Psalms

The Psalms are the Bible's own prayer book and hymnal - 150 poems covering the full range of human experience before God. They are the most quoted Old Testament book in the New Testament, the backbone of Jewish liturgy for two millennia, and the foundation of Christian worship from the early church to the present. They have sustained individuals through suffering, given voice to communal grief, and provided the language of praise that no age has been able to improve on. They are also, when read carefully, more theologically complex and more emotionally demanding than their familiarity sometimes suggests.

The Psalms were not written by one author at one time. They are a collection assembled over many centuries, probably reaching their final form after the Babylonian exile. Many psalms carry headings that attribute them to David - and David is clearly the dominant figure in the collection - but scholars understand these headings as editorial notes rather than strict authorship claims. The Hebrew phrase "of David" can indicate authorship, dedication, style, or association with the Davidic tradition. The Psalms of Ascent (120-134) are a clearly defined sub-collection probably used by pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem. The Psalms of Korah and Asaph represent other authorial and liturgical traditions. The collection is diverse in origin and diverse in character.

The most important thing to understand about reading the Psalms is their genre diversity. Hymns of praise (like Psalm 100 and 150) call the community to celebrate God's greatness and goodness. Laments - the most common type - cry out to God in individual or communal distress, often including complaint, petition, and expressions of trust (Psalms 22, 44, 88). Thanksgiving psalms respond to God's deliverance. Royal psalms celebrate the Davidic king and his relationship with God (Psalms 2, 45, 110). Wisdom psalms reflect on the life of faith (Psalm 1, 119). Each type has its own conventions, and reading a lament as if it were a hymn, or a royal psalm as if it were wisdom instruction, produces misreading.

The emotional honesty of the Psalms is one of their most distinctive features and one of the most important for readers today. The Psalms do not sanitize the human experience of God. They include anger at God (Psalm 88 ends with no resolution, only darkness), calls for vengeance against enemies (Psalms 35, 109, 137), and expressions of doubt and abandonment (Psalm 22's opening cry, which Jesus quotes from the cross). This honesty is not a failure of faith. It is faith operating at full stretch - trusting God enough to bring the darkest feelings into the divine presence rather than pretending they do not exist. The Psalms model a form of prayer that is deeper and more honest than the carefully edited prayers that most religious communities have settled for.