Psalms – Hymns and Prayers of God’s people
Book 1: Psalms 3 to 41
We continue our journey through the psalms of “Book 1”. We will follow last month and just pick two psalms and look at them in more depth. I hope this encourages you to spend more time in the Psalms.
Psalm 27
When I was young, I often had relatives (on my Mum’s side) ask me what my favourite psalm was. This had also been asked of me at the Methodist Sunday School I regularly attended. I didn’t want to be like most others and say Psalm 23 (nothing wrong of course with having that as your favourite psalm!). So, after looking through a handful of them I picked Psalm 27. I thought we could look at it more deeply as part of this study. In case you are curious, if asked today, I would say Psalm 51.
Read this psalm out loud, preferably in a few different Bible versions.
Some commentators see this psalm as being part of a liturgical service, with a sacrifice (or some activity) happening after v6.
How would you describe the theme of the first half (v1–6) of this psalm? How about the second half (v7–14)?
How does this psalm fit in with what Paul says in Romans 8:31?
It should not surprise us to see our New Testament writers agreeing with our Old Testament ones. The Psalms are a great resource for building on what we encounter in our New Testament. The more you make the psalms part of your devotional life, the more you will see that Paul, Peter, John and the other writers of the New Testament were also immersed in the psalms.
In the second half of this psalm we see David, after establishing his assurance that God is with him, turn to his need for God.
What does the face of Lord mean in vv8,9?
What are the things that David asks for in vv7–14?
David finishes this psalm with a petition to wait for the Lord. He may be saying this to himself, but it reads more as though he is saying it to us as his readers. When our Lord needs us to wait, we at times see that as him saying, “No!” or worse accuse him of not listening. Verse 14 is what David has learnt from his journey with the Lord, and he encourages us to do likewise.
Do you find it easy to wait for the Lord?
Following a bit of grumbling some of us pastors were doing, a fellow pastor (a Pentecostal pastor from Nigeria and a good friend) said to us with a wonderful smile on his face: “It is good that God has more patience with me than I have with my congregation”. We are often impatient with others, often impatient with God. Praise the Lord that he is so much more patient with us – may he grant us his patience through his Spirit.
Psalm 38
Read this psalm out loud, preferably in a few different Bible versions.
What is this psalm about?
In this psalm, David cries out to the Lord for help. He knows that he has sinned and knows that he deserves punishment – but the weight of it all is too much. He pleads to God for mercy.
Luther said the following concerning v2:
It is the sensitive into whose heart God shoots the arrows. From the smug, who have become hardened, the arrows glance off as from a hard stone. And this continues as long as the words are spoken by the preaching of man without the co-operation and the inner penetration of God*.
How does Luther’s insight affect your understanding of this psalm?
The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin and leads us to the foot of the cross. Through all that our Lord Jesus has done, we know that we can receive forgiveness. This psalm helps us to remember the importance of confession within our cries for help.
Where in this psalm does David confess his sin?
How does this psalm and what has been discussed so far, fit in with what Paul says in Romans 8:1,2?
We have here a petition that David wrote, and one that may echo some of your cries to the Lord. We can also come before the Lord when we are suffering from our sinful choices – even when we are suffering from our own foolishness. However, we are also called to intercede for others.
What parts of this psalm would be useful in petitioning our Father in a prayer for someone else?
Concluding Prayer: Gracious Father, thank you for all that you have done for me. May your Holy Spirit continue to work in me drawing me to you, so that like David I can bring to you all my emotions, all my needs and all my desires. Grant me patience. Forgive my impatience and anxiousness. Keep my eyes focussed on my crucified Lord. Amen.
Conclusion
We’ve only skimmed the surface of all that “Book 1” of the Psalms has to offer. I encourage you to spend more time in the Psalms. A devotional book I have benefited greatly from, and have recommended to many others is:
Keller, Timothy, and Kathy Keller. The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms. New York: Redeemer; Viking, 2015.
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