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“Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.”
Psalms 119:165 NIV
Today we have a short devotional for a short verse. Oddly enough, it comes from the longest chapter of the longest book of the Bible — Psalm 119. This acrostic psalm consists of 176 verses. Think of it this way; if I were to write a Heaven On Wheels devotional for each verse in this chapter, it would take me nearly a year to complete a pass through this treasure of wisdom!
Remember, we have a lot of devotionals here that study many of the psalms. Click the button below to see a list of psalms to dive into:
Verse 165 comes in a stanza that is primarily a quiet meditation to the Lord. In keeping with the design of Psalm 119, this verse is part of the stanza that begins with the Hebrew letter ש (shin, u). American theologian and minister James Montgomery Boice said this about the ש stanza (cited in Enduring Word):
“The qoph stanza was almost entirely a prayer. In these stanzas the petitions tend to drop away — stanza twenty-one (the sin/shin stanza) has no explicit prayers at all — and in their place comes a quiet, obedient waiting for God.”
Verse 165 begins with the one Hebrew word almost everyone knows: שָׁלוֹם (šālôm, shalom), primarily translated as peace. Boice commented that “Shalom is a large, embracing word for the good that comes to the one God favors.” The psalmist had a great love for God’s law, and that love brought tangible benefits to his life. Here he says that it brought him “great peace,” and it’s apparent that following God’s will has also blessed him with a very stable life — “nothing can make them stumble.”
18th century churchman and writer George Horne, cited on Enduring Word, notes that:
“Amidst the storms and tempests of the world, there is a perfect calm in the breasts of those, who not only do the will of God, but ‘love’ to do it.”
“They are at peace with God, by the blood of reconciliation; at peace with themselves, by the answer of a good conscience, and the subjection of those desires which war against the soul; at peace with all men, by the spirit of charity; and the whole creation is at peace with them, and all things work together for their good.”
Boice goes on to say that: “This verse does not promise peace to those who perfectly keep God’s Law, for who can keep it? It promises peace to those who ‘love’ God’s Law.” Fortunately for believers, Christ fulfilled the Law and enables His people to walk in the righteousness God requires of us.
Let’s look at this from another perspective: God grants peace and well-being to all those who delight in His will as revealed through His Word. The foundation of God’s peace is fellowship with the Lord, and it builds from that foundation through obedience to His commandments.
A special congratulations to my friend Mike Reid on his decision to be baptized again today as an adult—a beautiful public expression of his faith and renewed commitment to follow Christ. May this moment mark the beginning of an even deeper walk with the Lord and a joyful new chapter in his journey of faith.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Father in Heaven, thank You for the gift of Your Word, which gives me peace and keeps me from stumbling. I pray that You help me to keep my love for You and Your Law in my mind, heart, and soul at all times. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.
Congratulations Mike🙌🙌🙌