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THE BOOK OF PSALMS – Chapters 25 to 44
Psalm 25 – A personal prayer for guidance and protection. An alphabetic psalm – each of the 22 verses begins with the successive consonant of the Hebrew alphabet. (Should be familiar as the basis for a song often sung.)
Psalm 26 – A prayer for vindication. His integrity (1-3). His defense of himself (4-7). A final plea for help (8-12).
Psalm 27 –Trust. Sunshine and shadow. Praise (Sunshine) (1-6). Petition (Shadow), the faith under fire (7-12). Patience (13-14).
Psalm 28 – Cry and response . Prayer (1-5) and praise (6-9).
Psalm 29 –The seven thunders. Thunderstorm! The psalm describes the sweep of a thunderstorm from the west (the Mediterranean) to east over the Lebanon mountains and
Mt. Sirion (Mt. Hermon) and perhaps down the Jordan Valley. It ends with peace, the rainbow after the storm (10-11). “To many, a storm is a storm, but to those to whom the Lord has revealed Himself, it is a display of one aspect of his glory” (Motyer).
Psalm 30 – Thanksgiving for deliverance (healing from a serious illness). Does verse 6 mean that he had allowed assurance to become self-assurance and confidence to become conceit? Then things turned sour and he was dismayed (7) and turned back to God (8-12).
Psalm 31 – Trial and triumph. “Seasons of the Soul” (Morgan). Trust (Autumn)(1-8).
Trouble (Winter)(9-13). Truth (Spring)(14-18). Triumph (Summer)(19-24). Words Jesus spoke at the time of His death (v. 5).
Psalm 32 – The penitent’s psalm. The joy of forgiveness (1-2). The agony of the guilty conscience (3,4). Relief after confession (5-7). Instruction in the right way (8-11).
Paul in Romans 4:6-8 quotes verses 1 and 2 in respect to salvation by grace through faith.
Psalm 33 – Praise for the Lord’s great acts. Introduction (1-3). The Word of the Lord (4-12). The all-seeing eye of the Lord (13-19). Conclusion (20-22).
Psalm 34 –A psalm of praise and trust. Another alphabetic psalm. Praise (1-3). Provision (4-10). Practice (11-14). Protection (15-22). Verses 12-16 are quoted in 1 Peter 3:10-16.
Psalm 35 – Prayer in a time of personal peril. The psalmist is suffering, but instead of thinking of personal revenge he leaves punishment of his enemies in the hands of God.
Jesus quoted verse 19 in regard to His enemies (John 15:25).
Psalm 36 – The evil of men (1-4) and the goodness of God (5-12).
Psalm 37 –The wisdom of an older person. Alphabetic, but imperfect. There are 20 two line statements, pretty well self-contained, much like Proverbs. We can live with confidence in the Lord. Any prosperity enjoyed by the evil is only temporary.
Psalm 38 – A penitent’s plea for mercy. The burden of sin and guilt is intolerable. Is David describing his guilt after the sin with Bathsheba?
Psalm 39 – The brevity and frailty of life. In the heading, “to Jeduthan” refers to one of the leading musicians in the time of David; perhaps here it refers to a particular way of singing or a particular tune. The psalm reminds us of Job. Suppressing: he tries to keep back his thoughts and complaints but just cannot (1-3). The outburst (4-11). Prayer (12-13).
Psalm 40 – Praise for deliverance. Verses 13-17 are the same as Psalm 70 (Ps 40 is in Book I and Ps 70 in Book II of the five “books” that comprise the Psalms). Thanksgiving (1-5). Dedication (6-10). Supplication (11-17). Verses 6-8 are quoted in Hebrews 10:5-9 – They were “…the motto and mind of Christ from the time of his birth; David, the type, speaks in words that may be placed into the mouth of Christ, the anti-type” (Lenski).
Psalm 41 – Prayer for deliverance. Verse 9 may refer to Ahithophel, David’s friend and counselor who joined Absalom’s rebellion (2 Samuel 15). Jesus applied it to Judas, His betrayer (John 13:18).
41:13 is the doxology (statement of praise) that ends Book I. Book II consists of Psalms 42-72).
Psalm 42-43 – An exile thirsts for the house of God. Psalms 42 and 43 were apparently originally one (see the refrain, 42:5,11 and 43:5). “This is the song of an exile and, moreover, of an exile among enemies who have no sympathy for his religious convictions…” (Morgan). Yearning and regret (42:1-5). Dejection and hope (42:6-11). Confidence in God (43:1-5).
Psalm 44 – Despair in defeat. Past mercies from God (1-8). The present situation (9-16). Their innocence (17-22). Call for aid (23-26). Paul in Romans 8:36 compares verse 22 to the problems faced by first century Christians.
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