“Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light for my path. I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.” - Psalm 119:97-120
Reflection by Calvert Steuart
Psalm 119 is bound together through 176 verses, as the most extensive poem of the Psalter, utilizing one central theme—praise of the law.
Verses 97 through 110 have a central theme of praise for God's law which sustains the reader. The law is praised, not as a restrictive set of requirements, burdensome upon the believer, but as a joy, as an inspiration, as law to be praised and joyfully followed, sustaining faith, protecting against persecution and trouble. The law is praised as a shelter and shield and as a delight to be joyfully followed.
Verse 105, "your word is a lamp to guide me and a light for my path," has been embodied in the 1984 Christian praise hymn by Amy Grant in its opening verse, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." This psalm praises God's law as God's will which sustains the believer through the dark hours and better times, always providing a guide to the Psalmist and by extension to each of us today.
