Psalms 119:36

Incline my heart unto Thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.

The bane and the antidote

I. The evil of man and its antidote.

1. The evil of man is covetousness. This is the root of the moral Upas.

2. The antidote of this evil is Divine truth. The Word of God not only condemns covetousness, but inspires the soul with that love to God and man that expels it.

II. The heart of man and its tendency.

1. The heart of man is his moral self. According to it so he is, right or wrong.

2. According to its tendency will be his destiny.

(1) It has a tendency to covetousness, and this leads to ruin.

(2) It must have a tendency to Divine truth, and this requires Divine help. (Homilist.)

Covetousness a mother-sin

He prays in particular that his heart may be diverted from covetousness, which is not only an evil, but “the root of all evil.” David here opposes it as an adversary to all the righteousness of God’s testimonies; it inverts the order of nature, and makes the heavenly soul earthly. It is a handmaid of all sins, for there is no sin which a covetous man will not serve for his gain. We should beware of all sins, but specially of mother-sins. (Bishop Cowper.)