David meditates, and psalms spring forth. We learn a lot about how to act when in such desperate need. David faced death, needed help, and felt discouraged. What did he do? He meditated, and Psalm 23 results from one of those meditations.
What does it mean to meditate?
The Bible teaches meditation as a practice focused on God, His Word, and His character rather than emptying one’s mind or seeking relaxation. Here’s how the Bible instructs on meditation.
The word “meditate” in Hebrew meant to moan, growl, utter, speak, muse, ponder, imagine, devise, speak, or proclaim. The Bible actually translates the Hebrew word for “meditate” as these things.
Consider using only the Old Testament word for meditate and what it means.
Chewing the cud
Moan, growl, utter, and speak would refer to having the Word of God in our mouths. The Word doesn’t depart from our mouths, or we keep the truth in our mouths. That is what we talk about. That is what we are saying to ourselves.
These low muttering sounds are like chewing the cud, murmuring, pondering, and imagining—it is the idea of repeating it over and over in your mind.
Cows and other animals chew the cud. They first graze and eat until they are full. Then, they lie down in the shade, regurgitate their food, and chew it over and over to eat all the nutrients in their body.
Rechewing their food makes it an integral part of their body, and that is how we internalize the truths of God.
Greek Word
The word “meditate” in the New Testament refers to working with something definite in mind. It means to take care, to endeavor, to take pains with. The word means to fix one’s mind on something, cultivate, or conspire. It means to imagine learning by exercise, repetition, and practice.
We fix our minds on truth, cultivate that truth, repeat it, and practice it.
Too often, we turn everything into something about us. David did the opposite. He was in need, scared, hurting, and at the door of death, but he turned his thoughts to his Shepherd.
We must turn our thoughts to truth. Take the truth and think on it, talk about it, and do the process over and over.