Praying The Scriptures: Psalm 101: “I Will Walk With Integrity. [And So Shall You.]” A Declaration of the Triune God to the Church

Scriptural references:
*Psalm 101
*Matthew 5:22, 28
*Matthew 22:1-14
*Ephesians 4:30
*1 John 3:3

For much of my devotional time with the Lord this past week, I have been prayerfully contemplating Psalm 101, which the English Standard Version prefaces with the heading: I Will Walk With Integrity.

This morning, as I began to pray-read this Psalm again, I got the sense to read it as a declaration of the Triune God to the Church. As I did so, it increasingly felt like a letter to the Church right out of the Book of Revelation. I would humbly exhort you thus: If you hope to walk closely with the Lord Jesus Christ and have intimate fellowship with Him, please heed this rendering of Psalm 101, which I have based on the ESV translation (despite some of the early Elizabethan English usages, which I believe He wanted, in order to set the right tone):

Verse 2: “Hear, all ye who fear the Lord: Truly, I say unto thee: ponder the way that is blameless, that ye may walk therein. Then will I feel welcome to come to you and feel comfortable to abide with you and have fellowship with you, and you will truly be my people. For truly I declare, I will walk with integrity of heart within my house, and you shall do the same.”

Verse 3: “I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless – and neither shall you. Know that I hate the work of those who fall away – and so shall you; it shall not cling to me – nor shall it cling to you.”

Verse 4: “A perverse heart shall be far from me – and so must it be from you. And I will know nothing of evil – and neither shall you. [Further, I will not abide those who allow anger towards their brother to arise in their hearts. Neither will I tolerate those who permit adulterous lust to be planted within their hearts.]”

Verse 5: “I tell you truly, whoever slanders his neighbor secretly I will destroy. Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart I will not endure – and neither shall you.”

Verse 6: “I will look with favor on the faithful in the land, those who continue to believe, that they may dwell with me; they that walk in the way that is blameless, who walk in the light as I am in the light, shall minister to me as a nation of priests called out from the world and set apart unto me.”

Verse 7: “Know this: No one who practices deceit will inherit the Kingdom of God nor dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes – nor shall they continue before your eyes – for all who do such do the works of their father, the devil.”

Verse 8: “Morning by morning, hour by hour, moment by moment, I will destroy all the wicked in the land, cutting off all the evildoers from the city of the Lord. Remember: Only those with a proper wedding garment will join the wedding feast.”

May the Lord be with your spirit always.

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