Psalms 81:8 “Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me; 9 There shall no strange god be in thee; neither shalt thou worship any strange god.”
To “Hear” and “hearken” is to make all necessary provisions in our lives to listen to the Preached Word of God, to read the Word of God, and to speak of the Word of God. Thus, we are Commanded to avail ourselves of the Preached Word by “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together [in Church], as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day [The Day Of Worship] approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25) and we are to follow the example of the Bereans who “were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:10-11). Also, to “Hear” and “hearken”, is to put the Word of God that we hear and learn into action in our lives; that is, we are to live the Word of God so that we can “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16). If we “Hear” and “hearken” to the Word of God, He will work His joy and peace in our hearts and He “will testify unto” us through His Preached Word; that is, He will marvelously reveal unto us a portion of His Glory and His Will and Purpose for us. When we are hearing and hearkening unto the Word of God, we are filling our mind with the good things of our Lord so that there will be “no strange god … in” us to lead us astray to sorrow and ruin in this present life. But, sadly, “many” “follow” the “pernicious [destructive] ways” (II Peter 2:2) of the “strange” gods.