1. Which Psalm is the longest?
2. Which Psalm is the shortest?
3. Who wrote most of the
Psalms?
4. Which Psalm starts “The Lord
is my shepherd”?
5. How many Psalms are there?
1. The Psalms are designed to teach us
to worship God.
2. They also instruct us in how we can
voice our own prayers and praise to
God.
3. The Book of Psalms teaches us how
to be honest before God.
4. The Psalms is a constant resource to
help the Christian learn how to
praise and pray, to meditate and
contemplate as well as to face life
and death issues.
Oh Lord, my God! Why do you wait to show up?
I cried out to you when trouble struck.
I asked for your restoration.
I know that you heard me. I know that you answered.
Yet nothing—nothing of meaning happens again today.
What a two-edged sword your voice is!
You speak. And then wait?
You give hope. And then vanish into the mist?
Have you forgotten me? Have more important things arrested your attention?
Hope turns black. This evil I have seen.
Nightly my dreams show me restored,
And in the morning I am broken again
Cursed to relive the horror of suffering's first day.
Please slay me! Blot my name from the ranks of the living!
For in the grave can I finally rest.
How long? How long must I wait here in the middle?
Between healing and hell,
Between heaven and horror,
Who am I that God should remember me?
My only salvation is that he should not forget his image,
Or let his word be broken.
He is faithful to us because he is faithful to himself.
There is nothing I can do,
In no way can I help.
I sit in the ruins and wait,
And take comfort in those who lie in the ashes with me.
But one day, by his promise, I will stand;
Restored as his message of hope is fulfilled.
The Lord will turn this horror into a fading dream,
And I will honor his name forever.
2. TITLE
ψαλμοί psalmoi,
Psalter
3. AUTHORSHIP
I) David
73 total
II) Asaph
12 total
III) Korah
9 total
IV) Solomon
2 total
V) Heman the Ezrahite
1 total
VI) Ethan the Ezrahite
1 total
VII) Moses
1 total
COMPILATION
I)
The writer of most the first 72 psalms was David.
II)
Solomon, Jehoshaphat , and Jehoiada all organized temple singing and may
have had a hand in compiling some of the psalms.
III) Hezekiah (715-686 B.C.), one of Judah’s best kings and one who led his
people in returning to Scripture, may have added to and organized part of
the Psalter.
IV) Josiah, another reforming king of Judah (640-609 B.C.)
V)
The last two books of Psalms (chs. 90–106 and 107–150) contain more
miscellaneous psalms dating from Moses to the return from exile. It seems
likely that Ezra, the great reformer of postexilic Judaism, may have been
responsible for adding these and perhaps putting the whole collection in its
final form.
VI) Yet the Psalms scrolls found at Qumran give evidence that the structure of
the collection was very much still in flux as late as the Maccabean era.
4. DATE
I) Psalm 90 by Moses – about 1440 B.C.
II) Davidic Psalms – between about 1020
and 975 B.C.
III) Solomonic Psalms – about 950 B.C.
IV) Heman and Ethan due to their
connection with Ezra are perhaps
post-exilic.
5. SUPERSCRIPTIONS
Psalm 76
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
Psalm 18
For the director of music. Of David the servant of the LORD. He sang to the
LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all
his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
I) Of the 116 Psalms with titles, 97 identify an author, 14
indicate the historical circumstances in the life of David, and
most indicate some musical directions (e.g., tunes). Though
they may not have been original to the Psalms, they should
be considered canonical and therefore important.
6. DIVISION OF THE PSALMS
The Five Books of Psalms
“The Pentateuch of Praise”
Books
(Psalms)
Authors
(total)
Number of
Psalms
Closing
Doxology
Divine
Names
Possible
Compiler
Possible
Dates of
Compilation
Book 1
(1-41)
Book 2
(42-72)
David (18)
Korah (7)
Asaph (1)
Solomon
(1)
Book 3
(73-89)
Asaph (11)
Korah (4)
David (1)
Heman (1)
Ethan (1)
41
31
41:13
72:18-19
David (37)
Yahweh
(273)
Elohim (15)
David
(72:20)
1020-970
Book 4
(90-106)
Book 5
(107-150)
David (2)
Moses (1)
David (15)
Solomon
(1)
17
17
44
89:52
106:48
150:1-6
Elohim (207)
Yahweh (74)
Yahweh (339)
Elohim (7)
Ezra(?)
Before 430 B.C.
Patterned
after the
Pentateuch
Concludes
with a
doxology
7. CATEGORIES OF PSALMS
A) Introduction
I) It was Hermann Gunkel (1862-1932) who classified Psalms under
several major forms:
(1) Lament
(2) Hymns (the psalmist praises God directly)
(3) Songs of Thanksgivings
(4) Royal/Messianic psalms and
(5) Other Minor Types include
B) Literary Classifications
I) Introduction
(1) A large segment of the psalms follow some predictable literary
forms. Broadly speaking, 3 main categories are observable:
* Laments
* Hymns
* Songs of Thanksgiving
II) Lament Psalms
(1) Lament Psalms are a call for help from God in the midst of an
individual or national distress.
(2) “Laments outnumber every other kind of psalm in the Psalter;
almost a third of the psalms belong to this category.”
(3) Form:
(a) Introduction
(b) Lament
(c) Confession of Trust
(d) Petition
(e) Vow of Praise
(4) Individual Lament
(a) These are psalms by individuals calling God for help from
distress:
(b) Most psalms fall into this category than any others.
(c) At times, these laments are representative of the people at
large even though “I” is used in terms of “we.” (E.g., PS 89).
(d) Example: Psalm 13 – A Cry of Help from God
Example: Psalm 13 – A Cry of Help from God
(1) The Complaint of the Psalmist (1-2)
1
How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?
(2) The Cry for Assistance (3-4)
3
Look on me and answer, O LORD my God
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;
4 my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
(3) The Confession of Trust (5-6)
5
But I trust in your unfailing love;
My heart rejoices in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the LORD,
for he has been good to me.
(5) Communal Lament (e.g., Ps 12; 44; 60; 74; 79-80; 83; 85; 90; 126)
(a) National laments are corporate cries for help in view of some
national situation.
(b) Example: Psalm 79 – A Lament over the Destruction of
Jerusalem.
(6) Songs of Trust
(a) A form of lament where there is less lamentation and more
declaration of trust in God. These psalms usually include
statements declaring, “my refuge is in God” (62:7), “trust” in
God (40:3-4), etc.
(7) Imprecatory Psalms
(a) Definition - A psalm in which a prayer of judgment on the
psalmist’s enemies is the leading feature.
III) Hymns
(1) Declarative Praise
(a) These psalms report that God has acted in the past in response to a
specific need of an individual or the entire community.
(b) Form:
(i) Proclamation to Praise God (begins with “I will” phrase)
(ii) Introductory Summary (often one sentence)
(iii) Historical Overview
(iv) Renewed Vow of Praise
(v) Descriptive Praise and/or instruction
(c) Example: Psalm 30
(2) Descriptive Praise
(a) These psalms call upon a specific person or group of people to praise
God for His character and acts in the present (e.g., goodness and
greatness).
(b) Form:
(i) Call to Praise
(ii) Cause to Praise
(iii) Conclusion
(c) Example: Psalm 111
(IV) Songs of Thanksgiving
(1) These were meant to be used when a crisis had been resolved
and the complaint had been answered. (E.g., Ps 30; 32; 34;
40:1-10; 66; 116; 138).
(2) Form:
(a) Resolution to give thanks
(b) Introductory Summary
(c) Recollection of time of need
(d) Report of Petition
(e) Generalized Teaching
(f) Renewed Thanksgiving
(3) Example: Ps 116
D)
I)
II)
III)
IV)
V)
Hebrew Classification (from the Superscriptions)
Tehilla (Praise)
Mizmor (Psalm)
Sir (Song)
Tepilla (Prayer)
Maskil (may mean “instruction” or “contemplation,” though its
precise sense is unknown)
VI) Miktam (Uncertain meaning)
VII) Siggayon (Unknown meaning)
VIII)Song of Ascents
8. THE PSLAMS AND ISRAEL’S WORSHIP
A) “Already at the time of the translation of the Hebrew Old Testament
into Greek (about 250 B.C.), the translators acknowledged the use
of certain psalms for each day of the week except the third and the
fifth days.”
B) The Mishnah (Tamid 7.4) prescribed certain psalms to be sung in the
Temple after the offering of the sacrifice for each day of the week.
I) First day- Psalm 24 (begins with God’s creation of the world)
II) Second day- Psalm 48
III) Third day- Psalm 82
IV) Fourth day- Psalm 94
V) Fifth day- Psalm 81
VI) Sixth day- Psalm 93
VII) Seventh day- Psalm 92 (the title indicates it is to be used
for the Sabbath)
8. THE PSLAMS AND ISRAEL’S WORSHIP
C) Psalm use at festivals
I) The Hallel psalms (Pss. 113-18) were to be used at the New
Moon, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, and Dedication.
II) Psalm 7 was used at Purim
III) Psalm 12 was used for the eighth day of Tabernacles.
IV) Psalm 30 was used for the Feast of Dedication
V) Psalm 47 was used for New Year
VI) Psalms 98 and 104 for New Moon
VII) The Penitential Psalms (Pss. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143) were
used for the Day of Atonement.
VIII)Songs of Ascent (e.g., Pss.120–134) were probably sung by the
Jewish pilgrims going up to Jerusalem to celebrate the three
major festivals each year.