SHEW ME THY WAYS, O LORD; TEACH ME THY PATHS

Here we have one of the acrostic psalms based on the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. It is a psalm of prayer - beginning, continuing, v. 11, and ending with prayer. Despite troubles and trials, and even his own sin, David is seeking the Lord’s guidance. He requests the Lord to ‘shew [make known] me thy ways teach me thy paths’, v. 4. He has the prerequisites for knowing the Lord’s will - a teachable spirit, and a preparedness to do God’s revealed will, cp. Isa. 6. 8; Acts 22. 10.

David continues, ‘The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way’, v. 9; ‘What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose’, v. 12. David knows that the Lord will teach the teachable! Many of his psalms give testimony to this, 27. 11; 32. 8; 143. 8-10; cp. Isa. 48. 17; 58. 11. Asaph also shows a similar spirit, Ps. 73. 24. In Psalm 86, David prays, ‘Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name [give me an undivided heart to fear thy name]’, v. 11. In our psalm, he requests, ‘Shew me teach me lead [guide] me’, vv. 4, 5. As the old Welsh hymn says, ‘Guide me, O Thou Great Jehovah’, W. WILLIAMS.

In the matter of seeking the Lord’s guidance, it is essential to have a high regard for His ways, paths and truth. It is not worth looking for His endorsement of my ways if I have no intention of carrying out His truth. Mary’s timely advice to the servants at Cana is still apposite; ‘Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it’, John 2. 5. The Lord Jesus Himself is the supreme example in seeking God’s will; ‘Not my will, but thine, be done’, Luke 22. 42. To know the Lord’s guidance we need to be acquainted with His word so that He may ‘shew’, ‘teach’ and ‘lead’ us in His way.

David, in our psalm, is encouraging us to seek out and to carry out the Lord’s will in our lives. The guidance comes from Him; the obedience comes from us! It is evident that David has the correct attitude concerning his desire for guidance from the Lord.

The Lord Jesus emphasizes how essential it is to have this attitude, John 7. 17.

Am I prepared to do His will? If so, then I can with confidence request His guidance, for His way is perfect, Ps. 18. 30.