John Calvin Commentary Psalms 119:15

"I will meditate on thy precepts, And have respect unto thy ways." — Psalms 119:15 (ASV)

In your precepts — What I formerly referred to must not be forgotten: the prophet is not boasting of his own accomplishments but setting an example before others for their imitation. We are aware that most people are so involved in the cares of the world that they leave no time or leisure for meditating on the doctrine of God.

To counter this callous indifference, he very appropriately commends diligence and attention. And even if we were not so ensnared by the world, we know how readily we lose sight of the law of God in the daily temptations that suddenly overtake us. It is not, therefore, without reason that the prophet exhorts us to constant practice and urges us to direct all our energies to meditating on God’s precepts.

And as the life of people is unstable, and they are continually distracted by the carnality of their minds, he declares that he will consider attentively the ways of God. Subsequently, he repeats the exquisite pleasure he took in this pursuit. For our proficiency in the law of God will be small until we cheerfully and heartily set our minds on it.

And, in fact, the beginning of a good life consists in God’s law attracting us to Him by its sweetness. By the same means, the lusts of the flesh are also subdued or mitigated. In our natural state, what is more agreeable to us than what is sinful? This will be the constant tendency of our minds, unless the delight we feel in the law carries us in the opposite direction.