Psalms 119:36 (WEB)

Passage

Turn my heart toward your statutes, not toward selfish gain.

Nearby Context

Psalms 119:34 Give me understanding, and I will keep your law. Yes, I will obey it with my whole heart.

Psalms 119:35 Direct me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in them.

Psalms 119:36 Turn my heart toward your statutes, not toward selfish gain.

Psalms 119:37 Turn my eyes away from looking at worthless things. Revive me in your ways.

Psalms 119:38 Fulfill your promise to your servant, that you may be feared.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "turn", "heart", "toward", "statutes", "selfish", and "gain". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "turn" and "heart", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 35's "Direct me in the path of your..." into verse 37's "Turn my eyes away from looking at...", so "turn" and "heart" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

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