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Psalm 119:11 - Appropriate God's Word for Deliverance from Sin.

Psa 119:11; Appropriate God's Word for Deliverance from Sin.

CONTENT; Translation; Paraphrase; Word Study:

Psa 119:11 (KJV)  Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I 
might not sin against thee. 

Psa 119:11 (NCV)  I have taken your words to heart so I would 
not sin against you. 

Psa 119:11 (paraphrase)  God your words have become my way of 
life that I might not sin against you. 

Definition of Key Terms
Some eight different Hebrew synonyms are used in referring to 
Scripture. These are: 
Dabar ("word"), a general term for any form of divine revelation.
Torah ("law"), a teaching, indicating a single command, the 
Books of Moses, or all of Scripture. 
Piqqudim ("precepts"), detailed instructions given by God as 
guardian of His people. 
Huqqim ("statutes"), binding laws engraved on a permanent record.
Mispatim ("ordinances"), judgments made by God, containing God's 
judgments concerning man's rights and duties. 
Miswot ("commandments"), orders given by competent authority.
'Edot ("testimonies"), vivid and unmistakable witnesses to man 
of God's will. 
'Imra ("promise"), a term often translated "word," suggesting 
the trustworthiness of divine truth in any form. 
Together these words form a clear picture of the Scriptures. 
They are God's authoritative Word, in which we can have complete 
confidence, and through which we learn to trust God and to live a life 
characterized by godliness. [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

"Word" in this psalm is usually translated "promise." [NIV SB]

The often-used term "law" has the idea of teaching, direction, 
or instruction. The law is the gracious revelation of what God 
wants in order for believers to have fellowship with him. It reveals 
who he is. [New Bible Companion] 

CONTEXT; Overview; Topic:

Psalm 119 The Word of God
Psalm 119 The Law of the Lord

Psalm 119 A Torah psalm, an alphabetical psalm: It consists of 
twenty-two stanzas corresponding successively to the letters in the Hebrew 
alphabet. The eight verses of each stanza all begin with the same letter. 
This pattern is maintained throughout the psalm until the alphabet is 
complete. [New Bible Companion] 

CROSS REFERENCES

Psalm 1:2 (KJV)  But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and 
in his law doth he meditate day and night.  

Psa 19:13 (KJV)  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. 
Psa 19:13 (paraphrase)  Keep me from willful sin which if 
unchecked will lead to the unpardonable sin. 

Psalm 40:8 (KJV)  I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy 
law is within my heart.  
Psalm 40:8 (paraphrase)  When God's law is in your heart you 
will delight in doing His will. 

Psalm 119:97 (KJV)  O how love I thy law! it is my meditation 
all the day.  

Proverbs 2:10-11 (KJV)  When wisdom entereth into thine heart, 
and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; [11] Discretion shall 
preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:  

Col. 3:16 (KJV)  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in 
all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns 
and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 
 

John 15:3  Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken 
unto you.  

Proverbs 3:1  My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart 
keep my commandments:  

Joshua 1:8 (KJV) This book of the law shall not depart out of 
thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou 
mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then 
thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good 
success. 

Deu 6:5-9 (paraphrase)  Love God with your total being and fill 
your heart with His words. Teach God's word to your children until it 
lives in them. Make God's word your conversation in the home. Make 
God's word your conversation outside the home i.e. at work and in the 
community. Make God's word your last conversation of the day when you 
retire. Make God's word your first conversation of the day when you get 
up in the morning. Consider God's word in every action you 
undertake. Consider God's word in every thought you have. Remember God's 
word every time someone enters or leaves your home. Remember God's 
word every time you leave or enter your home. In other words 
acknowledge God and His word in every thought, word and deed from the time 
you get up until the time you go to bed. 

John 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth 
nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are 
life.   

Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: 
Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. 

Proverbs 7:1-3  My son, keep my words, and lay up my 
commandments with thee. [2] Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the 
apple of thine eye. [3] Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon 
the table of thine heart.  

John 6:51, 54  I am the living bread which came down from 
heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the 
bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of 
the world. [54] Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath 
eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.  

COMMENTARY / APPLICATION

This verse contains the secret of true Christian living. A mere 
knowledge of the Word will not keep us from sin, but when the Word is 
treasured up in the heart we have the weapons with which to meet and 
conquer the wily foe. [SDA Commentary] 

Scripture memorization is a defense against sin. Hiding 
(keeping) God's Word in our hearts is a deterrent to sin. This alone 
should inspire us to memorize Scripture. But memorization alone will 
not keep us from sin; we must also put God's Word to work in our 
lives, making it a vital guide for everything we do. [Life Application 
SB] 

To hide God's word in our heart is much more than just 
memorizing Scripture; it means to apply and live it.  Not just to hear, but 
to do.  Pro.1:7, Joh.6:51-58, Jam.1:22. 

If we hide Gods' Word in our heart by memorizing and meditating 
on it, we will find new power to keep our mind and heart clean.  
[Life Recovery SB] 

"The prince of this world cometh," said Jesus, "and hath nothing 
in Me." John 14:30. There was in Him nothing that responded to 
Satan's sophistry. He did not consent to sin. Not even by a thought did 
He yield to temptation. So it may be with us. Christ's humanity was 
united with divinity; He was fitted for the conflict by the indwelling 
of the Holy Spirit. And He came to make us partakers of the divine 
nature. So long as we are united to Him by faith, sin has no more 
dominion over us. God reaches for the hand of faith in us to direct it to 
lay fast hold upon the divinity of Christ, that we may attain to 
perfection of character.  And how this is accomplished, Christ has shown 
us. By what means did He overcome in the conflict with Satan? By the 
word of God. Only by the word could He resist temptation. "It is 
written," He said. And unto us are given "exceeding great and precious 
promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having 
escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." 2 Peter 1:4. 
Every promise in God's word is ours. "By every word that proceedeth 
out of the mouth of God" are we to live. When assailed by 
temptation, look not to circumstances or to the weakness of self, but to the 
power of the word. All its strength is yours. "Thy word," says the 
psalmist, "have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee." 
"By the world of Thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the 
destroyer." Ps. 119:11; 17:4.  DA123 

God's holy, educating Spirit is in His word. A light, a new and 
precious light, shines forth from every page. Truth is there revealed, 
and words and sentences are made bright and appropriate for the 
occasion, as the voice of God speaking to the soul... The promises spoken by 
the great Teacher will captivate the senses and animate the soul 
with spiritual power that is divine. There will grow in the fruitful 
mind a familiarity with divine things that will be as a barricade 
against temptation.  The words of truth will grow in importance, and 
assume a breadth and fullness of meaning of which we have never 
dreamed. The beauty and riches of the word have a transforming influence 
on mind and character. COL132 

The heart preoccupied with the word of God is fortified against 
Satan.  Those who make Christ their daily companion and familiar friend 
will feel that the powers of an unseen world are all around them; and 
by looking to Jesus they will become assimilated to His image. By 
beholding they become changed to the divine pattern; their character is 
softened, refined, and ennobled for the heavenly kingdom."  --6T616 

If the truth of God be not deep-rooted in the heart, you cannot 
stand the test of Temptation. There is only one power that can keep us 
steadfast under the most trying circumstances,--the grace of God in truth. 
 YI 11-10-86 

There are many hundreds of thousands of books in the Library of 
Congress in Washington, D.C.  Books on countless subjects, by countless 
people over hundreds of years.  Some of those writings have been the 
seed bed for philosophies, political parties, religious movements and 
more. The writers have come and gone; most are no longer remembered.  
God's Word is remembered because it IS His Word, and it WORKS.  The 
sad thing is, many of us don't pay any more attention to God's Word 
than to any other book. In the Bible are the tools to enable every 
believer to lead a victorious life.  But day after day, the Bible sits 
unopened.  We must take that Word, read it, think about it and so devour 
it that it feeds us. Memorize it! That Word transforms our thoughts 
and actions.  Christian, take it today and feed on it and put it in 
your heart, that you might not sin against Almighty God, and partake 
of the victorious life!  [In His Time; Walk With Wisdom] 

We tell Sarah, at nine, how important it is to keep her dental 
appliance in her mouth. Somehow she can't grasp the fact that it is either 
this, or wear metal during her teen years. Sarah is like the "young 
man" of this verse. She is too inexperienced to have gained wisdom, 
or be able to judge the future consequences of present actions. How 
the young need a guide to life's good! 
In a sense each of us is "young." None of us has the wisdom to 
make right moral choices on his own. And so in grace God gave us His 
Word to live by. He did not intend to restrict or limit us, but to 
guide us along paths that assure blessing. 
We then are faced with a single basic choice. Will we or will we 
not "stray from Your commands"? 
If we are to remain safely on that path, we need to hide God's 
Word in our hearts (v. 11), recount His laws (v. 13), rejoice in 
following His statutes (v. 14), meditate on his precepts (v. 15), and 
never neglect His Word (v. 16). 
We tell Sarah, "Trust us. Keep your appliance in your mouth, and 
you'll have no regrets in the future." For Sarah too there is only one 
issue. Do what we say, no matter how little she wants to at various 
times. 
Perhaps Psalm 119 can be viewed as the psalmist speaking to you 
and me as Sarah's mom and I speak to her. "Trust God," he said. 
"Concentrate on knowing and doing God's Word. If you do, you can be sure. 
Your future will be bright." [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

What's the best way to renew your mind when you've fallen away? 
The crucial thing we must do to renew our relationship with Christ 
is maintain a regular daily devotional life. In order to become, 
and remain, close to God, you need to read your Bible and pray every 
day. Don't lose the habit of regularly feeding your soul on the Word 
of God. The Bible says, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I 
might not sin against thee" (Psalm 119:11). If you're struggling with 
any sort of temptation, you need more of God's Spirit-more of 
Christ-in you. He's the living Word. As you read the Word, Jesus comes 
into your heart and mind, and that's what keeps you from sinning. If 
you fill your life with the light of Christ, it crowds the darkness 
of the devil away. [Pastor Doug Batchelor] 

Sin is not necessary. Memorizing and obeying God's Word leads us 
to avoid sin. Thus, we bear responsibility when we do not use His 
Word to fight temptation. [Disciple SB]