Exposition
For our study today, I have translated these verses from the Septuagint.The Septuagint is the Greek translation of the Old Testament that Jesus and the Apostles usually quote int he New Testament.
1 The man is blessed who does not proceed from one place to another in ungodly counsel, and who does not stop in the sinner’s highway, and who does not settle on the seat of the troublemaker.
Notice the progression….
2 But instead, his desire is in the law of the LORD, and he will think about His law day and night.
Now a Contrast...
The Desire of the Righteous
This is a CONTRAST. The righteous person doesn’t get ‘caught up’ with the ungodly because his ‘desire’, what he wishes for, is wrapped up in the Bible. This wish is so intense that he thinks about the Word of God constantly.
3 And he will be like a tree planted by the confluence of bodies of water, which will yield its fruit in its season and its leaf will not fall off; and whatever he does, he will cause it to prosper.
This is a simile.
- We see a large, beautiful tree.
- It is situated on a piece of land right where two rushing rivers converge.
- It is such a fortuitous spot that the tree is always healthy.
- The tree does not lose its leaves until the new ones come out.
The description here is not only of an individual who is successful. It also indicates a person who brings prosperity to everything he touches.
Illustration
Try to imagine a world without trees.
We could live without them, at least for a while. But it wouldn’t be very pleasant, and several dangerous issues would arise fairly quickly. When you look at a tree, you do not immediately see all of the benefits. But, try to live completely without them, and you quickly see why they are so important.
Application
An Ancient Lesson...
The blessed man in our passage isn’t only a comfort to the ancient world. This passage is not time-locked. In fact, what is said here about the blessed individual is very well explained in the New Testament too, and applies to us today. The hinge of the passage, so the difference between falling into the trap of wickedness and seeking the truth of God, is the blessed man’s desire to hear from God.
With a Modern Application
When an individual turns to Christ, they do so because they have been convicted by the Spirit of God. This conviction occurs because the person has been exposed to the Truth of God’s Word, which is inspired by the Spirit. So, just as an ‘ancient world’ saint during Old or New Testament times had a love for the law of God, saints today come to Christ because of that same love. The New Testament epistles to the Galatians and Romans both help us understand this in detail.
