In this life, sometimes we find ourselves at a crossroads. One path offers popularity, quick profits, and achievements that dazzle the eyes of men. The other path invites us to live according to the values we believe in. A life of honesty, faithfulness, and keeping a clean heart even if the consequences are not always worldly. Many people end up drifting into social trends: pretending to be strong to be respected, pretending to be happy to look successful, pretending to be good to be considered pious. Until one day we ask, Do I still recognize myself?
Psalm 119:29–40 shows the inner voice of one who struggles to remain honest. This section follows the previous pattern with verses starting from the letters Dalet and He in the Hebrew alphabet, describing life as a journey. The psalmist had experienced a life that brought him down to the "dust" (v. 25), a feeling of brokenness that we often experience in the pressures of life. However, it was precisely from that point that he learned to rely completely on God's words as his strength and compass of truth. He pleaded, "Keep the way of lies away from me" (v. 29). The way of lies is not only the lies we tell, but all forms of inauthentic living: a life of self-deception, covering up wounds, pursuing ambitions that undermine the dignity of others. The psalmist chooses the "way of righteousness" (v. 30), because he knows it is only there that humans find peace and a solid life.
Friends of the Bible, in an age of limitless pursuit of profit, the psalmist reminds us that wealth cannot guarantee security. Only God's justice and righteousness can uphold a full life. A believer not only wants to know God's word, but he loves it, lives it, and obeys it wholeheartedly. This psalm both admonishes and encourages us that honesty is not weakness, but courage. Living honestly means daring to choose God's way even if it is not always profitable in our human calculations, daring to admit weakness while remaining hopeful, and daring to be faithful to eternal values in the midst of a fast-changing world. May God enable us to walk in His path of truth every day.
