Day 39-40: Psalm 1-45

So perhaps I was a little hasty when I said that I hate poetry.  I think, deep down, I really do like and enjoy it.  I really love the psalms.  I took a class in college about the psalms and learned all about the different kind of psalms and parallelism.  So parallelism was the literary device that the Hebrews, and other ancient cultures, used in their poetry, like we use rhyming or free form today.  As a youngun, I was often frustrated by the repetition of the Bible, I mean, not only the psalms use this literary device.  Now that I am aware of it, let's just say I have a new perspective.  I love parallelism, because you have to be a little clever to say almost the same thing again and yet still be different.  There are different kinds of parallelism, you know the whole comparison thing: the wicked man... but the righteous man... that's parallelism.  A new perspective, for me.


Secondly, I really love the psalms because when I couldn't read the Bible, when I was so dead inside and angry at God, the only thing that could get me to crack open the Bible, was the psalms.  I found myself in them and that is the beauty of poetry; that is the beauty of symbolism and metaphor and just plain truth.  "Be merciful to me, LORD for I am faint; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are in agony.  My soul is in anguish.  How long, O LORD, how long?" Ps 6:2-3.  It was words like this that spoke to my grieving and broken soul.  "How long, O LORD?  Will you forget me forever?  How long will you hide your face from me?  How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart?" Ps 13:1-2.  The psalms of lament were a balm for my pain because it made me feel a little better knowing I wasn't the first or the only one to feel these things.

Then slowly and slowly I could rejoice.  "Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God" Ps 42 and 43.  "Ascribe to the LORD, O mighty ones, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.  Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness" Ps 29:1-2.  The healing was a long process, but the LORD's psalms helped to get me there.  So here is some small advice: if you are angry, read the psalms.  If you are sad, read the psalms.  If you are lost and questioning God, your faith, and everything you know, read the psalms.  If you are joyful and want to give God the glory due his name, you guessed it - READ THE PSALMS!!!!  It is good medicine and better than a spoonful of sugar.

Since there are 45 psalms that I read through I'd like to leave you with some thoughts on some of my favorites:

Ps 1 and 2 are considered Messianic psalms.  They are oft quoted and pretty good ones to lift you up.  They also give you a good hint at growing in the LORD.

Psalm 8 - I love that despite us being so low and lowly, God still cares for us and has really given us a great gift in this life.  "O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!"

Ps 18 - I love the descriptions of God.  They are so vivid.

Ps 19 - more awesome descriptions of God and his creation.

Ps 22 - This Jesus calls to mind on the cross.  I heard in a Good Friday sermon once that as Jesus was dying it was the afternoon hour of prayer for the Jews and according to custom, he called to mind a psalm and it was this psalm.  Whether that is 100% true or not, this psalm become so amazingly powerful when you look at it through the lens of Jesus being crucified and in the end resurrected.  "All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations... all who go down to the dust will kneel before him...They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn for he has done it."

Ps 23 - so many contrasting images: still waters, valley of the shadow of death, eating a table with one's enemies... it's comforting to know that amidst trials, God is ever present and holding us fast.

Ps 29 - One of my absolute favorites because some time in high school I convinced myself that I should memorize a not-so-well-known psalm.  I chose this one.  I can't really recite it to you, but I love the parallelism in it.  It's AWESOME!!!  At the time I tried to memorize it, I just thought it was repetitive.  I still love this psalm and it reminds me how awesome God is.

Ps 34 - Taste and see that the LORD is good!  Even in trial, God is good.  God is so good, try him and see.

Ps 42-43 - They should really be one psalm (remember chapters, verses, and even in this case the titles for the psalms were added later).  These helped me through some really dark days and reminded me that the love of my life is God and all his greatness.  My Savior and my God!