The first word of Psalm 1 tells us what the goal of the whole collection of psalms is: blessedness.
Interestingly, the instruction for how to be blessed in the first psalm begins with three negatives: do not walk in the counsel of wicked people, do not stand in the path of sinners, and do not sit in the seat of the scornful. In other words, if you choose to walk down the way of the righteous, you’re going to very quickly encounter opposition. Just like Adam and Eve experienced after God promised blessing to them if they submit to his rule, you are going to find tempters who counsel you to go the other way, whose conception of blessedness involves rebelling against the rule of God. Right in the first few introductory verses, Psalm 1 is setting up a contrast between two different approaches to pursuing the good life.
In fact, this contrast between the righteous person and the ungodly person is a structural framework that continues through the entire Psalter because…
