Bible Meditation: Psalm 119:22
The Bible is the perfect "psychology" book in explaining man's actions
Psalm 119:22—“Remove from me reproach and contempt, For I have kept Your testimonies.”
One of the ways that illustrates that the Bible is the Word of God is its total accuracy regarding the nature of man, his actions, and why he does them. It is the perfect “psychology” book. It accurately portrays humanity from the very beginning of creation (see my current “The Story of the Bible 4” article). We see such in this verse.
David pleads with God to be spared from the “reproach” and “contempt” of man. Humans have always hated those who obey God’s Word and follow Him; that was true 3,000 years ago when David wrote, and it is absolutely true today. Most people hate the Word of God AND those who truly follow it. And that is a major reason why most people are going to hell (Matthew 7:13-14). It doesn’t have to be that way; God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance (II Peter 3:9). But people make their own choices. God gives them that right. And most people make the wrong choice.
David tells why he is reproached—“For I have kept Your testimonies.” He hopes God will protect him for that reason, and sometimes Jehovah, in His providence, does that. But sometimes He tests us to see if we will be loyal to Him. We can make the same request to God that David does here, but we won’t receive absolute protection for the reason stated in the sentence above (God knows best what we need). Our response, regardless of what man does to us, is the “keep” the “testimonies” of God. That IS an absolute.