Psalms 1:1-6
Wherein lies the key to true happiness...? We live in a time where boredom, depression and other forms of unhappiness are rampant. Is there some basic principle which determines success in finding happiness? The Book of Psalms with its very first psalm shares with us a key principle that can ensure true happiness...Notice the very first word of the first psalm - “Blessed...” Not "lucky", but "Blessed"!
1) The word in Hebrew denotes the idea of “happiness”.
2) The actual force of the Hebrew could be translated “O how very happy is the man...” Therefore this psalm describes “The Truly Happy Man”. In this lesson, we shall take a close look at the first psalm seeking to glean the principles necessary for one to truly be happy.
The psalm itself can be divided into three sections. The first section describes the blessedness of the righteous man. We are told of his character … (1-2). Described first from a negative point of view - Psa 1:1 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;”. There is value in negative commands or statements:
1) For so much that destroys happiness is the fruit of sinful activity.
2) We ought to appreciate the value of negative commands.
They keep us from going astray and protect from harm and misery like restraining walls along a cliff, they keep us from getting hurt. Therefore it is said that the truly happy man:
1) “Walks not in the counsel of the ungodly”. He does not take their counsel as to how to live. He does not follow the advice of those who are sinful.
2) “Nor stands in the path of sinners”. He does not linger where sinners are known to go. For the temptation to go with them would be great.
3) “Nor sits in the seat of the scornful”. He does not join himself with those who ridicule and mock those trying to do right. Which sinners often do to fortify their conduct and defend their actions.
Notice the example of Hebrew poetry in this verse. Hebrew poetry stressed “thought rhyme” rather than “word rhyme”, where the thoughts are somehow related rather than just the words. Such thought rhyme was often expressed in various forms of “parallelism” (e.g., synonymous, 1:2; antithetical, 1:6). Here we find an example of “progressive parallelism” (walk, stand, sit). This verse may be taken to describe the journey one takes into sin... First, one going along with a crowd, then, taking a stand with the crowd; finally, reaching a point where sinning is not enough, mockery is added.
Note hisis character from a positive perspective - Psa 1:2 “but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” “His delight is in the law of the Lord” which is:
1) The source of his joy and happiness is the Word of God!
2) It is truly his “delight” – as found in Psa 119:16,24,35,47,70,77,92,174; Jer 15:16-17!
3) He preferred it over the counsel of the ungodly!
Therefore, “in His law he meditates day and night”. The word meditate means to “moan, hum, utter, speak, muse”. The picture is one of a man reading and rereading half aloud to himself. Another word might be “ponder”. This he does with God’s word “day and night”. This is not implying a monk-like existence, but a concerted interest which goes beyond a casual acquaintance. What it means is that this is something he does habitually. He takes time to do - setting apart portions of each day. He does both day and night.
We are told of his prosperity - (3) “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”
“He shall be like a tree”. This figure of speech is often used in Scripture to describe the righteous – for example, Psa 92:12-15 “The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.”; Jer 17:5-8 “Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the LORD. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. "Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."’ It had special significance to those living in arid climates (like Palestine).
“Planted by rivers of water”; this is a word picture describing a person whose life is rooted in God’s word from which one receives constant nourishment.
“That brings forth fruit in its season”; depicting a life which yields something worthwhile, providing blessings to himself and others. “Whose leaf also shall not wither”. A tree with roots near a river is not likely to be affected in times of drought. So adverse conditions do not affect the fruitfulness of one whose strength comes from God’s word! “Whatever he does shall prosper”. The figure of the tree is now left behind. This is a general rule, exceptions may occur for reasons which only God knows. But a life of piety will generally be followed by prosperity. For piety will heed God’s directions for success in life. And piety will heed God’s warnings concerning things that waste life. Such is the character and prosperity of the righteous man; he is truly happy and a blessing to others because he abides in the Word of God. He also becomes a monument to God’s faithfulness and the value of living by His word. What of those who do not delight in the Word of God, who do not receive the nourishment found in it?
In the next two verses we are shown the condition of the unrighteous. They are nothing like the righteous, (4) “The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” The phrase “The wicked are not so” is more emphatic in the Hebrew. Literally, “Not so, are the ungodly!”; emphasizing that the wicked are not like the righteous. The contrast as illustrated by the Psalmist. He does not even describe them as withering trees, but rather as “chaff that the wind drives away”, alluding to chaff blown away from wheat as it is tossed into the air. The illustration describes a bleak existence. Their life is one of futility (ending in eternal separation from God). Their life is of no substantial value, either to be blown away and not found, or to be burned (Mt 3:12 “His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."’)
Their sorry condition portends no good end (5), “The ungodly shall not stand in the judgment”. I understand this may be a Hebraism (Hebrew idiom) meaning that the wicked “shall not be able to maintain himself”, i.e., obliged to sit or fall down in shame when convicted of their guilt. The Final Judgment appears to be under consideration. “Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous”, in all places where the righteous are assembled, they will have no place where they assemble to worship God, where they meet as His friends or where they together participate in His favor. But, especially, in the last day, when the righteous shall be gathered together to receive their reward, or when the righteous shall be assembled together in heaven. The sinner has no place!
The psalm concerning “The Truly Happy Man” ends with a final contrast between the two “ways”. The way of the righteous, (6a) “for the LORD knows the way of the righteous,”. The word “knows” suggests interest in, and care for, the person known -- One could say: “God himself goes with such a person throughout his or her life”
The way of the wicked, (6b) “but the way of the wicked will perish.” The way of the ungodly person “shall perish”, shall tend toward ruin. -- His path becomes less defined until it loses itself (like a trail that leads into a swamp).
Is not the end described for the ungodly a true description of those who go through life bored, depressed, or otherwise unhappy...? Their lives are listless with no sense of purpose or direction, gradually unraveling. Why is this so? Because they heed the counsel of the ungodly! They do not meditate upon the Word of the Lord! If we desire to be “The Truly Happy Man” standing strong like a well-nourished tree, bearing fruit at all times, with the Lord always at our side -- then the key is to delight and meditate in the Word of the Lord, and not heed the counsel of sinners! In whose counsel do you delight? That found in God’s word, or that provided by the ungodly in this world? If you seek true happiness, let the Lord be your counselor, and His word your guide!
