Psalm 119:111 NKJV
111
Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever,
For they are the rejoicing of my heart.
A Heritage That Rejoices the Heart
My Notes
Scripture: “Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart.” — Psalm 119:111 (NKJV)
My Thoughts
David didn’t merely admire God’s Word—he claimed it as his inheritance. In a world chasing wealth, status, and fleeting pleasures, he chose the testimonies of the Lord as his portion. Not temporarily, but forever. The Scriptures were not just his guide—they were his treasure.
This heritage is rich beyond measure. It testifies of Christ, reveals the grace of God, and unfolds His eternal will. It is better than thousands of gold and silver, and unlike earthly inheritances, it cannot fade, spoil, or be taken away (1 Peter 1:4). For those adopted into God’s family, His Word is not just instruction—it is legacy.
David’s joy was not rooted in circumstance, but in covenant. The promises of God revived his heart, sustained him in trouble, and caused him to walk with rejoicing. Like Jeremiah would later say, he found the Word to be “the joy and rejoicing of my heart” (Jer. 15:16). This joy came not from head knowledge, but from heart experience.
David saw God’s testimonies as his promised land, his spiritual estate. He chose them above all else, and he meant to hold them forever.
Let us, like David:
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Choose the Word as our portion, above all worldly gain
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Treasure it as our inheritance, not just our instruction
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Rejoice in its promises, even in affliction
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Live upon it daily, knowing it is our eternal wealth
The Word of God is not just a book—it is our birthright. It is the good part that shall never be taken away.
Cross Reference
“As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.” — Psalm 17:15 (NKJV) “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” — Romans 8:17 (NKJV)
Questions
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What have you been treating as your “heritage” lately—earthly or eternal?
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How has God’s Word brought joy to your heart in recent days?
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What would it look like to live as if Scripture were your greatest possession?
Prayer
Lord, I take Your Word as my heritage forever. Let it be the joy of my heart, the anchor of my soul, and the portion I choose above all else. Teach me to treasure Your testimonies more than gold, and to walk in the gladness they bring. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Summary of Commentaries
Psalm 119:111 celebrates the believer’s joyful inheritance in God’s Word. Commentators agree that Scripture is not merely instruction—it is a treasured possession, chosen above all earthly wealth. David claimed God’s testimonies as his eternal heritage, finding in them deep heart-rejoicing, comfort, and strength. This joy is not intellectual but experiential, rooted in delight and devotion. The Word is a legacy passed through generations, a portion that revives the soul and sustains the faithful. True joy, unlike fleeting worldly pleasures, is found in the promises of God. Those who embrace His Word as their inheritance live with eternal hope and present gladness.
Proverb for Today
The [reverent] fear of the Lord [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome] is the instruction for wisdom [its starting point and its essence]; And before honor comes humility. Proverbs 15:33 AMP
NOTE: Psalm 119 is an acrostic pattern. There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet; each of the 22 sections is given a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and each line in that section begins with that letter. Today, we’re looking at verse 111, which is in the 14th section, which is called “נ NUN. The website https://www.abarim-publications.com/Hebrew_Alphabet_Meaning.html defines the letter נון NUN as: The verb נון (nun) means propagate, increase. Derivative נין means offspring, posterity. The letter is often said to mean and resemble a fish, but the word nun is not used as such in the Bible. instead, the word for fish comes from another verb which means multiply, increase: דגה (daga).
The letter nun is written ן when it occurs at the end of a word, and נ when it occurs at the beginning or halfway through a word.
……..Bill
Commentaries:
Charles Spurgeon
“Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever.” He chose them as his lot, his portion, his estate; and what is more, he laid hold upon them and made them so,—taking them into possession and enjoyment. David’s choice is our choice. If we might have our desire, we would desire to keep the commands of God perfectly. To know the doctrine, to enjoy the promise, to practice the command—be this a kingdom large enough for me. Here we have an inheritance which cannot fade and cannot be alienated; it is forever, and ours forever, if we have so taken it. Sometimes, like Israel at the first coming into Canaan, we have to take our heritage by hard fighting, and, if so, it is worthy of all our labor and suffering; but always it has to be taken by a decided choice of the heart and grip of the will. What God gives we must take.
“For they are the rejoicing of my heart.” The gladness which had come to him through the word of the Lord had caused him to make an unalterable choice of it. All the parts of Scripture had been pleasing to David, and were so still, and therefore he stuck to them, and meant to stick to them forever. That which rejoices the heart is sure to be chosen and treasured. It is not the head knowledge but the heart experience which brings joy.
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Enduring Word
Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart. The psalmist rejoiced in God’s word with a deep heartfelt joy. Therefore, the testimonies became his heritage forever. (Guzik)
i. “What is the psalmist’s spiritual heritage, that is, what is he looking toward and working for? Some heavenly reward? A word of praise from God? Surprisingly, he says that his heritage is what he has been speaking about all along: God’s Word itself.” (Boice)
ii. How do the testimonies of God belong to us? “How did he claim an interest in them? Not by purchase, or by merit, it was his heritage.… Man looks at his heritage. ‘This land – this estate – or this kingdom is mine.’ The child of God looks round on the universe – on both worlds – on God himself with his infinite perfections – and says, ‘All things are mine.’ My title is more sure than any earthly heritage.” (Bridges)
iii. “I take possession of my heritage, I live on it, I live in it, it is my treasure, my portion. If a man is known by his heritage, let me be known by mine.” (Bridges)
iv. “Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage. To these he was heir; he had inherited them from his fathers, and he was determined to leave them to his family forever. If a man can leave nothing to his child but a Bible, in that he bequeaths him the greatest treasure in the universe.” (Clarke)
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Albert Barnes
Thy testimonies – Thy law; thy revealed will; the revelation which thou hast given considered as thy solemn “testimony” as to what is true and right.
Have I taken as an heritage forever – As my inheritance; as my property; as that which I consider to be of real and permanent value. The Hebrew word used here – נחל nachal – means to receive as a possession; to acquire; to possess as wealth; and then, to inherit. It is usually applied to the possession of the promised land as an inheritance. Here, it means that the law of God was to him as such a possession. He regarded it as one does a rich inheritance. He chose it as his portion above all things else.
For they are the rejoicing of my heart – My happiness is in them. I find constant comfort in them. See Psalms 119:77, Psalms 119:92. Compare the notes at Psalms 1:2.
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John Gill
Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever,…. The Scriptures, which testify of Christ and of his grace, and of the mind and will of God, are a portion of themselves; and a goodly heritage they are, better than thousands of gold and silver, preferable to all worldly inheritances; as they have been to many, who have forsaken all for Christ and his Gospel. These, like an inheritance, have been transmitted from father to son, from one age of the church to another, in successive generations; nor shall they depart from her, nor from her seed and seed’s seed, from henceforth and for ever; they are an inheritance which will continue for ever, Deuteronomy 33:4. These David chose and took, as for his counselors, so for his portion and inheritance; and a wise and good choice he made; he chose the good part that should never be taken away; his reason for it follows:
for they are the rejoicing of my heart; the doctrines in them, the promises of them, when read or heard explained, gave him a sensible pleasure; revived his heart, and cheered his spirits, supported him under all his troubles, and caused him to go on his way rejoicing; see Jeremiah 15:16.
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Matthew Henry
The psalmist here, in a most affectionate manner, like an Israelite indeed, resolves to stick to the word of God and to live and die by it.
He resolves to portion himself in it, and there to seek his happiness, nay, there to enjoy it; “Thy testimonies (the truths, the promises, of thy word) have I taken as a heritage for ever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart.” The present delight he took in them was evidence that the good things contained in them were, in his account, the best things, and the treasure which he set his heart upon.
1. He expected an eternal happiness in God’s testimonies. The covenant God had made with him was an everlasting covenant, and therefore, he took it as a heritage forever. If he could not yet say, “They are my heritage,” yet he could say, “I have made choice of them for my heritage; and will never take up with a portion in this life,” Ps. 17:14, 15. God’s testimonies are a heritage to all that have received the Spirit of adoption; for, if children, then heirs. They are a heritage forever, and that no earthly heritage is (1 Pt. 1:4); all the saints accept them as such, take up with them, live upon them, and can therefore be content with but little of this world.
2. He enjoyed a present satisfaction in them: They are the rejoicing of my heart, because they will be my heritage for ever. It requires the heart of a good man to see his portion in the promise of God and not in the possessions of this world.
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Miscellaneous Comments
“They are the rejoicing of my heart.” He saith not that God’s testimonies bring joy, but that they are joy; there is no other joy but the delight in the law of the Lord. For all other joy, the wise king said of laughter, “thou art mad,” and of joy, “what is it that thou dost?” Ecclesiastes 2. True joy is the earnest which we have of heaven; it is the treasure of the soul, and therefore should be laid up in a safe place; and nothing in this world is safe to place it in. And therefore with the spouse we say, “We will be glad in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine.” Let others seek their joy in wine, in society, in conversation, in music; for me, thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. These indeed are the precious fruits of the earth, but they seal not up special favour; a man may have together with them an empty, husky, and chaffy soul. And therefore these are not the joys of the saints; they must have God, or else they die for sorrow; his law is their life.
—Abraham Wright.
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Additional Cross-References
Psalm 119:162 (KJV)
162 I rejoice at thy word,
As one that findeth great spoil.
Psalm 19:8 (KJV)
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart:
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
1 Peter 1:8 (KJV)
8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
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נ NUN or נון NUN
105
Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
106
I have sworn and confirmed
That I will keep Your righteous judgments.
107
I am afflicted very much;
Revive me, O Lord, according to Your word.
108
Accept, I pray, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord,
And teach me Your judgments.
109
My life is continually in my hand,
Yet I do not forget Your law.
110
The wicked have laid a snare for me,
Yet I have not strayed from Your precepts.
111
Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever,
For they are the rejoicing of my heart.
112
I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes
Forever, to the very end.
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