Tag Archives: Psalm

Jan 27 2013

Reading the Psalms

The book of Psalms is 150 poems written for our instruction, pleasure and benefit in prayer and praise to God.  They were used by the Jews and early Christians for songs of praise, and indeed many of the songs we sing in worship today God come from these pages.  Traditionally, they have been divided into five books, perhaps to signify the five books of the Pentateuch. It has the most authors of any book in the Bible.  Many we know or surmise by the superscripts, which though not inspired are ancient.  David is ascribed as the author of  73 of these and the new Testament also credits him with Psalm 2 (Acts 4:25) and Psalm 95 (Hebrews 4:7).

 

English: The Psalms scroll, one of the Dead Se...

English: The Psalms scroll, one of the Dead Sea scrolls. Hebrew transcription included. English translation available here. Français : le rouleau des Psaumes, l’un des manuscrits de la mer Morte. Une transcription en hébreu moderne est incluse. Une traduction anglaise est disponible ici. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

This aligns very well with what the Book of Samuel tells us.  He was brought to Saul when he was king by his servants because of his skill in playing the Lyre (1 Samuel 16:16-23).  He was an accomplished songwriter, having written the song of the Bow lament in 2 Samuel 1:17-27, and his song of deliverance in 2 Samuel 22:1:23:7.   2 Samuel 23:1 calls him the sweet psalmist of Israel. The sons of Korah are attributed with about 25 psalms.  Korah was the grandson of Kohath who along with some of the Reubenites, rebelled against God, challenging Moses in Numbers 16. After his death, his sons were spared in Numbers 26:9-11, and under King David became great leaders of song and praise in the Temple and Tabernacle (1 Chronicles 6:31-39), responsible for such lines as “As the Deer Panteth for the Water.”   They are not in chronological order, else Psalm 95 would likely be first, as it is attributed to Moses.

 

More to come in another blog, but I will leave you with a link to an article that has tips for studying a Psalm, that I think are quite useful.  Please see “8 steps to Study a Psalm” and download the PDF for reference.

 

Summing Up

 

Each weekend, I post a small PDF of one week of chapter summaries (on the website’s “Summaries” page), current to the beginning of the previous week.  I have posted the summary for Week 3 (January 2013 Week 3) of the schedule I am following this year.  This short PDF documents contains condensed comments about Psalm 119:1-8, Psalm 1, Proverbs 10, Psalms 3-4, Job 1, and Psalm 9, with hyperlinks to the ESV version of each chapter for listening or reading, and joins the summaries for other weeks already posted there.

 

/Bob’s boy

 

___________________

 

image © V. Gilbert & Arlisle F. Beers

 

Please note: I did not design the reading plan that I am following in my blog.  All of my comments in this blog, however, are solely my responsibility.  When reading ANY commentary, you should ALWAYS refer first to the scripture, which is God’s unchanging and unfailing word. Reading schedules, as well as a link to the site where you can get the reading plan that I’m currently following for yourself can be found on the “Bible Reading Schedules” page of my website at http://graceofourlord.com.  For questions and help, please see the “FAQ” and “Summaries” pages there.

 

Dec 31 2012

January 2013 Reading Schedule Posted!

A big thank you to all who have read this blog during 2012!  While this blog is certainly not ever going to be the most popular WordPress “hangout,” we did just receive some statistics that are encouraging.  For example, the post on Peter’s rescue in Acts 12 received 652 views in one day. Not what we expected in the first year!  Thank you!

Here is the link to the 2013 reading schedule for January (January 2013 Reading Schedule).  In 2013, this blog will focus on the “Wisdom Literature” with a unique approach to Proverbs, Psalms, Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Job, and as a special was to end 2013 the last week in December, the Book of James (often referred to as the “Proverbs of the New Testament”).  The first two weeks (beginning tomorrow 01/01/2013) we will read the first 9 chapters of Proverbs.  Theses chapters introduce the book, and what we actually know as “proverbs” do not really begin until chapter 10.

Psalm 1, Verse 1 and 2 in Biblia Hebraica Stut...

Psalm 1, Verse 1 and 2 in Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After those two weeks, we will settle into a schedule that adds variety to the five days per week of reading these books.  Each Monday in the first half of the year, we will read 8 verses of the longest chapter in the entire Bible – the 119th Psalm (with other, shorter Psalms included on many of those days).  This is a great Psalm that praises God and His word; and it is very rich in inspiration.  We will take a second look at these verses (and other Psalms) in the second half of the year from a fresh perspective. On Tuesdays, we will be reading from Proverbs with a similar approach.

On Wednesdays, we will be reading what are commonly called “lament” Psalms.  These are tremendously valuable in helping us with learning to call upon the Lord when life becomes very difficult, and even as tragedy and pain come our way.  Thursdays, we will read from the Book of Job, and on Fridays, we will be reading from other Psalms.

We will take a break at the end of June through July, and read through Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon in their entirety, gaining much value learning about life, service to God, and the relationship of husbands and wives to each other.  Then we will resume the previously outlined schedule.

We are looking forward to what promises to be a very rewarding experience in God’s word in 2013!

/Bob’s boy
___________________
some images © V. Gilbert & Arlisle F. Beers

Please note: I did not design the reading plan that I am following in my blog.  All of my comments in this blog, however, are solely my responsibility.  When reading ANY commentary, you should ALWAYS refer first to the scripture, which is God’s unchanging and unfailing word. Reading schedules, as well as a link to the site where you can get the reading plan that I’m currently following for yourself can be found on the “Bible Reading Schedules” page of my website at http://graceofourlord.com.  For questions and help, please see the “FAQ” and “Summaries” pages there.

Dec 11 2012

1 Peter 2 – A Living Stone and a Holy People

Mediterranean Sea near Joppa. Joppa, today called Jaffa, was once the seaport for Jerusalem. Hiram sent cedar logs from Lebanon to King Solomon for the Temple, floating them to Joppa (2 Chronicles 2:15). From Joppa the prophet Jonah ran away from God ( Book of Jonah), sailing from there toward Tarshish. Here Peter raised Tabitha, or Dorcas, from the dead (Acts 9:36-42). Later he was staying here at the house of Simon the Tanner when he saw a vision of unclean animals, which led him to visit Cornelius' house in Caesarea and win him to Christ.

Mediterranean Sea near Joppa. Joppa, today called Jaffa, was once the seaport for Jerusalem. Hiram sent cedar logs from Lebanon to King Solomon for the Temple, floating them to Joppa (2 Chronicles 2:15). From Joppa the prophet Jonah ran away from God ( Book of Jonah), sailing from there toward Tarshish. Here Peter raised Tabitha, or Dorcas, from the dead (Acts 9:36-42). Later he was staying here at the house of Simon the Tanner when he saw a vision of unclean animals, which led him to visit Cornelius’ house in Caesarea and win him to Christ.

Peter continues his admonishment to be holy in this letter, beginning  by urging them to leave behind wickedness, thoughts and deeds of ill will toward others, and to study God’s word.  The reference to the Scriptures as spiritual milk is used in other passages such as Hebrews 5:12 and 1 Corinthians 3:2.  Verse 3’s reference to having “tasted” that the Lord is good, is quoted from Psalm 34:8 appropriately here, as the entire Psalm is about the Lord delivering the righteous who are suffering.  He then describes them as a living stone “rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,”  being built up as a spiritual house, with Jesus as the cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16, Psalm 118:22).

He addresses Christians in verse 9, referring to them with terms that were reserved for Jews in the past – “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation” (Exodus 19:5-6, Deuteronomy 7:6, Isaiah 61:6).  Many of them were Gentiles.  Peter then tells them they must abstain from passions of the flesh, and keep their actions among the Gentiles honorable, referring to unbelievers as “Gentiles.”  Living as a holy people, they must submit to the authority of those who rule, and by doing good amid their suffering and persecution they honor Jesus who suffered, “but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”

The last few verses of the chapter remind them of just how much Jesus suffered for us, and correspond to the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 as follows:

Verse 22 – Isaiah 53:9

Verse 23 – Isaiah 53:7

Verse 24 – Isaiah 53:12, 5

Verse 25 – Isaiah 53:6

Read or listen to audio of ESV version of this selection from this link.

/Bob’s boy
___________________
some images © V. Gilbert & Arlisle F. Beers

Please note: I did not design the reading plan that I am following in my blog.  All of my comments in this blog, however, are solely my responsibility.  When reading ANY commentary, you should ALWAYS refer first to the scripture, which is God’s unchanging and unfailing word. Reading schedules, as well as a link to the site where you can get the reading plan that I’m currently following for yourself can be found on the “Bible Reading Schedules” page of my website at http://graceofourlord.com.  For questions and help, please see the “FAQ” and “Summaries” pages there.