Psalm 1 is the doorway into the whole Book of Psalms. In six verses it sets two ways of life side by side. The first begins, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly" (Psalm 1:1), and describes a person whose "delight is in the law of the LORD" (Psalm 1:2). That person is "like a tree planted by the rivers of water" (Psalm 1:3). The other way is "like the chaff which the wind driveth away" (Psalm 1:4). The psalm ends with the reason the two ways end so differently: "For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish" (Psalm 1:6).
Psalm 1 has no title and no named author, and many readers believe it was placed first on purpose, as an introduction to all 150 psalms. Before the Psalms teach us to praise, lament and pray, they ask a simple question: which way are you walking? This page gives the full psalm in the King James Version, one verse at a time, with six companion passages that show where its pictures come from and where they lead: Joshua's command to meditate day and night, Jeremiah's tree by the waters, and John the Baptist's warning about the chaff. For more on this theme, see Bible verses about the word of God and Bible verses about trees.
The blessed man and his delight (Psalm 1:1-2)
1. Psalms 1:1
"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful."
The psalm opens with a word of joy, not a command: Blessed is the man. Blessed means deeply happy, well off before God. Then come three steps in the wrong direction. A person first walketh in the counsel of the ungodly, taking their advice. Then he standeth in the way of sinners, lingering where they go. Finally he sitteth in the seat of the scornful, settling down among those who mock God. Walk, stand, sit: drift usually happens slowly. The blessed person is first described by what he refuses. See Bible verses about being blessed.
2. Psalms 1:2
"But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
Now the positive side: But his delight is in the law of the LORD. The word law here means more than rules. It is God's instruction, everything He has taught His people. The blessed person does not read it as a duty but as a delight. And in his law doth he meditate day and night. To meditate in Hebrew is to murmur or speak quietly, turning the words over again and again. It is not emptying the mind but filling it with what God has said, morning and evening.
3. Joshua 1:8
"This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."
Psalm 1:2 echoes what God told Joshua as he took over from Moses: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night. Notice out of thy mouth: meditation was spoken, not silent. And it was meant to lead to action, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein. The same promise of prospering appears in both passages. Joshua faced a conquest; most of us face ordinary days. The way to walk through either is the same. See Joshua 1:9 meaning.
4. Psalms 119:97
"O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day."
The longest psalm, Psalm 119, is a 176-verse expansion of Psalm 1:2. One line sums it up: O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. This is what delight looks like in real life. It is not a feeling that comes once a year at a retreat. It is a habit of returning to God's word through the day, the way a hungry person keeps thinking about food. If Bible reading feels dry, Psalm 119 is honest about that too, and keeps asking God to open the reader's eyes (Psalm 119:18).
Like a tree planted by the rivers of water (Psalm 1:3)
5. Psalms 1:3
"And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
Here is the central picture of the psalm: And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. Planted means deliberately placed, not a wild seedling. The rivers of water may be irrigation channels in a dry land. Such a tree bringeth forth his fruit in his season, not every week, but at the right time. His leaf also shall not wither. The promise whatsoever he doeth shall prosper is not a guarantee of wealth; in the Psalms the righteous often suffer. It means that a life rooted in God's word will not be wasted.
6. Jeremiah 17:7-8
"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."
Jeremiah uses the same tree picture and adds what it means in hard times: Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. Such a person is as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river. The tree still faces heat and drought, but it shall not see when heat cometh, and in the year of drought it does not stop yielding fruit. Psalm 1 does not promise a life without dry seasons. It promises roots that reach water when everything around is dry. See Bible verses about trusting God.
7. Psalms 92:12-13
"The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God."
Another psalm takes the tree image into God's house: The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Palm trees lived long and bore fruit in old age; cedars of Lebanon were the strongest, tallest trees the Israelites knew. Both are planted in the house of the LORD. Psalm 92 goes on to say they still bring forth fruit in old age (Psalm 92:14). A life planted by God's word and among God's people keeps growing long after youth is gone.
8. John 15:8
"Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples."
Jesus took up the idea of fruit and tied it to Himself: Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. In John 15 He is the vine and His followers are branches; they bear fruit only by abiding in Him and letting His words abide in them (John 15:7). That is Psalm 1 in New Testament terms. The law of the LORD that the blessed man loved is fulfilled in Christ, and His words are the river that keeps the tree alive. See the fruit of the Spirit.
The two ways (Psalm 1:4-6)
9. Psalms 1:4
"The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away."
The second way is described in one short, sharp line: The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. At harvest, farmers tossed grain into the air on a windy hill. The heavy kernels fell back to the floor; the light husks blew away. The contrast with the tree is deliberate. A tree is rooted, alive and fruitful. Chaff has no root, no life and no weight. A life cut off from God may look impressive for a while, but in the end there is nothing left to hold it down.
10. Psalms 1:5
"Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous."
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. To stand in the judgment is to be acquitted when God judges. The ungodly will not be able to stand then, just as chaff cannot stay on the threshing floor. The word Therefore links the end to the way of life: where you walk now decides where you will stand. The psalm is not saying good people save themselves. Elsewhere the Psalms are clear that righteousness is a gift from God to those who trust Him (Psalm 32:1-2).
11. Psalms 1:6
"For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish."
The final verse gives the reason behind everything: For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous. Knoweth means more than awareness. It means to know personally, to watch over with care, as a shepherd knows the path his sheep take. The righteous are not safe because they are strong but because God knows their way. But the way of the ungodly shall perish. Notice that it is the way that perishes, the road itself, which leads nowhere. Psalm 1 ends with a warning, but also an open invitation to change roads.
12. Matthew 3:12
"Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
John the Baptist used the chaff picture to describe the coming of Jesus: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner. The fan was a winnowing fork for tossing grain. John's warning, he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire, shows that the two ways of Psalm 1 come to a head in Christ. The good news is that Jesus came to turn chaff into wheat: to call sinners to repentance and give them His own righteousness. See Bible verses about repentance.
A short prayer
Lord, make me like the blessed man of Psalm 1. Keep me from drifting into the counsel of the ungodly, the way of sinners and the seat of the scornful. Give me a real delight in Your word, and teach me to meditate on it day and night. Plant me by the rivers of water, so that I bear fruit in my season and do not wither in dry times. Thank You that You know my way. Make my life weighty with Your grace, not light as chaff, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the main message of Psalm 1?
Psalm 1 teaches that there are two ways to live and they end differently. The person who refuses the counsel of the ungodly and delights in God's word is blessed, rooted and fruitful like a tree by water. The ungodly are like chaff that blows away and will not stand in the judgment. The reason is that the LORD knows and watches over the way of the righteous.
Who wrote Psalm 1?
Psalm 1 has no heading, so the Bible does not name its author. Many psalms in Book One (Psalms 1-41) are titled as psalms of David, and some readers link Psalm 1 to him, but this is a guess. Because it has no title and introduces themes found throughout the book, many Bible teachers think it was chosen or written to stand at the front of the Psalms as an introduction.
What does it mean to meditate on God's law day and night?
In Psalm 1:2 the Hebrew word for meditate means to murmur or speak quietly. It describes reading God's word slowly, repeating it, thinking about it and applying it through the day. It is not a technique for emptying the mind. Joshua 1:8 shows the goal: to keep the word in your mouth so that you observe to do what is written. A simple start is one verse in the morning, recalled at night.
What is the tree in Psalm 1?
The tree in Psalm 1:3 is a picture of a person whose life is rooted in God's word. It is planted by the rivers of water, so it bears fruit in season and its leaf does not wither. Jeremiah 17:7-8 uses the same picture for the one who trusts in the LORD, adding that the tree keeps bearing fruit even in drought. In the New Testament, Jesus speaks of fruit that comes from abiding in Him (John 15).
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
Related: Word of God · Blessed · Trees · Righteousness · Studying the Bible · Psalm 37 KJV · Psalm 23 meaning · Psalm 139 KJV
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