Psalms 119:27 Make me understand the way of Thy precepts and I will meditate on Thy wondrous works
This is a BOLD prayer. Challenging God to “MAKE ME” has fearsome consequences. Here the Psalmist is showing extreme spiritual fortitude in praying, “MAKE ME understand the way of Thy precepts.”
David prayed similarly in Psa 25:4,5 “MAKE ME to know thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me, for thou art the God of my salvation; for thee I wait all the day long.”
When I hear this prayer, I think of military training and a ‘trainer’ forcing me to do something over and again until I ‘get it’. It may not ‘feel good’, and it may be accompanied with brutish cursing and unpleasant name calling, but the end state will help me to survive and thrive within the military context. Here the Psalmist is asking God to force him to ‘get it’, to ‘make me’ to understand.
Understanding something is MORE than just knowing the facts. It is seeing ‘how the dots’ connect. It is realizing the inherent ‘cause-effect’ of things. ‘Understanding’ is comprehending how it ‘all fits together’, how one part affects the other and the implications of missing one or more pieces. God’s precepts cover all of life. They speak of God’s character, man’s character, life in general, the wicked, Satan, heaven and hell. The prayer request is ‘force me to get it’. ‘Open my eyes, teach me, override the natural ‘stops’ that keep me from learning so that I can live successfully.
When God answers this request, the natural results will be “I will meditate on Thy wondrous works…” We will comprehend God and think on Him. We will become enamored with His splendor and majesty. He and His creation will awe us.
After Job’s trials, when God appeared to him, Job said in 42:5,6 “My ears had heard about you. But now my own eyes have seen you. So I hate myself. I’m really sorry for what I said about you. That’s why I’m sitting in dust and ashes.” Before this, Job had a lot of correct ‘facts’ about God. He had a lot of the ‘dots’. But after God revealed Himself to Job, then Job ‘understood’ and repented. It was a supernatural act of God to reveal Himself, to impart to Job understanding.
In the same way, we pray, seeking an encounter with the Living God. We ask, “Make me to understand Thy precepts,” reveal Yourself to me, open my eyes and heart to ‘get it’, that I would seek Your face always and walk in Your ways. If this is the desire of your heart, be bold and pray, “God, please MAKE ME understand Thy precepts…”
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