‘Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.’ – Psalm 119:89

What a great and precious promise we have within this simple verse! To know, as a Christian, that God’s word remains settled in heaven; uncorrupted and without blemish before the face of the Almighty. To have full assurance that He will see to the fulfillment of every last jot and tittle, not only in heaven, but on earth as well.

It is also important to note that it is the Lord Himself who keeps watch over His word and will see to its performance (Ps. 33:9; Isa. 55:11; Jer. 1:12). As a wise shepherd keeps a close eye on his flock, so the Lord watches intently over His word.

He has not left this weighty task to the minds of men, prone to error and deceit as they are, but He has taken it upon Himself to not only sovereignly direct the transmission of His holy text (Ps. 33:11; 145:4), but He also grants His very Spirit to men so that we might rightly interpret what he has said (Job 32:8; John 14:26; 1 Cor. 2:14).

We see the immutibility (unchanging nature) of God through the preservation of His word in that it, like Himself, has remained unchanged throughout the entire span of history. We also see the great love of God in that He would grant us the privilege to take up and read that which He has taken such great care to prepare.

We truly are a blessed people. On the one hand it is God who, through the mouths of the prophets and apostles, gave us His very word; set ablaze with the flaming tongue of divine inspiration, so that we might come to know Him who is, was, and forever more will be. On the other hand, we can trust that the Lord has gone to great lengths to see that His word is properly preserved so that what we read is an accurate depiction of what He desires to communicate.

He has gone above and beyond to slay the beast of our own doubt, and reigns victoriously over the growth of our understanding and spiritual development through the power of His word which is settled in heaven forever.

Amen.