Q. What is the purpose of the psalms?
A: The covenant name YHWH is used nearly seven hundred times in the Psalms! The Psalms are LORD-centered monotheistic songs. That is, they praise the one true Creator, the maker of heaven and earth and ruler of all things who is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Thus, the ultimate purpose of the book of Psalms is to model for God\u2019s people how and why to praise the LORD.<\/p>\n
The overall structure of the Psalter supports this view. The book of Psalms is divided into five books. The psalm that concludes each book finishes with a doxology (Ps. 41:13; 72:18\u201320; 89:52; 106:48; 150:6), with Psalm 150 serving both as the conclusion of Book 5 and of the entire book of Psalms. Like Psalms 135, 146, 147, 148, 149, Psalm 150 begins and ends with the command to \u201cPraise the LORD.\u201d And while in the psalms there are more \u201claments\u201d than \u201chymns of praise,\u201d the Psalter ends with an explosion of praise\u2014with the five \u201challelujah hymns\u201d (Psalms 146\u2013150). Thus, the very structure of the Psalter reminds us that no matter what circumstance we are going through, the LORD should be praised.<\/p>\n
Q. When were the one hundred fifty psalms compiled, and why does it matter when this happened?
A: The various authors of the psalms date from Moses (ca. 1450 B.C.) to the Fall of Judah (586 B.C.). For example, Psalm 137 is clearly set within Babylonian captivity. The psalmist writes, \u201cBy the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion\u201d (Ps. 137:1). Thus, it is best to date the final assembling of the psalms during the exile or shortly thereafter.<\/p>\n
This historical context for the compilation of Israel\u2019s prized prayers and songs is important in that the Psalter functions as the temple did. Jerusalem is laid to waste. The temple is destroyed. How then do God\u2019s people worship God in exile? The answer is that they come into the presence of God through one hundred fifty divinely inspired poems that express their laments, offer reminders of who God is and what he has done in salvation history, and engender hope for the future messiah who will bring about a new exodus, a forever kingdom, and a restored temple presence for all who long to \u201cdelight in the house of the Lord forever\u201d (Ps. 23:6).<\/p>\n
Q. Why is poetry employed to express these themes?
A: First, poetry expands our exegetical imaginations. David could simply say that he loves God because God protects him. But when he writes, \u201cI love you, O Lord . . . my rock and my fortress\u201d (Ps. 18:1-2) and compares God to a stone citadel, he gives us a greater understanding of who God is and what he does for his people. The metaphors make visual and vivid theological truths.<\/p>\n
Second, poetry is designed to engage our emotions. John Calvin said of the psalms, \u201cI have been wont to call this book not inappropriately, an anatomy of all parts of the soul; for there is not an emotion of which any one can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror.\u201d From tearful laments to triumphant thanksgivings, these expressions of emotion serve as patterns for us, shaping how we should feel when we speak to God from the depths of our souls. For example, when we read, \u201cAs a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God\u201d (Ps. 42:1), the poetry is designed to help us spiritually thirst for our refreshing and life-giving God.<\/p>\n
Q. What are some tips for reading biblical poetry?
A: First, feel it! To reiterate what I said above, God intended the awesome imagery of these inspired poems to engage our hearts. So, let them do just that. For example, after a recent sermon I preached on Psalm 23, I asked the congregation at home to answer this discussion question: \u201cPoetry should be felt in the heart not just understood in the head. Was there a moment in the sermon, as the text was being explained or illustrated, when you got emotional? If so, what emotion did you feel and why?\u201d<\/p>\n
Second, understand that repetition is the basic structure of biblical poetry. Sometimes a line is repeated throughout a poem. That\u2019s called a refrain. Sometimes repetition of key words or themes occur at the beginning and end of a poem. That\u2019s called an inclusio. Sometimes key words or themes mirror each other, moving from the ends of the poem to its center. That\u2019s called a chiasm. A poem\u2019s refrain, inclusio, and\/or chiastic center reveal the poem\u2019s big idea.<\/p>\n
Third, grasp the patterns and purposes of parallelisms. Each psalm is comprised of many couplets; that is, two lines that function together as a unit. Some couplets echo each other. When David prays to God, \u201cWash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!\u201d (Ps. 52:1), he is using interchangeable words (wash\/cleanse; iniquity\/sin) to express the same petition. Other couplets use the second line to complete the thought of the first (\u201cHe put a new song in my mouth, [what kind of song?] a song of praise to our God\u201d (Ps. 40:3). Still other lines contrast each other: \u201cFor you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down\u201d (Ps. 18:27). A final parallelism (although there are a few more!) uses two lines to make comparison: \u201cAs a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him\u201d (Ps. 103:13). Such repetition is obviously intentional. The poet slows us down. We stop and think. Pause to pray. Using various images and making us eye an idea from different angles, these poems help us \u201cdelight in the law [torah = instructions] of the LORD\u201d (Ps. 1:2).<\/p>\n
Q. How should Christian churches use the psalms in corporate worship?
A: First, we should sing the psalms. The book of Psalms represents Israel\u2019s final hymnbook. One hint that this was the case are the superscriptions. For example, all but three of the psalms in Psalms 51\u201372 have in the titles \u201cto the choir\u201d or \u201cchoirmaster.\u201d These songs, as well as others in the Psalter, were obviously sung in temple worship. The Psalter should remain part of the Christian song canon. Why? Paul says so! He commands Christians to address \u201cone another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart\u201d (Eph. 5:19) and to \u201cLet the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God\u201d (Col. 3:16).<\/p>\n
We should sing the psalms as is (but understand as we sing about sacrificing animals that Jesus is the fulfillment of the entire sacrificial system), paraphrases of the psalms, and new songs that expand upon the content of a particular psalm by directly connecting its language and themes to Jesus the anointed Son (Ps. 2), who died for sinners (Ps. 22), rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of God (Ps. 110; Eph. 1:20, 22). And we should let psalms shape the lyrical content of our hymns and choruses, reminding us, for example, that we should pray for victory over the enemies of God\u2019s kingdom and lament sin in our lives and in the world.<\/p>\n
Second, we should pray the psalms. The psalms can serve as wonderful calls to worship. For example, read Psalm 95, a psalm that summons God\u2019s people into his presence (\u201cLet us come into his presence with thanksgiving,\u201d Ps 95:2) to sing (\u201cOh come, let us sing to the LORD,\u201d Ps. 95:1) about who he is (\u201cthe Lord is great, and a great King above all gods,\u201d Ps. 95:3) and what he has done (\u201chis hands formed the dry land,\u201d Ps. 95:5) and concludes with a warning to take worship seriously (\u201cdo not harden your hearts,\u201d Ps. 95:8). Beyond just the call to worship, the psalms can be used to model the pastoral prayer for the congregation.1<\/p>\n
Third, we should read the psalms. I think the more Bible readings on Sunday morning the better. Why not read through the psalms (a psalm a Sunday) for the next three years? Use a few Sundays for Psalm 119, of course!<\/p>\n
Fourth, we should preach the psalms. I recommend for ten summers straight having a sermon series called \u201cThe Psalms for Summer.\u201d As a congregation, work your way through the Psalter.<\/p>\n
Content adapted from Psalms: A 12-Week Study by Douglas Sean O’Donnell. This article first appeared on Crossway.org; used with permission.<\/p>\n
Q. What is the purpose of the psalms?A: The covenant name YHWH is used nearly seven hundred times in the Psalms! The Psalms are LORD-centered monotheistic songs. That is, they praise the one true Creator, the maker of heaven and earth and ruler of all things who is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. … Continue reading “5 Questions about the Psalms”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33113\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}