Psalm 119: Personal Revival
Eleven times the Psalmist prays for personal revival.
Vs. 25 My soul clings to the dust. Revive me according to your word.
Vs. 37 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.
Vs. 40 Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life!
Vs. 50 This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.
Vs. 88 In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.
Vs. 93 I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.
Vs. 107 I am severely afflicted; give me life, O Lord, according to your word!
Vs. 149 Hear my voice according to your steadfast love; O Lord, according to your justice give me life.
Vs. 154 Plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to your promise!
Vs. 156 Great is your mercy, O Lord; give me life according to your rules.
Vs. 159 Consider how I love your precepts! Give me life according to your steadfast love.
The Hebrew word includes the idea of “revive, the people of God by God Himself with fulness of life in His favor.” https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2421.htm
Barnes Notes on the Bible
Cause me to live; give me vigor and strength to break away from this which binds me fast, and to rise above these low propensities.
Pulpit Commentary
Raise me up to life and health and vigor.
The personal reviving of Psalm 119 flows from an experience with God through His written Word.
In both the Old and New Testament, an Agent of experience with God is the Holy Spirit.
King David knows the presence of the Holy Spirit is with him and pleads with God to not take the Holy Spirit away from him as a response to his great sin. Psalm 51:11
Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Today, we too have God’s written Word with the added delight of the outpoured Holy Spirit. May we experience the personal revival of Psalm 119 through the Agency of the Holy Spirit applying God’s written Word and through the Personal presence of the Holy Spirit.
Today’s text, Psalm 119:93, connects revival to remembering what God has said.
Vs. 93 I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.
Notice the action of God in our personal remembrance. Psalm 111:4
He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious and merciful.
Memorials can be created to help us remember. Joshua 4:1-7
When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, 2 “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests’ feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’” 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. 5 And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”
In the ways of God, remembrance holds a very special grace for the believer.
“The question arises, When believers remember the deeds of God and when God remembers his relation to Israel what kind of remembering is in view? Is it merely recollection of information about the past? Or is it remembering the past in such a way that the facts remembered have some impact on the present? As a minimum, this remembering within the Old Covenant would seem to imply that the God who performed the past mighty deeds, which are remembered, is the God who is present with his people as he or they remember those deeds. And he is present as the same, living God, bound to them in election and covenant as he was to their ancestors in days past, for he is Yahweh, “I am who I am.””
“…he who is remembered is very much present at the memorial/remembrance.” Biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers
Psalm 119:93 declares, “I will never forget” and in the never forgetting there is deep personal revival.
Undoubtedly, the theology of remembrance is experienced in highest form at the Lord’s table. Luke 22:17-20
17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. 18 For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
“…he who is remembered is very much present at the memorial/remembrance.”