Psalms

The book of Psalms contains many of the most cherished verses of the Bible throughout centuries of history. The Psalms were written over a thousand year period across a wide range of Old Testament history, and represent much of Israelite worship and liturgy. It contains prayers to God by individuals as well as prayers designed for corporate use. Some arise out of historical and personal circumstances, while others were written for liturgical contexts. The psalms are arranged into 5 “books” that each end with a benediction, with the first 2 Psalms serving as an introduction to the entire collection and the final five serving as the worship climax. There are many categories of psalms which also span the entire range of human emotion: there are psalms of praise as well as lament, thanksgiving as well as curses, and psalms of wisdom as well as prophetic. There are psalms that represent fear and trust, sorrow over sin, dependence on God in difficult circumstances, thankfulness for God’s care, and confidence in God’s eventual triumph over evil in the world. The psalms have always represented the depths of the human heart and have therefore been able to speak to people from all cultures and times in history. And Jesus himself quoted from the psalms, and taught that they pointed to him. Listen as John teaches from this significant book that still speaks to us exactly where we all live today.