Category: Psalms
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psalm 22 (3)… suffering physical and social
12 Many bulls encompass me; strong bulls of Bashan surround me; 13 they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; 15 my strength is…
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psalm 22 (2)… spiritual suffering
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of…
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psalm 22 (1)… introduction
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of…
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if the foundations are destroyed what can the righteous do?
Psalm 11 1 In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, “Flee like a bird to your mountain, 2 for behold, the wicked bend the bow; they have fitted their arrow to the string. to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart; 3 if the foundations are destroyed,…
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psalm 2… the king reigns
I am attempting to give a précis of the psalm rather than a full exposition. You can judge how successful I’ve been.I find being short difficult. Psalm 2 1 Why do the nations rageand the peoples plot in vain?2 The kings of the earth set themselves,and the rulers take counsel together,against the LORD and against…
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psalm 148… universal hallelujahs
Psalm 148 1 Praise the LORD!Praise the LORD from the sky!Praise him in the heavens!2 Praise him, all his angels!Praise him, all his heavenly assembly!3 Praise him, O sun and moon!Praise him, all you shiny stars!4 Praise him, O highest heaven,and you waters above the sky!5 Let them praise the name of the LORD,for he…
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psalm 60… a prayer for difficult days
TO THE CHOIRMASTER: ACCORDING TO SHUSHAN EDUTH. A MIKTAM OF DAVID; FOR INSTRUCTION; WHEN HE STROVE WITH ARAM-NAHARAIM AND WITH ARAM-ZOBAH, AND WHEN JOAB ON HIS RETURN STRUCK DOWN TWELVE THOUSAND OF EDOM IN THE VALLEY OF SALT. 1 O God, you have rejected us, broken our defences; you have been angry; oh, restore us.…
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psalm 16… I set the Lord always before me
1 Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. 2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” 3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight. 4 The sorrows of those who run after…
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psalm 132… a prayer for the king
Remember, O LORD, in David’s favor,all the hardships he endured,2 how he swore to the LORDand vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,3 “I will not enter my houseor get into my bed,4 I will not give sleep to my eyesor slumber to my eyelids,5 until I find a place for the LORD,a dwelling place…
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psalm 143… a prayer for help based on God’s mercy
1 Hear my prayer, O LORD;give ear to my pleas for mercy!In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!2 Enter not into judgment with your servant,for no one living is righteous before you.3 For the enemy has pursued my soul;he has crushed my life to the ground;he has made me sit in darkness like those…
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psalm 143… my spirit faints within me… you are my God
Psalm 143 is a psalm of David. Here as in many other psalms he no doubt voices the prayer of many of the godly in Israel. The psalm is the last of four similar psalms of lament (141-144). It has been classed among the penitential psalms since David acknowledges his sin (v1). However, there is…
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psalm 24… who is the king of glory?
1 The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof,the world and those who dwell therein,2 for he has founded it upon the seasand established it upon the rivers.3 Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?And who shall stand in his holy place?4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,who does not…
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psalm 23… the lord is my shepherd
Psalm 23 1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.He leads me beside still waters.3 He restores my soul.He leads me in paths of righteousnessfor his name’s sake.4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,I will fear no evil,for you…
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psalm 137… remembering zion
1 By the waters of Babylon,there we sat down and wept,when we remembered Zion.2 On the willows therewe hung up our lyres.3 For there our captorsrequired of us songs,and our tormentors, mirth, saying,“Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”4 How shall we sing the LORD’s songin a foreign land?5 If I forget you, O…
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imprecation
When we read the OT we come across imprecatory passages. Imprecations invoke God’s judgement upon the writer’s enemies. They cry for vengeance and call down curse, calamity, and destruction and sometimes in stomach churning ways. For example, in Psalm 137 the writer exclaims to the Babylonians, ‘ 9 Blessed shall he be who takes your…
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psalm 8… how majestic is your name in all the earth
Psalm 8 1 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I look at your heavens,…
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psalm 118… the steadfast love of the lord
I1 Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;for his steadfast love endures forever!2 Let Israel say,“His steadfast love endures forever.3 Let the house of Aaron say,“His steadfast love endures forever.”4 Let those who fear the LORD say,“His steadfast love endures forever”5 Out of my distress I called on the LORD;the LORD answered…
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psalm 84… seeking the lord
Geoff Grogan along with others believes this Psalm is a pilgrim song for use at the the three annual pilgrim feasts. Its writer as a son of Korah would have a Levitical background making him familiar with the temple although he seems to be away from it. Although the main focus of Psalm 84 is…
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do not cast me off in my old age…psalm 71
Psalm 71 9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent. …18 So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, I have now reached my 65th year. I know many in their mid-sixties do not feel old. In…
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psalm 87… born in zion
psalm 87 1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded; 2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. 3 Glorious things of you are spoken, O city of God. Selah 4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; behold, Philistia and Tyre,…
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psalm 98… joy to the world
Psalm 98 (which echoes Ps 96) is part of a series of Psalms (Ps 93-100) that celebrate the reign of God (Ps 93:1). In them, the Lord is king (98:6) and reigns, not simply in the general sense he has always reigned, but in a specific sense; God’s anticipated kingdom has arrived. The Lord has…
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psalm 102
Psalm 102 In Luke’s gospel we read, ‘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.’(Lk 24:24). The key to…
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psalm 93… the Lord reigns
1 The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. 2 Your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting. 3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted…
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psalm 131… a childlike trust
Psalm 131 1 O LORD, my heart is not lifted up;my eyes are not raised too high;I do not occupy myself with thingstoo great and too marvelous for me.2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul,like a weaned child with its mother;like a weaned child is my soul within me.3 O Israel, hope in…
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psalm 45… the king in his beauty
Psalm 45 This Psalm is a song in praise of the King on his wedding day. As a youngster, I was acquainted with this psalm, not so much the psalm itself, as a popular hymn of the day that was based on the psalm. The words of the song always evoked within me without me…
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psalm 91… encouragement to trust in difficult times
This Psalm is one that Christians often turn to in times of distress. It is a great source of blessing and strength to lean heavily upon God and his Word in times of trouble. As his people we lean on him at all times but in times of trouble trust digs deeper and looks to…
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psalm 139 the god who searches
Psalm 139 Systematic Theology is a discipline of Christian theology. It assumes, rightly, that the Bible is a unity and on the basis of this ‘formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith’. When discussing the doctrine of God it traditionally refers to his ‘communicable and incommunicable’ attributes.…
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psalm 90
psalm 90 A prayer of Moses the man of God. 1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. 2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. 3 You turn people back to dust, saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.” 4 A thousand years in…
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psalm 110
Psalm 110 A Psalm of David. 1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” 2 The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies! 3 Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power,…
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psalm 2
Psalm 2 1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, 3 “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.” 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the…
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psalm 22 (2)
spiritual distress Without doubt the fundamental agony of the psalm is spiritual (though we must avoid making physical, mental and spiritual discrete categories; his spiritual anguish is clearly mental and has physical effects as his heart melts like wax). His distress flows above all from divine abandonment. The difference between David and Jesus is that…
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psalm 22 (1)
Psalm 22 This is a psalm of David. The Zondervan Study Bible comments in its notes, ‘The first part focuses on David as an individual experiencing unmatched suffering in his person. In the second part, David returns to his accustomed role as king, thanking God before the people and extending his vision to the nations.’…
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psalm 21
1 The king rejoices in your strength, Lord. How great is his joy in the victories you give! 2 You have granted him his heart’s desire and have not withheld the request of his lips. 3 You came to greet him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head. 4…
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a new year confession… the lord is my helper
‘I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? A new year opens before us with its fresh prospects and challenges. Our world is a more dangerous place than it was even a year ago. How can we enter 2016 fearlessly and with hope? The answer is simple; we…
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songs of the son… christ in the psalms
Unlike some church traditions , the one with which I am most familiar did not use the Psalmody, nor were there liturgical readings and as a consequence the Psalms were less familiar, certainly less memorised. What was stressed, however, was that they revealed Christ. This Christological hermeneutic (that they spoke of Christ) was clearly correct.…
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preaching about suicide
First of all, a further apology for such a time between posts. Productivity is likely to remain low over the next couple of months so apologies again in advance. On a recent Sunday past, a group of students from a nearby Bible College were responsible for our Morning Bible Hour. Their preacher was a young…
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the psalms – experiences of ot faith realized and resolved in christ
The Psalms are the expression of faith in Israel. They reveal the complexity of thoughts and feelings that were the response of faith to the experience of life in the old covenant. Moreover, they gave individual Israelites the language and thought-forms to express and interpret their own experience according to faith. If they express the…
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the story’s end is vital to rightly read the story
Douglas Green, in discussing Psalm 8 (here) makes this important and wise observation: ‘biblical texts should be read (by and large) in the context of the unfolding story of redemption. The meaning of a text varies depending on the way it is related to the larger story in which it is embedded. Each part of…
Cave Adullam 