STUDY OF PSALMS - Introduction

Psalm is a book of Hebrew poetry, prayers and praise. It is a collection of songs that run the gamut  of  human emotion...  ALL the emotions.   These expressions  of  the heart are appropriately located in the center of the Bible.  Often raw, always real, forever relatable.

It is different from all the other books of the Bible in that it is not a narrative, yet Psalm is full of prophecy and profound theology.  So much so that it is the most quoted Old Testament book by writers of the New Testament.  Jesus often referred to the Psalms in His teachings, even quoting them from the cross with His dying breath.

The name of the book comes from the Greek word, psalmoi, which means "songs"... specifically, songs that are sung to a stringed instrument (i.e. harp, lyre). The Hebrew title, Tehillim, translates to "praises".  It was written by at least seven different authors over a period of 900 to 1000 years, ranging from the exodus of Moses to the exile of Israel.  It was likely  during or after the Babylonian exile (around 500-400 B.C.) that the scrolls of all 150 Psalms were collected into their final form by Ezra and other religious leaders.  To the Jewish nation separated from their promised land and clinging to the promise of a new king, the finished Book of Psalms represented a hymnbook of HOPE  

Scholars are uncertain as to why the original manuscript of Psalm is divided into five books.  The division certainly isn't based on authorship or chronology, as there is often a lack of cohesive relationship between various chapters.  According to Jewish traditions, the division was created as a purposeful representation of the five books of the Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy), foundational to the faith of Israel.

[Note of Interest:  At least 30 partial or complete manuscripts of the Book of Psalms were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls, the largest collection of any Bible book found there.]

In reading the Psalms, it helps to keep two things in mind: (1) they are ancient Hebrew poems set to music, and (2) ancient Hebrew poetry doesn't rhyme.  Instead of prose, the writers use "parallelism", a style which links ideas in order to show relationship between sequential lines of poetry.  

So... in a 150-chapter nutshell, we have a book filled with poems that do not rhyme, songs that have no music, joyful praises interspersed with heartbreaking lament... in no real order or easily identifiable structure.  And yet, the Book of Psalms remains one of the most beloved books of the Bible among both Jews and Christians.  The cherished hymns of old continue to sustain and renew our hope today, as we find refuge in the God of Moses and David while we wait for our King to return.  

I invite you to join me in this 31-day study of the Psalms.  Hopefully, we will gain a newfound appreciation of these scriptures as we find Christ - both anticipated and fulfilled - smack dab in the heart of our Bible.  

Here's a handy-dandy link to a reading plan (about 5 chapters/day) which you can also use to  send daily chapters to your email via the magic of the interwebs!

https://bibleplan.org/plans/psalms-in-a-month/

TOMMOROW:  Chapters 1-5