Psalms: The Believer’s Prayer Book

If ever the opportunity arises, students of the Bible should try this experiment: find a piano, lift its lid upright, and sing into it.  It does not matter which note they sing into it; they should merely sing into the piano for about five seconds.  When they stop singing, something amazing happens: the piano “sings” back to them!  The piano has found the note they sang; it has “struck a chord.”

The book of Psalms is like a piano.  Since there are 150 songs in the book, one of them is bound to “sing” its way into the ears of the reader.  Is someone ready to praise the Lord for who He is?  There are psalms that are suitable (19, 66, 113).  Does anyone need assistance focusing upon the Lord’s instructions?  There are psalms that are ready to help (14, 37, 119).  Could someone use a hand with how to rest in the Lord? There are more than a few to read (62, for example).  Need to come clean from a sinful past?  Many psalms will be of benefit (cf. Psalm 51).

Because the book of Psalms has such a variety of poems, there is bound to be one that “fits” the setting of life that readers find themselves in.  What is more, these psalms have a way of “finding” readers just at the most opportune moment.  Although a person can read a particular psalm dozens of times and be unaffected by it, one life event can cause that person to read the same psalm anew and afresh.  Whatever life throws into a person’s way, there is a psalm for every occasion.

Background

The Book of Psalms is an anthology of 150 poems, and they are placed into five collections (“books”): 1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, and 107-150.  Each collection begins with a lovely and fitting anthem, and it concludes with some kind of doxology and benediction.  Although nearly half of the psalms are attributed to David, others are attributed to Asaph, the Sons of Korah, Ethan, Solomon, and Moses.  Several psalms begin with a superscription, which contains hymn tunes, notes to the song leader, and helpful context.  The oldest psalm is attributed to Moses (Psalm 90); the youngest was written in Babylon after 586 B.C. (Psalm 137).

There are five basic categories of psalms in the book.  Hymns are the most simplistic, for they praise God for who God is.  Thanksgiving psalms are more complex, for they praise God for what God has done.  Lament psalms share the pain of the poet’s heart, whether it be sin related, suffering induced, or emotionally burdened.  Royal psalms have something to do with the king, be they coronations (2, 110), weddings (45), or prayers before battle (20).  Wisdom psalms are poems about God’s instructions, and the benefits of learning them.

Dr. Ken Gore

Sample Study Guide Lesson

Sample Teaching Guide Lesson