all the peoples see His glory.”Another psalm says the heavens proclaim God and all peoples see His glory.
- Psalm 8:3 (BSB)“When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place—”David sees the moon and stars as the work of God's own fingers.
Theological
What do the heavens do according to 19:1-2?
Answer: They make known God's glory and His handiwork
The opening strophe is a classic text on general revelation: the heavens declare God's glory and the expanse announces His workmanship (19:1), with an unbroken testimony passed from day to day and night to night (19:2). Paul makes the same claim in Romans 1:19-20: God's invisible attributes, His everlasting might and deity, are clearly perceived through what He has made, leaving humanity without excuse. The skies are witnesses, not deities; they point to the One whose fingers set them in place (Psalm 8:3) and whose glory all peoples see (Psalm 97:6).
- Psalm 19:1-2 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.”The sky continually tells of God's glory and shows Him to be its Maker.
- Romans 1:19-20 (BSB)“For what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.”Paul teaches that God's power and nature are clearly seen in what He has made.
- Psalm 97:6 (BSB)“The heavens proclaim His righteousness; all the peoples see His glory.”Another psalm says the heavens proclaim God and all peoples see His glory.
- Psalm 8:3 (BSB)“When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place—”David sees the moon and stars as the work of God's own fingers.
General
What does the description of the sun in 19:4-6 emphasize?
Answer: Its joyful strength and a reach that touches all
God has set up a tent in the sky as the sun's home (19:4). The sun comes out like a bridegroom on his wedding day and like a strong runner who loves to race, crossing the whole sky from edge to edge, and nothing escapes its heat (19:5-6). The sun is not a god; it lives where God placed it and runs the course God set. Genesis says God made the sun as the larger light to govern daytime (Genesis 1:16), another psalm says the sun keeps to its set hour for going down (Psalm 104:19), and Jesus says the sun belongs to the Father, who makes it shine on wicked and good people alike (Matthew 5:45).
- Psalm 19:4-6 (BSB)“their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun. Like a bridegroom emerging from his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course, it rises at one end of the heavens and runs its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.”The sun runs across the sky like a joyful bridegroom and a strong runner, reaching everything with its heat.
- Genesis 1:16 (BSB)“God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night. And He made the stars as well.”God made the sun as the greater light to govern the day.
- Psalm 104:19 (BSB)“He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows when to set.”The sun keeps the times God appointed for it.
- Matthew 5:45 (BSB)“that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”Jesus calls the sun God's own, rising at His command on all people.
Theological
What is emphasized in the portrait of the sun in 19:4-6?
Answer: Its joyful strength and a reach that touches all
In 19:4-6 the sun is a creature housed in a tent God pitched, pictured as a bridegroom emerging with joy and a champion eager to run, completing its circuit so that nothing escapes its heat. The imagery stresses exuberant strength and universal reach, the most visible instance of the heavens' witness. Many peoples worshiped the sun, but here it is simply a servant of the Creator: God made it to govern the day (Genesis 1:16), it keeps its appointed times (Psalm 104:19), and it rises at His command on wicked and good alike (Matthew 5:45).
- Psalm 19:4-6 (BSB)“their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun. Like a bridegroom emerging from his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course, it rises at one end of the heavens and runs its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.”The sun runs across the sky like a joyful bridegroom and a strong runner, reaching everything with its heat.
- Genesis 1:16 (BSB)“God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night. And He made the stars as well.”God made the sun as the greater light to govern the day.
- Psalm 104:19 (BSB)“He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows when to set.”The sun keeps the times God appointed for it.
- Matthew 5:45 (BSB)“that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”Jesus calls the sun God's own, rising at His command on all people.
General
True or False: Psalm 19 moves from God's witness in the skies He made (19:1-6) to His witness in His written law (19:7-11).
Answer: True
This is true. The first half of the psalm is about creation speaking of God (19:1-6). The second half turns to the LORD's law, His written word, and uses His covenant name, the LORD, again and again (19:7-11). A covenant is God's binding promise-relationship with His people. Creation shows God's glory and power to everyone, but it is God's word that revives the soul and makes the simple wise. Paul teaches both: people know God from creation yet refuse to honor Him (Romans 1:21), and the world did not come to know God through its own wisdom but through the message God sent (1 Corinthians 1:21). Paul also tells Timothy that the Scriptures give the wisdom that leads to salvation by trusting in Christ (2 Timothy 3:15-16).
- Psalm 19:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”The first half begins with the heavens declaring God's glory.
- Psalm 19:7 (BSB)“The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple.”The second half begins with the perfect law of the LORD reviving the soul.
- Romans 1:21 (BSB)“For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.”People who know God from creation still refuse to honor Him or give thanks.
- 1 Corinthians 1:21 (BSB)“For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”The world did not know God through its own wisdom but through the message He sent.
- 2 Timothy 3:15-16 (BSB)“From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”The Scriptures are able to make a person wise for salvation through faith in Christ.
Theological
True or False: Psalm 19 moves from God's witness in the skies He made (19:1-6) to His witness in His written law (19:7-11).
Answer: True
This is true. The psalm pairs general and special revelation: the skies announce God's glory (19:1-6), and then the covenant name of the LORD dominates as the psalm praises His Torah (19:7-11). Creation leaves humanity inexcusable but does not by itself bring sinners to saving knowledge; people suppress what they know (Romans 1:21), and in God's wisdom the world failed to know God by its wisdom and was saved through the preached word (1 Corinthians 1:21). It is the Scriptures that give the wisdom that leads to salvation by trusting in Christ (2 Timothy 3:15-16), which is why the psalm ascribes reviving and enlightening power to the law, not to the sky.
- Psalm 19:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”The first half begins with the heavens declaring God's glory.
- Psalm 19:7 (BSB)“The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple.”The second half begins with the perfect law of the LORD reviving the soul.
- Romans 1:21 (BSB)“For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.”People who know God from creation still refuse to honor Him or give thanks.
- 1 Corinthians 1:21 (BSB)“For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”The world did not know God through its own wisdom but through the message He sent.
- 2 Timothy 3:15-16 (BSB)“From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”The Scriptures are able to make a person wise for salvation through faith in Christ.
General
According to 19:7-8, what does the LORD's law do for people?
Answer: It restores the inner life and makes the simple wise
Verses 7-9 describe God's word with six names (law, testimony, precepts, commandments, fear, and judgments) and praise it as perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, and true. It revives the soul, makes the simple wise, gladdens the heart, and brightens the eyes (19:7-8). The simple are people easily led astray because they lack wisdom. Psalm 119 says God's word gives light to the path (Psalm 119:105) and that opening it gives understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130). Paul says all Scripture is breathed out by God and serves for teaching and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:15-16).
- Psalm 19:7-9 (BSB)“The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart; the commandments of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true, being altogether righteous.”Six parallel lines praise God's word and describe what it does.
- Psalm 119:105 (BSB)“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”God's word is a lamp and light for the one who walks by it.
- Psalm 119:130 (BSB)“The unfolding of Your words gives light; it informs the simple.”The opening of God's words gives light and understanding to the simple.
- 2 Timothy 3:15-16 (BSB)“From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”Scripture is God-breathed and makes a person wise for salvation.
Theological
What effects of the LORD's law are named in 19:7-8?
Answer: It restores the inner life and makes the simple wise
Verses 7-9 set out six parallel lines, each naming God's revealed word (law, testimony, precepts, commandments, fear, judgments), an attribute (perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, true), and an effect. The effects in 19:7-8 are restoration of the soul, wisdom for the simple, joy of heart, and enlightened eyes. This is the sufficiency and efficacy of special revelation in Old Testament form. The same claims are made in Psalm 119:105 and 119:130, and Paul grounds them in Scripture's divine origin (2 Timothy 3:15-16).
- Psalm 19:7-9 (BSB)“The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart; the commandments of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true, being altogether righteous.”Six parallel lines praise God's word and describe what it does.
- Psalm 119:105 (BSB)“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”God's word is a lamp and light for the one who walks by it.
- Psalm 119:130 (BSB)“The unfolding of Your words gives light; it informs the simple.”The opening of God's words gives light and understanding to the simple.
- 2 Timothy 3:15-16 (BSB)“From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”Scripture is God-breathed and makes a person wise for salvation.
General
Paul quotes words from 19:4 in Romans 10:18. What does he use them to show?
Answer: To show that the message had gone out far and wide
The psalm says creation speaks without words or any sound you can hear, yet its message reaches the whole earth (19:3-4). In Romans 10 Paul explains that faith comes from hearing the message about Christ (Romans 10:17). He then asks whether they have not heard, and answers by borrowing the words of 19:4: the message has already gone out far and wide, so the problem is not that it was never heard (Romans 10:18). Readers differ on whether the people Paul has in mind here are Israel in particular, since he turns to Israel in the very next verse (Romans 10:19), or people everywhere; either way, his point is that the message has gone out. Paul does not say creation by itself brings saving faith; he uses the psalm's picture of a voice that reaches everywhere for the spread of the message. Elsewhere Paul says the gospel has been announced to all creation under heaven (Colossians 1:23).
- Psalm 19:3-4 (BSB)“Without speech or language, without a sound to be heard, their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun.”Creation speaks without audible words, yet its message reaches the ends of the earth.
- Romans 10:17-18 (BSB)“Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.””Paul says faith comes by hearing the word of Christ, then answers his question about hearing with the words of the psalm.
- Romans 10:19 (BSB)“I ask instead, did Israel not understand? First, Moses says: “I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation without understanding.””In the next verse Paul turns explicitly to Israel and asks whether Israel did not understand.
- Colossians 1:23 (BSB)“if indeed you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope of the gospel you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.”Paul says the gospel has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven.
Theological
How does Paul apply the words of 19:4 in Romans 10:18?
Answer: To show that the message had gone out far and wide
Psalm 19:3-4 describes a testimony without speech or audible sound that nonetheless reaches the farthest parts of the earth. In Romans 10, having said that faith comes from hearing the message about Christ (Romans 10:17), Paul asks whether they have failed to hear and answers with the language of 19:4 (Romans 10:18): the proclamation has already gone out, so the failure does not lie in a lack of hearing. Interpreters differ on whether those in view are Israel specifically, to whom Paul turns explicitly in the next verse (Romans 10:19), or humanity at large; on either reading Paul's claim is that the message has gone out. He takes up the universal reach of creation's witness as a picture of the reach of the gospel proclamation; he does not teach that general revelation alone saves. Compare his statement that the gospel has been announced to all creation under heaven (Colossians 1:23).
- Psalm 19:3-4 (BSB)“Without speech or language, without a sound to be heard, their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun.”Creation speaks without audible words, yet its message reaches the ends of the earth.
- Romans 10:17-18 (BSB)“Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.””Paul says faith comes by hearing the word of Christ, then answers his question about hearing with the words of the psalm.
- Romans 10:19 (BSB)“I ask instead, did Israel not understand? First, Moses says: “I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation without understanding.””In the next verse Paul turns explicitly to Israel and asks whether Israel did not understand.
- Colossians 1:23 (BSB)“if indeed you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope of the gospel you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.”Paul says the gospel has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven.
General
What does the psalmist ask for in the closing prayer of 19:14?
Answer: That his speech and inner thoughts would please God
The psalm ends with a prayer that both what he says and what he thinks about inside would be pleasing to God (19:14). He addresses God as his Rock, his secure foundation, and his Redeemer, the one who rescues and buys back His people. Jesus taught that what we say comes out of what fills the heart (Matthew 12:34), so the psalmist rightly prays for both. Another psalm voices the same wish that the writer's meditation would please the LORD (Psalm 104:34), and Isaiah names the LORD, the commander of heaven's armies, as Israel's Redeemer (Isaiah 47:4).
- Psalm 19:14 (BSB)“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”The psalmist asks that his words and thoughts please the LORD, his Rock and Redeemer.
- Matthew 12:34 (BSB)“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”Jesus teaches that the mouth speaks out of what fills the heart.
- Psalm 104:34 (BSB)“May my meditation be pleasing to Him, for I rejoice in the LORD.”Another psalmist prays that his meditation will be pleasing to the LORD.
- Isaiah 47:4 (BSB)“Our Redeemer—the LORD of Hosts is His name—is the Holy One of Israel.”Isaiah calls the LORD of Hosts the Redeemer of His people.
Theological
What is the petition of 19:14?
Answer: That his speech and inner thoughts would please God
The closing petition asks that both speech and inner meditation be acceptable before the LORD, whom the psalmist names as his Rock and Redeemer (19:14). Having prayed about hidden and willful sins, he now offers the whole person, outward words and inward thought, to God. Jesus ties speech to the heart it comes from (Matthew 12:34). Psalm 104:34 makes the same prayer for acceptable meditation, and Isaiah uses the title Redeemer for the covenant LORD who rescues and reclaims His people (Isaiah 47:4).
- Psalm 19:14 (BSB)“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”The psalmist asks that his words and thoughts please the LORD, his Rock and Redeemer.
- Matthew 12:34 (BSB)“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”Jesus teaches that the mouth speaks out of what fills the heart.
- Psalm 104:34 (BSB)“May my meditation be pleasing to Him, for I rejoice in the LORD.”Another psalmist prays that his meditation will be pleasing to the LORD.
- Isaiah 47:4 (BSB)“Our Redeemer—the LORD of Hosts is His name—is the Holy One of Israel.”Isaiah calls the LORD of Hosts the Redeemer of His people.