Epiphany 6 / OT 6
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord.
-- Psalm 119:1
This is the longest psalm in the book of Psalms. Built on an acrostic framework using each letter of the Hebrew alphabet to begin a set of eight line couplets, it is a work of art. Each couplet reflects on an aspect of God's law as one would look at different facets of a diamond. Because Christian tradition has sometimes reduced our understanding of law to a series of regulations, we miss the beauty of the Torah. For the Jew, the law is not a burden but more like a rudder of a boat. Without the rudder, a boat has no capacity to choose a direction and is simply buffeted about by the wind and current. The law, or Torah, is much more than a series of regulations. It includes all of the stories and commandments in the first five books of the Bible. It is an attempt to make visible the character and will of God. The life of Israel, as depicted in those books, was the incarnation of God. One could substitute Christ for law in this psalm and have an extended meditation of the meaning of Christ in our lives. "Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the [way] of the Lord." Jesus becomes, in one person, the embodiment of Israel when the people are guided by the will of God. "Happy are those who keep [Christ's] decrees, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways."
-- Psalm 119:1
This is the longest psalm in the book of Psalms. Built on an acrostic framework using each letter of the Hebrew alphabet to begin a set of eight line couplets, it is a work of art. Each couplet reflects on an aspect of God's law as one would look at different facets of a diamond. Because Christian tradition has sometimes reduced our understanding of law to a series of regulations, we miss the beauty of the Torah. For the Jew, the law is not a burden but more like a rudder of a boat. Without the rudder, a boat has no capacity to choose a direction and is simply buffeted about by the wind and current. The law, or Torah, is much more than a series of regulations. It includes all of the stories and commandments in the first five books of the Bible. It is an attempt to make visible the character and will of God. The life of Israel, as depicted in those books, was the incarnation of God. One could substitute Christ for law in this psalm and have an extended meditation of the meaning of Christ in our lives. "Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the [way] of the Lord." Jesus becomes, in one person, the embodiment of Israel when the people are guided by the will of God. "Happy are those who keep [Christ's] decrees, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways."
