Truly understanding psalms

[healiheal242526]

I have a plan where I read psalms according to the day of the month.

Like today is the 8th so I read 8 and then add 30 till I read 5 of them.

And in proverbs I read one according to the date, today is the 8th so I read proverbs 8.

My question is, what is the best way to truly understand psalms. How do I fully grasp what king David is trying to say?

Should I just take in the positive things he says? And ignore the things such as when it talks about anger and destruction?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[dysert]

My question is, what is the best way to truly understand psalms. How do I fully grasp what king David is trying to say?

Should I just take in the positive things he says? And ignore the things such as when it talks about anger and destruction?

Thanks for the advice.

I'm no expert at understanding the psalms, but I'll gladly offer my 2 cents. First of all, don't ignore anything. *All* of it is God's Word, so the "bad" stuff is just as inspired as the "good" stuff. In fact, often times I can relate better to the bad stuff and take some comfort that if the "man after God's own heart" had such problems, then I don't feel so bad.

Secondly, remember that the psalms are poetry. Everything you read there isn't going to be literal teaching (as it would be, for example, in Romans). Unfortunately, I've never "gotten" poetry, so I don't have much to offer in the way of applying the stuff.

Finally, keep it up. The more of the Word you can absorb the better off you'll be!

 

[healiheal242526]

Thank you

 

[ebia]

The psalms aren't there to help us construct a systematic theology. They are there to be prayed; to help us to express all our feelings to God. Including anger, despair, ... all the bad stuff.

 

[Fireinfolding]

Heres a few verses, says if any are merry to sing pslams here

James 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

As here...

1Ch 16:9 Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works.

Jesus references what is noted of himself in the psalms

Luke 20:42 And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,

　And later says...

Luke 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.


The apostles show the same speaking of the ressurection


Acts 13:33 God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.

References another psalm here...

Acts 13:35 Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.


Way more ofcourse, including Judas too, Though I am partial toward finding those things which speak of Jesus Christ in various ways (he would come with that)

So, the good the bad and the ugly are all spoken of in there, just keep familiarizing yourself with them, good job

 

[Knee V]

The Psalms are the story of Christ - His eternality, His consubstantiality with the Father, His perfect life, His betrayal, His suffering, His death, His burial, His resurrection, His conquering of His enemies, etc. Look for Christ in the Psalms and you will find Him everywhere.

 

[childofdust]

My question is, what is the best way to truly understand psalms. How do I fully grasp what king David is trying to say?

Should I just take in the positive things he says? And ignore the things such as when it talks about anger and destruction?

Thanks for the advice.

I have just started (finally) my summer project. Can you guess what it is? That's right: psalms! Though most of that is reading and translating the Hebrew, I am also digging into some key resources...both old and brand-new...and hopefully breaking open the Greek. So tell you what, if I think of some keen insights or summary details, I'll post them here. Deal?

For now, I'll just note something interesting... the three texts referred to most often in the New Testament... the three texts that outnumber all others among the Dead Sea Scrolls... are Psalms, Deuteronomy, and Isaiah. One Law, one Prophet, one Writing. There's something uniquely special about the Psalms... Perhaps it's the closeness of the human spirit... maybe it's the grandeur of the divine worship... I don't know. But maybe I can find the trail of it through my summer studies.

Peace.

 

[childofdust]

I have a plan where I read psalms according to the day of the month.

Most of the psalms have a specific temple/liturgical context. They were read at different times and events. If you want to read them according to a specific day, you could follow the way they were read in the ancient world (at least at some level). For instance, you could read them as they were read daily:

Sunday: Psalm 24
Mon: Psalm 48
Tues: Psalm 82
Wed: Psalm 94
Thurs: Psalm 81
Fri: Psalm 93
Sat: Psalm 92

This list is recorded in the Talmud (b. Rosh Hashana 31), but it is verified in some of the Psalms themselves:

Psalm 24 in the LXX reads "on the first of the Sabbath [week]"
Psalm 94 in the LXX reads "on the fourth of the Sabbath [week]"
Psalm 93 in the LXX reads "on the day before the Sabbath"
Psalm 92 in the MT reads "for the Sabbath day" and in the LXX "in regard to the Sabbath day"

 

[x141]

The Psalms are prophetic, like knee-v said, as is the whole of The Word of God which is summed up and is The Son, but even these (as a warning) the jews had turned into law, something of gain.; this is subtle and slippery as a serpent.

 

[childofdust]

The Psalms are prophetic, like knee-v said, as is the whole of The Word of God which is summed up and is The Son

I hope to see how this might be so as I do my studies this summer!

but even these (as a warning) the jews had turned into law, something of gain.; this is subtle and slippery as a serpent.

Careful with your words, brother, they come across as racial and anti-semitic. And that is anti-Christ. "The Jews" are not subtle and slippery as a serpent in turning psalms into Law. Some Jews are. Just as some Christians are.

 

[Knee V]

I hope to see how this might be so as I do my studies this summer!

Looking just at the first three Psalms gives a basic account of the life of Christ.

1) Blessed is "The Man", and it continues to describe Christ's life of perfection.
2) Now we find "The Man" being plotted against by the world (we see that when Judas betrayed Him and when He was arrested and given his "trial" before His crucifixion), but the Father declaring Who the Anointed One is how He will set Him over His enemies
3) This time, that same conflict is seen from the point of view of "The Man", and how He cries out to the Father to deliver Him. It also tells of His resurrection in the context of the struggle with His persecuters "I lay down and slept. I awoke again, for the LORD sustained me."

Just those three Psalms taken together paint the basic picture of who Jesus is, how the world came against Him, and how He overcame His enemies through His resurrection.

 

[x141]

I hope to see how this might be so as I do my studies this summer!



Careful with your words, brother, they come across as racial and anti-semitic. And that is anti-Christ. "The Jews" are not subtle and slippery as a serpent in turning psalms into Law. Some Jews are. Just as some Christians are.

To me jews, gentiles, harlots, the law of moses, Jesus, woman, soul, city, harvest, new moon, David, Saul, Solomon, the Two Enoch's, the two Lemech's etc. etc. etc. .... are prophetic in nature all showing a picture or a revealing of the path; a sending forth, a point in time, and a returning.

It is the Adamic nature to name things.

You can not be judge without the judgment taking hold of you. You will find this also in the Pslams.

 

[Thomas Kelly guessed]

healiheal242526,

I have a plan where I read psalms according to the day of the month.

Like today is the 8th so I read 8 and then add 30 till I read 5 of them.

And in proverbs I read one according to the date, today is the 8th so I read proverbs 8.

My question is, what is the best way to truly understand psalms. How do I fully grasp what king David is trying to say?

Should I just take in the positive things he says? And ignore the things such as when it talks about anger and destruction?

Thanks for the advice.

If no one has offered, you may look at documents of one known as an Early Church Father in ST. AUGUSTIN: EXPOSITIONS ON THE BOOK OF PSALMS in Christian Classics Ethereal Library website.

If you go to the website, look for Browse, then choose Author, then listed under A at the bottom of the list you may see Augustine, Saint (354-430) , then you may need to click on a small square like symbol to reveal the list of literature. You may look for NPNF1-08. St. Augustine: Exposition on the Book of Psalms.

If you want to change the background to white on CCEL web page then look to top right hand corner of web page for small mechanical symbol and click on it and choose and you may change font size.

To look at the contents of the works, look towards top left hand corner for the lines symbol next to Prev and click on it.

If you ever need knowledge of the bible, the works of the ones known as Early Church Fathers may be most beneficial.

At CCEL or Christian Classics Ethereal Library you may use the literature of the ones known as Early Church Fathers. At the website click on Home and click on Church Fathers.

 

[childofdust]

I've begun reading, studying, and translating what's called the "Royal" Psalms. They are psalms that specifically refer to the Israelite King as an individual. Here is a partial list so you get an idea:

Psalm 2 – an enthronement oracle - the king is regarded son of the god and given dominion
Psalm 18 – thanksgiving psalm by king to YHWH for help and victory in battle
Psalm 20 – gifts/burned offerings given to YHWH before battle and reply when YHWH answers favorably
Psalm 21 – intercession and invocation of blessing on the king
Psalm 28 – the king asks for help in sickness
Psalm 45 – praise of the king on his wedding day
Psalm 61 – the king asks for deliverance from danger

I am slowly translating all of them. You can read my translations here.

There will be changes along the way so don't feel like my translations are final. The end of the name of the Psalms PDF will have a number (-XXX) that tells you how many psalms are translated. Since I currently only have Psalm 2, it is -001.

 

[DamianWarS]

The psalms are fairly easy to understand in a biblical exegesis perspective. They in fact are commonly used in exegetical teaching because each psalm is its own context and is wrapped up in its own story so it is good for teaching. When we analize the Pslams it actually can help us understand how to approach scripture. Most psalms can be interpreted the same way and the same principals are used. For example Psalm 1:

1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the advice of the wicked;
nor does he stand in the way of sinners;
nor does he sit in the assembly of mockers.

verse 1 is very common in Psalms and Hebrew poetry where something is repeated in a different way but essentially is talking about the same thing. Notice the differences, "walk in the advice of the wicked", "stand in the way of sinners" and "sit in the assembly of mockers". walk, stand and sit and wicked, sinners and mockers are all examples of the same thing Without even looking at the hebrew you can get an idea of the scope of what the psalmist is trying to communication and know that the wicked, the sinners and the mockers all have something in common and all share in the definition that the psalmist is trying to articulate that we should avoid.

2 Instead, in the law of Yahweh is his delight,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

when it comes to Psalm words like "but" "instead" "therefore" and so on are key words that you should look for. They commonly help explain the psalm and many times turn the focus into a different direction. Psalm 1 goes back and forth but other psalms are more clear cut where the points are. What is happening here in verse 1 and verse 2 is a contrasting focus. It is an antithesis where something is described as the "wrong way" then the contrast of the "right way" is explained. Both can be used to explain the point. In the case of verse 1 we learned to not walk, stand or sit among the wicked, sinners or mockers and in verse 2 we are told to to delight in the law. "his delight" is verse 1's "blessed is the man"

3 And so, he is like a tree planted by streams of water
that gives its fruit in its season;
its leaf also does not wither.
Therefore all that he does prospers.

Verse 3 emphasizes the blessings of the man who does not walk, stand or sit among the wicked, sinners or mockers and who delights in the law. Its emphasis is about prosperity again repeating the same thing over in the example of a tree planted. We see that "steams of water" and "fruit in its season" and a "leaf that does not wither" are all examples of the same thing which the verse shows us describing it as prosperity.

4 Not so the wicked.
Instead, they are like the chaff that the wind scatters.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

verse 4 and 5 go back to the description of the wicked. When it comes to the psalms repeated words or themes are key and use them to compare the points. Here we learn that the wicked are like the chaff that blows in the wind and because of this they will not "stand in the judgment" or in the "congregation of the righteous". To me that sounds like similar wording as verse 1 and this is common in the psalms. Putting them together helps us see the main point. Blessed is the man who does not... walk, stand sit... and here we see that the wicked will not stand... and will not be in the congregation (sitting) of the righteous.

6 for Yahweh knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

the last verse in the psalms or the last few verse is a key to sort of summing up the entire psalm. Psalm 1 has a lot of talk of standing, walking, sitting all words that are analogous to a way. The last verse confirms the true way which is the way of God and the contrasting way in the psalm is the way of those who will perish.

Most psalms have a similar flow and use the same things to make its points. commonly psalms will start off describing a negative side sometimes about the wicked or some state of depression and then will end off in an uplifting perspective talking about their security in God, his grace and forgiveness or some idea that the righteous will prevail.

Key things in psalms is to look for are verses that are repeating themselves and then study the words it uses and compare them together. look for specific words in psalms that are repeated or simply retold in a different way and use those areas to compare or contrast the point being made. And look for contrasting points because both together explain the main focus. Also look for key words like "but" or "therefore" to see where the turning point of the psalm happens and then look to the end of the psalm to see how it is wrapped up. Each psalm has one main point the key is to find it and use that to see how the psalms shows it throughout its text. Use your bible's headings and paragraphs to help figure out where new points are made and what is being told. You may not like the paraphrase "The Message" but it actually does a wonderful job at putting together the whole thought instead of individual verses which can be confusing. You don't have to read The Message but open it up (or find an online version like on biblegateway.com) and use its verse separations to help you interpret where these points can be made. For example in Psalm 1 in The Message the verses are broken up as follows: 1, 2-3, 4-5 and 6. And these are the correct changes and new points in the chapter and can help you know where the chapter takes on a new focus. Usually words like "therefore" or paragraph markers can accomplish the same thing but you can use other bibles to help you figure it out as well. Again you don't have to even read the message but just look at how it breaks up the verses.

If you can master the psalms it will help you apply correct methods to interpret the rest of the bible its just with the psalms its a little easier because the context is all reveled in its chapter and is less overwhelming but it is great practice.

 

[childofdust]

Thanks! I'm REALLY enjoying translating the Psalms. The Hebrew poetry is incredible. And I love making it into English poetry as well. I think Psalms could easily become one of my favorite texts in the bible. It has everything... and in small, digestible chunks as well

These, in chariots—and those, in cavalry—

but we, in the name of YHWH our god, do vaunt.
​

--Psalm 20:8, the heavenly fire