“Shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.” The Hebrew root of the English word “upright” means straight, even, or right. Webster’s Dictionary defines upright as a strict adherence to moral principles.

As followers of Jesus we, above all people, are to be honest and scrupulous in all of our ways. The psalmist tells us that God is the Defense of those who are upright in heart, which is a tremendous promise in light of the fact that the wicked fire away at us all day long.

When Scripture talks about an individual doing that which is right in the eyes of the Lord, that refers to the meaning of living an upright life. While there is a connection between walking uprightly and gladness, Job was an upright man6 who faced many hardships, which obviously means that doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord does not mean that we will never face trials or adversities in this life.

Uprightness is a lifestyle that is always seeking to please the Lord, in spite of what happens. An upright person is one who finds strength in follow-ing the Lord, and that person is a delight to the Lord. An upright person will flourish, even when in great difficulty. The call to follow Jesus is a call to walk uprightly! And that is something to shout about.