Psalms Chapter 1
The key word in the psalm is the word Blessed. It serves here as a pronouncement upon man- but a certain kind of
man. In essence, the psalm is teaching that the Blessed or happy man is the righteous man. The happy man avoids
evil influences, deeds, and attitudes; he delights in God's word; therefore, God causes him to prosper. On the other
hand, the ungodly is worth no more than chaff and his destiny is judgment. Finally, the evaluation by the Lord
Himself is described.
There is an ellipsis which is understood with both causes in verse 6. The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous [and
it will be blessed] [he also knows] the way of the ungodly [and it] shall perish.
The Psalm forms an appropriate introduction to the Psalter since it sets before the readers the three characters who
will figure mostly in the Psalms: the righteous, the ungodly and God.
Psalms chapter 2
Psalms 2 is attributed to David in Acts 4:25 and is called the second psalm in Acts 13:33. The introductory rhetorical
question, Why do the heathen rage? (verse 1), is shown in the following verses to be a question of incredulity: Why
do the nations attack God's anointed king when their attack is doomed to failure? Historically, his Anointed (verse 2)
referred to David or to any of his descendants who were experiencing opposition (1 Samuel 24:6); prophetically, it
refers to the Messiah who, as Son of David, also experienced opposition (Acts 4:25-27). The fact that God shall
laugh (verse 4) at the world's opposition to the Anointed One presages their calamity because the Lord has installed
His King upon...Zion (verse 6) and adopted Him as His son; therefore, the nations may be taken as an inheritance at
the Son's request (verse 8). Every Davidic ruler was an adopted son (2 Samuel 7:14), but the real significance of the
promise is fulfilled only in Christ, the eternal Son of God (Acts 13:33; Hebrews 1:5; 5:5). The wise alternative is to
submit to this Son (verses 10-12).
Psalms chapter 3
The historical background to the psalm is described in 2 Samuel 15-17. Though David petitioned in verse 7, Arise, O
Lord; save me, it is clear from 2 Samuel 15:32-37 that David shrewdly sent his friend Hushai back to Jerusalem to
deceive Absalom, David used means but trusted only in God.
Psalms chapter 4
Verse 8 indicates that this psalm is an evening prayer. It may well have been offered on the same occasion as
described in the superscription of Psalm 3. Have mercy upon me (verse 1) is a cry that David and others echo
throughout the Psalter: the pious always petition for God's benevolent attributes to be demonstrated.
Psalm chapter 5
In contrast to Psalm 4, Psalm 5 is a morning psalm (verse 3). The titles my King and my God (verse 2) are rich with
meaning: David , though a king himself, is subject to another; and the Creator-God who made him is his personal
God. The rest of the psalm describes the divergent dispositions of God toward the righteous and toward the wicked.
The vivid description of David's wicked enemies (verses 9-10 is worthy of Paul's application of it to all lost men
(Romans 3:13).
Psalms chapter 6
Rebuke me not in thine anger (verse 1) indicates that David in conscious of deserving rebuke. However, he prays,
as always, Have mercy upon me, O Lord (verse 2). The miseries of the depressed are both physical and
psychological, and often the description of the two conditions is interwoven (verses 2, 3). In the grave who shall give
thee thanks? (verse 5) does not express doubt of the reality of the afterlife; rather, it serves to remind the Lord that
David's continued praise and witness depend on his preservation.
Psalm chapter 7
The superscription indicates that the psalm was written while David was being ruthlessly assailed by Cush the
Benjamite, who was evidently one of Saul's radical kinsmen. David is confident in both his own innocence (verses
3-5) and the certainty of divine retribution on the much-deserving Cush (verses 6-17).
Psalm chapter 8
Though the bulk of the psalm describes man and his dominion over the universe, the first and last verses make clear
to the reader that the psalm was written primarily to exalt the Creator. A little lower than the angels (verse 5) is
literally " a little lower than God" (Hebrew Elohim, the normal generic word for God. The Septuagint translated the
word as "angels," however, and this translation is quoted here in Hebrews 2:6-8. The word may be taken in a loose
sense, "divine beings," in which case it could refer to both God and the angels. Three interpretation of man's
position are described in verses 5-8: (1) It refers only to man's original condition (Genesis 1:26-28). (2) It refers to
man's present, actual position, though ruined somewhat by the Fall. (3) It points to man redeemed and restored in
the future to his exalted position. The second view is preferred since the psalmist seems to be observing life as it is
in the present: When I consider (verse 3).
Psalms chapter 9
Psalms 9 and 10 are taken together, form the first of the acrostic psalms, though the 38 verses are a very irregular
representation of the Hebrew alphabet of 22 letters. Marvelous (verse 1) is an adjective used in the Old Testament
to describe the supernatural. David thus looks on God's deliverance and praises Him for it (verses 1-10). After
inviting the believing community to join in his praise (verses 11-18), David prays for God's ethical rule to be
established over wicked men (verses 19, 20).
Psalm chapter 10
In contrast to the prayer at the end of the preceding psalm, David now points to the present condition in the world,
where God seems to have permitted the wicked to triumph over the righteous (verses 1-11). He then appeals to the
Lord to act, to set the matter right, confident that the King of the world will do so (verses 12-18).
Psalm chapter 11
A vision of the Lord on His throne (verse 4) is all the righteous need for security in the face of the threat of the
wicked (verse 2).
Psalm chapter 12
The oppression of the righteous by the wicked is especially felt in the realm of vain and proud speech (verses 2-5),
but the righteous find comfort in the pure and valued Word of God (verse 6).
Psalm chapter 13
The distance between four occurrences of How long, punctuated with question marks (verses 1, 2), and the
confident and joyful song at the end (verse 6) is covered only with prayer (verses 3, 4) and trust (verse 5).
Psalm chapter 14
This psalm could be dedicated to the atheist. With the denial of God's existence often comes the moral decay
described in verses 1-6 and which was used by Paul to prove the universal depravity of the human race (Romans
3:10-12). While the fool may deny that God is, the righteous finds in Him the object of hopeful prayer for deliverance
(verse 7).
Psalm chapter 15
This psalm raises the question of qualifications for service in the tabernacle (verse 1), then answers that question by
describing the man who has personal purity (verses 2, 3a) and interpersonal integrity.
Psalm chapter 16
The attitude of the righteous man is described in life (verses 1-8) and death(verses 9-11). In life, his attitude is one
of trust (verse 1), gratefulness for God's goodness (verse 2), delight in God's people (verse 3), separation from
idolatrous worship (verse 4; Exodus 23:13; Deuteronomy 12:3), satisfaction in God's gracious provisions (verses 5,
6), praise for the Lord's counsel (verse 7), and steadfastness in spiritual devotion (verse 8). In facing death, the
righteous man rejoices and is hopeful (verse 9). He is confident that God will preserve him from the decay of death
and that death will not result in his corruption (verse 10). Rather, he will travel down the path of life, that is, the path
leading to life, which will terminate in God's joyful presence (verse 11). David's confidence in his ultimate destiny is
valid for him (and for all believers) only because Christ has traveled down that path and paved the way for all who
believe in Him (Acts 2:25-28).
Psalm chapter 17
This psalm is one of three that bear the title A prayer of David (also 86 and 142). It is a most appropriate heading
since the psalm is rich with words for petition: hear, attend unto, give ear, and so on. After an initial cry to God
(verses 1, 2), David defends his character and motives (verses 3-5). On this basis he is able to offer his petition,
which includes both a beautiful prayer for divine protection (verse 8) and a repulsive description of his would-be
captors (verses 9-12). The request, Keep me as the apple of the eye (verse 8), is a petition that God protect David
just as a man protects the pupil of his eye, the most sensitive part of the most sensitive member of the body. Finally,
David asks that his deliverance might be granted: it will involve the destruction of his enemies (verses 13, 14) but will
result in David's unhindered devotion (verse 15).
Psalms chapter 18
Psalm 18 This psalm is a royal song of thanksgiving that rehearses God's deliverance of David from all his enemies.
It appears to be popular version of the song in 2 Samuel 22. The title servant of the Lord places David in an elite
company, namely, that of Moses, Joshua, and the Messiah, who also bear the title. The psalm includes a declaration
of David's love and trust in the Lord (verses 1-3), a narrative of his deliverance by the Lord (verses 4-19), and
explanation of the cause for David's deliverance (verses 20-24), an exposition of the display of God's attributes to
those who trust in Him (verses 25-30), a further description of David's victory (verses 31-45), and concluding word of
thanks for God's deliverance (verses 46-50). The description of the Lord's intervention given in verses 7-19 is called
a theophany, one of many in the Old Testament, in which God visibly manifests Himself. The theophany
characteristically has two parts: the Lord leaves His residence and nature reacts. It is thus a highly poetic and vivid
way of describing the fact that God of Israel intervened in history on David's behalf. The entire psalm is a celebration
of that fact.
Psalms chapter 19
Today we will study Psalm Chapter 19. The Psalm naturally falls into three parts: God's revelation in creation (vv.
1-6), God's revelation in Law (vv.7-11), and the response of the man of faith (vv. 12-14). The point of the first six
verses is that the heavenly bodies are objective proof that a powerful, creative God exists. The heavens are God's
preachers in the sky who proclaim 24 hours a day the truth that God exists (vv. 1,2); furthermore, they speak a
universal language (vv. 3,4). On the other hand, God's special revelation is His law.
It is described by five synonyms: law, testimony, statutes, commandments and judgments (vv. 7-9). His law is
precious and desirable (v. 10). The man of faith can respond only with a prayer that he be kept from hidden sins
(v.12) and willful sins (v. 13) that what he says may be acceptable to the Lord; and that even what he thinks may be
pleasing to God (v. 14).
Psalm chapter 20
Psalms 20 and 21 go together: the first is a psalm of intercession by the people on behalf of the king before battle;
the second is a psalm of thanksgiving for the victory achieved.In Psalm 20 there is first a petition for the king (verses
1-5), then the divine assurance that victory is certain (verses 6-8); finally, the psalm closes with a prayer (verse 9).
Psalm chapter 21
The connection with the preceding psalm is apparent by comparing verse 2 with 20:4. The psalm contains
thanksgiving for the Lord's deliverance (verses 1-7), assurance of the king's future victories by his subjects (verses
8-12), and a final prayer (verse 13).
Psalm chapter 22
A Christian cannot read this psalm without reflecting on the use of the first verse by Christ on the Cross (Matthew
27:46; Mark 15:34). In addition to this verse, verse 18 is quoted in the New Testament (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24;
Luke23:34; John 19:24) as well as verse 22 (Hebrews 2:12). In addition, many of the details of this psalm are
reflected in Christ's cross experience (verse 7 with Matthew 27;39; verse 8 with Matthew 27:43; verse 15 with John
19:28). His cry to God, the condemnation of the crowd, His thirst, His Crucifixion, and even the gambling for His robe,
are all clearly predicted. David's own experience gives way to a prophetic glimpse of his descendant Jesus Christ.
The psalm naturally falls into two parts. David first describes the awful predicament in which he finds himself (verse
1-21): he feels forsaken by God in the midst of his enemies, who are compared to ravenous beasts. The details here
transcend David's own experience and point clearly to Calvary: mocking, ridicule, pain, opposition--and all done to
an innocent man. The second part of the psalm consists of praise to God for His faithfulness (verses 22-31) by both
the worshiping community (verses 22-26) and the world as a whole (verses 27-31).
Psalms chapter 23
Psalms 23. The psalm has been a favorite of God's people through the ages and with due reason: it expresses as
simply and clearly as any the role of God as our protector and provider in life. The charm of the psalm rests on two
figures of speech: the Lord is compared to a shepherd and the believer to His sheep (verses 1-4); then the Lord is
likened to a host with the believer as the guest (verses 5, 6). The image of the Lord as a shepherd is a frequent one
in both the Old Testament (Isaiah 40:11; Jeremiah 31:10) and the New (John 10:11-16; Hebrews 13:20). (See the
note on Jeremiah 23:3.) Believers are never pictured in Scripture as mighty lions, independent and self-sufficient;
rather, they are sheep who are dependent on their Shepherd for His provision and protection. The believer is more
than a dependent sheep, however; he is also like an honored guest, since the Lord prepares a table for him (verse
5). Connected with this honored position is abundant provision, vindication before ones enemies, and eternal
celebration of God's goodness.
Psalm chapter 24
This psalm may have been written on the occasion of David's retrieval of the ark and its placement at Jerusalem (2
Samuel 6). The psalm is clearly divided into two parts: a processional song emphasizing God's sovereignty and
man's need for righteousness before God (verses 1-6), and an antiphonal song stressing the glory of the Lord
(verses 7-10).
Psalm chapter 25
The second of the acrostic psalms, Psalm 25, emphasizes David's need for deliverance from his enemies (verses
1-3, 16-22) and for forgiveness from his gracious God (verses 4-15).
Psalm chapter 26
From the statements of the psalm itself we may easily deduce that David was being falsely accused. In light of this
fact, his protestation of innocence are not pride, but just complaint of a man of God (verses 2-8). In addition to his
self-defense, he petitions God for deliverance (verses 1, 9-12a) and promises a public acknowledgment when it is
accomplished (verse 12b).
Psalm chapter 27
This Psalm is structured so that the psalmist's expressions of confident trust include his prayer for deliverance.
David first expresses his complete confidence and trust in his God (vv. 1-6). On this basis he then feels free to
present his petition for deliverance from his enemies (vv. 7-12). Finally he returns full-circle to trust previously stated
as only proper attitude of one who must now wait for God to act (vv. 13,14).
Psalm chapter 28
This psalm is another prayer by David for deliverance, one of many which he prayed when pursued by one enemy or
another. It contains a petition both for deliverance (verses 1-3) and for divine retribution (verses 4, 5), before
suddenly shifting to an unshakable tone of thanksgiving for the anticipated answer (verses 6-9).