Ethics and Psalms

Psalm 26 seems to me the perfect outline of the Psalmist ethic:

"I have not sat with lying folk
nor with furtive men have dealt.
I despised the assembly of evildoers,
nor with the wicked have I sat.
Let me wash my palms in cleanness
and go around your altar, LORD,
To utter aloud a thanksgiving
and to recount all Your wonders..." (Psalm 26, 4-7).

The holy man does not abide evil, but instead loves the good. His love for the good, if true, will pervade every aspect of his life, and he will be saved by God. God will "burn pure [his] conscience and [his] heart," (verse 2), because he has trusted in the Lord and will not stumble (verse 1).

For the Psalmist, "trusting in the Lord", loving the lord, is the most important thing. He who loves God will therefore do good; he who hates God will be full of evil. So, in order to do good, one must first be loyal to God. This is the major ethical stance of the Psalms.

To my ears, this ethic sounds like it fits Judaism and Christianity well (remember: "All good things come from God").

But is this a livable ethic? To be sure, some great people have lived in this way. Some people do "Turn away from evil and do good//and abide forever," (psalm 132, 27). But at the same time, it is very difficult to do, and no one is perfect. Few if any can completely trust in the Lord without doubts, and few are good all the time. Few love God with all their hearts. But I would say "yes": it is possible--though difficult--to live by this ethic.