Psalm 1:2 The Blessed Man

The blessed man is described by what he does and does not do.

B. What He Does Do (2)

The blessed man has a different counselor than the ungodly man, he keeps different company than the sinful man, and he has a different cause than the scornful man.  His great love is for the Word of God.

1.  All things are well with the man whose delight is in the law of the LORD.

Delight=  pleasure, desired.   To affect with great pleasure; to please highly; to give or afford high satisfaction or joy; as, a beautiful landscape delights the eye; harmony delights the ear; the good conduct of children, and especially their piety, delights their parents. Webster's 1828 Dictionary

Law of the Lord= statutes or precepts of the Lord.  The Word of God.

The blessed man rejoices in the teachings of the Word of God. 

He is not under the law as a curse and condemnation, but he is in it, and he delights to be in it as his rule of life.  Spurgeon

His will, desire, affection, every motive in his heart, and every moving principle in his soul, are on the side of God and his truth. He takes up the law of the Lord as the rule of his life; he brings all his actions and affections to this holy standard. He looketh into the perfect law of liberty; and is not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the word; and is therefore blessed in his deed. Adam Clark

Psalm 119:16—I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.

Psalm 119:47—And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved.

Psalm 119:77—Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight.

Romans 7:22—For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:

2.  All things are well with the man who in his law doth he meditate day and night.

Meditate= "to hum, muse, think out loud, turn over in one's mind, to murmur or ponder." This same Hebrew word is translated "studieth" in Proverbs 15:28 or "imagine" in Psalm 2:1.

Proverbs 15:28—The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.

Psalm 2:1—Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?

The blessed man delights in God's Word, he desires God's Word, and he is dedicated to God's Word.  He meditates in it by day and night.  The Law of The Lord is the daily bread of the believer.  In his day of prosperity he sings praises out of the Word of God, and in the night of his affliction he comforts himself with promises out of the same book.

Several questions are raised by this verse.  Are we student's of God's Word?  Is our delight in God's Word?  Do we make it our companion each day and night?  Is it our guide book?

Psalm 1:1 The Blessed Man

Psalm One:

Psalm 1 is the Hebrew hymnbook.  Psalm 1 is the Preface Psalm.  It notifies us of the overall intent of the book.  Psalm 1 begins with a blessing and ends with a curse.  It is essentially a psalm of Christ, and shows the meditation of the godly.

Blessed = The original word is plural.  It is the same word Jesus used to open His Sermon on the Mount. It refers to multiple blessings or blessedness. One could say it this way; All things are well with that man who. It's simple translation is happy.  There are two Hebrew words for bless or blessed in OT Scripture.  One is barak and it used by God when He blesses someone.  The other is ashar and refers to man.  Barak is initiated from God and God can give His blessing even when man is undeserved.   On the other hand to be blessed (Ashar), man has to do something.  

The blessed man is described by what he does and does not do.

A. What He Does not Do: (1)

1.  All things are well with the man who does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly.

• Walk = repeated steps in a specific direction.
• Counsel= advice, advisement, purpose.  Listen.
• Ungodly= morally wrong, wicked, sinful.

The blessed man's footsteps are ordered by the Word of God.  He is not persuaded by the wisdom of this world.  He does not listen to the cunning and wicked instruction of carnal men.  He does not seek the advice of those living a life not dedicated to Jesus Christ. It is a sign of the change that salvation brings to one's life when the outward walk is changed, and the ways of this world forsaken. The man who will be blessed falls out of step with the world and in step with the Word!

2.  All things are well with the man who does not standeth in the way of sinners.

• Standeth= to stand, abide, remain, continue, present.
• Way= road, course of life, mode of action.
• Sinners= criminal, or one accounted as guilty. One who misses a mark. One who fails to observe God's law. One who sins.

The first thing a blessed man is not to do is listen to the ungodly. The second thing he is not to do is participate in their sinful activities.

The word "standing" indicates a close association in sinful behavior. Here it means to not follow a moral path. Walking in the counsel of the ungodly involves the acceptance of advice; standing involves living in a sinful way. "Counsel" is the principle or the thinking and "way" is the practice or behaving in a sinful manner. The "way of sinners" means "the manner of life of sinners or their lifestyle."Mattoon's Treasures

3.  All things are well with the man who does not sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

• Sitteth= to sit down, to dwell, to remain.
• Seat= chair, dwelling, assembly.
• Scornful=  extreme contempt, mock. holding Scripture in contempt.

Notice the progression of sin.  It starts first with listening to the advice of the ungodly.  It progresses to participating in sinful activities and culminates in a lifestyle of sin. 

Sitting indicates a lifestyle.  A lifestyle so dedicated to sin that it is also involved in enticing others to join you.  It is when a person's life is completely identified, and at home with sinful actions.  It is when one calls right wrong and wrong right, and when one is mocking those who love and live for God.

The counsel refers to wrong principles; the way of sinners  refers to wrong practices; the seat of the scornful refers to wrong partnerships.

The blessed man is separated from the world in thought, deed, and associations.