Commonplace –
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1).
Surely one of the greatest of the psalms of praise, Psalm 19 is a psalm of pure rejoicing. David carries the reader away with his expressions of amazement at the way nature itself proclaims God’s glory. He then moves on to meditating on the perfection of God’s laws, statutes, and judgments. He ends with a prayer that God will keep believers from sin, so they can be upright and clean in the His presence.
Matthew Henry provides a lovely summary of Psalm 19.
“There are two excellent books which the great God has published for the instruction and edification of the children of men; this psalm treats of them both, and recommends them both to our diligent study.
I. The book of the creatures, in which we may easily read the power and godhead of the Creator (v. 1-6).
II. The book of the scriptures, which makes known to us the will of God concerning our duty. [David] shows the excellency and usefulness of that book (v. 7-11) and then teaches us how to improve it (v. 12-14)”.
Works Cited
Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 19.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.
Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.
© 2025 Angela Hormberg
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