Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 119:5

"Oh that my ways were established To observe thy statutes!" — Psalms 119:5 (ASV)

O that my ways were directed ... - This indicates the desire of the pious heart. That desire—a prevailing, constant, uniform desire—is to keep the law of God. It is the aim of life, the supreme purpose of the soul, and the ruling wish of such a person: to keep the law of God. Anyone in whose heart this is not the constant wish cannot be a pious person.

The Hebrew particle used here, and translated as “O that,” is a particle denoting a wish, or an earnest desire. The word “ways” denotes the course of life. The whole phrase expresses an earnest desire to live in accordance with the law of God. It also implies a sense of dependence on God.