Rich and Sweet
OCTOBER 29, 2026
SCRIPTURE COLLECTION
Today's Scripture Passage
More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.
Psalm 19:10
Related Scriptures:
Psalm 19:10
Psalm 119:72
Psalm 119:103
Psalm 119:127
Proverbs 3:13–15
Proverbs 8:10–11
Job 23:12
Jeremiah 15:16
Ezekiel 3:1–3
Psalm 34:8
Notes & Reflections
Rich and Sweet
Men love riches.
They don’t love them for their own sake, though pure gold may be nice to look at, but they love them because of what they provide. They give comfort, power, fun, and a sense of temporary satisfaction. This is why the whole world chases after it. Yet, with money’s ability to give and provide for needs, it always comes with the danger of ultimate devotion.
Ray Ortlund, in his commentary on Proverbs 8:10, speaks to this when he says,
“We have to choose what we are going to take and grab hold of and not let go. We cannot have it all: ‘Take my instruction instead of silver.’ It is an either/or choice, because whatever we take takes us. We will love either wisdom or money. We will most deeply care about what we are or what we have. We cannot live for two ultimate goals at once (Matthew 6:24). Make your money serve Christ, or you will end up serving it without Christ.”
The desire to have riches is strong.The longing for riches to “take us” is compelling.Men grind day and night for great wealth. They buy giant mansions and rarely live in them because of the constant work, and the desire drives them to get more. This is the first picture of Psalm 19:10.
He says the Word of God is,
“More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold.”
To have the Word of God is to have ultimate riches.
Gold offers men short-term meaning. It gives them a sliver of purpose and satisfaction. It benefits them in many ways, but it is a Band-Aid and will never satisfy their souls.
Men were made to know God. They were made to enjoy God. They were made to worship God. Sin broke this obvious purpose of existing, and men were separated from God. Their desires became perverted and twisted, and what was meant for God was turned toward His creation rather than toward Himself.
Into this separation, God made a way of redemption. He made a way to reveal Himself to man. He laid out His purposes and revealed to man who He was and how He works.
He did this through His Word.
His Word does what no earthly riches could ever do. His Word shows how to be made right with Him. His Word gives ultimate restoration of real purpose for life. His Word doesn’t offer a short-term satisfaction, but a fullness of satisfaction in the ability to know God and to have eternal life.
This is why it is most desirable, and this is why it is sweet.He says,
“…sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.”
It is worth tasting and enjoying.
The words hit the tongue and cause the eyes to brighten with joy. The revelation of the realities found in His Word is sweet and delicious.
He says in Psalm 119:103,
“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”
The Word of God is filled with what John Owen calls “incomparable excellency, worth, and goodness.” He said, “he who discerns not this goodness in the word of God is a stranger unto all real benefits by it.”
Strangers they are.
Men find God’s Word to be a thorn in their tongue. They find benefit in things that are transient and useless to their souls, but no benefit in God’s Word. Indeed, Paul was right when he said,
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”1 Corinthians 2:14
Do we agree with the Psalmist today?
Is God’s Word more desirable than gold and sweeter than honey?
Why is God’s Word more to be desired than gold?
Gold gives only short-term comfort and can never satisfy the soul, but God’s Word reveals God Himself, shows us how to be made right with Him through Christ, and gives a fullness of satisfaction in knowing God and having eternal life (Psalm 19:10; Psalm 119:72; Matthew 6:19–21).
Study Questions
QUESTION 01
Psalm 19:10 compares God’s Word to gold and to honey. What does each comparison say about the Word?
QUESTION 02
According to Matthew 6:24, why can’t a person serve both God and money?
QUESTION 03
According to 1 Corinthians 2:14, why does the natural person find no sweetness in God’s Word?
How To Cling Today
Cling to Christ today by tasting and enjoying his word and all of its benefits.
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