Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
– Psalm 19:14
If David knew one truth about God, it was that God considers the inner man before He looks at the outer. When God first called David to be king, he famously told Samuel, “For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Sam 16:7). Thus David’s prayer here in Psalm 19: God, let the thoughts that run through my heart and the words that come out of my mouth be pleasing to you!
Here’s the reality: what matters most to God is your inner life. Jesus told the religious leaders of His day: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness” (Mt 23:27). They had all the religious ceremony, yet lacked a repentant condition. They were high on self-righteousness, but low on self-reflection. They had everything they wanted for temporary satisfaction, yet lacked everything they needed for eternal salvation. They praised God with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him (Isa 29:13).
Notice this: David didn’t separate the inner life from the outer like the Pharisees did. He says in the same sentence, “let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight.” He knew that an inner life of wonder and meditation on God’s grace led to an outer proclamation with his mouth. There was no dichotomy, no separation. Indeed, as Jesus taught, it is always “out of the abundance of the heart [the] mouth speaks” (Lk 6:45). Your words will show you what’s in your heart, and your heart is the source for what comes out of your mouth. What you treasure, value, esteem, idolize—it all starts in your heart. It’s a question of worship.
What a sad thing it would be to live your whole life only to have Christ reveal at the end of time that the “meditations of your heart” were far from Him, focused inwardly, selfishly, and pridefully. We can externally appear righteous and clean, but God knows the inner thoughts of our hearts and minds. This is why this prayer is so important. In effect David is asking: God, change my heart and my mind! Let your goodness and grace be such a present reality in my life that every thought and word is lifted up to You!
The truth is that the murmurings of our heart often flit by too rapidly and undetected for us to accurately diagnose our own condition. That is why we need the Word of God. It is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Ps 119:105). It is a sharp, double-edged sword, able to pierce into the inner thoughts of our hearts (Heb 4:12). We cannot pray David’s prayer earnestly unless we also let the Word of God search us. By God’s grace, we need the divine spotlight to disclose our inner sin—the meditations of our hearts which are too often fixated on ourselves, our possessions, our dreams, achievements, relationships, worries or wants. Then, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we need new hearts. And herein lies the good news of the gospel: our hearts can be transformed through the power of His sacrifice for our sins, the inner workings of His love, and the day-by-day renewal of our minds as we meditate on the grace that is now ours in Christ Jesus. The question is, has the gospel sunk down so deep into your life that the very meditations of your heart are transformed? I challenge you, pray this prayer and see what God will do in your life.
