Psalms 119:106

I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments. I HAVE SWORN, AND I WILL PERFORM IT, THAT I WILL KEEP THY RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENTS. So the Jews, after their return from Babylon, 'entered into a curse and into an oath to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our God, and His judgments and His statutes.' This was a repetition of their solemn promise at Sinai (; ; ). The sworn promise of God's people to keep God's judgments is in dependence on the promised help of God's Spirit (Ezekiel 11:19;...

106._I have sworn, and will perform _Here the Psalmist speaks of his own constancy. He had declared a little before, that during the whole course of his life, he had not declined from God’s law, and now he speaks of the purpose of his mind. By the word _swear, _he intimates that he had solemnly pledged himself to God not to alter his determination. The true manner of keeping God’s law is to receive and embrace what he commands heartily, and, at the same time, uniformly, that our ardor may not forthwith abate, as is often the case. This also is the proper rule of vowing, that we may offer ourselves to God, and dedicate our life to him. It may, however, be asked, whether the prophet’s oath may not be condemned as rash, inasmuch as he presumed to engage to do far more than man’s ability is equal to; for who is able to keep the law? The man, then, it may be alleged, vows rashly, who promises...

89-96 The settling of God's word in heaven, is opposed to the changes and revolutions of the earth. And the engagements of God's covenant are established more firmly than the earth itself. All the creatures answer the ends of their creation: shall man, who alone is endued with reason, be the only unprofitable burden of the earth? We may make the Bible a pleasant companion at any time. But the word, without the grace of God, would not quicken us. See the best help for bad memories, namely, good affections; and though the exact words be lost, if the meaning remain, that is well. I am thine, not my own, not the world's; save me from sin, save me from ruin. The Lord will keep the man in peace, whose mind is stayed on him. It is poor perfection which one sees and end of. Such are all things in this world, which pass for perfections. The glory of man is but as the flower of the grass. The psa...

Verse Psalms 119:106. _I HAVE SWORN_] Perhaps this means no more than that he had renewed his covenant with God; he had _bound_ himself to love and serve him only....

I HAVE SWORN - I have solemnly purposed; I have given to this purpose the solemnity and sanction of an oath. That is, I have called God to witness; I have formed the purpose in his presence, and with the consciousness that his eye is upon me. So all who make a profession of religion solemnly vow or swear. They do it in the house of God; they do it in the presence of the Discerner of hearts; they do it at the communion table; they do it at the family altar; they do it in the closet, when alone with God. AND I WILL PERFORM IT - Hebrew, I will establish it, or make it to stand. It shall not be a mere purpose. It shall be accomplished. This also is the resolution of all who make a true profession of religion. It is their intention - their solemn determination - to carry out that vow to its full accomplishment, always, and in every place, while life lasts, and forever. A man who makes a profe...

EXPOSITION This is an "alphabetic psalm" of a more stringent character than any other. It consists of twenty-two stanzas, each of eight verses, every verse in each stanza beginning with its own proper letter—those of stanza 1 with _aleph_,_ _the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet; those of stanza 2 with _both_,_ _the second letter; and so on. The writer, having thus fettered himself, moves with some difficulty, but still has produced what has been justly called "a sweetly monotonous meditation" (Cheyne). He takes the Law for his one and only subject, and, further, seems to have bound himself, almost absolutely, to introduce the word "Law," or something which he regards as a synonym of "Law," into every verse. The synonyms are nine in number— 1. TORAH, "the Law"_ _itself; but not merely the Law given on Mount Sinai; rather, God's law in the widest sense, all whereby he

I HAVE SWORN, AND I WILL PERFORM [IT],.... Or, "I have performed it" h. The psalmist had not only taken up a resolution in his mind, but he had openly declared with his mouth, and professed in a solemn manner, that he would serve the Lord; he had sworn allegiance to him as his King, and, through divine grace, had hitherto kept it; and hoped he ever should, and determined through grace he ever would; see Psalms 119:48; THAT I WILL KEEP THY RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENTS; the precepts of the word, the ordinances of the Lord, the doctrines of grace; all which are righteous, and to be kept, observed, and held to; though they cannot be perfectly kept unless in Christ the surety. h ואקימה "et statui"; Musculus, Muis; "idque ratum feci et implevi", Michaelis....

Psalms 119:89. _For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven._ Other things come, and go, and change, moons wax and wane, tides ebb and flow, everything earthly is changeable; but «Thy word is settled settled in heaven,» with the eternal settlements. No truth of it can fail, no promise of it can be broken. What a joy this is to our hearts tonight! There is something sure, after all: «For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.» Psalms 119:90. _Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth._ That is, God has spoken to nature, and that word has established the earth, and made it to stand securely. Psalms 119:91

Psalms 119 The Law Written on Their Hearts and the Praise of the Word This is the longest and most perfect Psalm in the whole collection. It is an alphabetical acrostic. It is composed of 22 sections, each having eight verses, 176 verses in all. Each section begins with a different letter of the alphabet and each verse of the different sections begins also with the corresponding letter of the section. Eight times each letter of the alphabet is mentioned in the 22 sections. The number eight in the Word has the meaning of resurrection, death is gone and life has come. Israel has passed from death to life and now extols the Word and the Law of God. The time has come when it is fulfilled what the Lord spoke through Jeremiah concerning the new covenant, “I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts.” We behold then in this Psalm the joy of Israel in knowing the Word

CXIX. PRAISE OF THE LAW. This is the longest and most artificial Ps. in the whole collection. It is divided into twenty-two strophes, each beginning with one of the twenty-two letters of the Heb. alphabet in regular order. Again each strophe contains eight verses, and each verse begins with the same letter which introduces the strophe. The number of strophes then is determined by the number of the Heb. letters. But what of the eight verses in each strophe? The Psalmist had derived from a kindred Ps., viz. Psalms 19, the eight synonyms for the conception Word of God and impresses these terms on his readers by introducing them all into each stanza of his work. So Cheyne, in his _Book of Psalms_ (1904), following D. H. Mü ller. It is right, however, to bear in mind that this theory involves considerable, though by no means extravagant or arbitrary, changes in the received text both of Psalm...