Psalms 1 (ASV)

Chapter Text

1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the wicked, Nor standeth in the way of sinners, Nor sitteth in the seat of scoffers:

1:2 But his delight is in the law of Jehovah; And on his law doth he meditate day and night.

1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the streams of water, That bringeth forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also doth not wither; And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

1:4 The wicked are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

1:5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

1:6 For Jehovah knoweth the way of the righteous; But the way of the wicked shall perish. Psalm 2

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "blessed", "walketh", "counsel", "wicked", "standeth", "sinners", and "sitteth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "light" and "blessed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local ASV text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "light" and "blessed" carries the first interpretive weight. In The LORD as Shepherd, the local focus is trust, covenant mercy, guidance, and worship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "light" and "blessed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.