In these verses, David transitions from narrator and witness of his personal experience to being the listener, as God speaks. In the verses following this, (10 and 11) he reverts to his personal testimony. Maybe the "Selah" at the end of verse 7 is our clue to listen now to God and His amplification and application of David's experiences. Are there "two-way" Selahs? Think on these (foregoing and following) things.
One interesting thing about reading or memorizing the Scripture is how different translations word a particular phrase or idea. Psalm 32:8 and 9 is a passage that is often quoted in regard to God's leading. KJV is the most common version considered.
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. 9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.
That provides both comfort and confidence as we go forward into any situation. It implies that He knows us, because in order to "instruct and teach," He must know both where we are and where He wants us to go.
Do "instruct and teach" mean the same thing? May I have some leeway here? I would suggest that "instruct" is to provide information while "teach" is to inculcate that information into the mind or muscles so that its usage is automatic. It is this combination that is involved in training or education.
We have all had lecturers who merely imparted content and then disappeared. They were not teachers. Teachers take the information and mold it into a form or process that we can absorb, then replicate and use. We all remember and love the multiplication tables. "Here they are," the teacher said, "use them as needed." NOT! Whenever I hear 9 times 7 my mind automatically spouts 63. I did not have to resort to the tables. This is a result of untold numbers of repetitions in grade school.
(Incidentally one concern about "modern" teaching is the deadly practice of eliminating rote learning and practice. "Why learn that? I have a calculator," goes the complaint and justification. A time will come when crutches are not available. Then he will be "up the creek–crick in Nebraska–without a paddle.* This is probably a good reason to constantly memorize and review Scripture But I digress.)
Jesus was often called, "Teacher." In Matthew this is used 12 times in chapters 8, 9, 10, 12, 17, 19, 22, 23, 26. I will leave it to you to search for the others. (Hint, NASB has 37. Help) He did not just impart information. He instructed and taught. He was the ultimate Trainer.
Going on we come to "guide" KJV and "counsel" from NASB. "Guide with eye" is a common concept. A father can just turn his "eye" to a rowdy offspring to calm him or them down. A wife can communicate with her husband by giving him "the eye."
Beyond these more or less negative connotations, we can cite examples of one person just glancing in a direction and someone else knows how to move or respond. Dad used to raise quarter horses. (For the literalists here, it was a "whole horse" but it specialized in running a quarter of a mile. Hence, "quarter horse." These horses had a quick, short burst that enabled them to outrun the animals that the horse and cowboy were herding.)
A special job for which some quarter horses were trained was cutting. When one animal, usually a calf, was to be separated, cut, from the herd, the cutting horse would cull the animal out of the larger group and then remain between the object and the rest until the "chosen one" was moved to wherever the cowboy wanted.
A good cutting horse could do this without the direction of the rider. The cowboy used neither reins nor his knees to guide the horse. Essentially, he designated and looked at the animal. The horse removed it from the rest and moved it to its ultimate destination.
You may have watched a rabbit running to escape a dog or coyote (only two syllables out west–kyot–long "o" and no "te"). If you have, you have observed the cat-quick cuts and dodges the rabbit used to elude capture. The "cut" animals were often calves and for a while they fancied themselves to be faster or quicker than the cutter. If the horse had to wait for direction from his rider, the calf would probably escape. A good horse can notice the muscle twitch from the calf and react almost as soon as the animal itself changes direction. Obviously this takes a lot of training for the horse and rider. (One, for the rider not to fall off. Embarrassing.)
God's example here is to have us do "trained" as to be able to react to the mere glance from Him. Now look back at the first phrase: "instruct and teach." The two components of genuine learning are coupled and illustrated for us.
"I will instruct and guide you in the way you should go."
*Alternative rendering: Unaccounted for on the proverbial elevated estuary lacking the traditional implement of propulsion.
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