Teth
65 You have dealt well with your servant,
O Lord, according to your word.
66 Teach me good judgement and knowledge,
for I believe in your commandments.
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I keep your word.
68 You are good and do good;
teach me your statutes.
69 The insolent smear me with lies,
but with my whole heart I keep your precepts;
70 their heart is unfeeling like fat,
but I delight in your law.
71 It is good for me that I was afflicted,
that I might learn your statutes.
72 The law of your mouth is better to me
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
Yodh
73 Your hands have made and fashioned me;
give me understanding that I may learn your commandments.
74 Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice,
because I have hoped in your word.
75 I know, O Lord, that your rules are righteous,
and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76 Let your steadfast love comfort me
according to your promise to your servant.
77 Let your mercy come to me, that I may live;
for your law is my delight.
78 Let the insolent be put to shame,
because they have wronged me with falsehood;
as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.
79 Let those who fear you turn to me,
that they may know your testimonies.
80 May my heart be blameless in your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame!
Kaph
81 My soul longs for your salvation;
I hope in your word.
82 My eyes long for your promise;
I ask, “When will you comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How long must your servant endure?
When will you judge those who persecute me?
85 The insolent have dug pitfalls for me;
they do not live according to your law.
86 All your commandments are sure;
they persecute me with falsehood; help me!
87 They have almost made an end of me on earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 In your steadfast love give me life,
that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.
Lamedh
89 For ever, O Lord, your word
is firmly fixed in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
you have established the earth, and it stands fast.
91 By your appointment they stand this day,
for all things are your servants.
92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have given me life.
94 I am yours; save me,
for I have sought your precepts.
95 The wicked lie in wait to destroy me,
but I consider your testimonies.
96 I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment is exceedingly broad.
In 89-96 affliction is still the theme, but the Psalmist is now looking back over his experience, and has realised in a new and deeper way how and why he has won through to peace and deliverance: it is through the Word. And he has such a view of the Word and its place that he explains in terms of 89. The Word is the one impregnable, unchangeable and dependable reality. So 89-91: what a picture of the essential stability of a world undergirt by the Word of God! That is the one picture, the objective one; the other, the subjective response, is delight in God's law (92). And delight in God's law, through being in harmony with all the created order (89-91), 'changes affliction from a foe, threatening life, to a friend, ministering strength' (92), as Maclaren puts it. The Word of God, when loved, not only averts destruction, but also increases vital power (93) and invigorates the soul. But we should note the realism here. All that we have said does not idealise life. The pressures are still there to be coped with, as we see from 94, 95. In 94 it is the fact that he belongs to God that is the ground of his appeal. It is a question of God safeguarding what is His own. 'He cannot but protect His own possession. Ownership has its obligations, which He recognises' (Maclaren). This is the truth inherent in the idea of the covenant: God binds Himself to help His people, and therefore no enemies can prevail against them. The final statement in 96 has been rendered 'To all perfection I have seen a limit' - lifelong experience has taught the Psalmist that there is a flaw in every human excellence. But over against this the commandment - God's Word and purpose - is exceeding broad, of wide scope, broad, open spaces of liberty, freedom and fulfilment. The idea is that within the limits imposed by our sinnerhood, the scope of the Divine Word is simply without parallel as far as other earthly things and values are concerned (Leopold).