113. A mind divided I hate, And your law I love. 114. My hiding place and my shield you are. In your word I hope. 115. Turn aside from me, you who do evil, And I will keep the commandments of my God. 116. Uphold me according to your word and I will live, And let me not be ashamed of my hope 117. Support me and I will be saved, And I will regard your statutes continually. 118. You make light of all those who stray from your statutes, For their deceit is falsehood. 119. Like dross you cause to cease all the wicked of the earth. Therefore I love your testimonies. 120. My flesh trembles from your terror, And I fear your judgments.
This stanza is about loving the law and hoping in the promise. “Your law I love (v.113).” “I love your testimonies (v.119).” “In your word I hope (v.114).” “Let me not be ashamed of my hope (v.116).”
It is also about single-minded love and hope; “A mind divided I hate (v.113).” The servant of the Lord who wrote this psalm is not talking about the wicked here. They also have their place in this stanza (see verses 115, 118 and 119), but here the psalmist is saying that he hates a divided mind in himself. He does not want to be among those who halt between two opinions, who cannot be steadfast in love and hope. He wants to love the law with all his heart and hope in the promises without wavering.
So that he may keep the commandments of his God, he first commands the evildoers to turn aside from him. He does not want to be influenced by their behavior or hindered by their persecution (v.115). So that he may be unashamed of his hope, he asks that the Lord uphold him according to his word (promise) and give him life. There is no other way that he can hope or that hope can be fulfilled. So that he may regard the statutes of the Lord continually, he asks for the Lord’s support and salvation. In all these God is the source of good.
Evildoers are attacking him. They are the wicked of the earth (v.119) and those who stray from the Lord’s statutes (v.118). They are near enough to threaten him (v.115) and use falsehood against him (v.118). their desire is his failure, the overthrowing of his hope and of his love. But the Lord not only sustains him, he also makes light of these sinners and treats like dross, the waste from refining that is good for nothing and thrown out on the trash heap.
This is another reason to love the Lord’s testimonies (v.119). They testify against the wicked, and are the reason for and the means of their destruction. By them, in that way, the servant of the Lord is saved.
Finally, this righteousness of the testimonies causes the servant of the Lord to fear and tremble. He loves the testimonies, because of the judgment they accomplish, but he also recognizes that he himself could be the object of judgment and perish with the wicked, if it were not for the Lord’s salvation.
Fear and love are not incompatible. Perfect love casts our fear (1 Jn 4:18), but not that fear which trembles in the presence of the fearful majesty and righteousness of God but at the same loves them, only that fear which hates and hides from them.
So let us hope in the promises, love the commandments with an undivided heart, and fear the God who has given both the promises and the commandments. He is great in glory.