Reading: Praise Psalms (Video Slides)

#13 Understanding the Variety of Psalm Types and Their Unique Expressions:

Part 3 – Praise

 

Understanding & Using the Psalms

• Individual Lament:

Cries of the individual in times of distress

5,6,10,13,22,26,35,38,39,40,42,43,51,54,55,56,57,59,64,69,70,86,88,102,109,120,130,142,143

• Communal Lament:

Cries of the community in times of distress

60,74,79,80,90,108,123,137

• Hymns of Praise:

Celebrations of Yahweh’s goodness & character

8,9,19,29,30,33,34,65,66,67,68,76,95,96,97,98,99, 100,103,104,111,113,116,117,134,135,138,144,145, 146,147,148,149,150

• Songs of Confidence:

Declarations of trust in Yahweh

3,4,7,11,12,16,17,18,20,23,27,28,31,36,41,46,50,58, 62,63,71,77,82,83,85,89,91,92,93,94,114,115,121,124,125,126,129,139,140,141

• Royal Psalms:

Song in praise of Yahweh as Israel’s true king and the monarch who rules on Yahweh’s behalf

2,21,24,45,47,61,72,110,132

• Psalms of Zion:

“National Anthems” that praise the earthly residence of Yahweh

14,48,53,84,87,122

• “Thank” Psalms:

Expressions of appreciation for Yahweh’s deliverance

75,118,136

• Wisdom or Priestly Instruction:

Poems which contain condensed teachings to be passed along by memorization

1,15,25,32,37,44,49,52,73,78,81,101,105,106,107,112,119,127

Praise

• Character: Celebrations of Yahweh’s goodness and character, and the delights of life that expresses the best of what the Creator intended for us
• Examples: Psalms 8, 9, 19, 29, 30, 33, 34, 65, 66, 67, 68, 76, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 103, 104, 111, 113, 116, 117, 134, 135, 138, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150

 

Praise: Example #1 – Psalm 8

For the director of music. According to gittith.^[b] A psalm of David.

¹ Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory
    in the heavens.
² Through the praise of children and infants
    you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger.
³ When I consider your heavens,
    the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
    which you have set in place,
⁴ what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?

⁵ You have made them a little lower than the angels
    and crowned them with glory and honor.
⁶ You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
    you put everything under their feet:
⁷ all flocks and herds,
    and the animals of the wild,
⁸ the birds in the sky,
    and the fish in the sea,
    all that swim the paths of the seas.

⁹ Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

 

Note these things:

• The Psalm is “enveloped” by the refrain: “Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth.”
• The Psalm has two parts:
  -In the first half, creation is praised with awe for its vastness, and humankind is presented as small
  -In the second half, humanity is praised for its prominence in the Creator’s intentions, and all other things are made subservient
• There is a combined attitude of wonder and pride, all caught up into the larger theme that God, the Creator, is over all
• Still, notice that the transcendent God is “our Lord!”

 

Praise: Example #2 – Psalm 19

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
⁵     It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
    like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
⁶ It rises at one end of the heavens
    and makes its circuit to the other;
    nothing is deprived of its warmth.

The law of the Lord is perfect,
    refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
    making wise the simple.
⁸ The precepts of the Lord are right,
    giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
    giving light to the eyes.
⁹ The fear of the Lord is pure,
    enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
    and all of them are righteous.

¹⁰ They are more precious than gold,
    than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
    than honey from the honeycomb.
¹¹ By them your servant is warned;
    in keeping them there is great reward.

¹² But who can discern their own errors?
    Forgive my hidden faults.
¹³ Keep your servant also from willful sins;
    may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
    innocent of great transgression.

¹⁴ May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
    be pleasing in your sight,
    Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

 

Note These Things

• The Psalm has two parts and a prayer
  -Part one lauds the glory of God in Creation
  -Part two celebrates the glory of God in Revelation
  -The prayer seeks divine assistance in right living in creation through the guidance of revelation
• Praise involves knowing one’s place before God
• Sin and sinfulness are assumed as innate to the human condition
• Right living results from knowing the glory of God and the righteousness of God’s character revealed

 

Praise: Example #3 – Psalm 100

A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

¹ Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
²     Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the Lord is God.
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

 

Note These Things

• Note the title. This Psalm has always evoke praise.
• Notice the variety of metaphors used to describe God’s relationship with God’s people, and the people’s relationship with God.
• Note that this Psalm is particularly intended as a song of praise at the beginning of worship, as God’s people are gathering in the Temple.

 

Praise: Example #4 – Psalm 134

A song of ascents.

¹ Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
    who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
² Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
    and praise the Lord.

³ May the Lord bless you from Zion,
    he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.

 

Note These Things

• Note the title. This Psalm is the final of fifteen “Songs of Ascent” (120-134) that appear to have been a collection within the larger collection of the Psalms, used specifically by Israelite travelers on their way up to Jerusalem of one of the three great festivals each year.
• Notice that the Psalm pictures the travelers finally arriving in Jerusalem, late in the day, but first heading to the Temple for worship.
• Note the posture of prayer (standing, with upraised arms).
• Note the character of the culminating blessing.

 

Reflections on Praise

• The vast majority of the Psalms are of this variety.
• Praise is always couched in specific terms, rehearsing who God is or what God has done.
• Praise is always a communal experience. Even when the Psalmists express appreciation to God because of private deliverances, they indicate that they need to call others to praise with them.
• God’s identity is always linked with God’s people and God’s mission.
• Praise is the language of love.