I treasure your word in my heart,
so that I may not sin against you (Psa. 119:11 NRSV).
The third verse in the Bet section is a familiar one, beginning literally “In my heart I treasure your word.” The Hebrew word for “treasure” here (tsaphan) could also be translated as “hide”, but in either case the thing being hidden is valuable. The word tsaphan is used to describe how baby Moses was hidden (Exo. 2:2-3) to keep him safe in Egypt and when Rahab the prostitute hid the two Israelite spies (Josh. 2:4).
So, the psalmist wants to keep God’s word safe, like a treasure, like a baby. Protect it, value it, treasure it.
Why? Treasuring God’s word will prevent the psalmist from sinning against God. The psalmist perceives a direct relationship between the treasuring of God’s word and the avoidance of sin and since the psalmist is doing everything possible to avoid sin, the word of God is treasured.
One of the things I’m doing to treasure God’s word in my heart is blogging about Psalm 119 on Sundays.
How do you treasure God’s word in your heart?