Taw
169 O LORD, listen to my cry;
give me the discerning mind you promised.
170 Listen to my prayer;
rescue me as you promised.
171 Let praise flow from my lips,
for you have taught me your decrees.
172 Let my tongue sing about your word,
for all your commands are right.
173 Give me a helping hand,
for I have chosen to follow your commandments.
174 O LORD, I have longed for your rescue,
and your instructions are my delight.
175 Let me live so I can praise you,
and may your regulations help me.
176 I have wandered away like a lost sheep;
come and find me,
for I have not forgotten your commands. – Psalm 119:169-176 ESV
The psalmist has reached the last letter in the Hebrew alphabet, bringing his lengthy poem to an end. Utilizing the pattern he has used throughout the psalm, he begins each sentence of these last eight verses with the letter taw or tav. This last strophe serves as the conclusion or coda of his psalm.
As he prepares to wrap up his song, the psalmist intensifies his request for deliverance, begging Yahweh to listen to his cry and prayer. He not only wants to be heard, but he wants to experience Yahweh's intervention. Fearing death, he longs to live so he can continue to interact with God's word. Throughout this psalm, the author has repeatedly expressed his deep love and affection for the Scriptures
I have rejoiced in your laws
as much as in riches. – Psalm 119:14 NLT
Your laws please me;
they give me wise advice. – Psalm 119:24 NLT
I long to obey your commandments!– Psalm 119:40 NLT
How I delight in your commands!
How I love them! – Psalm 119:47 NLT
Your instructions are more valuable to me
than millions in gold and silver.– Psalm 119:72 NLT
…your instructions are my delight.– Psalm 119:77 NLT
Oh, how I love your instructions!
I think about them all day long.– Psalm 119:97 NLT
How sweet your words taste to me;
they are sweeter than honey. – Psalm 119:103 NLT
Your laws are my treasure;
they are my heart’s delight.– Psalm 119:111 NLT
…no wonder I love to obey your laws! – Psalm 119:119 NLT
I stand in awe of your regulations. – Psalm 119:120 NLT
Truly, I love your commands
more than gold, even the finest gold.– Psalm 119:127 NLT
Your laws are wonderful.
No wonder I obey them!– Psalm 119:127 NLT
See how I love your commandments, LORD.– Psalm 119:159 NLT
I rejoice in your word
like one who discovers a great treasure. – Psalm 119:162 NLT
I love your instructions. – Psalm 119:163 NLT
I have obeyed your laws,
for I love them very much. – Psalm 119:167 NLT
This isn't hyperbole or pious-sounding rhetoric. The psalmist sincerely means what he is saying. Over his lifetime, he has grown to love the word of God because it has proven to be faithful, true, reliable, wise, and encouraging. While his life has not been easy, his reliance upon the Scriptures has provided him with hope because it reveals the character of his God.
The stories contained in God’s word portray His power, love, mercy, grace, justice, sovereignty, and righteousness. The Books of the Law reveal the righteous demands Yahweh has placed on His covenant people, but also outline the sacrificial system He provided to provide atonement when they failed to keep His commands. The psalmist had read the Books of History and seen how Yahweh had shown mercy and grace to His rebellious people. Yes, He had punished them for their sins, but He had also forgiven and restored them on more than one occasion.
The Books of Wisdom had provided the psalmist with insight into God's nature, outlining the importance of godly wisdom and the need to pursue it with unbridled enthusiasm.
Tune your ears to wisdom,
and concentrate on understanding.
Cry out for insight,
and ask for understanding.
Search for them as you would for silver;
seek them like hidden treasures.
Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD,
and you will gain knowledge of God.– Proverbs 2:2-5 NLT
This has been the pattern of the psalmist's life. He has taken to heart all the lessons found in Scripture and applied the many admonitions to make God's word a priority. But he longs for more. He is far from satisfied and not ready to end his quest to know God better. That is why he cries out, “rescue me as you promised” (Psalm 119:170 NLT). He is not ready for death, but longs to experience more of life so he can grow in his understanding of Yahweh.
“Let me live so I can praise you” (Psalm 119:175 NLT), he pleads. For the psalmist, life was essential to experiencing God's presence and power; it was also vital for responding in praise. The psalmist's mindset reflects that of the prophet Isaiah when he wrote:
For the dead cannot praise you;
they cannot raise their voices in praise.
Those who go down to the grave
can no longer hope in your faithfulness.
Only the living can praise you as I do today.– Isaiah 38:18-19 NLT
Another psalmist shared this same sentiment when he wrote:
The dead cannot sing praises to the LORD,
for they have gone into the silence of the grave.
But we can praise the LORD
both now and forever!– Psalm 115:17-18 NLT
These men were not discounting the idea of an afterlife, but their doctrine of life after death was not fully formed. The ancient Hebrews did not have a well-developed understanding of the hereafter. They believed in some kind of post-death existence, but found it difficult to understand its exact nature. For them, life was the realm in which Yahweh's blessings were experienced. Health, wealth, and prosperity were the signs of a blessed life. Suffering and sorrow were evidence of a disobedient life. That is why the psalmist is confused by the circumstances surrounding his life. He had been faithful and obedient to God's commands, yet he was suffering.
Many persecute and trouble me,
yet I have not swerved from your laws.– Psalm 119:157 NLT
I am insignificant and despised,
but I don’t forget your commandments.– Psalm 119:141 NLT
The psalmist wanted to live because he was not done pursuing God's word. He wanted to experience more of God's blessings and was convinced they could only be experienced in life, not death. He believed praise to be the purview of the living, not the dead. He desperately wants to live, not so he can experience more of what life has to offer, but so he can continue to experience the life-changing lessons God's word has to offer.
O Lord, I have longed for your rescue,
and your instructions are my delight.
Let me live so I can praise you,
and may your regulations help me.– Psalm 119:174-175 NLT
Suffering wasn't enjoyable, and it didn't always make sense. But, for the psalmist, it was an opportunity to seek Yahweh's help and see His deliverance. The struggles of life drove him to his knees and made him increasingly more dependent upon the LORD. Problems were the launching ground for praise. Without a need for God's assistance and deliverance, praise would become unnecessary. But God’s rescue has a way of making His people rejoice. When God shows up, His people tend to shout out His praises. And the psalmist wants to live so he can continue to witness God’s presence, experience God's power, and respond in praise.
The psalmist closes out his song with a cry of complete dependence upon Yahweh’s help. He describes himself as a lost sheep who has unintentionally wandered away from the fold and find himself in danger.
I have wandered away like a lost sheep;
come and find me,
for I have not forgotten your commands. – Psalms 119:174 NLT
This lost-sheep motif is found throughout the Old Testament Scriptures. God used this analogy to describe the state of His covenant people.
“My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds have led them astray
and turned them loose in the mountains.
They have lost their way
and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.” – Jeremiah 50:6 NLT
Speaking on behalf of his fellow Israelites, the prophet Isaiah confessed their self-imposed state of spiritual lostness.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.– Isaiah 53:6 NLT
The psalmist could relate to this imagery of wandering sheep, and he longed for the Good Shepherd to seek him out and restore him to safety and rest. He desired to be back in the fold, where he could continue to experience the love and protective presence of his Master. It isn't farfetched to imagine that the psalmist had the words of David in mind as he concluded his psalm. It was the shepherd of Israel who wrote the following tribute to Yahweh’s faithfulness and love.
The LORD is my shepherd;
I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows;
he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing honor to his name.
Even when I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid,
for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect and comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
My cup overflows with blessings.
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the LORD
forever.– Psalm 23:1-6 NLT
The psalmist wanted what David described. He had experienced it before and was not ready for it to end. Life was worth living because it was the avenue through which Yahweh revealed Himself to men. Yes, life could be full of green meadows and peaceful streams. There were times of feasting and rejoicing. But there were also dark valleys and fear-filled moments when the Shepherd seemed nowhere to be found. But, like David, the psalmist believed that God's goodness and unfailing love would pursue him
all the days of his life, so life was worth living. He truly believed that life was the key to loving and praising God, and would have fully agreed with the words of Psalm 150:6:
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Father, I want to love life, not because of all the perks and benefits it provides, but because it is the platform upon which I get to see and experience Your power and presence. Too often, I see the trials and troubles as setbacks and unnecessary bumps on the road of life. I try to avoid them like the plague or pray them away when eluding them fails. But it is in the difficulties of life that You show up. It is in those moments when I have no more tricks up my sleeve or any other options to pursue, that I tend to turn to You. My weakness makes me aware of my need for Your strength. When times get tough, my prayer life improves. When I don't know what to do, I am forced to turn to You. And when I do, You always show up. Thank you for life, not because it's always perfect and free from trials, but because it is the place where my weakness gets exposed and Your power is displayed. Amen
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
