Editor’s Note:  Before we begin this new Bible Study, I want you to know that the author has been in prayer about this for a long time.  Of course, I am editor and author.  My wife said soon before she died that with her gone and me no longer being a caregiver, I could write more.  I had already been thinking of this way of looking at the Psalms, so I started piecing a format together.  But after my wife passed away, I endured the grief process, and I still do at times.  Then I was sick for several months, and I may have more of that in the future.  I was having a hard time keeping up with my writing load.  How could I do more?  Thus, I plan to introduce these studies every other Monday morning.  If the added load is too much, I will shift to a slower pace.  But if I can handle more, I am thinking of another once every other week series for Sunday morning.  Jemima Yeggs told me in her bubbly and quirky fashion that she wanted to start a Sunday school class in her apartment when she was a bit too far along in her pregnancy to go storm chasing.  Who knows where that will lead?  I know who knows, and God will give me the strength when the time comes.

Psalm 1

Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.
Not so the wicked!
    They are like chaff
    that the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

• Psalm 1:1-6

Type of Psalm

Didactic: These psalms are psalms that are intended to teach.  In most cases the psalm instructs us in moral principles.

Matthew Henry’s Summary

“This is a psalm of instruction concerning good and evil, setting before us life and death, the blessing and the curse, that we may take the right way which leads to happiness and avoid that which will certainly end in our misery and ruin. The different character and condition of godly people and wicked people, those that serve God and those that serve him not, is here plainly stated in a few words; so that every man, if he will be faithful to himself, may here see his own face and then read his own doom. That division of the children of men into saints and sinners, righteous and unrighteous, the children of God and the children of the wicked one, as it is ancient, ever since the struggle began between sin and grace, the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent, so it is lasting, and will survive all other divisions and subdivisions of men into high and low, rich and poor, bond and free; for by this men’s everlasting state will be determined, and the distinction will last as long as heaven and hell. This psalm shows us, I. The holiness and happiness of a godly man, Ps. 1:1-3. II. The sinfulness and misery of a wicked man, Ps. 1:4, 5. III. The ground and reason of both, Ps. 1:6. Whoever collected the psalms of David (probably it was Ezra) with good reason put this psalm first, as a preface to the rest, because it is absolutely necessary to the acceptance of our devotions that we be righteous before God (for it is only the prayer of the upright that is his delight), and therefore that we be right in our notions of blessedness and in our choice of the way that leads to it. Those are not fit to put up good prayers who do not walk in good ways.”

• Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

Psalm 1:2 ‘delight in God’s Word’: “People must have some delight, some supreme pleasure. A person’s heart was never meant to be a vacuum. If not filled with the best things, it will be filled with the unworthy and disappointing. The true Christian has his holy delights, and chief among them is his reveling in the law oi the Lord, the Word of God. David did not have a fourth of what we possess—it was a little Bible then. We, therefore, should take ten times more delight in it than the psalmist did.”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

My Thoughts

Being former military, “being in step” means something to me that others might not get, military and marching band maybe.  When I marched in the army, I could never stay in step, but staying in step with evil means that you not only do evil, you go by the rhythm, or the cadence of evil, in lock step with evil.  That takes commitment, but most who are in lock step with evil do not notice.  They might even consider themselves good.

But the psalm does not stay there.  The person who seeks righteousness, the one who follows the Law of the Lord, is like a tree planted near a flowing stream, whose leaves never wither.  The psalmist paints an idyllic picture that gives you the feeling of safety, security, and peace.  Something that the person that is in step with evil never experiences.

Psalm 2

Why do the nations conspire
    and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up
    and the rulers band together
    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
“Let us break their chains
    and throw off their shackles.”
The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
    the Lord scoffs at them.
He rebukes them in his anger
    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
“I have installed my king
    on Zion, my holy mountain.”
I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
    today I have become your father.
Ask me,
    and I will make the nations your inheritance,
    the ends of the earth your possession.
You will break them with a rod of iron;
    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
Therefore, you kings, be wise;
    be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear
    and celebrate his rule with trembling.
Kiss his son, or he will be angry
    and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

• Psalm 2:1-12

Type of Psalm

Messianic (2:1-12):  These psalms can be shown as being prophetic (or verses within the psalm) and the prophecy relates to the coming Messiah.

Prophetic psalms: Prophetic psalms are those psalms containing prophecy that is not specifically Messianic prophecy.

Matthew Henry’s Summary

“As the foregoing psalm was moral, and showed us our duty, so this is evangelical, and shows us our Saviour. Under the type of David’s kingdom (which was of divine appointment, met with much opposition, but prevailed at last) the kingdom of the Messiah, the Son of David, is prophesied of, which is the primary intention and scope of the psalm; and I think there is less in it of the type, and more of the anti-type, than in any of the gospel psalms, for there is nothing in it but what is applicable to Christ, but some things that are not at all applicable to David (Ps. 2:6, 7): “Thou art my Son” (Ps. 2:8), “I will give thee the uttermost parts of the earth,” and (Ps. 2:12), “Kiss the Son.” It is interpreted of Christ Acts 4:24; 13:33; Heb. 1:5. The Holy Ghost here foretels, I. The opposition that should be given to the kingdom of the Messiah, Ps. 2:1-3. II. The baffling and chastising of that opposition, Ps. 2:4, 5. III. The setting up of the kingdom of Christ, notwithstanding that opposition, Ps. 2:6. IV. The confirmation and establishment of it, Ps. 2:7. V. A promise of the enlargement and success of it, Ps. 2:8, 9. VI. A call and exhortation to kings and princes to yield themselves the willing subjects of this kingdom, Ps. 2:10-12. Or thus: We have here, I. Threatenings denounced against the adversaries of Christ’s kingdom, Ps. 2:1-6. II. Promises made to Christ himself, the head of this kingdom, Ps. 2:7-9. III. Counsel given to all to espouse the interests of this kingdom, Ps. 2:10-12. This psalm, as the former, is very fitly prefixed to this book of devotions, because, as it is necessary to our acceptance with God that we should be subject to the precepts of his law, so it is likewise that we should be subject to the grace of his gospel, and come to him in the name of a Mediator.”

• Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

Psalm 2:11 ‘Serve the Lord with Fear’: “Mary and Mary [Magdalene] knew a task had to be done —Jesus’ body had to be prepared for burial. Peter didn’t offer to do it. Andrew didn’t volunteer … So the two Marys decide to do it …
“I wonder if halfway to the tomb they had sat down and reconsidered. What if they’d looked at each other and shrugged, ‘What’s the use?’ What if they had given up? What if one had thrown up her arms in frustration and bemoaned, ‘I’m tired of being the only one who cares. Let Andrew do something for a change. Let Nathanael show some leadership.’
“Whether or not they were tempted to, I’m glad they didn’t quit. That would have been tragic. You see, we know something they didn’t. We know the Father was watching. Mary and Mary thought they were alone. They weren’t. They thought their journey was unnoticed. They were wrong. God knew.”

• Max Lucado, He Still Moves Stones

My Thoughts

The Nations will rise up and try to conquer the king, but the king will break them as if with a rod of iron and they will be shattered like pieces of pottery.  No one can conquer the Lord’s anointed.

That could be bravado for King David or King Solomon, but most kings of Israel and Judah faced defeat or enemies that they could not conquer.  And the psalmist leaves us with a warning for other nations to beware.

Of course, the One anointed that measures up to this praise is Jesus Christ.  When He returns, He will come with His Angel Armies and if a nation opposes Him, that nation will be wiped out.

But this psalm is also a psalm of comfort to those who love God and keep His commandments.  They will be protected by that strong arm.

Today, when we have one controversy or crisis after another and the nations totally ignore God, it seems strange that God would laugh.  Maybe it is this psalm where the idea of He who laughs last comes from.  For those that love the Lord, we will all laugh when we are living in peace with our Savior, rather than in pieces like a shattered clay pot.

Psalm 3

Lord, how many are my foes!
    How many rise up against me!
Many are saying of me,
    “God will not deliver him.”
But you, Lord, are a shield around me,
    my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
I call out to the Lord,
    and he answers me from his holy mountain.
I lie down and sleep;
    I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
I will not fear though tens of thousands
    assail me on every side.
Arise, Lord!
    Deliver me, my God!
Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
    break the teeth of the wicked.
From the Lord comes deliverance.
    May your blessing be on your people.

• Psalm 3:1-8

Type of Psalm

Psalms of Affliction: Psalms where the psalmist is crying out in pain or distress, asking God where He is in the psalmist’s time of need.  But no matter how dire the circumstances or how long the lament, there seems to always be a word of praise.  Otherwise, why do we go to God in such times, other than to recognize Him as the only one who can help us?

Matthew Henry’s Summary

“As the foregoing psalm, in the type of David in preferment, showed us the royal dignity of the Redeemer, so this, by the example of David in distress, shows us the peace and holy security of the redeemed, how safe they really are, and think themselves to be, under the divine protection. David, being now driven out from his palace, from the royal city, from the holy city, by his rebellious son Absalom, I. Complains to God of his enemies, Ps. 3:1, 2. II. Confides in God, and encourages himself in him as his God, notwithstanding, Ps. 3:3. III. Recollects the satisfaction he had in the gracious answers God gave to his prayers, and his experience of his goodness to him, Ps. 3:4, 5. IV. Triumphs over his fears (Ps. 3:6) and over his enemies, whom he prays against, Ps. 3:7. V. Gives God the glory and takes to himself the comfort of the divine blessing and salvation which are sure to all the people of God, Ps. 3:8. Those speak best of the truths of God who speak experimentally; so David here speaks of the power and goodness of God, and of the safety and tranquility of the godly.”

• Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

Psalm 3:2-3 ‘no help for him … But You … a shield for me.’: “There is a strong contrast between the allegation and the psalmist’s assurance. David’s attitude and outlook embraces the theology that Paul summarized in Romans 8:31. Psalm 3 also introduces Divine Warrior language (cf. Ex. 15 as a background).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

My Thoughts

David wrote this psalm on the run from Absalom, his son.

At this point David has fought many foes.  He only has the one, his own son, but he asks God how many.

But then for the bulk of the psalm, He praises God.  God is his shield.  He will not fear.

Even though this is not listed as imprecatory, he says in the seventh verse that God should break the teeth of the wicked.  Did David wish his own son to have broken teeth?  No.  Wanted his son to repent and turn from his sins.  Then, his son would not be “wicked” any longer and he can keep his teeth.

And with songs of affliction, David always speaks of God’s blessing or praises God.  And the psalm ends with blessings on your people, meaning those that love the Lord.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

Psalm 1

“1. How should people today find happiness. According to TV, music and ads?
“2. Where have you searched for happiness? Where do you find it?
“3. What is the ‘law of the Lord’ for you? How would you find time to meditate as this blessed man does?”

Psalm 2

“1. The New Testament constantly applies this psalm to Jesus (see Mt 3:17; Ac 4:25-27, 13:33; Heb 1:5; 5:5). How are Jesus and the ‘anointed one’ similar as ‘sons of God’? How do they differ?
“2. How does God deal with you: (a) Iron rod? (b) Pottery repair? (c) A kiss? (d) A flare up? Give an example?
“3. How do you ‘kiss the Son’? How can the group express homage to King Jesus?”

Psalm 3

“1. When did you last feel abandoned by friends? By God? What happened?
“2. What ‘foes’ are you facing? From what are you praying for deliverance? How will you know when that prayer is answered? Will it look like verse 7?”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

There is one set of questions for each psalm.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.