The Way to True Happinessنموونە

Blessed is he who fears the Lord. He shall be happy!

The opening line of this psalm says you are happy when you fear the Lord, for you are blessed by Him. The psalm explains that work and family life are made fruitful by the Lord's blessing, and strengthened by Him. It is God who creates and gives life. This is beautifully illustrated in the life of Ruth, who did not become pregnant when married to her first husband (Ruth 1), but as Boaz' wife she did. It is said that the Lord made her conceive, and so she gave birth to a son (Ruth 4:13). The same thought is found in 1 Corinthians 3:6 where people take on different roles in life and ministry, but the ultimate source of spiritual growth is God.

The first half of Psalm 128 gives requirements for blessing: "Blessed is the man ..." (v. 1-4 ESV). The second half pronounces God's blessings: "May the Lord bless you ..." (v. 5-6 ESV). The vine and the olive tree are traditionally symbols for the people of God, and are accordingly applied to the Church. Isaiah speaks of a vineyard in Isaiah 5:3-7 and Christ uses the vine in John 15:5 pointing to Himself. In this psalm, the vine represents the wife and mother, and the olive branches point to the children around the family table.

Psalm 128 opens with ‘the fear of the Lord’, and verse 4 repeats this thought. Fearing the Lord is seen as a blissful experience (v. 1). It brings God's blessing (v. 4). A family that grows in God’s fertile soil is blessed and fruitful with many children. The psalmist testifies to a way of life that seems inconceivable to many. What is positive about this fear? It must be something different than being anxious and afraid of God! Nothing in this psalm suggests anxiety. Instead, this ‘fear’ is the mature, positive attitude of those who turn to the living and holy God. Trust and love are part of that attitude resulting in a firm and consistent walk that God expects of us. This is taught clearly in verse 1.

Psalm 119, the longest psalm in this book, also is about walking reverently in God’s ways, loving and serving Him wholeheartedly (vs. 2; compare Deuteronomy 10:12). As with Psalm 128 it can be of benefit to people today. Similarly in Colossians 3, Paul expects our families and marriages to be "in the Lord", that is, lived with the help of the Spirit of Christ, who is the Resurrection and the Life. In fact, the teachings of this psalm are what the apostle had in mind for the family, when he wrote his letter.