Side by side
Psalm 1
Our plain-language guide next to the Bible text. Each row lines up one section with the verses it explains.
Section 1: The Blessed OneVerses 1 to 2
"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers" (1:1).
Blessed means truly happy, the way God means happy.
Notice the steps: walking, then standing, then sitting. Bad company slowly pulls you in.
"But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night" (1:2).
"Law" here means all of God's teaching. To meditate is to think about it, chew on it, and say it over and over.
1Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. 2But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.
Section 2: Like a TreeVerse 3
"He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither" (1:3).
In a dry land, a tree near water stays green when everything else dries up.
3He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.
Section 3: Like ChaffVerses 4 to 6
"Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind" (1:4).
Chaff is the dry husk around grain. When farmers tossed grain in the air, the wind blew the chaff away.
People who ignore God have nothing to hold them down.
"For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish" (1:6).
4Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. 5Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
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