Thy Word Above All Thy Name

“I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name” (Psalm 138:2).

When the Psalmist says that he will “praise thy name”, what he is saying is he praises who God is. The Psalmist is praising the being of God and all of His attributes. The Psalmist specifically names the attributes of love and kindness. Truth is the being of God. The truth of God is the word of God.

But catch ahold of what the Psalmist says next. He is mostly praising God for the fact that He puts His word (truth) above His attributes (love and kindness). God puts the word of God above His love, and kindness.

This is most important to understand in this present day environment of worldly love that takes precedence over everything else. The word of God prevails over everything!

In today’s world, love is a vehicle in which to excuse sin. It is considered love when we are “big enough” or “open minded” or are, “all inclusive” so as to permit sin. The Corinthians thought the same way. The Corinthians felt they were demonstrating a love conquers-all attitude by being open-minded, all-inclusive and big enough when they were proud of an incestuous relationship between a mother and son.

The Apostle Paul writes, “It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife. And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you” (1 Corinthians 5:2).

Paul writes that the Corinthians were “puffed up”, or proud of their open mindedness and permissiveness. Paul chastises them for not mourning over this horrible sin.

Man’s carnal love above God’s word creates sin. God’s love is a product of God’s word. John repeats in his first epistle that “God is love”. This love is a manifestation of God’s being. This is the exact same love we are to show God and our neighbor. When we accept Jesus Christ and are filled with His word and spirit, His love is manifested through us back to Him and to all others.

God and His word are above everything. All that is true is an attribute and manifestation of the word. God is the word!

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17).

All good and perfect things come from God. Now listen to this and, to “whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning”.

God and His word is truth, immutable, from everlasting to everlasting. No sentiment, sense, will or intellect of man can change that.

Bill Hitchcock