You help make Hymnary.org possible. More than 10 million people from 200+ countries found hymns, liturgical resources and encouragement on Hymnary.org in 2025, including you. Every visit affirms the global impact of this ministry.

If Hymnary has been meaningful to you this year, would you take a moment today to help sustain it? A gift of any size—paired with a note of encouragement if you wish—directly supports the server costs, research work and curation that keep this resource freely available to the world.

Give securely online today, or mail a check to:
Hymnary.org
Calvin University
3201 Burton Street SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49546

Thank you for your partnership, and may the hope of Advent fill your heart.

How Shall the Young Direct Their Way?

Representative Text

1 How shall the young direct their way?
What light shall be their perfect guide?
Thy word, O LORD, will safely lead,
if in its wisdom they confide.

2 Sincerely I have sought thee, Lord,
O let me not from Thee depart;
to know Thy will and keep from sin
Thy word I cherish in my heart.

3 O blessed LORD, teach me Thy law,
Thy righteous judgments I declare;
Thy testimonies make me glad,
for they are wealth beyond compare.

4 Upon Thy precepts and Thy ways
my heart will meditate with awe;
Thy word shall be my chief delight,
and I will not forget Thy law.

Source: Psalms and Hymns to the Living God #119B

Text Information

First Line: How shall the young direct their way
Title: How Shall the Young Direct Their Way?
Meter: 8.8.8.8 D
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Notes

Scripture References:
st. 1 = Ps. 119:9
st. 2 = Ps. 119:10-11
st. 3 = Ps. 119:12-14
st. 4 = Ps. 119:15-16

This text from the 1912 Psalter is a paraphrase of the "Beth" (second letter of the Hebrew alphabet) stanza of Psalm 119. In these verses of the psalm (9-16), directed specifically at the young, the psalmist professes delight in God's word (or law) as a guide for living. But that word also calls for obedience from all God's creatures, young and old alike. (See 119 and 276 for other settings of Psalm 119.)

Liturgical Use:
Before or after the reading of the Decalogue or another law text (consider using just st. 3-4 at this time); the entire hymn is appropriate for services that emphasize youth or Christian education.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook, 1988

Timeline

Media

You have access to this FlexScore.
Download:
Are parts of this score outside of your desired range? Try transposing this FlexScore.
General Settings
Stanza Selection
Voice Selection
Text size:
Music size:
Transpose (Half Steps):
Capo:
Contacting server...
Contacting server...
Questions? Check out the FAQ

A separate copy of this score must be purchased for each choir member. If this score will be projected or included in a bulletin, usage must be reported to a licensing agent (e.g. CCLI, OneLicense, etc).

This is a preview of your FlexScore.
The Cyber Hymnal #2690
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)

Instances

Instances (1 - 10 of 10)
TextFlexScoreAudioPage Scan

Lift Up Your Hearts #720

TextPage Scan

Moravian Book of Worship #510

Praise! psalms hymns and songs for Christian worship #119c

TextPage Scan

Psalms and Hymns to the Living God #119B

TextPage Scan

Psalms for All Seasons #119B

Page Scan

Psalms of Grace #119:9-16b

Text InfoTune InfoTextAudio

Psalter Hymnal (Gray) #584

TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #2690

TextPage Scan

Trinity Hymnal (Rev. ed.) #148

TextPage Scan

Trinity Psalter Hymnal #119B

Include 16 pre-1979 instances
Suggestions or corrections? Contact us
It looks like you are using an ad-blocker. Ad revenue helps keep us running. Please consider white-listing Hymnary.org or getting Hymnary Pro to eliminate ads entirely and help support Hymnary.org.