There’s a memorable moment in The Pilgrim’s Progress where Christian arrives at a steep hill called Difficulty. The true path to the Celestial City leads straight up that hill, but two easier-looking roads—Danger and Destruction—veer off to either side. Christian pauses, tired and hesitant, but remembers the King’s instructions and begins the hard climb, declaring, “The way to life lies here.” His companions, Formalist and Hypocrisy, choose the easier paths, assuming they’ll all reconnect later. But they never do. This moment illustrates what Psalm 1 sets before us: two paths, two ways of life—one that leads to blessing and life, the other to futility and judgment. And standing at the end of both roads is the same Judge—the Lord Himself.

Psalm 1 describes the righteous as those who do not walk in the counsel of the wicked, stand in the way  ...