According to Matthew Henry, “Some have called [Psalm 119] the saints’ alphabet; and it were to be wished we had it as ready in our memories as the very letters of our alphabet, as ready as our A B C.” Psalm 119 is divided into 22 parts; eight verses each with each verse beginning with the same letter in Hebrew. There will be 22 posts on this psalm, but I may not do 22 days in a row, or I may post on other things in between, so use the Topic feature at the top of the page to select Psalm 119 and get the list. If this kind of minute breakdown bores you… sorry… 
but I love it. I don’t know why I don’t study like this more often. The overall purpose of the psalm is to remind us of the importance of God’s word, and the benefits of studying it, but the breakdown is very interesting. The first letter advises us to start with silence.
× – Aleph (or Alef) – the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and it is silent. This passage advises us to walk in the law, keep His testimonies, and seek Him with all our hearts. So not only does David’s method of organizing this psalm remind us to keep first things first, it’s a reminder that as Christians, we are called to “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) Not “hear you talking about your good works.”
In fact, the name for the first letter, aleph, is derived from the Hebrew words eleph and alaph. Eleph signifies an ox, signifying strength; el means strong or mighty and frequently describes God. Alaph means to associate or be familiar with and was used describing friendship and joining together. If you would like a strong and mighty relationship with God, start here:
Psalms 119:1-8 ALEPH: Blessed are the upright in the way, who walk in the Law of Jehovah. (2) Blessed are they who keep His testimonies, and who seek Him with all the heart. (3) They also do no iniquity; they walk in His ways. (4) You have commanded us to keep Your Commandments carefully. (5) O that my ways were fixed to keep Your Precepts! (6) Then I shall not be ashamed, when I have respect to all Your Commandments. (7) I will praise You with uprightness of heart when I have learned Your righteous judgments. (8) I will keep Your Precepts; do not forsake me completely.
The first two verses in this set tell us how to be blessed. The Strong’s definition for this word is “happy.” Verse 3 does not imply that we never sin. “Do” in this verse is:
keep – פּע×
paÌâal
paw-al’
A primitive root; to do or make (systematically and habitually), especially to practise: – commit, [evil-] do (-er), make (-r), ordain, work (-er), wrought.
We do not habitually sin, instead we continually proceed to walk in His ways.
walk – ×××
haÌlak
haw-lak’
Akin to H3212; a primitive root; to walk (in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively): – (all) along, apace, behave (self), come, (on) continually, be conversant, depart, + be eased, enter, exercise (self), + follow, forth, forward, get, go (about, abroad, along, away, forward, on, out, up and down), + greater, grow, be wont to haunt, lead, march, X more and more, move (self), needs, on, pass (away), be at the point, quite, run (along), + send, speedily, spread, still, surely, + tale-bearer, + travel (-ler), walk (abroad, on, to and fro, up and down, to places), wander, wax, [way-] faring man, X be weak, whirl.
In verse 4 we are commanded to keep His precepts:
keep – ש××ר
shaÌmar
shaw-mar’
A primitive root; properly to hedge about (as with thorns), that is, guard; generally to protect, attend to, etc.: – beware, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep (-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch (-man).
To hedge about – surround ourselves with, His precepts. If you know anything about home security, you know that one of the cheapest ways to deter a casual intruder – the average burglar, not someone who wants to get into your home specifically for some reason – is to plant thorny hedges like pyracantha or whatever will thrive in your climate under your windows. Thorny hedges are a cheap, easy way to guard your home. They are not a full solution – burglars (and sin) can still get past a thorny hedge. But it makes it less convenient. It’s a good start.
In verse 5 – what a plaintive exclamation – O that my ways (in Hebrew: road, journey) were fixed to keep Your Precepts!
fixed – ×Ö¼×Ö¼×
kuÌn
koon
A primitive root; properly to be erect (that is, stand perpendicular);. hence (causatively) to set up, in a great variety of applications, whether literal (establish, fix, prepare, apply), or figurative (appoint, render sure, proper or prosperous): – certain (-ty), confirm, direct, faithfulness, fashion, fasten, firm, be fitted, be fixed, frame, be meet, ordain, order, perfect, (make) preparation, prepare (self), provide, make provision, (be, make) ready, right, set (aright, fast, forth), be stable, (e-) stablish, stand, tarry, X very deed.
If only I could be faithful! If only it were automatic, requiring no action on my part! We know that on our own, we can’t but with God’s grace this is possible. He has given us the tools starting with His word with which to surround ourselves.
In verse 6, ashamed can also be translated as “be disappointed, or delayed… be (put to) confounded (-fusion), become dry, delay, be long.” Respect is translated from:
respect – × ××
naÌbatÌ£
naw-bat’
A primitive root; to scan, that is, look intently at; by implication to regard with pleasure, favor or care: – (cause to) behold, consider, look (down), regard, have respect, see.
When we behold the Lord through His word, we will not be delayed on our journey, in our pursuit of holiness. We won’t suffer those “dry” times that all Christians seem to go through.
I will praise you in verse 7…
praise – ×××
yaÌdaÌh
yaw-daw’
A primitive root; used only as denominative from H3027; literally to use (that is, hold out) the hand; physically to throw (a stone, an arrow) at or away; especially to revere or worship (with extended hands);
Can you just get a mental picture here of a child stretching his arms up to the father he loves as soon as Daddy gets home from work? As soon as we really behold the Lord, can we fail to reflexively reach out to him? Isn’t that reaching out in love and gratitude a type of praise?
And finally in verse 8 – a commitment and a plea described by Matthew Henry as “His prayer to God not to leave him: ‘O forsake me not! that is, leave me not to myself, withdraw not thy Spirit and grace from me, for then I shall not keep thy statutes.’ Good men see themselves undone if God forsakes them; for then the tempter will be too hard for them.” This is acknowledgement that simply having the word hidden in our hearts is not enough – after all Satan knows the bible better than any Christian does. The bible, this tool that God has given us is not effective without His strength and guidance to use it.
