God’s testimonies - the path to wisdom
June 13, 2023 - Tuesday, Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua, Priest and Doctor of the Church
Psalm 119:129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 135
The contemporary world has influenced us with the idea that obedience is something bad. Rebellion and rebels are being held in esteem. We rebel against everyone and everything: governments, the Church, parents, education, and values. Moreover, those acts of rebellion are easily justified. We often hear that our governments are corrupt, the Church is irrelevant, our parents are old-fashioned, education is useless, and our values were good for the Middle Ages but not for the 21st century. But can society, community, or even family survive without rules?
In Psalm 119 we hear this declaration: “Wonderful are your decrees; therefore I observe them” (Ps 119:129). The Greek version of the Old Testament translated this verse as “Wondrous are your testimonies; for this reason, my soul searches them out”. What are these wonderful testimonies? The stone tablets with the Ten Commandments (see Ex 40:20). Psalm 119 is the longest in the Psalter, and it meditates on God’s law, seen it not as a burden that curtails our freedom but as a path to wisdom.
The Jewish nation experienced the tragedy of disobedience, marked by the destruction of Jerusalem and the Babylonian exile in 586 BC. We all need rules in life. Football has its rules, tennis has its rules. And we award those players who according to the rules play a game to their utmost abilities. Breaking rules is not allowed and punished by losing a game. Lance Armstrong was once considered the greatest cyclist of all time. He overcame cancer and won seven consecutive the most prestigious cyclist race, the Tour de France, from 1999 to 2005. And then he lost everything when it was discovered that he was involved in doping.
What is true of football, tennis, or cycling is also true in life. Those who break the rules will, eventually, lose everything. Those who live in obedience to God’s commands are truly wise and become successful in life. And so let us look at God’s testimonies with the eyes of the psalmist. Let us wonder at their simplicity, exactness, and practicality. Let us see them as the path to wisdom that helps us avoid disaster and establish a just and peaceful society.