The Bible we read looks far different from those who first read it. It is not that parts of it have been lost or words have been changed. Jesus promised that His words (notice that He uses the plural) would not pass away as long as the world remained (Matt. 24:35). The major difference is that our Bible is divided into chapters and verses, but it was not written in that form.
Chapter divisions were first made by Stephen Langton, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1227. The divisions of these chapters into verses came later when a rabbi, Mordecai Nathan, divided the Old Testament into verses in 1448. The New Testament was divided by a printer named Robert Estienne (also known as Stephanus) in 1551.
This division into chapters is not true of the entire Bible, for God divided the Psalms as they were written. These psalms, most written by David, were like poems and songs for the Jewish nation. In the synagogue in Antioch, Paul quotes from the book of Psalms and then gives book and chapter location for his quotation (Acts 13:33). He then quotes from another psalm but does not give which one (Acts 13:35). There was no need for any man to divide these psalms into chapters, for they already had book and chapters (like song numbers).
The average number of verses in each chapter in the Bible is 26 and each psalm averages about 16 verses. Keep this concept in mind as you read the psalms. The shortest psalm contains two verses (Psalm 117) while the longest one has 176 verses (Psalm 119). Remember it was God who made this division of the psalms.
The content of the message determined how long each of them would be. A question to consider is why would God write such a long psalm? What topic would be so important that it demanded so many verses? Think about this question and it might change how you view the longest chapter in the Bible.
Look at the content of this chapter. Every single verse, except one, refers to the Bible using various words. The psalmist describes the Bible as testimony 23 times; precepts 21 times; commandments 22 times; sayings or utterances 19 times; way 13 times; law 25 times; judgments or ordinances 23 times; righteousness or right 15 times; statutes or decrees 22 times; and word or words 24 times. Every time, each of these words is followed with words to extol them.
I challenge you to read this psalm slowly to sense its contents. I promise you that your appreciation for the nature of the Bible will be greatly enhanced. Slowly read it again and again to see it even more. God chose each word in it!
-Dan Jenkins
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