The Delight of Reading the Bible

When you think of somebody who spends time studying and meditating on the Bible, someone whose head is full of knowledge about the Bible, what sort of person comes to mind?

A person who is perhaps a bit boring or detached, like an absent-minded professor?

Or maybe a person who is a bit narcissistic, puffed up by their knowledge, and rude to others?

Or maybe even a person who is very uptight, not a hair out of place, obsessed with rules and obedience?

What if I told you that the end result of reading the Bible should be deep joy and delight?

Consider these words from Psalm 1:

Psalm 1 tells us that the markers of those who are persistent in their meditation on Scripture are happiness and delight.

What about for you? Does reading the Bible produce joy for you?

Or does it produce emotions of boredom, duty, and obligation?

Or does it even fill you with confusion, dread, cynicism, or even shame - a nagging feeling that you should be reading the Bible more than you do?

When the psalmist writes that those who delight in the law are happy, the law he is referring to is the Hebrew word torah, which literally translates to the first five books of the Hebrew Bible — Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

However, most scholars would argue that the psalmist is not literally referring to the first five books of the Bible, he is referring to the general collection of written down wisdom of God which, for us in New Testament times, can be translated as simply the Bible.

I should also note that the word meditate is the Hebrew word hagah, a word that has a semantic range encompassing muttering, murmuring, pondering, speaking and uttering. The psalmists’ vision is not necessarily someone who silently sits and studies Scripture, but someone whose whole life is marked by pondering, speaking, and uttering the words of the Bible.

Personally, I consider successful meditation on the Bible not simply that I did it (although that’s great!), but, in the spirit of Psalm 1, my markers for success are this:

• Did the words I’m reading make it into the conversations I’m having throughout the day?

• Did the words I’m reading make it into my conversation with the Lord?

To me, this is the successful mark of meditation — are the words getting so inside of me, so permeating my thinking and my being, that they’re showing up in my conversations with others, and that they’re showing up in my dialogue with God throughout the day?

This points to what the psalmist writes next: those who delight in the word of God and meditate upon it are not just happy, but they also yield perpetual fruit. They have no barren seasons!

What I want to focus on this morning is this: the psalmist uses creation imagery to describe this.

This is significant because, to the Hebrew reader, Eden represents the first temple — the first dwelling place of God, and the first place where humanity was invited into fellowship and communion with God. (I write a bit about this here.)

The psalmist is writing to Jews in Exile — they can no longer visit the Temple to worship and experience the presence of God. But by using Edenic language, it’s as if the psalmist is saying that for Jews who can’t visit the temple, the way they get invited back to Eden, the way they get to experience the presence of God, is through meditating on Scripture.

To say it simply: the Bible is meant to be a meeting place for us and God!

As the 4th century saint, Ambrose, says:

Do we believe that Scripture can be a garden of Eden for us, a temple, where God dwells and we can encounter him?

The Bible also promises that in the presence of God “there is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11) and so I want to suggest that the reason those who meditate on God’s word day and night are those who are filled with delight and joy is because the Bible is ushering them into God’s presence, where there is fullness of joy.

So, how are you feeling about the Bible today? If you had to pick a word from this list, which would you pick?

• Disillusioned

• Fascinated

• Distant

• Curious

• Bored

• Energized

• Detached

• Stimulated

• Neglectful

• Empowered

Today, I’d love to invite you to invite God to replace whatever you are feeling about the Bible with delight, happiness, and joy. Open up Psalm 1 and pray that God would shape you to be the type of person that Psalm 1 talks about!

If I can ever support you in your journey of coming alive and living in love with Jesus, please don’t hesitate to hit “reply” on this email and let me know.

-Ryan

P.S. It is one of the greatest joys of my life to help people come alive and live in love with Jesus, especially by waking up to the continual conversation we get to enjoy with God. Our team is working on creating some beautiful prayer resources this year, starting with a daily prayer journal designed to help you grow in your ability to hear God’s voice. Please consider becoming a founding partner with us to receive every resource we create in 2025 completely free!