Exposition of Psalm
119
?
KOPH
God’s
Word Generates Prayer
Psalm
119:145-152
I
cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep
thy statutes.
I
cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy
testimonies.
I
prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped
in thy word.
Mine
eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in
thy word.
Hear
my voice according unto thy lovingkindness: O LORD,
quicken me according to thy
judgment.
They
draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from
thy law.
Thou
art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are
truth.
Concerning
thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast
founded them for ever.
This whole stanza is about
prayer. While the Psalmist has, of course, prayed many
times already, this stanza provides us with a
concentrated primer on prayer, with God’s Word at the
very center of it. Here we learn five principles of
prayer: we are to pray earnestly, constantly,
submissively, attentively, and believingly.
I. Pray
Earnestly (vs. 145-146)
I
cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep
thy statutes.
I
cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy
testimonies.
First, David tells
us that he cried with [his]
whole heart. Think of it! His entire being
was engaged in prayer. As he wrote back in verse 10,
“With my whole heart have I sought thee.” We also read
in verse 146: I cried unto thee;
save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies.
Save is
yasha’, “to save, help, deliver, or defend.” The
“underlying idea of this verb is bringing to a place of
safety or broad pasture as opposed to a narrow
strait.”[i] The Word of God is,
indeed, the only place of safety we can ever
know.
Perhaps the most important
New Testament example of such prayer, and one that many
Christians actually misunderstand, is James 5:16: “The
effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth
much.” This has been variously translated as: “Very
strong is a working supplication of a righteous man”
(Young’s Literal); “The prayer of a righteous man is
powerful and effective” (NIV); “The effective prayer of
a righteous man can accomplish much” (NASB); and “The
prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is
working” (ESV).
None
of those, however, adequately reflects the central
truth. Many people take this verse to mean, “If I prayer
fervently and intensely, if I just pray hard enough,
long enough, and often enough for a particular thing, it
will happen.” Such an idea, however, flies in the face
of the principle that prayer involves
conforming our will to God’s
will.
The key to a proper
understanding of this verse lies in the expression
“effectual
fervent.” This is only one word in the Greek,
energeo,
from which is derived English words such as energy and energize, and
means “to be at work, to effect something.” It is
extremely significant, as one Greek authority tells us,
that the noun energeia
(energy, active power, operation) is used almost
exclusively not of man’s power but for the work of
divine or demonic powers in both the Septuagint and the
New Testament.[ii] In Ephesians 1:19,
for example, it is God’s power that is “working”
(energeia) in us, while in 2:2, Satan is said to
be working (energeo). In other words, man is not in view in this
word.
Another authority
agrees, adding that this usage is predominant in the
entire word group: “Only in Philippians 2:13 does
the active energein [present active participle of
energeo] refer to human activity,”[iii] but notice that
even then it’s still God Who is working
“in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” So
then, it is not our prayer that is effective, not
our efforts that accomplish
anything.
Further, when we
also note that the word “availeth” is
ischuo,
“strength and ability,” it is then easy to see exactly
what James is saying. He’s not telling us that we
accomplish much by our own energy in prayer, but rather
that our prayers are earnest and strong because they
are energized by God. We could
translate this verse, “The God-energized prayer of a
righteous man is strong.”[iv]
What is the goal of
such earnestness? In today’s teaching, the goal is
ourselves, getting what we want. David’s goal was a
little different to say the least. His aim was to
keep
[God’s] statutes
and testimonies. Let us pray earnestly to that
end.
II. Pray
Constantly (vs. 147-148)
I
prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped
in thy word.
Mine
eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in
thy word.
Here is one of those
beautiful pictures that are typical of the OT and
painted by the Hebrew. In their attempt to be more
contemporary, and even interpretive, modern translations
insist on rendering verse 147 as, “I rise before dawn
and cry for help” (NIV and NASB). But that is not what
the Hebrew precisely says; it says something even
stronger, and our KJV translation is quite literal. The
Hebrew for prevented
(qadam) actually means to confront, either with a
peaceful or hostile intent. David uses this word in
another prayer, this one concerning his adversaries:
“Arise, O LORD, disappoint
him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked,
which is thy sword” (Ps. 17:13). The idea is getting in
one’s face and confronting him. What David is,
therefore, saying in our text is, “I confront the sun
itself and try to keep it from rising.” Yes, he rises
before dawn, but he then doesn’t want the dawn to come.
Why? Because once the sun comes up, he must get on with
the day’s activities, and he would rather spend time in
prayer.
To reemphasize this
desire, David then says, Mine eyes prevent the
night watches. He uses the same Hebrew word
for prevent,
so what does he wish to confront in the face this time?
The term night
watches (ashmûrâ) refers to the old
Jewish division of the night
being three watches of four hours each. The first (or
beginning) watch was from 6:00 to 10:00 P.M. (Lam.
2:19), the second (or middle) watch was from 10:00 P.M.
to 2:00 A.M. (Jud. 7:19), and the third (or morning)
watch was from 2:00 to 6:00 A.M. (Ex. 14:24). (In
contrast, in New Testament times, the Jews were forced
to adopt the Roman division of four watches of three
hours each [Matt. 14:25; Mk. 13:35]). So what is David
saying? As he didn’t want the dawn to come, he
doesn’t want the night to end.
Here we see, then,
one of the most graphic illustrations in Scripture of
what true prayer is: Prayer is constant communion
with God. Luke refers to this principle when he
writes, “And [Jesus] spake a parable unto them to this
end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint”
(Lk. 18:1), as does the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 6:18:
“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints.”
Prayer is not just
asking and getting things from God, which is perhaps the
most prevalent view of prayer. To many of us, prayer is
what we use only when we are in need or when trouble
arises. Biblically, however, prayer is moment-by-moment
communion. As Jesus’ Model Prayer (Matt. 6:9-13)
outlines, prayer involves praise, thanksgiving,
self-examination, and finally petition. God doesn’t just
want us to say “prayers” but to pray. Yes, we
most certainly should have set aside times when we pray
specifically, but at the foundation of that is that we
should be throughout the day talking to the Lord as we
go about our daily tasks. Another definition that sums
this up is: “Living our life in God-consciousness.”
Day-by-day, moment-by-moment we are aware not only of
God’s existence, but also of His very
presence in us.
This principle is
brought out with full force in 1 Thessalonians 5:17,
where Paul encourages us to, “Pray without ceasing.”
While proseuchomai (“pray”) speaks of prayer in
general to God, the adverb adialeiptos (“without
ceasing”) adds a startling truth. It’s comprised of the
prefix a, “without,” and dialeipo, “to
intermit, leave an interval or gap.” This word, as well
as the adjective adialeiptos,
appears several times in the New Testament. In Romans
9:2, for example, Paul writes of the “continual sorrow
with no gaps” he had for his fellow Jews who reject
Christ. This word was used in Roman times for a nagging
cough; while the person didn’t cough every moment, he
would still cough often, so it could be said of him,
“He’s still coughing.”[v]
Here, then, the
meaning is clear: prayer is to be offered “continually,
without intermission.” In other words, prayer is not
just those specific times when we pray, but also a
constant communion with God, a continuous consciousness
of God’s presence in which we view everything in life in
relation to Him. Our lives are, if we
may submit, a living
prayer.
Another writer offers,
“Paul’s injunction means that one should be constantly
conscious of his full dependence upon
God.”[vi] This doesn’t mean we
lock ourselves in a monastery where we do nothing but
“pray.” Rather every moment is a moment for prayer; like
the cough, we’re still praying.
If we meet someone,
for example, we immediately consider where they stand
with the Lord. If we hear of something bad happening, we
pray for God to act in the situation for His glory and
people’s good. If we hear of something good, we respond
with immediate praise to God, for He has been glorified.
In short, we view everything that comes from a
spiritual perspective. When Paul
looked around his world, everything he saw prompted him
to prayer in some way. When he thought of or heard about
one of his beloved churches, it moved him to prayer.
That is exactly the thought of Romans 1:9, where Paul
declares, “Without ceasing I make mention of you always
in my prayers,” and again in 2 Timothy 1:3, “Without
ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night
and day.” Are we getting the picture? No intermission in
our prayer. Our lives are permeated by a spiritual
perspective.
Nehemiah provides a
wonderful example of such praying without ceasing. King
Artaxerxes noticed that Nehemiah was sad and asked him
why, at which time Nehemiah told him of the destruction
of Jerusalem. The king then asked Nehemiah to make a
request of him that he might grant it. Before replying
that the King send him to Judah, Nehemiah prayed a
quick, brief prayer (Neh. 2:4). In the midst of a
stressful situation, Nehemiah was conscious of God’s
purpose. What a contrast that is to today’s popular
emphasis advocated in the book, the The Prayer of
Jabez, where we are encouraged
to pray, “Bless me, God!” That is not what Nehemiah
prayed, or, for that matter, what Paul or our Lord ever
prayed. No, Nehemiah was concerned with what God
wanted.
One writer offers this
homey illustration:
When a pump is frequently used,
the water pours out at the first stroke, because it is
high; but, if the pump has not been used for a long
time, the water gets low, and when you want it you must
pump a long while; and the water comes only after great
efforts. It is so with prayer. If we are instant in
prayer, every little circumstance awakens the
disposition to pray, and desire and words are always
ready: but, if we neglect prayer, it is difficult for us
to pray; for the water in the well gets
low.[vii]
What a challenge!
How often do we, when we sit down to pray, feel like we
have to prime the pump? But that is not what prayer is.
It is to be ongoing, a continual communion with
God.
Another verse that
reveals this truth is Colossians 3:2; we are to set our
minds constantly on the things of heaven, not on the
things of the earth. That is, our life becomes a
continual ascending prayer, a
perpetual communion with the Lord. As the continual
burning of incense (Ex 30:8) represented Israel’s
prayers constantly before God, here is a far better
replacement. Neither do we need the Old Testament
sacrifices, for our lives are a living sacrifice (Rom.
12:1).
We submit, therefore, if
we do not view prayer in this way, we will soon view God
only as One we call on in time of need; we will, indeed,
lose touch with Him. As someone has pointed out:
Some Christians seem to look upon
God as a kind of spare tire. A spare tire is forgotten
for months at a time until suddenly we have a flat on
the road. Then we want the spare tire to be in good
condition, ready for use. Just so, many forget God
during all the times when things go well, then in an
emergency they want God to be on hand, immediately ready
to hear and answer their cry of
distress.[viii]
Our “specific times”
of prayer, then, are actually an outworking of our
“constant communion.” We find this to be
automatically true. As we are continuously conscious of
God’s presence and our dependence, He will
bring people and needs to our minds so that we
may bring them before His throne. In His book
Testament of Devotion, Thomas
Kelley well sums up this principle:
There is a way of ordering our
mental life on more than one level at once. On one level
we can be thinking, discussing, seeing, calculating,
meeting all the demands of external affairs. But deep
within, behind the scenes, at a profounder level, we may
also be in prayer and adoration, song and worship, and a
gentle receptiveness to divine
breathings.[ix]
What a wonderful
statement! I have not read one any better on this
subject. Indeed, all the “stuff” of life is just that,
stuff. The real motive, the true depth of our life is a
deep consciousness of God, the very breathings of God
concerning His nature and workings.[x]
III. Pray
Submissively (vs. 149)
Hear
my voice according unto thy lovingkindness: O LORD,
quicken me according to thy
judgment.
Twice David prays
according
to something, according to God’s lovingkindness,
which is hesed again (as in vs. 41, 76, 124) and
speaks of kindness, loving-kindness, mercy, goodness,
faithfulness, love, and acts of kindness, and according
to God’s judgment
(mishpat), His binding judicial decisions that establish
a precedent and binding law. David prays, in effect,
“God, I want you to hear me based upon your truth, your
decisions, your will.” David does not say, “Give me what
I want no matter what,” rather give me what meets your
will.
Here is another
graphic picture, this time a illustration of the
principle of submissively praying according to the will
of God, which is perhaps the most ignored principle of
prayer. “The Model Prayer” tells us that we should pray,
“Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.” What is
the plan of prayer? Simply stated, the plan of prayer
is that our will conforms to God’s will.
There is the serious error
today about prayer that says we can ask anything
regardless of God’s will. There are even those who say
we can “demand things from God” and that there are
things God “must” do. Today’s “healing movement,” for
example, says we can demand good health when we are
Spirit filled. The “prosperity movement” says we can
demand financial prosperity when we are good stewards of
our money and ask God for more. Others just say that God
will give us anything we want and even define
prayer as “asking and receiving.” How shameless all
that is! In such schemes, God is lowered to the position
of a butler who comes to serve us when ring a bell. God
has now become the servant instead of us. May we ask,
who do we think we are by saying we do not have to live
and pray in accordance with God’s will?
Scripture clearly teaches
that we are to pray according to God’s will. The
literal idea in “The Model Prayer” is, “Let Your will
come about, as in heaven, so on earth,” or, as Robert
Young’s Literal Translation puts it, “Thy reign come:
Thy will come to pass, as in heaven also on the earth.”
In other words, the bottom line is, “God, do what you
want.” David prayed this way, “I delight to do Thy
will” (Ps. 40:8); Jesus in His humanity prayed this way
in Gethsemane, “Not My will but Thine be done” (Matt.
26:39). Are we to be any different?
There are also many
who are confused about harmonizing prayer with the
sovereignty of God; they question the validity of prayer
since God is in control of all things. On the one hand,
since God is sovereign and has His plans, then why pray?
Are we asking God to change His mind? On the other hand,
if prayer is effective, then how can God be sovereign?
The answer to all this is found in remembering two
principles. First, God is, indeed, sovereign; He
has His own plans and purposes, which cannot be
thwarted by anything or anyone. Second, we then
pray in accordance with that will; that is, our will
comes into line with His; His desires become
our desires. This still means
that we can pray for what we want, but it also means
that that desire must come into line with God’s desire.
God knows what is best for us and others. We must,
therefore, allow Him to work that which is best. Someone
has wisely said:
Prayer is a mighty instrument,
not for getting man’s will done in heaven, but for
getting God’s will done on earth.
We are told by some
teachers that if we just “pray fervently,” just “pray
through,” or, in essence, just twist God’s arm long
enough, we’ll get what we want. But prayer is not for
getting our will done but
God’s.
Is not I John 5:14
clear enough? “If we ask anything according to his
will, He heareth us” (emphasis added). If we may
add, what is God ultimately doing? God works things
according to His will for His ultimate glory and
our utmost good. With David,
let us forever abandon arrogant prayer.[xi]
IV. Pray
Attentively (vs. 150)
They
draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from
thy law.
David was so “lost in
prayer” that perhaps he failed at first to notice what
was going on around him. He then saw that the wicked
were near. Nehemiah, for example, looked around and saw
the enemies of God and then wrote, “Nevertheless we
made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against
them day and night, because of them” (Neh. 4:9).
Likewise, our Lord commanded, “Watch and pray, that ye
enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing,
but the flesh is weak” (Matt. 26:41), as did Paul,
“Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with
thanksgiving” (Col. 4:2), and Peter, “But the end of all
things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto
prayer” (I Pet. 4:7).
V. Pray
Believingly (vs. 151-152)
Thou
art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are
truth.
Concerning
thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast
founded them for ever.
There was not a
shadow of a doubt in David’s mind that God was with him,
would hear him, and would answer him. Thou art near, O
LORD, he writes. God
always answers the prayers of believers, whatever that
answer might be. He answers in one of four
ways.
First, there
is His direct answer of,
“Yes.” This is when He gives exactly what we ask for in
our prayers.
Second, there
is His delayed answer of,
“Wait awhile.” God’s timing is perfect. While we think
we know the right timing, God’s knowledge is perfect.
His timing, therefore, might demand that we wait for a
yes to that request, or even a no or different
fulfillment altogether. This leads to a third
answer.
Third, there
is His different answer of,
“Here is something you need far more.” Again, God knows
what we need better than we do. As the Perfect Father,
He will give us what is best.
Four, there
is His denial answer of, “No.” This is the answer
that is often misidentified as God not answering, but
again, He did answer—He just
said “No.” This might result from our own shortcomings
or simply that that is not His will. Sometimes the “No”
comes because we “ask amiss” (Jas. 4:3), that is, with
the wrong motive.
The key to the whole
question, then, is that no matter what God’s answer is,
we simply trust in His sovereign will. In the final analysis, we do not know how
prayer works, we just know it does by God’s power. If we
cannot live with that paradox, and some teachers cannot,
we will either deny prayer of the sovereignty of God.
No, we don’t know how prayer works—“For who hath known
the mind of the Lord?” (Rom. 11:34)—but what a blessing
to know that it does.
Therefore, concerning [God’s]
testimonies, we say with David, I have known of old
that thou hast founded them for
ever. We believe without
doubt or reservation that God’s Word is fixed, final,
and forever. That brings a confidence in prayer that is
absolutely unshakeable. Prayer works because God’s Word
says so.
[i] Baker and Carpenter,
#3467.
[ii] Brown, Vol. 3, p.
1147.
[iii] Kittle, Vol. II, p.
653.
[iv] This study taken
from the author’s book, A Word for the Day: Key Words
from the New Testament
(Chattanooga: AMG Publishers, 2006), p.
152.
[vii] Felix Neff, cited
in The Biblical Illustrator.
[viii] Cited in Tan,
Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations.
[ix] Thomas Kelly,
Testament of Devotion (New York: Harper, 1941),
p. 35. Cited in Kent R. Hughes, Ephesians: The
Mystery of the Body of Christ (Wheaton, Illinois:
Crossway Books, 1990, electronic edition, Logos Research
Systems.
[x] Most of the
material in this section taken from the author’s book,
The Christian’s Wealth and Walk: An Expository
Commentary on Ephesians
(expositions of 1:16 and 6:18).
[xi] Most of the
material in this section taken from the author’s book,
The Christian’s Wealth and Walk: An Expository
Commentary on Ephesians
(exposition of
1:7).
