150 Psalms; that’s a lot of poems. We communicate more by memes and emojis than by words, never mind poetry. So, are the Psalms worth reading?
The last time I read the Bible through in a year, I followed a plan which included a psalm every day. I decided to read the Psalms aloud, which opened a treasury of images and unusual figures of speech. What a find! Reading the psalms silently did not have the same effect.
Psalms are about God or prayers to God. The psalms are not impersonal; they do not make an argument, nor are they straightforward facts. Their poetic language opens the door to heartfelt praise and prayer.
Some psalms are about stories of what God has done. Psalm 77 is about the Israelites crossing the Red Sea, but it doesn’t feel the same in the book of Exodus as in the psalm. Compare Exodus 14:21-22 with this:
“The waters saw you, God.
The waters saw you and writhed; the very depths were convulsed.
The clouds poured down water, the heavens resounded with thunder;
Your arrows flashed back and forth; Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,
Your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked.
Your path led through the sea, Your way through the mighty waters,
though Your footprints were not seen” (Psalm 77:16-19 NIV).
This poem makes me feel God’s power over nature. I worship the Lord when I read this psalm.
God is also in command of people and nations. Sometimes the state of our country presses down on me. As I read Psalm 2 this week, I was reminded of God’s constant watch on the nations, and my trust in God grew.
“Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the LORD
and against his anointed saying,
‘Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.’
The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them” (Psalm 77:16-19).
Sometimes I face issues so distressing and overwhelming that I have no words. Many psalms are laments which express grief or complaints to God, but they typically end in a note of hope or trust. They give me words and teach me how to pray. For example:
Psalm 16:1-2, 11 —”Keep me safe, my God, for in You I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord; apart from You I have no good thing’…
You make known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence,
with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.”
Psalm 51:10-13 —”Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, so that sinners will turn back to You.”
The word “psalm” is a musical term. Psalms are songs, worship songs and prayers. The book of Psalms was the primary songbook for ancient Israel. You can read a story about God saving Judah in 2 Chronicles 20. Judah’s weapon was the Old Testament song cited in the Psalms five times*:
“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.”
The singers sang, and God set ambushes against their enemies. That is how Judah won the war. Our God is awesome! My fears dissipate. That song sits in me, ready to remind me that God is good, always.
And sometimes I want to praise the Lord!
Psalm 145:1-3, 21 —”I will exalt You, my God, the King;
I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will praise You and extol Your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom…
My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD.
Let every creature praise His holy name forever and ever.”
The psalms not only minister to me when I have run out of words to pray. They broaden my subjects of prayer. I pray Psalm 23 when I can’t sleep.
And this is a prayer of thanks.
Psalm 139:13-17 —”You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise You because I am fearfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are Your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them!”
The poetry in the psalms gets the imagination going and emotions are not far behind. The psalms are wonderful devotional reading. Many psalms are personal, so they lend themselves to personal devotions.
I continue to read a Psalm a day. It has enriched my Bible study by counterbalancing law, doctrine and history. I study to understand the Word of God and to know God more clearly, but through reading the Psalms, I have learned to love the Word and love God more dearly. I encourage you to read the Psalms, too. Read them ALOUD, if you dare, with theatrical gusto.
* Psalm 106:1, 107:1, 118:1, 118:29, 136:1
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