Psalms 119:36

36 Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.

Psalms 119:36 in Other Translations

36 Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.

36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!

36 Give me an eagerness for your laws rather than a love for money!

36 Give me a bent for your words of wisdom, and not for piling up loot.

36 Turn my heart to Your decrees and not to material gain.

Psalms 119:36 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 119:36

Incline my heart unto thy testimonies
To read the word of God, to hear it opened and explained, to observe and keep the things contained in it; to which there is a disinclination in men naturally: but the Lord, who fashions the hearts of men, and has them in his hands, can bend and incline them by his efficacious grace to regard these his testimonies; which, as Aben Ezra observes, are more precious than all substance, and so are opposed to what follows:

and not to covetousness;
not to mammon or money, as the Targum; the love of it, which is the root of all evil, and very pernicious and harmful; in hearing the word it chokes it, and makes it unfruitful, ( 1 Timothy 6:9 1 Timothy 6:10 ) ( Matthew 13:22 ) . Not that God inclines the heart to evil, as he does to good; but he may suffer the heart to be inclined, and may leave a man to the natural inclinations of his heart, and to the temptations of Satan, and the snares of the world, which may have great influence upon him; and this is what is here deprecated; see ( Psalms 141:4 ) ( Matthew 6:13 ) .

Psalms 119:36 In-Context

34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law and obey it with all my heart.

35 Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight.

36 Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.

37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.

38 Fulfill your promise to your servant, so that you may be feared.

Cross References

• 1. S Joshua 24:23; 1 Kings 8:58
• 2. Ezekiel 33:31; Mark 7:21-22; Luke 12:15; Hebrews 13:5