Psalm 1 – Pronounce It!
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers. (1:1 NLT)
I’m reading the New Living Translation this week – I just like the flavor of the translation. It has a nice way of bringing out the tone of the passage.
Joys – such happiness. I picture a person jumping with joy with a big smile on her face. (I’m actually picturing little Maili.)
Not follow – not persuaded by, not take direction from
Advice – one’s counsel, one’s so called wisdom
Wicked – those opposed to Him
Stand around – hang out with
Sinners – the wicked ones referred to previously
Join in – participate with, to be a part of the group
Mockers – those who make fun of God, those who have no respect for Him
The joy that I can have has much to do with what I DON’T do as much as what I DO do. As I worked through this verse, I initially wondered what it meant to hang out with sinners. I mean, Jesus hung out with sinners. He came to seek and save the sinners with particular attention toward the ones looked down upon by the religious leaders of the day. But in Ps. 1, it appears that I shouldn’t be doing that. As I thought about it more, however, the Psalmist is talking about “the wicked” – referring to them as “sinners” and “mockers”. Such is the way Hebrew poetry is written with parallel thoughts with different words running through it. When I look at it this way, I see David telling us that joyful is the one who isn’t influenced, who doesn’t hang out with, and doesn’t participate with those who are opposed to God.
As I meditate on this verse, it brings to mind so many searching in this world for joy. They look in places that are opposed to God’s ways. Last night I purchased an item from a couple on Craigslist. In my conversations with this family, he was out of work, she was presumably a stay-at-home mom with a 16 month old toddler. There was just something about the vibe that made me so sad. She seemed so unhappy; a little skittish. Honestly, it felt like she was longing for something. When I asked what line of work he was in, and he shared that he used to own a business in Seattle, but the city had shut it down. Turned out that he owned an adult strip club of sorts. I’m not judging his heart, really. But that’s just not the place to find joy. Such darkness.
My prayer is that I might be able to, with my life and words, draw seeking people to Christ where an unspeakable awaits them. Lord, help me be a light in this dark world.