Psalm 119:36 | “Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!”

The psalmist pleads for a heart that treasures God’s word more than worldly reward. The phrase “selfish gain” conveys the idea of covetousness or a restless craving for more, often at the expense of others. He knows that love for God and love for the world cannot coexist. As Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24). This prayer is a humble confession of dependence: only God can turn the heart from greed to grace. Left to ourselves, we will drift toward what serves us best. Spurgeon writes, “When a man heaps up gold in his heart, the dust of it blows into his eyes, and he cannot see his own fault. Our hearts must have some object of desire, and the only way to keep out worldly gain is to put in its place the testimonies of the Lord.” May we pray, as the psalmist did, that God would bend our hearts toward his word until obedience becomes our joy and his glory our greatest gain.