Heart for Israel

The Importance of the Word of God for the Jewish People

Obviously, the Bible or the Holy Scriptures are important for all people, Jew and Gentile alike! But to take for an example what God told Joshua in Joshua 1:7 “Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest”. God wanted Joshua to prosper and to follow the Law of God in obedience.

 For Joshua, as the leader of Israel, God wanted him and us to be strong in our faith. To be strong in our faith, we must know the Word of God to “observe to do according to all the law”. That would mean we must take time to read, study, and even memorize the Bible. When we read, study, or memorize the Bible, we must think about it and how to apply it to our lives. That is what is called meditating on the Bible.

The exhortation to meditate is also given to Joshua in 1:8 where Joshua is told to “meditate day and night”. Throughout the day and even the night, we should think about God’s Word and how it applies to our lives. In Deuteronomy 6:7, parents are told to teach the Scriptures to their children diligently when they are sitting in their house, when they are out doing work or business, when they rise up, and when they go to bed!

It is no mistake that the book of Psalms would start with such an emphasis. “Blessed is the man who walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful” (Ps.1:1). The man of God noted here is a saved man who has a relationship with the true and living God. Because he knows God, he is blessed, and because he knows God, he does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly.

 Why would he? He possesses the eternal Word of God. Due to his knowledge of God’s Word, he does not make his orientation with sinners/the unsaved community. Why would he? He has a covenant community of believers. For us today, the local church is our fellowship. Lastly, this blessed man has no place to sit with mockers of the Word of God.

However, if one does choose to walk in the counsel of the ungodly, he will often end up standing in the way of the unsaved/sinners and, before long, sitting with the mockers of the Word of God. Which group do you want to be associated with? As born-again believers in Christ, the choice is very clear to be in the Word and part of a fellowship of believers.

In v2 it explains that this blessed man delights in and is connected to the Holy Scriptures. “His delight is in the Law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night”. This verse shows the importance of meditating on God’s Word throughout the day and even into the night. The term “meditate” in Hebrew is “hagah” which means to mutter or muse. Some use the analogy of the animal chewing the cud. It takes a while to digest, and they keep chewing on it. We should keep chewing it, delightfully enjoying every morsel, and take the time to digest it!

The result is that we will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. A well-watered tree will develop deep roots and grow into a strong tree. Trees with shallow roots will not survive a powerful wind storm, but will topple over. God’s Word will keep believers strong in their faith, so when the trials of life hit us, we will keep standing.

The wise believer will take time to set out a reading chart to read through God’s Word each year. In addition, he will find the key verses he needs for his or her personal life to help them overcome the difficulties they face. Don’t wait another day, start today, right now, get your Bible out and start reading!