Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Psalms 25:12-15
The One Who Fears YHWH Will Receive His Instruction, Will Enjoy Security And Prosperity, Will Be Aware That He Is One Of His Covenant People, And Will Be Kept From Falling (Psalms 25:12).
We now come to the second and third stage in the parallels. In the case of the second stage the emphasis has been on YHWH's activity towards His responsive people, in the case of the third stage it is on how His people who fear Him will benefit from it. But both have a similar pattern in mind:
Psalms 25:8 Psalms 25:12 Good and upright is YHWH. What man is he who fears YHWH? Therefore will He instruct sinners in the way The meek will He guide in justice, And the meek will He teach his way him will He instruct in the way that he will choose.' All the paths of YHWH are his soul will dwell at ease lovingkindness and truth And his seed will inherit the land To such as keep His covenant The friendship of YHWH is with those who fear Him, and His testimonies And he will show them His covenant. For Your name's sake, O YHWH My eyes are ever towards YHWH; Pardon my iniquity, for it is great. For He will pluck my feet out of the net' In this third stage it His people's benefit that is in mind. He who reverentially fears YHWH will receive His instruction, will dwell with ease of soul, his children will inherit what God had promised, he will experience His friendship, will have the truth of the covenant made known to him by Him, and because his eyes are on Him will have his feet plucked out of the net that ensnares sinners. This is one step further than God not remembering his sins (Psalms 25:7) and pardoning his iniquity (Psalms 25:11). It is practical deliverance from sin. ‘Sin will no longer have dominion over you, for you are not under Law but under grace' (Romans 6:14).
M ‘What man is he who fears YHWH?
Him will he instruct in the way that he will choose.'
The Psalmist now points out what kind of a man God will have dealings with. It is a man who ‘is in awe of YHWH' sufficiently to respond to His requirements. It is such a man who will be chosen by YHWH, so that YHWH will instruct him in His chosen way (Isaiah 30:21), or in his chosen way (Psalms 119:30; Psalms 119:173; Proverbs 1:29).
N ‘His soul will dwell at ease,
And his seed will inherit the land.'
And the result will be that his inner life is at peace (his soul will dwell at ease) and his children will receive their God promised inheritance. Compare here Jesus' promise, ‘blessed ones are those who are meek, for they will inherit the land'. ‘Inheriting the land' basically means receiving the future that God has promised. The writer to the Hebrews points out that this means coming to a city whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10; compare Hebrews 12:22).
S ‘The friendship (or ‘secret') of YHWH is with those who fear him,
And he will show them his covenant.'
And those who fear Him will also enjoy the intimate friendship of YHWH, the kind of friendship which results in the sharing of secrets. The word for ‘friendship' signifies the idea of a confidential and intimate relationship (compare its use in Psalms 55:14 - ‘sweet counsel'). And He will also show them (‘make them to know') His covenant. They will have it ever brought to mind by Him (through His word) and will experience it in ever deeper measure because of their relationship with Him.
GH ‘My eyes are ever towards YHWH;
For he will pluck my feet out of the net'.
And finally because the Psalmists eyes are ever towards YHWH, the Psalmist knows that YHWH will preserve him from being caught in snares and traps. Note the sudden change to the first person which parallels Psalms 25:11. There he had called for forgiveness for his iniquity. Here he asserts his confidence that he will be delivered from all that could cause him to stumble because of YHWH's intervention on his behalf