Old Testament chapter 21
the five basic divisions of the Book of Psalms
1-41 42-72 73-89 98-106 107-150
Examples of wisdom psalms
1. Psalm 1 a direct-to the point observation on life blessed are those who avoid sin and delight in God's word they become like trees planted in streams of life giving water they fulfill God's highest purpose for them the wicked find no such favor Psalm 14 David described the fool who said God did not exist living for the Lord is worth it because God will restore the fortunes of the righteous Psalm 73 Asaph wrote that nothing else mattered other than following the Lord faithfully
examples of lament psalms
1. Psalm 3 David wrote it when fleeing his son Absalom Psalm4 and Psalm 6 David expresses anguish to God he asks how long before God delivers him
examples of imprecatory psalms
1. Psalm 35 & 69 David asks God to take his side against those who contended with him he asks the Lord to intervene and judge them he asks for God's judgement to rescue him and his people Psalm 137 a captive asks God to avenge his people the Babylonians mocked them the Edomites turned traitor on them
Why does Psalms have a unique place in the Scriptures?
1. They gave us insight into the Israelite worship the songs sang, the themes, what was dear to their hearts gave us insight the psalms describe the corporate and personal worship certain psalms served the entire body of believers others relate to personal experience 2. they deal with all aspects of Hebrew life God was praised for his special blessings and mighty deeds. forgiveness was asked for their sin sometimes they lamented difficult times or implored God to curse enemies of the faith
Theories on the Psalms' arrangement
1. there may be a connection b/w the book arrangement and the five books of the Torah
What does the Book of Psalms contain?
150 songs from Hebrew life and worship dear to peoples hearts it reflects their personal experiences
How many psalms have no authorship?
50
How many psalms begin with "A psalm of David"?
73
Who was Asaph?
David appointed him chief musician Asaph wrote a variety of psalms
What does Psalm 8 reflect?
David's own experience with God its a hymn of praise
classification of the Psalms
German scholar Hermann Gunkel laid the foundation for the study of the psalm classification he stated that psalm writers used certain poetic forms and styles to express similar ideas hymns of praise followed a certain pattern so did community laments, psalms of thanksgiving
Imprecatory psalms call on
God to judge one's enemies
the Book of Psalms bears witness to what?
Jesus as the son of God sacrifice for sin, our great high priest risen from the dead King of kings Lord of lords
Who exerted a great influence on the Book of Psalms?
King David
Who are the sons of Korah?
Korah denotes a man who contended with Aaron for the priesthood God judged Korah and his followers Korah may refer to two or more different families b/c it was a common name
Who is Psalm 90 ascribed to?
Moses
another example of a hymn of praise
Psalm 136 in corporate worship, a responsive reading it calls for praise to God for His magesty, creative power, saving power, sustaining power, and His faithfulness
examples of Royal Psalms
Psalm 2 describes haughtiness toward the Lord and his anointed God established a father-son relationship it may be a coronation psalm Israel recited it as she crowned a new king Psalm 45 dedication to the king march victoriously in battle extol the king's righteousness affirm God's anointing of him Psalm 110 the Lord would shatter other kings and extend David's scepter David was ordained a special priest the Lord's presence with David would result in victory
examples of Messianic Psalms
Psalm 2 describes the king as God's anointed one describes the Messiah as God's Son Psalm 16 David affirmed God would never abandon him describes the Messiah as risen and glorified Psalm 22 also a lament psalm begins with words Jesus uttered from the cross "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" David thought God had abandoned him David's psychological and emotional suffering foreshadowed Christ's physical suffering Psalm 45 describes Christ's kingship Psalm 110 denotes Christ's role as Lord of David and our great high priest
examples of Penitential Psalms
Psalm 38 David described his guilt that overwhelmed him his pain never left him David called God his Savior Psalm 51 the most famous penitential psalm dealt with David's sin with Bathseba and the arranged death of her husband Uriah David poured out his repentant heart to God he asked God to forgive him he needed God to cleanse him, and purify his heart
Who are Psams 72 and 127 ascribed to?
Solomon
the last psalm in each collection typically contains what?
a doxology an ascription of praise to the Lord it ties off that part of the Book of Psams
What is Psalm 150 an example of?
a hymn it commands us to praise the Lord 13 times in six verses praise God in His sanctuary, in the heavens, and praise His power and greatness praise God with instruments and all flesh praise God
What did God's people express through their worship?
about the great truths people believed in
When were the psalms compiled into one volume?
after the Babylonian exile
Why should we treat the psalms as authentic?
all of the ancient copies of the psalms contain the same headings as the ones we see today
What do the psalms represent?
an ancient songbook of God's people
the Book of Psalms represents
an ancient songbook of Israel
Why do many find the imprecable psalms troubling?
because of the harsh words ex: destroy Babylonian infants by dashing them against rocks these psalms help us see the human side of Scripture they leave judgement in God's hands only God had the absolute right to judge
Why are the psalms valuable for counseling?
because the psalms concern every aspect of life many writers of the scriptures went through the same types of struggles
Imprecatory Psalms
call for God's judgement against God's enemies and/or his people's enemies individual or corporate in nature angry content
Penitential Psalms
confess sorrow for sins appeal to God for grace and forgiveness it may be for one person's sins, or many peoples' sins
Messianic Psalms
describe some aspect of the Messiah's person or ministry they describe God's anointed one the Messiah would one day restore Israel and establish everlasting salvation
Royal Psalms
focus on the king as son of David and God's chosen man to rule his people focus on Israel's king sometimes portray him as heir to God's covenant with David
Where does psalm come from?
from the Greek word psalmos it means a song or a hymn
Wisdom psalms provide
general observations about life
Wisdom Psalms
general observations on life especially God and our relationship to him they are self-evident descriptions of the way God has intended life to be
How do the Psalms state God's truth?
in a beautiful style it speaks to our minds and hearts
Penitential psalms feature
individual or corporate confession and repentance
Hymns focus on
individual or corporate praise to God
Lament Psalms
lament one's condition usually include statements of lament, statement of trust in God, and affirmation of praise to Him the last psalm type usually contain three elements, not always in the same order 1. bemoan one's condition 2. state trust in God 3. some kind of praise
Who wrote the psalms?
many people contributed to the songs and poems
Why is the Book of Psalms divided into five books?
no one really knows why it may reflect tradition
Lament psalms bemoan
one's condition state trust in God end with praise
What kinds of psalms did David write?
praises, laments, penitential, imprecatory, royal, and messianic psalms
David was interested in establishing music for what?
public worship
basic characteristics of hymns
some are hymns of praise, either corporate or personal praise
hymns
songs of praise and thanksgiving to God for who he is and what he has done
What do many of David's psalms describe?
specific times in his life Psalm 3: fled from his son Absalom Psalm 51: after Nathan confronted him about Bathsheba Psalm 57: as he hid from Saul in the cave
Messianic psalms describe
the Messiah
Royal psalms focus on
the king of Israel
Why are the Book of Psalms spiritually helpful to us?
they have experienced the joy, sadness, mourning, forgiveness, and other experiences that touch our lives we can learn from them and apply their truth to our lives
How do the Book of Psalms make a special contribution to the Bible?
they provide an understanding of Israelite worship they touch on all aspects of Hebrew life
psalm titles may contain musical notatons
to the choir master: maybe people sang them in public worship other musical notations remain a mystery
taking your deepest concerns to God
usually results in a change of attitude the troubles don't seem so big anymore
