by Erik Jones

Psalm 119, which we have recently been covering every Sabbath on this Daily Bible Verse blog, can be viewed as a song of praise to God for His law. Far from viewing God’s law as a burden or a source of bondage, David and the other psalmists extolled the law for its goodness and the many benefits and blessings it brings to a person who keeps it.

In Psalm 119:165 we read that love for and obedience to God’s law brings peace to a person’s life. Peace, in biblical terms, does not just mean the absence of war. Peace represents many concepts, such as safety, happiness, favor, prosperity and welfare. In other words, peace represents a sound, stable and complete life.

How does God’s law bring peace? Let’s look at just one example:

Consider the Ninth Commandment: “You shall not bear false witness [lie] against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16). The direct command is to not lie to or about any other person. The spirit of this law is that we are always to “speak truth” (Proverbs 8:7). Always speaking the truth about and to others has the natural consequence of erasing many of the tensions that arise between people. Speaking the truth doesn’t mean we say everything we feel (whether negative or positive). It means that what we do say is always done with the utmost honesty, with concern for the other person and with the primary motivation being love (Ephesians 4:15).

This topic provides an excellent Bible study opportunity. Go through each of the 10 Commandments and study and meditate about how keeping them (both in the letter and spirit) will result in the “great peace” we read about in this verse.

Tomorrow on the Daily Bible Verse Blog: “Win Friends and Influence People Through Kindness.”