Psalms
If you are at church and sitting in the pew or the chair, chances are, directly in front of you, or in a rack below you, rests a Hymnal book of some kind with a collection of songs that the congregation has learned to know and love. Well that’s what you have with the book of Psalms. The book of Psalms is the Hebrew song book, and is still in use by the Jewish people today for this purpose. So not only is the book of Psalms inspired Scripture, these Psalms were written to be physically and audibly sung by God’s people.
The name ‘Psalms’ comes from the Greek word ‘Psalmos’ and means “A poem to be sung to a stringed instrument.” In the Hebrew language there are two words that describe the book of Psalms and the first is “Tehillim” which means praise, and the second is “Tephiloth” which means prayer. So you get even a little more insight into the book of Psalms that tells us that these writings exist to help God’s people praise God and pray to God. In other words the book of Psalms is a worship book.
And this worship book covers how to praise God in every situation that you face in life. This collection of Psalms that God has for us covers every conceivable human emotion and mood that you will experience. It covers anxiety, sin, failure, disappointment, victory, heart-ache, betrayal, joys, excitement, and pain. It’s been said that the Psalms do for our emotions what other books of the Bible do for our intellect and will. It has also been said that the Psalms are like medicine for the soul.
The use of the Psalms can be found all throughout the Old Testament. Jonah used the Psalms when praying in the belly of the fish. However, you also see the use of Psalms all throughout the New Testament. If you remember, Jesus used the Psalms quite a bit during his ministry. On the cross, Jesus quoted Psalms on two occasions. The first was the cry to His Father, “My God my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”out of Psalm 22. The second was the prayer “Father into your hands I commend my spirit” (Psalm 31:5).
Further, the Psalms were still vital in the life and worship of the early church. In Colossians 3:16 Paul tells us to “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” In James 5:13 we read, “Is there any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing psalms.”
We have incorporated Psalms in many songs that we sing to this day all apart from physically reading or listening to the preaching of this Bible Hymnal. The point is, the book of Psalms has always been a very special book for God’s people, and will continue to be so.
How to Think About the Psalms
The book of Psalms is actually broken up into five groups of Psalms and because of this, Psalms has been known as the ‘Pentateuch’ of the poetical books. Further than this, it is also believed by some that each grouping of Psalms actually corresponds to the actual Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). Whether or not this is the case, no one can say for sure, but it certainly makes for some interesting thought. For instance:
The Structure—
Psalm Group 1 (Psalms 1-41): This group is thought to complement the book of Genesis. The main themes in Genesis consist of creation, the fall of man, and God’s mercy and redemption and this is what you see in Psalms 1-41. Psalm 8 the question is raised, “What is man that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him.” Psalm 19 is the famous ‘creation’ song “The heaven declare the glory of God and the firmament sheweth his handywork.”
Psalm Group 2 (Psalms 42-72): Here you find a correlation with the book of Exodus. If you remember, the book of Exodus literally means, “The Way Out” meaning that Israel was being led out of Egypt by God. Also in the book of Exodus you find the construction of the tabernacle.
Well in this group of Psalms you find that there is a lot of history being provided about these very instances. These Psalms speak about God’s people crying out to God for help during affliction, God’s ability to rescue His people, and the building of the temple. Psalm 42 starts with being dry and thirsty, and Psalm 72 is a Psalm for Solomon and building the temple.
Psalm Group 3 (Psalms 73-89): Leviticus is thought to be the focus for this group of Psalms where God taught His people how to worship Him. In these Psalms it appears that the same thing is being accomplished. We see God’s holiness put on display, the fact that His covenants are never broken, and therefore, He should be praised and worshipped at all times, especially in His house.
Psalm Group 4 (Psalms 90-106): In this section you find apparent ties to the book of Numbers. Once again, the theme that comes to surface is the fact that despite the sin of the people, God keeps His promises, and that He is their protector.
Psalm Group 5 (Psalms 107-150): The last portion consists of praise and blessing. If you remember, in Deuteronomy there was a second reciting of the law, an explanation of that law, and praise for who God is and what He had done. There is also reference to the return and ‘new beginning’ into the promised land after their time in bondage, much like the first beginning into the land in the pre-canaan experience in Deuteronomy.
The Psalmists—
Before you read an actual Psalm, in your Bible, there is usually a little bit of information provided there to help you by giving you the author of the Psalm and sometimes even why the Psalm was written. This is important information because knowing this will make the Psalm come to life you you can put an individual and an actual circumstance with it.
David: 73 Psalms are attributed to David, the second king of Israel. In these Psalms you get to follow this king around from valleys and caves, to battles and palaces— from walking to the temple with God’s people to crying alone because of betrayal.
Asaph: 12 Psalms are written by this Choir director. David appointed Asaph as the worship leader of the temple and when you run across Psalms that bear his name, know that that particular song was most likely sung as worship by God’s people in a professional setting.
Sons of Korah:The name of Korah was not necessarily celebrated early on by those who knew this name during the times of Moses. Korah attempted to start an uprising and force his way into leadership. However, God put a stop to this and took their lives. But what is interesting is that not all of them were consumed. Obviously there were some who, for one reason or another, refused to stand with the leader of their family and therefore survived the rebellion. This is what we find with these individuals. If you read their Psalms, they express a deep devotion and thankfulness to God and their desire to know Him more. 12 Psalms have bear the name of the Sons of Korah.
For instance, in Psalm 42:1 we read, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so my soul after thee, God.” or Psalm 84:1 “How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!”
Heman: 1 Psalm was written by this fellow.
Ethan: 1 Psalm was written by Ethan.
Moses: 1 Psalm was written by the beloved Old Testament leader, Moses.
Anonymous: 50 Psalms do not have a name attached; although most of these are thought to be written by David.
What to Look for In Psalms
As you have probably noticed by now, the Psalms were not merely a mixture of random songs smushed together in no particular order. They all had a purpose. That said, there are several things to look for when you find yourself sifting through the Psalms.
Songs of Degrees In the Psalms: Now, there are different opinions about what the meaning of this term really means. Some think it means. There are fifteen “Songs of Degree” and some believe it has to do with a particular sun dial. Then there are some who believe that it has to do with fifteen steps leading up to the temple, and that well may be.
However, what is clear is that the word “degrees” has to do with ascension— an upward motion. And what is really interesting to think about is the fact that the temple was set on a mountain area whenever you traveled to this location, you always had to make an ascent to get to the temple. So many believe that the Songs of Degrees were designated stopping points where God’s people would stop and sing a song. Then, they would go a little higher, stop and sing another song in this section. And they would do this all the way until they got to the temple.
Prophecy in the Psalms: There are several Psalms that point to the Messiah, that is, to who we now know to be our Lord, Jesus Christ. Psalm 16, 22, 23, 24, 40, 68, 69, and 118 are all Messianic Psalms. There are other places, but these in specific reference very precise detail about Christ. In fact, Psalm 22 is probable the best example. Hundreds of years before crucifixion was even invented you read words like, “For dogs have compassed me: The assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture” (verses 16-18).
Imprecatory Language in the Psalms: These are psalms written that express desire for God to deal harshly with the enemies of God. When reading the Psalms, you need to remember the discussion given regarding the exaggeration of poetry and the honesty presented from the human heart. Every word of the is inspired by God, but not every word reflects who God is. Sometimes what is recorded is poor human understanding and does not reflect the attitude of God.
Therefore, you might look at some of the Psalms and see something that seems hard to explain as far was what is expressed by the writer. Well you then need to understand that while they were being honest in their emotions in their heart, it does not necessarily reflect God’s emotions or God’s heart.
A good example of this can be found Psalm 137:9 “Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.” In context the children of Israel were in bondage by the Babylonians, and out of all the cruel overlords that had held them over their history, non compared to the domination of these people. They were unspeakable cruel to the people of God. And so what you are reading here are the real emotions of God’s people wanting to do real violence the offspring of their captures.
Is this inspired Scripture? Yes. Did it reflect God’s will? No. It was a prayer for judgment against God’s enemies by God’s people. It was an honest record of how God’s people really felt at the time. What all have you wished upon your enemies? Did that reflect God’s heart or His will?
What to Gain from Psalms
If you use the Psalms correctly, they are an incredible wealth of blessing.You need to learn to make the Psalms a regular part of your Bible diet and they can really change your worship and outlook no matter what situation you face.
Learn the Pattern of the Psalms: If you are paying attention, you’ll find that most of the time, the psalms begin with a problem. They will talk about an enemy a position, an affliction, a confession, or a state of confusion, but then, after the problem is given, a declaration is made as the psalmist reminds himself of God’s promises and character. And once this declaration is made there is a phrase that will amount to this, “I don’t care what is happening in my life, I’m going to praise God anyway.”
Learning this pattern for your life is extremely important. Often times, our focus is far too narrow when things don’t go our way. The problem is all we see and therefore, all we express to God. What we learn in the pattern of the Psalms is that we need to praise no matter what and widen our scope a bit as we understand that God is in control of everything.
Learn the Purpose of the Psalms: Understanding that this collection of Scripture is a collection of songs is vital for us to understand. This means that these were sung over and over again. This truth was constantly repeated in the form of song for God’s people.
What that amounts to is you is a theme that begins to surface and that theme is this: Constant praise, through constant prayer. Most of the psalms are small and are written specifically for repetition. They were so God’s people could always carry around truth with everywhere they went.
They would encourage themselves with history, God’s faithfulness, and God’s mercy and grace no matter what emotion they were experiencing. No wonder the psalms are described as ‘medicine for the soul’.
In my estimation, if there is a book that you need to be consistently consuming, it should be the Psalms. You need to learn to consume often and think deeply about the psalms you too can learn the art of praise through prayer no matter what God allows into your life.