7 Truths about Biblical Meditation

There are many beneficial ways to hear God’s Word.

Because we love God and want to know Him better, we turn to His Word and listen to it, read it, study it and sing it, all with a view to obeying it.

For those who incorporate these practices into their lives, blessings are promised and received in abundance: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it” (Revelation 1:3).

Scripture is filled with examples of godly people who demonstrate their love for God through their love of His Word. One such saint is the writer of Psalm 119. At least 10 times he articulates his love for God by writing about his love for God’s Word. “Oh how I love your law!” (v. 97). (See also verses 47, 48, 113, 119, 127, 140, 159, 163, 167)

The psalmist also tells us one specific way that he expresses his love for the Word: “Oh how I love your law; I meditate on it all day long” (Psalm 119:97). Meditating on Scripture is a recurring theme in Psalm 119; it is mentioned eight times! (see verses 15, 23, 27, 48, 78, 97, 99, 148). Surely we would do well to take a closer look at this often overlooked response to hearing the Word.

7 Truths about Biblical Meditation

1. God commands it.
Before Israel took possession of Canaan, the Lord told Joshua, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:6-8)

2. Godly people habitually practice it.
As mentioned above, the writer of Psalm 119 meditated on the Word “all day long” (v. 97). Or, as the Common English Bible renders it, “I love your instruction! I think about it constantly.”

3. The Word of God is the focus of it.
Biblical meditation is focusing on God’s truth as revealed in Scripture. Paul wanted the Colossians to “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom” (Colossians 3:16)

4. Prolonged repetition and contemplation is the essence of it.
Pastor Tony Opliger provides this explanation of the meaning of “hagah,” the Hebrew word for meditate.

“Hagah means: to utter, to murmur . . . it is like when you look up a phone number and you have to try to remember it while you take a few steps across the room to get your phone or write it down. 123-4567. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Uttering and murmuring as you try to remember it. And that is hagah.

“Hagah is also what cows do when they eat . . . When a cow eats, it slowly chews its food for a while — then it swallows it — and then a bit later, it burps the partially digested food back up into its mouth. And then the cow chews it some more — and then it swallows again — and then a bit later, burps it up again — right back into its mouth — and then it chews the food even more — and apparently this can go on for hours until the food is fully digested. And that is a picture of hagah. That is meditating.

“It is chewing on the Word of God — it is feasting on or plugging into the Word — it is actively pondering it by uttering or murmuring to oneself over and over and over again. You see, eastern meditation is an emptying of the mind — but biblical meditation is filling the mind (and even the mouth) with the Words of God.”

5. Personal holiness is the intended result and evidence of it.
Meditation is never an end in itself. God instructed Joshua to meditate on the Word “so that you may be careful to do everything written in it” (Joshua 1:8). This is why the psalmist wrote, “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11).

6. Memorizing Scripture is one great way to practice it.
How did the psalmist meditate on the Word “all day long”? (Psalm 119:97). How did he “hide” or “store” the Word in his heart? (Psalm 119:11). He memorized it.

7. Resources abound to help you develop it.
Yes, memorizing Bible verses is not just for children. Adults, too, can cultivate this habit and reap the blessing of God for doing so. If your church promotes Scripture memorization for children, why not memorize the same verses? Get yourself an accountability partner and do it with your spouse or a Christian friend. Or invite your small group to do this together.

Perhaps you already memorize Scripture regularly. If so, great! If not, here are two websites to help you get started:

Navigators “Topical Memory System”
https://www.navigators.org/resource/topical-memory-system/

Fighter Verses
https://www.fighterverses.com/

NOTE: this post is adapted from Wayne’ book, 7 Deadly Sins of Bible Reading: Common Bible Reading Mistakes and How to Avoid Them.