Living Wisely
Psalm 1
Tony’s Overview Video
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Key Verse: Psalm 1:1 –
“Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers.”
Do you like the notion of being wise? We spend years of our lives in school seeking an education in knowledge, and that’s important: but we sometimes forget that knowledge and wisdom are not necessarily the same thing.
Knowledge deals with the realm of facts, concepts, or ideas garnered through study, observation, research, or experience. Wisdom, on the other hand, relates to what we do with the knowledge we have. It is the ability to make practical judgments based on the knowledge we have, to make good decisions, to choose wisely the proper course of life.
Wisdom was an important theme in the Hebrew Bible. [DD] [DD] The entire books of Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes were dedicated to the pursuit and dissemination of wisdom – as were several of the psalms. Our text is one of them. Others include Psalms 36, 37, 49, 73, 112, 127, 128, and 133. The fact that a wisdom poem appears first in the Psalter suggests that a scribe associated with the “wise” may have edited the canonical collection of psalms as we now have them.
The beginning of wisdom
Israel’s wisdom teachers focused their teaching on men, and so does Psalm 1, though it is masked in the translation. The text routinely refers to “the man” or “he,” but the NRSV and other modern versions recognize that the advice does not apply to men only. Thus, they convert “man” and masculine pronouns to language that is not gender-specific. Thus, the literal “happy is the man” becomes “Happy are those” (NRSV) or “blessed is the one” (NIV 11, NET).
We don’t know what kind of schooling was available in the ancient world, but such as it was, it was probably only for the elite, and only for boys. The book of Proverbs is filled with warnings for young men to follow “Lady Wisdom” and avoid “Dame Folly,” [DD] along with practical advice for a successful life.
The traditional wisdom found in Proverbs and Psalms was based on the common Old Testament belief that obedience to God’s law promised prosperity and long life, while disobedience would earn one trouble of all kinds. As such, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” was a mantra of the wise (Prov. 1:7 and 9:10, among others). [DD]
Thus, it comes as no surprise that Psalm 1 draws a sharp contrast between the righteous and the wicked. It does not use terminology for “wise” or “foolish,” but leaves no doubt that law-abiding righteous people are wise and destined for happiness, while the wicked are foolish and headed for judgment.
The walk of the wise (vv. 1-3)
The psalm begins its praise of the wise in reverse fashion, by focusing on what they don’t do. “Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers . . .”
Like other psalms, this one is written as poetry, and Hebrew poetry is characterized by repetition rather than rhyme. While doublets (two lines echoing a similar theme) are most common, v. 1 is a triplet: those who would be happy reject the advice of the wicked, avoid the sinner’s way, and shun the idea of scoffing at God’s law.
All three phrases capture the same idea, but through different angles. Allowing sinful people to lead one astray and disrespect the law would be a sure road to misery, according to the author, while one who avoids evil influences is on the highway to happiness.
We note that different translations describe the righteous as “happy” or “blessed,” because both are possible translations of the Hebrew word ’ashrē. The same is true in Jesus’ “Beatitudes,” where the Greek makarios can be translated as either “blessed” or “happy.” In English, we tend to think of happiness as the result of being blessed, but for the ancients the two concepts were more closely intertwined.
The wise are happily blessed because “their delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law they meditate day and night” (v. 2). The blessed life begins with a mindset or an attitude: we intentionally orient ourselves toward behavior that puts God at the center of our lives. [DD]
How could the blessed joy of such wise folk be described? They are like trees planted by plentiful waters, so that their foliage is verdant and their fruit is dependable (v. 3). “In all that they do,” the psalmist claims, “they prosper” (v. 3b).
Always?
Of course not. The psalmist, like other wisdom teachers, was aware that the righteous may suffer and the wicked may prosper: that’s why we have the books of Job and Ecclesiastes, which speculate on such matters.
Still, adherents of wisdom held that such instances were an aberration, and believed the principle remained true that wise people who faithfully follow God’s teaching would find both inner satisfaction and outward success, even when facing difficult days.
The fall of the foolish (vv. 4-6)
Unlike obedient followers whose confidence in God is refreshed like a well-watered tree, “The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away” (v. 4). The contrast is sharp: a living and fruitful tree on the one hand, the dry husks of dead wheat on the other. The faithful are stable and deeply rooted, while the wicked are insubstantial and blown away by the slightest breeze.
As a result, the wicked cannot endure God’s judgment, nor can they find any comfort among the righteous (v. 5). Those who live only for self-enrichment and personal pleasure may indeed find happiness for a season, but in the long run, their hearts are bankrupt, their lives are empty, and they face the darkness of death alone.
The closing verse lays out the ultimate destiny facing those who choose wisdom or folly, God’s way or self’s way: “ . . . for the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish” (v. 6).
There are two ways, the psalmist says, with lasting consequences. Faithful people walk beneath the umbrella of God’s care, confident that whatever comes, God is with them always. Stubborn and unrepentant people walk alone, destined to perish, with no hope of divine succor beyond.
Though the world’s temptations are ever-present and highly persuasive, the choice should not be hard.
We close by noting that Christians must be very careful in reading texts such as Psalm 1, because “prosperity preachers” such as Joel Osteen, Jim Bakker, Creflo Dollar, and others have led thousands of people into the dangerous and faulty theology of believing that God wants everyone to be rich, and that the key to receiving riches is to donate to their ministries. Prosperity preachers love to recite the first few verses of Deuteronomy 28 and texts like Psalm 1:1-3 – along with an insistence that every word in the Bible must be literally true – in support of their bogus promises.
When gullible people trust their slick temporizing and send away their meager funds but do not receive healing or find a job or win the lottery, they may be tempted to give up on God altogether.
How do we trust the scriptures while also avoiding their abuse? We begin by recognizing that the texts we now call scripture were written by people who lived in particular contexts and often expressed their beliefs in exaggerated or hyperbolic fashion as a characteristic means of emphasis.
We also note that these texts were written for Hebrews who believed they lived in a particular covenant relationship with God that promised blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.
As Christian people, we live under a new covenant through Jesus Christ, and must be very careful not to assume that God’s covenant with Israel necessarily applies to us.
There is certainly truth in the claim that persons who avoid wicked ways and follow God’s teaching will be better people, and more content, to boot. They may or may not be financially prosperous, but they find joy in keeping close to God, even when times are hard and the road is rocky.
Consider Moses. Consider Jeremiah. Consider Jesus. Could anyone be more faithful? All of them suffered, and none of them were rich – but they also knew the presence and comfort of God in ways that wicked people, whether wealthy or not, cannot fathom.
Look again at v. 3: for a fruit tree, the value of being planted by a steady source of water is that the psalmist knows that dry years come. The very similar poem in Jeremiah 17:5-8 expands the description of the righteous: “They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit (Jer. 17:8).
Jeremiah’s version of the psalm acknowledges the dry years, yet promises both life and growth. Here is no promise that gypsy moths or killer bees will never bug us, that the weather will always be to our liking, or that every person we meet will be mature and responsible and loving. Rather, we find the promise that when seasons of trial come, we can continue to live and to grow because we have a dependable source of nourishment and life.
Adult Teaching Resources
Download the PDF of teaching resources for this lesson.
This PDF contains the Teaching Guide, Digging Deeper, and Hardest Question pages.
Read Scripture online: Psalm 1
Youth Teaching Resources
Parent Prep
Our students are surrounded by many people who are wicked, but there are some people that we would rather our students now hang around. The problem is that the harder you try and push someone away, the stronger they stick around. The one thing that can be held in solace is that the wicked or those hangers on don’t. There will be some instance where you student looks at them and says, “Yeah, that’s not cool” and walks away. If you are in the midst of this, it may seem like forever, but it does happen.
Additional Links/Resources
Read Scripture online: Psalm 1
Download the PDF for youth teaching resources using the button below. This PDF contains the Teaching Guide for this lesson:
Video
Encourage youth to check out this video ahead of the lesson.
“Ways to be Wicked” from Descendants 2
via www.youtube.com
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