Psalm 1: Group Study Handout

Overview

The blessed man avoids walking in the counsel of the wicked, standing in the path of sinners, and sitting in the seat of scoffers (v. 1). His delight is in Yahweh's law, and he meditates on it day and night (v. 2). This righteous person is compared to a tree planted by streams of water, producing fruit in season, with leaves that do not wither, ensuring that whatever he does shall prosper (v. 3). The wicked are unlike this and are likened to chaff driven away by the wind (v. 4). They will not stand in judgment or among the righteous (v. 5). Yahweh knows the way of the righteous, while the way of the wicked will perish (v. 6).

Key verse

“He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that produces its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper.”

Psalms 1:3 (WEB)

Outline

1. Psalm 1:1 The Blessed Man's Choices
2. Psalm 1:2 Delight in the Law
3. Psalm 1:3 The Righteous' Prosperity
4. Psalm 1:4 The Fate of the Wicked
5. Psalm 1:5 Judgment and Community
6. Psalm 1:6 God's Knowledge of Paths

Discussion questions

1. In v1, what does it mean to 'walk in the counsel of the wicked'?
2. In v3, what qualities does the 'tree planted by the streams of water' show?
3. The phrase 'the way of the wicked' in v6: what does it suggest about their path?
4. In v5, who is not allowed to 'stand in the judgment'?
5. When have you felt tempted to 'sit in the seat of scoffers'?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Psalm 1: Psalm 119, Psalm 26, Jeremiah 17.

Before next time: read Psalm 2.