A Heart Like That of a Weaned Child

[Psalm 131]

We know that God looks at our hearts rather than our outward appearance (1 Samuel 16:7). The foundation of this truth can be found in the biblical story when God rejected King Saul and sent Samuel to the house of Jesse, David's father, to anoint a new king (1 Samuel 16). When Samuel arrived at Jesse's house and was looking for the one God would anoint as king, he saw Jesse's eldest son, Eliab, and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed is before him" (1 Samuel 16:6). At that moment, God said to Samuel: “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him; for the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). When I reflect on this, I realize that, as believers, we must focus on the “heart” that God sees, rather than our outward appearance. So, what should our heart be like? I find the answer to this question in the heart of David, a man after God's own heart (Acts 13:22). David’s heart, a heart after God’s own heart, can be described in one word: "A heart like that of a weaned child" (Psalm 131:2).

Let us look at the second verse of today’s scripture, Psalm 131:2: "Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me." To understand this phrase, "my heart is like a weaned child," we need to consider the stages of child growth as seen by the Hebrews. These stages are typically divided into five phases (commentaries).

1. The first stage is “suckling,” or the “infant” stage. This stage refers to the time from birth until around 30 days.

2. The second stage is the "weaned child" (weaned one) stage, which seems to refer to the period from about one month to around five years of age. Hebrew children were often weaned around three to four years old.

3. The third stage is the "toddler" stage, where a child begins to walk, typically from around five years to twenty years of age.

4. The fourth stage is puberty. In Hebrew, this stage is called "elem" or "almah" and refers to sexually mature young people, likely from the age of 20 and onward.

5. The final stage is adulthood and old age.

When I think about David’s words that his heart was like a weaned child in light of these growth stages, I am reminded of the image of a weaned child in his mother’s arms. The child no longer cries or fusses for milk, but instead is content simply to be held by the mother, gazing at her face with satisfaction. This is the image that David uses to describe his heart. In other words, the reason David compares his heart to that of a weaned child is because just as a weaned child is no longer crying for milk but is content simply in the possession of the mother, so David’s heart was fully satisfied in God alone, without needing anything else (as Pastor Park Yun-seon explains).

The hymn "Satisfied with the Lord Alone" has the following lyrics:

"I am satisfied with the Lord alone,
I praise the Lord who is all for me,
I praise Jesus, my eternal life,
I raise my voice in praise,
I praise the Lord's great love,
The Lord who is my strength and power,
My whole life has been transformed,
I praise the great love of the Lord."

This hymn is said to be based on 2 Corinthians 3:5:
"Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God."

Yes, our satisfaction comes only from God. Knowing this, David was satisfied in his heart only with God the Father, just like a weaned child. Our hearts should be like this too. In other words, our hearts should be like David’s, like a weaned child. We must be completely satisfied with the Lord alone. However, there are many times when we are not satisfied with God alone and continue to live without focusing on Him. Our eyes often shift from God and focus on other people or things.

One of the reasons for this is the "jealous eye" mentioned in 1 Samuel 18:9. In the Korean Bible, it says, "From that day on, Saul looked at David with suspicion," but in the English version (New International Version), it says, "From that time on, Saul kept a jealous eye on David."

"That day" refers to the day when David returned after defeating the Philistine giant Goliath. The women from all the cities of Israel came out to celebrate, singing and dancing: "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands" (1 Samuel 18:7). When Saul heard this, he became very angry and said, "They have credited David with tens of thousands, but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" (1 Samuel 18:8). From that day, Saul began to view David with a jealous eye (1 Samuel 18:9).

This sinful jealousy causes us to look at others or things rather than focusing on God alone. So, how can we overcome such sinful jealousy? I found the answer in Psalm 73. The psalmist Asaph, upon entering the sanctuary of God, realized the end of the wicked and further understood that it is a blessing to draw near to the Lord. He realized that there is nothing in this world to long for except the Lord. In doing so, he overcame worldly, lustful, and demonic jealousy.

In other words, when we look at the Lord alone with God's jealous eyes, we can overcome the sinful jealousy like that of Saul. When we do this, we, like the Apostle Paul, can live satisfied with God's sufficient grace, even if we have a thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:9).

What does it mean that we should be satisfied with the Lord alone? Let’s look at today’s scripture, Psalm 131:1:
"O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me."

A heart that is fully satisfied with the Lord alone, like a weaned child, is not only humble but also cannot be proud. In other words, a heart like that of a weaned child is humble. How do we know this? Because David did not set his eyes on high things. David did not covet the glory of the world (Park Yun-sun). Why? Because he had fixed his gaze on the Lord, the highest of all. For those who live satisfied only with the Lord, what could be higher than Him? David did not seek to elevate himself in the world like the proud, but he looked much higher—toward God (Park Yun-sun). Therefore, he did not concern himself with "great things" or with "things too marvelous" that he could not attain. In other words, David did not try to do great things out of vain desires, which were not part of his mission (Park Yun-sun).

We too, like David, must not be drawn to vain desires in this world. We should not seek the empty glory of the world. In other words, we must guard against vanity. A heart that is satisfied only with the Lord, like that of a weaned child, has "calmness and peace." That is to say, a heart like that of a weaned child, satisfied with God alone, experiences calmness and peace. This calmness and peace are the result of suppressing all the ambitions and fiery stirrings within and having acquired a lifestyle of looking only to God (Park Yun-sun).

David was able to live this peaceful and calm life because he was satisfied only with the Lord, and as a result, his heart was not proud, thus calming any discontent and turbulent emotions (Park Yun-sun). He was not drawn by worldly desires, but by believing and obeying God’s word, he enjoyed calmness and peace in his heart. Therefore, he encouraged not only the people of Israel but also us, saying:
"O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore." (Psalm 131:3)

Why must we look to God from now until forever? The reason is that the Lord is our Shepherd; we shall not want (Psalm 23:1). Let us all live with a heart like a weaned child, satisfied with the Lord alone. Let us never be led by greed to pursue the things of the world, as they can never satisfy our souls. Let us not allow our hearts to be proud but humbly lower ourselves before the Lord. By doing so, God will give calmness and peace to our souls.

Wishing to live satisfied with the Lord alone,

Pastor James Kim
(Sharing while seeking a heart like a weaned child)