Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.
(Psalm 119:97 NIV
When we hear the word “law,” most of us think of rules and restrictions. Traffic laws. Tax laws. Laws that tell us what we can’t do. So when the psalmist says he loves the law of the LORD, it sounds strange. Who enjoys restrictions?
The key is understanding the word being used. The Hebrew word translated “law” here is torah (תּוֹרָה), pronounced toh-RAH. While torah can include legal codes and commandments (and refers to the first five books of the Bible), its heart is instruction, teaching, and guidance. It comes from a verb meaning “to point the way” or “to direct,” like a teacher guiding a student or a guide showing the path through unfamiliar terrain.
That changes everything. The psalmist isn’t saying, “I love God’s restrictions.” He’s saying, “I love God’s guidance.” He delights in the way God teaches him how to live, how to think, how to walk faithfully through the world.
Think of it this way: when you’re lost in a foreign city, a map doesn’t limit your freedom. It helps you reach your destination. When a skilled craftsman trains an apprentice, that instruction isn’t a burden. It’s the pathway to growth. This is what torah represents: God’s gracious instruction, showing us how to live well and walk in the way that leads to life.
That’s why the psalmist says God’s torah is his meditation “all the day.” To meditate doesn’t mean emptying your mind. It means mulling over God’s words, chewing on them slowly, letting them sink into the rhythm of daily life. This isn’t reluctant obedience to arbitrary rules. It’s someone who genuinely delights in God’s teaching.
This is how God’s torah works in us. We often expect God’s guidance to come through dramatic signs. But most of the time, God speaks through what he has already given. As we delight in his teaching and meditate on it, we’re not just learning information. We’re being transformed. God’s instruction guides us in everyday, practical ways, reshaping our thoughts, decisions, and responses.
So if you’ve got a decision to make and you’re wondering what God wants you to do, spend time in his torah. Not as a rulebook to reluctantly obey, but as wisdom from a Father who knows the best way forward.
Meditate on it. Turn it over in your mind as you go about your day. Let it guide your steps. This takes patience and practice, but you may find that the answer you’re looking for has been there all along, waiting for you to see it clearly.
Prayer: LORD, teach me to love your law. Help me see your torah not as restriction but as the gracious guidance of a Father who knows the way I should go. As I meditate on your word day and night, use it to shape me into the person you want me to be. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Alan Smith
Reprinted with permission from Alan Smith’s Thought For the Day