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Day 105

Psalm 78:3a "Which we have heard and known..."

Day 105 – Psalm 78

“Which we have heard and known…” Psalm 78:3a

WISDOM FROM THE ANCIENTS

Asaph described the words of his mouth as “my law” (Psalm 78:1a). What did he really mean by that phrase? This is explained in the following text.

“Which we have heard and known,
And our fathers have told us.”
Psalm 78:3

1. “My law” (Psalm 78:1a)

a) This is not a reference to some personal doctrine Asaph devised.
b) The personal pronoun “my” simply points to the fact that Asaph had embraced the law of God as something he now owned.

2. “And our fathers have told us”

a) This is a reference to the “oral law” or the “oral tradition”.
b) Knowledge was passed down from one generation to the next by word of mouth.
c) The older generation would pass down precious knowledge of the ancients to the next generation.

3. “Which we have heard”

a) This part is a reference to the learning process.
b) There must be an inclination of the ears to hear.
i) There must be recognition that these oral traditions are important.
ii) Every effort must be made by the listener to hear well.

4. “And known”

a) Hearing by itself is only the first part.
b) By itself it is insufficient.
c) There must come understanding.
d) Knowledge must be owned.
e) Only then has one generation safely and successfully passed its precious heritage down.