Summation

I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You.  Psalm 119:168  NASB

All my ways – “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”  The Yogi Berra quote is just about what it means when the psalmist writes kōl-d^erākăy’ (“all my paths”).  Since the map he follows is written on piqqûdîm and ʿēd^ewōtê paper, no matter which way he goes, God guides.  The only choices he allows are based on the precepts and testimonies.

And so we have the summary of the shin section of the acrostic.  In this section we’ve heard the psalmist proclaim that despite attempts to do him harm, he has not faltered in his commitment to God’s words.  They are like captured treasure to him.  His entire day is punctuated by reminders of God’s righteous decisions.  And for that he is constantly praising the Lord.  In fact, nothing causes him to stumble in his trust in the Law.  He waits for full restoration, knowing that it is promised by God.  On this foundation every choice he makes is in alignment with God’s history with his people.

As we approach the end of this long psalm, we might expect that this summary would be the summum bonum of the litany of praises.  After all that the psalmist has written about his circumstances and his unflagging commitment, what more is there to say?  God is good and all He does is good and as long as I follow His instructions, I too will experience the goodness of God.  Could it be any better than that?  What else could possibly be added?

Before we turn to the last section, perhaps we should notice a few details here.  The verb translated “keep” is šāmar, and as we have discovered, it means more than compliance and obedience.  It means to carefully watch over, to guard, and to feel an obligation to.  So, keeping God’s precepts and testimonies is more than being observant.  It is safeguarding God’s reputation, holding Him up as the One True Sovereign of creation.  This has political and social implications.  It also speaks to attitude, not just action.  You will notice that the psalmist reminds us that all our ways are “before You.”  We might have expected a simple preposition here.  Or perhaps the usual idiom involving the face.  But instead he chooses neged, from a root meaning, “to make conspicuous.”  The word is used to describe placing something in the spotlight. What he suggests is that every act and attitude is scrupulously examined by God.  This is the Hebraic equivalence of the Western idea of omniscience (almost).  And it raises a serious personal question: “Does God’s thorough observation of all your ways scare you?”  I don’t mean that you feel angst over God’s observation of your misdeeds.  I mean, “Does it frighten you to think that God meticulously examines your relaxed attitude and unmindful compliance?”  Do you think you’re serious enough about your observance?  Do you catch yourself paying less attention than needed to upholding His reputation?

As we end the shin section, the psalmist makes an important point.  We are watched.  Is that comforting or condemning?

Topical Index: šāmar, keep, neged, scrupulous, omniscience, Psalm 119:168