At times the psalmist of 119 expresses his pain. In v. 25 he asserts that his soul clings to the dust. In vs. 28 he claims that he is \u201cracked with grief.\u201d Of course, we don\u2019t know why he says these things. Is this a prayer after falling into sin? Is he opposed? What has happened to him? Is \u201che\u201d a \u201chim\u201d or not? (Probably so.) I envision the psalmist prostrate on the ground. Somehow this person has been humiliated. What\u2019s the hope? At times the psalmist of 119 expresses his pain. In v. 25 he asserts that his soul clings to the dust. In vs. 28 he claims that he is \u201cracked with grief.\u201d Of course, we don\u2019t know why he says these things. Is this a prayer after falling into sin? Is he opposed? What has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1753],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-psalm-119"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nThat God would \u201cquicken\u201d him (piel of chayah<\/em>).
\nThat God would \u201csustain\u201d him (piel of qum<\/em>).
\nImportantly, his resolution is that he can be restored to life and sustenance by the \u201cword\u201d of God. If he thinking of \u201cscripture,\u201d he is contemplating spending time listening to God as he reads and meditates; he could be thinking of \u201cword\u201d as memorized utterances he has learned, but it is probably the first.
\nThe Word, the written Word, as God\u2019s communication with us, as God showing the divine face and gazing at us so we can turn to face God back, is a restoring, healing, life-bringing communication. Why? Because words convey God\u2019s grace to us; they convey God\u2019s rebuke; they convey God\u2019s restoration.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"