Lamp Of Our Feet
Lamp of Our Feet
Lamp of our feet, whereby we trace
Our path when wont to stray,
Stream from the fount of heavenly grace,
Brook by the traveler’s way.
Bread of our souls, whereon we feed,
True manna from on high,
Our guide and chart, wherein we read
Of realms beyond the sky.
Word of the everliving God,
Will of His glorious Son:
Without Thee how could earth be trod,
Or heaven itself be won?
Lord, grant us all aright to learn
The wisdom it imparts,
And to its heavenly teaching turn,
With simple, childlike hearts.
Psalm 119 is a marvelous and ingenious poem, praising God for His Word in verse after verse. In the Hebrew, it is a cleverly constructed acrostic, going through the entire alphabet in eight-verse stanzas. That is, each line in the first stanza begins with aleph, the first Hebrew letter; with beth (the second letter) in the second stanza; and so on.
Throughout the psalm, God’s Word is described in many ways, but the picture in verse 105 stands out: “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”
Early in the last century, as Bernard Barton wrote this hymn, he incorporated several biblical images to describe God’s Word: a lamp, a stream, bread, and a chart or map. Scripture describes itself as being an indispensable source of life, as many, many believers have found to be true.
Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. . . . Your laws are wonderful. No wonder I obey them! The teaching of your word gives light, so even the simple can understand.
Psalm 119:105, 129-130
From the book
