Day 4 of 7
The Way of Wisdom
Blessed Is the One Who Delights in the Law of the Lord
Scripture Readings
Today's Reading
Read Psalm 1 — the gateway to the entire Psalter.
Psalm 1 is not placed first by accident. Before the songs, laments, and praises begin, the Psalter opens with a wisdom lesson: there are two ways to live, and the difference is what you feed your mind.
Reflection
The psalm draws a stark contrast:
The blessed person:
- Does not walk, stand, or sit with the wicked (a progression — from casual encounter to settled lifestyle)
- Delights in the law of the Lord
- Meditates on it day and night
- Is like a tree by streams — fruitful, green, prospering
The wicked:
- Are like chaff — weightless, rootless, blown away
The key word is meditates. The Hebrew word (hagah) means to murmur, to turn over in your mind, to chew on. It's not speed-reading; it's slow, repeated, thoughtful engagement with God's Word.
"This first psalm may be looked upon as the text upon which the whole of the Psalms make up a divine sermon." — Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David
Going Deeper
Read Psalm 119:105: "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
A.W. Tozer wrote: "The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God." The wisdom of Psalm 1 is not about intellectual achievement — it's about planting your roots near the water source, so that wisdom flows naturally into your life.
Try this: choose one verse from today's reading and carry it with you through the day. Return to it at lunch, at dinner, before bed. This is the practice of hagah — the meditation the psalmist commends.
Key Quotes
“The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God.”
“This first psalm may be looked upon as the text upon which the whole of the Psalms make up a divine sermon.”
Prayer Focus
Asking God for wisdom to discern the right path in a specific decision you are facing
Meditation
Picture the image of the tree planted by streams of water (Psalm 1:3). What are the 'streams' that nourish your spiritual life? What drains it?
Question for Discussion
Psalm 1 draws a sharp line between the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked — but in real life, most of us live somewhere in between. Is this binary framework still useful, or does it oversimplify the moral life?