Happy are those who keep His testimonies,
who seek Him with a whole heart … Psalm 119:2, TLV

Aleph.  Remember the movie The Sound of Music? One of my favorite scenes was when Maria taught the Von Trapp children how to sing. Before she launched into the iconic Do-Re-Mi, she sang, “Let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start. When you read you begin with — ” And the children respond, “A – B – C.” Marie answers with a nod and continues, “When you sing you begin with Do-Re-Mi.” And off they go.

Psalm 119 is more than the longest psalm of the book of Psalms, its a lesson in the basics — the A – B – Cs, the Do-Re-Mis — of the Torah. The Law as contained in Genesis through to Deuteronomy. So, it is no coincidence that the verses are divided into pericopes (sections) each with a heading of the Hebrew alphabet.

ALEPH א — the first letter of the alphabet

Blessed are those whose way is blameless,
who walk in the Torah of Adonai. (vs. 1, TLV)

What I love about the writer (possibly David, Ezra, or Daniel) of this beautiful poem, is how many ways he conveyed the word Law/Torah. Testimonies. Mitzvot/laws. Precepts. Decrees. Righteous judgments. Statutes. And of course, “Your word.”

This thesaurus of descriptive definitions of the Torah are like examining the many facets of a perfect jewel. What it looks like in the sunlight. How it feels. Turning the gem to observe every facet.

You have commanded that Your precepts
be kept diligently.
Oh that my ways were steadfast
to observe Your decrees! (vss. 4-5, TLV)

In our faith journey, we need the map to our destination. Without a map or compass, we will lose our way. When we lose our way, it is best to return to the beginning — to the basics. Study that map so that we can be steadfast to remain on the path. To find the way among the millions of paths to choose.

All this to say, it may seem old fashioned and simple to study these basics, but let’s remember Who wrote them. I think we can all agree that the only map we want to follow is His.