Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This isn't just a request for a clearer view; it's a plea to have God remove a veil, suggesting our natural understanding is actively obscured from seeing the profound wonders hidden within Scripture. The psalmist knows that divine illumination, not just focused attention, is the key to unlocking the deep mysteries of God's Word.
Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The psalmist, deeply immersed in meditating on God's Word, recognizes that true understanding requires divine intervention. He's just prayed for God's favor to keep His word and now asks for spiritual insight, acknowledging that human eyes are naturally veiled to the profound spiritual realities within God's law. This plea for illumination sets the stage for his continued exploration of Scripture's depths, moving from a desire to live by the Law to a deep yearning to see its wondrous truths.
Ever feel like you're reading the Bible but not seeing it? The psalmist felt that too and prayed for God to remove a spiritual veil.
This verse isn't just a casual request; it's a desperate plea from someone who understands a crucial truth: our natural eyes, and even our natural minds, are clouded.
Spiritual Blindness
After the Fall, humanity inherited a spiritual blindness. It's like a veil of darkness and ignorance covering our understanding. We can read the words, but the deeper spiritual truths remain hidden, like secrets locked away.
God's Illumination
That's why the psalmist cries out, "Open my eyes." He's not asking for better eyesight, but for God Himself to intervene. It requires divine illumination—the Holy Spirit to lift the veil and dispel the ignorance. Without this divine light, the profound wisdom and goodness in God's Word remain just out of reach.
What if the Bible isn't just a rulebook, but a treasure chest overflowing with hidden marvels? The psalmist saw it that way.
The psalmist doesn't just want to read the law; he wants to behold "wondrous things" out of it. This points to a profound depth within God's Word that goes far beyond the literal meaning.
Unveiling Mysteries
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These "wondrous things" are the profound mysteries and divine wisdom hidden within the Law. They include:
Spiritual Sight Required
These truths aren't always obvious. They require a spiritual lens, a capacity for discernment that only God's Spirit can grant. It's like looking at a familiar object and suddenly seeing its incredible complexity and beauty for the first time. The Law, which might seem simple on the surface, opens up into vast theological landscapes when God gives us eyes to see.
Understand the original words
nabat · Hebrew Verb
To see, witness, or experience; in a spiritual sense, it denotes perception through revelation, where God enables the heart to understand truth that is otherwise hidden.
pele' · Hebrew Adjective/Noun
Remarkable, extraordinary, or miraculous acts or truths; things that exceed normal human perception or capability and point toward the majesty of God.
torah · Hebrew Noun
The instruction or teaching of God; it refers to the entire body of divine revelation that provides the standard for living in covenant relationship with Him.
This passage speaks of a veil that remains over the minds of those who do not believe in Christ, and how it can only be removed when they turn to Him. It echoes the prayer in Psalm 119:18 for divine illumination to truly understand spiritual truths.
1 Corinthians 2:10Here, Paul explains that it is only through the Spirit that we can know the things God has prepared for us, as the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. This aligns with the Psalmist's plea for God to open his eyes to see the 'wondrous things' in His law.
Ephesians 1:17The Apostle Paul prays for the Ephesian believers to receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God, asking that the eyes of their hearts would be enlightened. This is a profound parallel to Psalm 119:18, highlighting the continuous need for God's Spirit to reveal His truths.
Matthew 13:10-17Jesus explains to His disciples why He speaks in parables, stating that to them it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but not to others. This illustrates how God selectively opens eyes to perceive the deeper spiritual realities, much like the Psalmist desires.
John 14:26Jesus promises that the Helper, the Holy Spirit, will teach them all things and bring to their remembrance all that He has said. This connects to the prayer in Psalm 119:18, as the Spirit is the divine agent who opens our eyes to understand God's Word.
gillPsalms 119:18: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law."
Open thou mine eyes,.... The eyes of my heart or understanding, as Kimchi; or, "reveal mine eyes" (t); take off the veil from them: there is a veil of darkness and ignorance on the hearts of all men, with respect to divine and spiritual things; their understandings are darkened, yea, darkness itself. This veil must be removed; the scales must drop from their eyes; their eyes must be opened and enlightened, b…
pulpitPsalms 119:18: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law."
Verse 18. - Open thou mine eyes. Since the Fall, men's eyes are naturally blinded, or, at any rate, have a veil over them, which God must remove before they can see clearly (compare the comment on ver. 15). That I may behold wondrous things out of thy Law. Wonderful spiritual truths that lie hidden, even under the very simplest precepts of God's Law (comp. Matthew 5:21-37).
This isn't just a request for a clearer view; it's a plea to have God remove a veil, suggesting our natural understanding is actively obscured from seeing the profound wonders hidden within Scripture. The psalmist knows that divine illumination, not just focused attention, is the key to unlocking the deep mysteries of God's Word.
The psalmist, deeply immersed in meditating on God's Word, recognizes that true understanding requires divine intervention. He's just prayed for God's favor to keep His word and now asks for spiritual insight, acknowledging that human eyes are naturally veiled to the profound spiritual realities within God's law. This plea for illumination sets the stage for his continued exploration of Scripture's depths, moving from a desire to live by the Law to a deep yearning to see its wondrous truths.
The psalmist, deeply immersed in meditating on God's Word, recognizes that true understanding requires divine intervention. He's just prayed for God's favor to keep His word and now asks for spiritual insight, acknowledging that human eyes are naturally veiled to the profound spiritual realities within God's law. This plea for illumination sets the stage for his continued exploration of Scripture's depths, moving from a desire to live by the Law to a deep yearning to see its wondrous truths.
"Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law." — This isn't just a request for a clearer view; it's a plea to have God remove a veil, suggesting our natural understanding is actively obscured from seeing the profound wonders hidden within Scrip…
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Last reviewed October 2026