Welcome, ladies! Just a reminder, please do not skip Lesson 1 from last week (link below). Not only will it answer any questions you may have about the study itself, but if you want to study Psalm 119 properly, you must do the background work contained in Lesson 1.
Previous Lessons: 1
Read Psalm 119:1-16
Questions to Consider
1. Review your notes from last week’s introductory lesson. What are some things to keep in mind as you begin to study the text of Psalm 119 today?
As you study, it will probably help you grasp and absorb the psalmist’s meaning better if you read in complete sentences instead of stopping at the end of each verse. For example, notice the comma at the end of verse 2. Verse 2 is not the psalmist’s complete thought. Read all the way through to the period at the end of verse 3, and consider verses 2 and 3 together as the complete thought.
2. List all the synonyms for “Scripture” in this text. How many of the verses in this passage contain a term that means “Scripture”? How would you define each of these terms? Are there subtle shades of difference in what these various terms mean? (You may wish to use a lexicon such as Strong’s to check your work after you have defined these words.) Why would the psalmist choose so many different words that all essentially mean “Scripture”?
3. Do verses 1-3 remind you of another passage of Scripture? How are these verses structurally different from those verses? Why, how, and for what is a person blessed in verses 1-3? What does it mean for a person’s way to be “blameless”? (1)
4. What is the orientation of the psalmist’s heart toward keeping God’s law? Does he view it as a drudge and a burden? Does he want to obey God’s Word, or does he grudgingly do it because he has to? Which words and phrases from today’s passage support your answers? How does this compare to the New Testament’s view of obedience to Scripture? What is the orientation of your heart toward obeying Scripture?
5. How does the psalmist’s love for Scripture, and for obeying Scripture, impact his worship of God (7,12) and his love for God? Which words and phrases from today’s passage support your answers? How does this compare to the New Testament’s view of obedience to Scripture being an indicator of one’s love for God? What does your level of obedience to Scripture and your attitude toward obeying Scripture say about your love for God? Is your love for God reflected by your obedience to Scripture? Explain, in your own words, the relationship between loving and obeying Scripture and loving and obeying God.
6. Which parts of today’s passage can you accomplish in a way that’s pleasing to God without the indwelling and empowering of the Holy Spirit? Is it possible for a lost person to truly love and obey God’s Word? Is it possible for a saved person not to truly love and obey God’s Word? What does this tell you about people who claim to be Christians, yet live in unrepentant sin, or have an unbiblical worldview?
7. Notice the verses that mention body parts (eyes, heart, etc.). How does the psalmist use or relate each of those body parts to his love for Scripture? How does this reflect the idea that love for God isn’t just a private feeling we have internally, but that we use our bodies to love God externally by acting in obedience?
8. How does storing up God’s Word in our hearts guard us against sin? (11) How can we be intentional, purposeful, and proactive about storing up God’s Word in our hearts?
9. Connect today’s passage with the concept that Jesus is the Word.
Praying Psalm 119
Have you ever tried praying the psalms? I want to encourage you to try praying part of Psalm 119 back to God each week of this study. (If you’re familiar with my other studies, this will take the place of the weekly “Homework” section.)
The psalms are uniquely suited for praying back to God, both verbatim and conceptually, because they are often written as prayers – as though the psalmist is talking to God. Did you notice that about today’s passage? In which verses?
What is a concept or thought for your own life that the Holy Spirit impressed on your heart or convicted you about from today’s passage? Is there a particular verse(s), or maybe the whole passage, that you would like to pray back to God verbatim? Whatever your “prayer point” from today’s lesson, pray it at least daily until we get to the next lesson.
Suggested Memory Verse
Michelle Lesley 
Goodness! Lesson 2 has been good so far. We can’t know the Lord and love His Word unless the Holy Spirit dwells within us. This is something I knew, but I John brings this to life and just lays it out there! You cannot live in habitual, unrepentant sin and be a Christian. These are sobering words, my friends.
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Great thoughts, Jamie! :0)
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Me again. Some beautiful thoughts for this day’s reading for me was that Scripture is inspired. Not the writers. All Scriptures is breathed out by God Himself. Even when David was singing praises to God, asking for help, or asking for forgiveness, he was being used by God to write Scripture. John MacArthur’s commentary for II Tim 3 says that sometimes God told the Bible writers the exact word to say, but more often he used their own minds, vocabularies, and experiences to produce his own perfect infallible , inerrant word. There are not inspired Scripture writers, only inspired Scripture. So, when we read Psalm 119, even though David is writing, God Himself is pouring out His perfect word.
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Hi Jamie- Great thoughts – thanks for sharing!
One tiny clarification – the author of Psalm 119 is unknown. It could be David, though. (You can read more about that in the background materials in lesson 1 if it’s of interest.) :0)
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You are right! I think since David wrote so much of the Psalms, it’s easy to assume he wrote 119 as well, even if maybe he didn’t. I did read the resources from lesson 1 and read about the sons of Korah and others. It really changes how you approach the passage.
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