Psalms 1
The Two Ways
1Blessed is the man who doesn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand on the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers;
2but his delight is in the LORD’s law. On his law he meditates day and night.
3He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that produces its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper.
4The wicked are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5Therefore the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked shall perish.
Psalm 1 serves as an introduction to the entire Psalter, presenting the fundamental choice between two ways of life: the path of the righteous and the way of the wicked. The psalm contrasts those who delight in God's law and meditate on it continually with those who follow ungodly counsel, using vivid imagery of a flourishing tree versus windblown chaff. This wisdom psalm establishes the theological foundation that God knows and blesses the righteous while the wicked face judgment and destruction.
Context
As the opening psalm of the Psalter, this chapter introduces the major themes of righteousness versus wickedness that will resonate throughout the entire collection of 150 psalms.
Key Themes
Outline
- 1-2The Blessed RighteousDescribes the person who avoids wicked counsel and delights in God's law through constant meditation.
- 3The Tree by WaterUses the metaphor of a well-watered, fruitful tree to illustrate the prosperity of the righteous.
- 4-5The Fate of the WickedContrasts the wicked as chaff blown away by wind, unable to stand in judgment or among the righteous.
- 6Divine Knowledge and JusticeConcludes that the LORD knows the righteous way while the wicked way leads to destruction.
The Two Ways
1:1–1:6Contrasts the blessed righteous person who delights in God's law with the wicked who will perish in judgment. Establishes the fundamental choice between two ways of life.
structural
Psalm 1's three-stage descent ("walk," "stand," "sit") mirrors the progressive nature of moral compromise, while the righteous person's three-stage ascent ("delight," "meditate," "prosper") creates a perfect chiastic contrast.
Psalms 1:3
Jeremiah 17:8lexicalFor he will be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat come…
Ezekiel 47:12lexicalBy the river banks, on both sides, will grow every tree for food, whose leaf won’t wither, neither will its fruit fail.…
Leviticus 26:4lexicalthen I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall…
Jeremiah 8:13lexical“‘I will utterly consume them, says the LORD. No grapes will be on the vine, no figs on the fig tree, and the leaf will…
Isaiah 1:30lexicalFor you shall be as an oak whose leaf fades, and as a garden that has no water.
Psalms 1:6
Proverbs 28:28lexicalWhen the wicked rise, men hide themselves; but when they perish, the righteous thrive.
Proverbs 10:28lexicalThe prospect of the righteous is joy, but the hope of the wicked will perish.
Ecclesiastes 7:15lexicalAll this I have seen in my days of vanity: there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wi…
Proverbs 11:10lexicalWhen it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices. When the wicked perish, there is shouting.
Interlinear
Word-by-word original language