It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.
Parallel translations
- WEB It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn your statutes.
- BSB It was good for me to be afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes.
- NKJV It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes.
- NASB It is good for me that I was afflicted, So that I may learn Your statutes.
- NLT My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The psalmist counts it good that he was afflicted, so that he might learn God's statutes. It matters because God uses trials to deepen our understanding of and devotion to His word.
Overview
Looking back, the psalmist sees affliction as a good gift because it taught him God's statutes. What was painful served a gracious purpose in his growth. This confidence that suffering works for good reflects the gospel assurance that God works all things for the good of those who love Him in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Heb 12:10–11For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
- Ps 119:67Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.
- 1 Cor 11:32But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
- Ps 94:12–13Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law;
- Isa 27:9By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged; and this is all the fruit to take away his sin; when he maketh all the stones of the altar as chalkstones that are beaten in sunder, the groves and images shall not stand up.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 119:71 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.