Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.

• Psalm 72:20

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

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.

• Psalms 2:7-12

We will not hide them from their descendants;
    we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord,
    his power, and the wonders he has done.
He decreed statutes for Jacob
    and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
    to teach their children,
so the next generation would know them,
    even the children yet to be born,
    and they in turn would tell their children.
Then they would put their trust in God
    and would not forget his deeds
    but would keep his commands.

• Psalm 78:4-7

From the sons of Asaph:
Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah and Asarelah. The sons of Asaph were under the supervision of Asaph, who prophesied under the king’s supervision.

• 1 Chronicles 25:2

He remembered us in our low estate
His love endures forever.
and freed us from our enemies.
His love endures forever.
He gives food to every creature.
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His love endures forever.

• Psalm 136:23-26

The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes.

• Psalm 118:22-23

“The Hebrew title of the Psalms also means ‘hymns.’ Psalm 72:20 refers to all preceding Psalms as ‘the prayers of David.’ Both items are surprising and yet understandable. To be sure, at first glance, the Psalms contain exclusively neither hymns nor prayers. In spite of that the didactic poems or the songs of lament are also basically hymns, for they serve to glorify God, and even those Psalms which do not contain any address to God (e.g. Psalms 1, 2, 78) may be called prayers, for they serve to submerge in God’s will and purpose the one who prays them. The word Psalter originally referred to a musical instrument and was first used only in a secondary sense as a designation for a collection of prayers which were offered to God in the form of songs.”

• Dietrich Bonhoeffer, psalms, The Prayer Book of the Bible

Dietrich Bonhoeffer spends only a page or two on this topic.  He focuses on the instructions at the beginning of each song, saying that they are musical instructions, and may have only made sense in biblical times, but he focused on Selah, or as he spells it Sela.  Martin Luther described Selah as being that gasp to take a breath while singing so that you can take into your heart what you just sang.

That’s a great idea whether we have a Selah or not.

Then again, I have read many scholars say that the meaning of Selah is still a mystery.  On the other hand, I heard a radio evangelist talk about how wonderful the word was, then he kept shouting “Selah” so often and so abruptly that it became comical.

Bonhoeffer’s comment that Psalms 1, 2, and 78 have no address to God, but they speak of God and of God’s word and / or law.

My reference that I used years ago regarding the types of psalms list Psalm 1 as didactic (instructional), thus it would not be addressed to God as a prayer, but to others in how they serve God.  Psalm 2 is prophetic.  Psalm 78 is historical.

As for the instruction at the beginning, Psalm 78 is said to be a maskil of Asaph.  An online Jewish encyclopedia says that maskil is a title of honor in some areas of Italy while in other areas, it is a secondary person supporting the rabbi.  Neither definition seems to match why the psalm is referred by such a title.

But Bonhoeffer’s goal is finding those psalms that can be prayers.

But do we have to chant them?  My niece sang two psalms at her father’s memorial services, Psalms 23 and 121.  Having lived a good portion of her adult life in Scotland, she sang the psalms in the churches that she attended.  Her father, while in the hospital, asked her to sing those two psalms to him.  He was soothed both by the tune and by the words.  We need not chant, but a word or two may need to be repeated to get the meter right.

Lord, guide us as we pray.  He remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever. and freed us from our enemies. His love endures forever. (Psalm 136:23-24)   You indeed remember us in our lowly estate.  You free us from our enemies.  Your love endures forever.  We may not be able to sing every psalm or pray every psalm, but the psalms bring us closer to You. In the name of Jesus, I pray.  Amen.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.