Psalm 1: Verse By Verse With Questions To Ask

All verses derived from the NIV Bible. Please consult your preferred Bible translation if NIV is not your preferred version. Feel free to read the entire chapter first and then answer questions or go verse by verse. Feel free to print out the questions and write your answers below. Pray before you start and ask God to guide you and give you wisdom as you read His words.

Verse 1: Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,

Q: What does it mean to walk in step with the wicked? 

Q: Are you standing in the way that sinners take?

Q: When have you sat in the company of mockers, put others down, or gossiped?

Verse 2: but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.

Q: What does it mean to delight in something?

Q: Do you delight in the law of the Lord? In other words, do you delight in the word of God? 

Q: What can you do to meditate on God’s word both during the day and night? What routines or habits can you implement to make this a priority?

Verse 3: That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither – whatever they do prospers.

Visualize: Remind yourself of a tree that you have seen and stood in wonder at. Imagine the strong trunk and the branches covered in leaves swaying in the breeze and standing tall throughout the elements. 

Q: What does it look like to be a tree planted by streams of water, yielding fruit, and leaves that do not wither? 

Q: What kind of fruit are you yielding and are you not withering? 

Q: What do you need to change to yield fruit, not wither, and prosper, and where do you need to be planted?  Think about streams of water, and what that might represent.

Verse 4: Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.

Q: What are the wicked not able to do compared to those who are following the Lord?

Q: Why are they like chaff that the wind blows away?

Q: How does this insight impact how you deal with people who are unkind, mean, or lost?

Verse 5: Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgement, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

Q: What are the wicked excluded from?

Q: How does this make you feel?

Q: Is there anything you can do about this?

Verse 6: For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

Q: How does it make you feel that the Lord watches over you?

Q: What is the way of the righteous?

Q: How does the way of the wicked lead to destruction?

Reread Psalm 1 if desired, and ask the Lord to give you insight for today in the way you should walk. 

Reflection Questions:

What is one thing you learned about God from this passage?

What is one thing you learned about yourself and others from this passage?

What is something that encouraged you from this passage?

What is something that you would like to ask God to help you change in your life based upon what you read in this passage?