ק Qoph
I call with all my heart; answer me, Lord,
(Ps. 119:145-152 NIV)
and I will obey your decrees.
I call out to you; save me
and I will keep your statutes.
I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I have put my hope in your word.
My eyes stay open through the watches of the night,
that I may meditate on your promises.
Hear my voice in accordance with your love;
preserve my life, Lord, according to your laws.
Those who devise wicked schemes are near,
but they are far from your law.
Yet you are near, Lord,
and all your commands are true.
Long ago I learned from your statutes
that you established them to last for ever.
The Psalmist has gone through a period where God is not answering his prayer. Yet he still calls out to God with all his heart. The Psalmist promises to obey God’s word. The NT teaches us the need to persevere in prayer. The Psalmist calls out to be saved and he vows to keep God’s word. The urgency of the need causes the Psalmist to rise up before dawn to cry out for help. Even though the voice of the Lord is not heard by the Psalmist he has his hope firmly fixed on the Lord. Through the night the Psalmist meditates upon God’s word. The worry about the problem keeps him awake and he uses the time usefully to meditate upon God’s word.
The Psalmist pleads to be heard because of God’s love. His hope in the Lord is that the Lord will preserve his life according to the promises in God’s word. Those who plot his downfall are near to the Psalmist but very far away from God’s word. If they were near to God’s word they would not be devising wicked schemes to oppose the Psalmist.
The enemy are near but the Lord is also near to the Psalmist. He can depend upon God because God’s word is true. Those who devise schemes are not truthful.
Early in life the Psalmist had learned from God’s word that God’s word was established for all eternity. It is good to follow the Lord from early in life and to set the course of your life to be guided by God’s word.
Prayer
Lord we thank You that You have placed us in union with Christ, and You have given us the Holy Spirit to lead us into the truth in Your word. Help us to have an established hope in Your word and to trust You in everything. We ask this giving our thanks in Jesus’ name. Amen.