This psalm appears on Good Friday due to verse 1, which Jesus quoted on the cross, and subsequent predictions: My God, why have you forsaken me? However this reading on Sunday 25 (Lent 2) starts much later in the poem in verse 23. A different kettle of fish altogether, as the psalmist sings a hymn … Continue reading Psalm 22, 25 Feb ’18
Tag: praise
Psalm 147, 4 Feb ’18
This psalm, like others in this final handful in the Psalter, is a song of praise, calling us to rejoice in the creation and the ubiquitous evidence of divine love and care. With sudden shifts of focus, a visionary sweep of the universe, the selected text (verses 1 to 11 in Year B) alternate between … Continue reading Psalm 147, 4 Feb ’18
Psalm 111, 28 Jan 18
Psalm 111 is a song of praise in honour of the creative divine spirit whose very nature and deeds are awash in high standards of justice and goodness, "wrought in truth and equity".(8) These important attributes -- standing out like sustaining pillars throughout the Psalter and thus much remarked upon in this blog, much desired … Continue reading Psalm 111, 28 Jan 18
Psalm 29, 7 Jan 2018
These days, voices frequently heard are those of political arrogance, religious friction, the rich getting richer, vigorous and exclusive nationalism and faint calls for assistance to the suppressed. While such evidence seems to support the 'God is dead' theory, much of it is the bad news, unbalanced if not fake, served up by commercial interests … Continue reading Psalm 29, 7 Jan 2018
Psalm 148, NYE ’17
The poetry and music of the psalms are great catalysts to imaginative interpretations, lateral thinking, flights of fancy, aspirations and yes, hopes for the coming year -- maybe even a New Year's resolution or two. You would have to admit that a psalm that can invoke comments about Tchaikovsky, Yoda, John Bell, whales and James … Continue reading Psalm 148, NYE ’17
Psalms for Christmas 2017
Christmas Eve this year falls on a Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Advent in Year B. The set psalm is 89, which starts: I will sing of your steadfast love, O Lord, forever; I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations. Christmas Eve is also the starting point for the series of three psalms for … Continue reading Psalms for Christmas 2017
Psalm 149, 10 Sep 17
'God takes pleasure in people.' (4) This is the penultimate psalm in the book, short and bitter-sweet. Four verses of praise, singing and dancing, including the important statement of love quoted above; four verses of wreaking vengeance on enemies; and in the middle, it appears, a good lie down! Let the faithful rejoice in triumph; … Continue reading Psalm 149, 10 Sep 17
Psalm 116, 18 Jun 17
Nutty Numbers ... Here is one of those confusing points of discontinuity between the numbering of the Latin Vulgate Psalter and the modern western translations. 114 and 115 were combined into what is now 116 in our Psalter. This explains why some Ps 116 settings over the years are listed as quoting from Psalms 114 and … Continue reading Psalm 116, 18 Jun 17
Psalm 68, 28 May 17
In the ‘bookends’ at beginning and end of this long psalm, the psalmist calls for the great kingdoms of the earth, their flags proudly flying in the national capitals of the world, to recognise the divine supremacy of ‘the rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens’ and invites us to lift songs of thanks and praise. Between … Continue reading Psalm 68, 28 May 17
Psalm 66, 21 May 17
This psalm is a cry of joy for divine guidance and deliverance. Come and hear, you who fear our maker, as I tell how God rescued my soul. I cried to God and was answered; God’s praise is ever on my lips (vv. 8, 9) The psalmist feels that he has been pulled through the … Continue reading Psalm 66, 21 May 17
Psalms in the South 