These two Psalms are often said to be an introduction to the entire collection of psalms inasmuch
as they speak of the coming Messiah (the Anointed One), His future rule, and the ultimate blessing
of the righteous and judgment of the wicked, themes found in many of the psalms.

Some commentators have pointed out that in the Hebrew, the first verse of Psalm 1 would read,
"Blessed is the man that hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stood in the way of
sinners, nor sat in the seat of the scornful." That is, this man has never done these things. The
only Man who never did these things and who perfectly carried out verse 2 was the Lord Jesus
Christ. Although the Lord Jesus is the only one who perfectly fulfilled the principles of this psalm,
we who have Christ living in us should certainly be characterized by the behavior described in this
psalm.

The psalm promises blessing or happiness to the person who does not take counsel or advice from
the ungodly, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scornful. Our source of
counsel should be the Word of God. There are many other sources of counsel available in the
world today_the radio, television, newspapers, books, and the like. These sources promise
happiness if we buy certain things or spend our time doing certain things. "You only live once,"
they proclaim; "you deserve the best; enjoy yourself." This counsel is so pervasive and often
subtle that even Christians may be gradually taken in by it. As we listen to and act upon this
advice we stand in the way of sinners, that is, we find ourselves taking part in pleasures with
sinners and having fellowship with their ideas and points of view. The last step is to become one
of the scornful_one who scorns and opposes those Christians who are not so liberated from the
narrow path of following Christ.

Note the progression (or rather retrogression) in verse 1 from walk to stand to sit. The Christian
life is characterized in the New Testament as a race toward an object (Phil. 3:14; Heb. 12:1). That
object is Christ and our goal is to learn more about and become more like Him. If we allow our
attention to be diverted from this object to the things about us_such as the counsel of the
ungodly_our progress toward that goal will be definitely slowed from running down to walking.
And this, if persisted in, will lead to a complete halt (standing) in our progress and finally to great
difficulty in ever getting back into the race (sitting).

"But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night" (verse
2). Is God’s will really our delight or is it a burden? Do we obey God’s Word because we feel we
must or because it gives us delight to do so? It is lack of appreciation for" Christ which would
hinder our delight. God’s commands are not given to make life difficult or unhappy. They are
given for our blessing and true happiness.

If we are to meditate in God’s law day and night we must know what meditation involves. We
must first read God’s Word. This reading should be done daily and in a way that will enable us
to remember what we have read. Writing down the main themes, promises, commands, or
principles can be helpful. If we are to meditate day and night, we should memorize Scripture
extensively. Memorized Scripture is always available to think about even if our Bibles are not

available. Memorization puts the Word in our hearts where it can influence our behavior and also
help in witnessing. The words of Scripture itself carry an impact which our own thoughts cannot.
The final step in meditation is to think about the Word of God and apply it to ourselves, asking
ourselves, "What does this passage mean to me, today?" In this way the Scripture becomes a part
of our lives and our lives are changed by it.

The fruitfulness promised in verse 3 reminds us of the fruit of the Spirit described in Gal. 5:22,23.
The Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives as we allow Him to bring the Scriptures to bear on our
consciences and apply the Scriptures to our own life experiences. Joshua 1:8 also promises success
and prosperity for meditating in the law of God and obeying it. What is the nature of the
prosperity promised? It is not material wealth or pleasure as promised by the ungodly counselors,
but the happiness of having Christ as the focus of our lives. Since we will be doing God’s will,
He will prosper what we do. If we undertake projects in dependence upon the Lord and look to
Him to direct our family life, business, school work, or housework, He will cause us to prosper.
The ungodly may seem to have more prosperity in certain ways, but their prosperity always comes
to an abrupt end (Psa. 73:3-20; Luke 12:15-21). Verses 4 to 6 of this psalm describe the ultimate
end of the ungodly.

Psalm 2:1 and 2 describe the united efforts of Jews ("the people") and Gentiles ("the heathen")
against the rule of Christ. The rulers, Herod and Pilate, took counsel together to humiliate and
crucify Christ. The voice of the nations and their rulers is heard in verse 3:"Let us break their
bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us." This cry was expressed at Calvary as, "We
will not have this man to rule over us." The meaning of this part of the psalm is made clear in
Acts 4:25-28. Jews and Gentiles will again rebel against Christ at His second coming, but at that
time they will be put down (verses 4-6,9). God the Father’s voice in verse 6 states His
determination to uphold the rule of His Son, and the Son, in verses 7-9, quotes His Father’s
promises and the necessity of putting down rebellion before establishing a righteous kingdom.

The voice of the Holy Spirit is heard in verses 10-12 exhorting rulers, nations, and individuals to
submit to the Son and trust in Him. The way of salvation is not found in Psalm 1:1 but in Psalm
2:12. First we kiss the Son_cease our rebellion, submit to Him, acknowledge Him as our rightful
Lord and Saviour, We then cease relying on our own works and put our trust in Him. We rely on
Him not only for deliverance from judgment, but for deliverance from the power of sin and for
all our spiritual, emotional, and material needs.

Trusting in the Lord is the beginning of happiness. Our happiness will increase as we look to God
for counsel and as we delight in and walk in His word.