Psalm 19
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.

1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

Doubtless Paul had passages like this in his mind when he wrote the First Chapter of the book of Romans.

Rom 1:18-21
     18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
 of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
     19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto
 them.
     20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being
 understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they
 are without excuse:
     21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful;
 but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. KJV

The founders of the United States of America wrote in our Declaration of Independence, “we hold these truths to be self evident…” And such men as David and Paul saw the Glory of God in the same way.

“The heavens declare…..” not verbally, of course, but by their very existence and magnificence affirm that they were created by the Most Glorious and Powerful Being. Logic demands that we affirm the principle that Chaos does not create Order and there it is, right before our eyes, Wonderful Arrangement and Order, ruled by consistent Laws and Principles, some of which we have not yet even discovered.

2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.

The Affirmation of the Glory of God is continual, perpetual and eternal. Every new thing we discover or ‘old’ one we re-examine confirms the reality of Deity.

3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

Because the communication is non-verbal, no language is needed, the Reason with which God created the mind of man is forced to agree with that which Creation states.

4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,

(“their voice goes out through all the earth,” RSV) Again, not a voice of sounds but nevertheless of profound affirmation. “In them,” means “in the heavenlies” and there “He set” the sun, without which our lives would be impossible.

5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

He rightly deduced that the sun is the source of incredible heat, the earth being set in an orbit around it at just the right distance so that there is neither too much or too little and then designed so that the heat is used
to create a climate useful to the production of food for the human race as well as the animal kingdom.

Then, David turned his attention to those things which are set in order in the human brain concerning right and wrong as well as written down for all to know, the Law of God. What he said next is in the spirit of Psalm 119, which is an ode to that Law.

7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. (“the Law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ,” Paul wrote.) 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

And, Paul affirmed that the Law is not limited to that which was written on Moses’ stones but God writes them in the hearts of humanity.

Rom 2:14-15
     14  For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the
 law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
     15  Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing 
 witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;) KJV

It is a part of the Reason with which God manufactured the human mind, now corrupted but still visible if one cares to observe.

11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.

“Thy servant” refers to the one who can see these things and recognize them for their value, to teach a man how to be right with this Creator, how to please Him, and assures that same servant that the greatest of all rewards awaits the soul that is willing to embrace that which is declared to him.

12 Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. 13 Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.

Such knowledge drove David, as it should every human capable of reasonable thought, to desire to be completely rid of all behaviors and thoughts, all ignorance and presumptions, concerning ‘sin’ the violation
and/or failure of conformity to the Laws of such a Being as created the Universe we see.

14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. KJV

He longed for full obedience, right down to the thought and emotional planes, to JHVH and it is clear from the tone that this desire was driven by Admiration, Love and Devotion, not slavish fear.

What a wonderful conclusion to these thoughts.

— April 27, 2020