Psalm 119:40 – Grant Me Life

I long for your precepts.
By your righteousness give me life.

I spent a good deal of time thinking about the phrase “by your righteousness.” It could be understood in a number of different ways. Two of these would be “in your righteousness” and “with your righteousness.” The second of these might lead Christians into a discussion of imputed and imparted righteousness. I’m not going there.

It seems to me that we find it easy to deny God’s promises by using our theology. As we figure out how God works, we tend to add in many derived ideas about what God can and can’t do, or if we’re being more theologically orthodox, what God will or will not do. It’s very easy to reduce God to a manageable size as we figure out just how God accomplishes things.

The psalmist has the right idea here. Simply ask the righteous God for life, righteous life, produced by a righteous God.

I can’t understand the process. I have ideas. I prefer certain explanations to others. But I think this verse makes a pretty good prayer. “I want the life you offer Lord. Please give me that life.”

I’m making that my simple prayer for 2025.

(Featured image generated by Jetpack AI, then modified slightly by me.)