A stranger in the earth

Ps 119 v19

I am a stranger in the earth do not hide your commandments from me.

Strange choice of words, not a stranger on the earth like most of us would say, but in the earth. It conveys that I am in the midst of the earth, in the middle of life, an earth-bound life. With all my earthly concerns earthly business to attend to with all the important matters of life which is happening to me. The verse in the earth Includes all the emotions in my experience and the events which take place around me as I am in the earth.

Yet, "I am a stranger". The Psalmist is detached from all of his earthly business. He feels that none of it really feeds his heart and relates to him. Life is happening in and around him but his heart is not in it. The heart of the psalmist is not focused on the earth. Its as if he is a detached observer - watching everything happen but His heart lies elsewhere.

His prayer is "do not hide your commands from me".

As the messiness of life happens O God do not let life obscure your voice, your directions your commands, your truths which I meditate on. Make it plain to me O God because life has a way of obscuring your voice and your revelations and your directions. These are the things which anchor the psalmist as he is in the earth. He focuses on God who feeds and nourishes Him. 

His soul is "crushed with longing for Your commandments at all times".

God and His world and His voice, The psalmist finds to be more relevant to Him, indeed more needful for the psalmist in his life in the earth. The heart of Psalm 119 is its second verse, "How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, Who seek Him with all their heart." He lays hold of the invisible God to keep him anchored in a messy world.

The false way & the faithful way

Psalms 119

29 Remove the false way from me, and graciously grant me your law

 

30 I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed Your ordinances before me,

 

31 I cling to your testimonies.

 

O Lord do not put me to shame!

 

To learn by way of contrast, the psalmist talks about two ways, the false way ‘Remove the false way from me’ – in contrast with the faithful way ‘I have chosen the faithful way’. The two opposing points when put together provides a counterpoint. They are opposites deliberately chosen as a poetic device, to teach us a lesson, and yields rich meaning when meditated upon.

 

The false way - what does that mean? We do not use that saying anymore in modern English. ‘To be false to me,” an old expression which means to be untrue, to be deceitful, to be cunning and sly. “To be true to me” would be its natural opposite, which would mean to be faithful, to have a pure, honest, sincere heart in a relationship towards another.

 

‘The false way’ is contrasted with ‘I have chosen the faithful way,’ The faithful way – encompasses being truthful, being honest, sincere, plain. But more than tha,t the psalmist is emphasising faithfulness and loyalty. In other words, the root of sin is unfaithfulness. Sin and being cunning, deceitful, sly, doing works covered by darkness proceeds from a heart which is first disloyal to Jesus Christ. Its cure then, is the faithful way, means being faithful and mindful of the king and being loyal to Him, keeping His interests first in our dealings. If we would relate to Christ first in our heart, and keep our relationship with him intact and connected and centred and be faithful in our heart towards Him, then sins power is stopped.

 

He recognizes that he is disloyal, deceitful to God and untrue,’remove the unfaithful way from me.' He recognizes that there is darkness in his own heart in His dealings with God. He prays – remove from me this disloyal way, this disloyal heart. He urges and pleads for Gods intervention to make him holy.

 

He then makes a deliberate choice – I have chosen the faithful way. I want to walk true to the King. Yet he recognizes that there is no power in him to walk in a godly manner. The source of Godliness is ‘I cling to your testimonies’ v28 says 'strengthen me according to your word.’ He recognizes he himself is void of power to walk in a Godly way except that which the grace of God provides. He takes a leap of faith, ‘I cling to your testimonies’ to hold on to what God has done in the lives of the saints, to make them Holy, and urges God to perform again in him this work of Holiness, this faithful and loyal heart.

 

‘Do not put me to shame.’ He has made this definite choice to throw himself upon the grace of God for Holiness. Which he recognizes is a way that is starkly different from the ways of the world, yes even his previous way of life which he once lived in. But now having made that choice, he is afraid that people will mock his choice, his way of living. He pleads for God to strengthen and vindicate him, not for him to be put to shame, to be discouraged, to be weakened on this path of Godliness which guarantees opposition from the world. ‘Do not put me to shame.’ But He prays for more grace, that God would not make Him ashamed at all but make him bolder and stronger. The section ends with ‘I shall run the way of your commandments, for You will enlarge my heart.’ He looks forward to Gods strength to further empower him.