Psalm 16, "Boundary Lines" & the Path of Life

A miktam of David.

The Hebrew word "miktam" is obscure.  Some Hebrew scholars suggest it means "covering" and that this would refer to one lips, in other words, a miktam might be a private, silent prayer.  Or this might be a musical term: a "covering" might refer to a metal covering for a cymbal or some type of drum.

Keep me safe, O God, for in you I take refuge.

I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing."

As for the saints who are in the land, they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.

God and the Community of God are the delights of David.

The sorrows of those will increase who run after other gods.  
I will not pour out their libations of blood or take up their names on my lips.

An Old Testament concept: David is committed to the one God, YAHWEH; David will not in any way associate with other gods or idols.  He will not pour out their blood drinks or mention their names.  This concept is foreign to us in the twenty-first century.  But then we have our own idols....

LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.

Instead of "running after other gods", David is pleased that God's gifts.  The possessions given to him have been pleasant and delightful.  There is an implication of guidance and wisdom in the giving.

I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me.

I have set the LORD always before me. 
Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure,

because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.

God provides guidance, counsel, instruction.  Because of this guidance, David knows he is not abandoned.  Note the emphasis "even at night"!  Even when David is tired and weary, his "heart" instructs him, as part of God's counsel.

Verse 10, including the phrase "nor will you let your Holy One see decay", is quoted in the New Testament, in Acts 2:25-28 by Peter, with a Messianic view.  Peter equates the "Holy One" here with the Jewish Messiah, although the Hebrew would apparently allow that phrase to apply to a more generic "righteous one" like David.  Paul, with the New Testament interpretation of this verse, quotes it in an early sermon, in Acts 13:35, early in his first missionary journey, visiting a synagogue in southern Turkey.

You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Again the emphasis on guidance an direction.  David has been able to see the "path of life" and following it, he has had joy in God's presence.

Comparing this psalm with other Bible passages:

Compare verses 7-8 of Psalm 16 with Joshua's statement in Joshua 1:8-9.  Both passages have a decision and a promise.

Also look at the Shema, Deuteronomy 6: 4-9.  What does Moses say to meditate on?  And how often?

For next time: Read Psalm 17.

    Do you think David is really as righteous as he claims in verses 1-5?  Does he really have the right to make these claims before God?  How is the beginning of this psalm different than the beginning of the some of the other ones before it?

    What is David's request in verses 8-9?

    "Apple" is a euphemism for "pupil".  What does it mean to be the "apple of God's eye"?
    Why does it take so long for David to get around to making these requests (in verses 8-9)?

    What does David mean in the last verse when he says, "When I awake…"?

I will post on Psalm 17 on Wednesday, June 24, 2015.