Psalm 1
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17
“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.” 2 Peter 1:20 – 2:1
This Psalm succinctly demonstrates the differences between a righteous follower of the LORD and the unrighteous follower of the flesh, the world, and the Devil.
Verse 1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
The Hebrew word translated as “blessed” is “esher” and it means happiness or blessedness. So the Psalmist is announcing right from the start of this Psalm and the start of the Book of Psalms that the happy man is one that doesn’t involve himself with the unrighteous. He doesn’t listen to or accept the advice (counsel) of the ungodly because it is corrupted and not right in the eyes of God. Only God can give wise and good counsel or advice. “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.” James 3:17 And therefore, God’s true followers can have that advice by reading His Word, by prayer, and by simply asking God for wisdom. And therefore, good counsel can also come from God’s children if they are walking with Him as He gives His wisdom to all who seek it. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” James 1:5 The Hebrew word used here and translated as “walk” is “halak” and it means to go, walk, come, move, live, traverse, or figuratively it refers to the manner of life.
The Hebrew word translated as “standeth” is “amad” and it means to stand, remain, endure, take a stand, present oneself, be or become servant of, to tarry, remain or continue, to be erect or upright, or to stand with. The Hebrew word translated as “way” is “derek” and it means way, road, distance, journey, direction, manner, habit, course of life, or in a figurative sense, moral character. So to stand in the way of sinners means to endure or remain or become a servant of, or stand with the sinner’s moral character and course of life. It results in adopting the thinking and actions of sinners into one’s own life.
The Hebrew word translated as “sitteth” is “yashab” and it means to dwell, remain, sit down, abide, to remain, to stay, and to have one’s abode. The Hebrew word translated as “scornful” is “luwts” and it means to scorn, to talk arrogantly, to boast, to mock or deride, or to scoff.
Application: Notice the progression represented here. First a man starts to walk in and through this life accepting the advice of wicked people who are hostile to God. There is slow movement in this process of going along with the ungodly. For the Christian believer, it may begin as a compromise in the workplace or in a relationship and it may seem like a small thing at the time. The man can at any time reverse direction and walk in the way of the righteous if he chooses to do so and if he heeds the call of God. If not, then this leads to dabbling in and eventual acceptance of the manner of life of sinners which brings the man to a stand still as he gets more tangled up with the ways of the ungodly in this world. But because he is standing, he can still move away from the course of life he is involving himself with. But if he doesn’t move towards God and the things of the Spirit, he will end up sitting immobile or dwelling with wicked men who have rejected God and who have rejected righteousness. It is a slow and subtle process invented by Satan and so it should be avoided at all times.
Verse 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
How does the Christian believer avoid this trap of Satan? By having delight (pleasure and a longing for) in the Word of God, in His people, and in time spent in prayer or dialogue with the LORD. He keeps his mind on the things of God every day, all day. Then he cannot wander like a lost sheep from his Shepherd and end up in the clutches of the enemy. “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace; whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3
Verse 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
The man truly walking daily with the LORD and watering his soul (mind, will, and emotions) with the Word of God and with its truth, will grow spiritually like a well watered tree, and will bring forth fruit like a well cared for tree. What fruit will he bring forth? The fruits of righteousness: “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:9-11 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23
Verse 4-5 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
In ancient days, grain was beaten (threshing) or tossed in the air with a tool (winnowing) so that the shell or chaff would separate from the meat of the grain and that shell would blow away in the wind, leaving the edible grain behind. So here the ungodly are compared to this chaff which was worthless and of no value. Ungodly people do not bring forth fruits of the Spirit as they produce rotten fruit and mirror their father, the Devil. Ungodly people are worthless to God and they will be judged for their rejection of the only means of salvation from sin, death, and Hell, which is the Son of God, the LORD Jesus Christ. They will not be able to stand before Almighty God at the time of judgement and defend themselves as their wickedness will be revealed and they will have sealed their own fate which is eternity in Hell because of their unrepentant sin and rebellion against the LORD.
Verse 6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
Application: In this world, Satan rewards his followers. So from a worldly perspective, it often looks like wicked and sinful people prosper and have little trouble in their lives. But what the ungodly gain in this world cannot be taken to the next, and everything they live for here on this Earth, is all the pleasure they will have as their physical body will die or perish and their spiritual life will be one of torment forever. But the LORD’s followers have the hope and assurance of life eternal in Heaven.