King David’s Primary Love Language

Perhaps the best biblical example of a person whose primary love language was words of affirmation is David, the second king of Israel. On many occasions, David indicated how deeply he was moved by the words of God. Here are just a few examples:

• “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore, I hate every wrong path. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light on my path.”  (Psalm 119:103-105)
• “Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.” (Psalm 119:111)
• “I have put my hope in your word.” (Psalm 119:114)
• “I rejoice in your promise like one who finds great spoil. I hate and detest falsehood but I love your law. Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws. Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” (Psalm 119:162-165)

David also used words of affirmation in response to God, as an expression of his love:

• “May those who long for your saving always say, ‘The Lord be great!’” (Psalm 40:16)
• “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the Lord more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hooves.” (Psalm 69:30)
• “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies.” (Psalm 119:97-98)
• “My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.” (Psalm 145:21)
• “Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, my soul. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.” (Psalm 146:2)

Clearly David’s primary method of expressing his love to God was through words of praise, thanksgiving, and adoration. If you have any question about David’s primary love language, read Psalm 18, in which David responds after God has delivered him from his enemies. For fifty verses, he expresses his love to God in some of the most beautiful language ever written.

“David clearly expressed his devotion to God through words of affirmation.”

David had access to only the five books of the Hebrew Bible (typically referred to as the Pentateuch or the Torah), but clearly, he saw them as the words of God. He said of the Scriptures, “Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. . . . Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you. If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life” (Psalm 119:89, 91-93).

David saw all of God’s words—laws, ordinances, commandments, precepts, testimonies, statutes, and judgments—as being expressions of who God is. He took them as ultimate truth, as certain as God Himself. He based his life on the words of God. As best we can determine, David wrote seventy-three of the Psalms found in the Bible. Many of them are expressions of praise and thanksgiving to God. His words are some of the most heartfelt emotional literature in the Bible. David clearly expressed his devotion to God through words of affirmation.