My Rock and my Redeemer
Psalms 19:14 - A study of what C.S. Lewis referred to as “the greatest poem in the Psalter”
King David praying to the Lord at the start of a day. Image generated by ChatGPT (OpenAI) using the DALL·E model.
“May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
Psalms 19:14 NIV
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I’m not much for memorizing Scripture. I’m too darned old to start, and I think many of my brain neurons are filled with song lyrics from the 1970s and answers to trivia questions. But today’s psalm is one that I have had memorized for quite a while, since a beloved pastor at a former church used to begin each of his services with these words. They have stayed in my mind, and I often use the psalm at the beginning of intercessory prayer.
This verse comes at the end of Chapter 19 of the Book of Psalms, a psalm of David about both the Works and the Words of God. This is quite a beautiful psalm from start to finish; Willem VanGemeren, cited on Enduring Word, quotes C.S. Lewis in his commentary:
“This Psalm reflects, more than any other, the beauty and splendor of the Hebrew poetry found in the Psalter. C.S. Lewis wrote, ‘I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world.’” (Willem VanGemeren)
Regarding Lewis’s comment on this being “one of the greatest lyrics,” those new to studying scripture should remember that the Book of Psalms (“the Psalter”) is a collection of Hebrew religious songs. Sadly, the music to most of these songs have been lost to antiquity… You may hear psalms put to music — many churches have hymns that use the words of psalms and modern (Christian era) music, but we will never (at least in this life) know what the “Chief Musician” and King David composed and played.
Let’s go through the phrases of Psalm 19:14 one at a time:
May these words of my mouth: In biblical times, words had power, and oral communication was how laws, traditions, and teachings were passed on. King David wants his words to be pleasing to God, aligning his speech with the will of God. As we’ve seen from a recent devotional here at Heaven On Wheels, words still have the power of life and death.
and this meditation of my heart: The heart is seen in Scripture as the core of what we think and how we act. Using the ancient Hebrew word הִגָּיוֹן (higāyôn) in the original text, David was mainly implying a reflective internal consideration of God’s laws and His character. But that word also has the definition “a musical notation to denote solemnity of a movement,” which suggests that David’s words were sung with great solemnity indicating his heartfelt worship and his obedience to God.
be pleasing in your sight: David is displaying his personal relationship to God as well as his overriding wish to gain God’s approval of his words and thoughts. The king is aware of God’s omniscience and appealing to the Lord’s assistance in living a life acceptable to Him.
Lord: The ancient Hebrew in this psalm uses the noun יְהֹוָה (yᵊhōvâ or YHWH), the personal name of God as revealed to Moses. There are several names of God used in the Bible: YHWH is how God refers to Himself, while Elohim refers to God both in singular (Father) and plural (the Trinity) contexts. By invoking God’s personal name at this point, David was showing reverence and his trust in Him.
My rock: The metaphor of God as a “rock” is found throughout Scripture. Rocks and mountains were seen as unchanging, permanent, and as places of refuge. Calling God “my rock” indicates that David saw Him as a pillar of strength, stability, and protection.
And my redeemer: The modern dictionary defines “redeemer” as one who is a “rescuer, deliverer, savior”. In the Israelite culture, there were kinsman-redeemers who restored family members from slavery or poverty. This foreshadows Christ’s redemptive work, His death and resurrection to save believers from the stain of sin. David is highlighting God’s capacity as savior and deliverer.
As you can see, there is a lot of meaning in this psalm! Although I have used the words as a preface to many of my prayers in the past, this deeper study of Psalm 19:14 will encourage me in the future to pray for all of my words — not just those uttered in prayer — to be acceptable to the Lord.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Today’s beautiful prayer is a reflection on Psalm 19:14 from Knowing Jesus:
Loving Father, the heart that meditates on the Lord and lifts up the person of the Lord Jesus, is the one that exhibits an inner grace and beauty, for such a one is willingly being transformed into the likeness of Christ. I know that out of the mouth come thoughts that are conceived in the heart, and so I pray that, like David, in humility of heart I would sanctify the words of my mouth, the meditation of my heart, the thoughts of my mind, and the motives of my inner being so that I too am pleasing and acceptable in the sight of my precious Lord and Saviour. In His name I pray, AMEN.