Psalms

[GaryAnderson]

Psalms are very war-like to me but as far as I can understand the war-like aspect is a picture of fallen man's flesh always at war against God's purpose with our spirit. Galatians 5:17 says the two are contrary to each other and fight against each other. Psalms is a picture of man transitioning out from the law to living by Christ in our spirit. The central thought of the whole Bible and God's Eternal purpose is Christ not the law. The Psalms speak of Christ as the Lord himself said to the two on the road to Emmaus Luke 24:44 "And he said to them, These are my words which I spoke to you while I was with you, that all the things written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and Psalms concerning me must be fulfilled." Psalms shows a contrast between the law and Christ. Only Christ Himself, not the law, can make us members of Christ and conform us to Christ that we may be his Complement his body, Bride and Kingdom on the earth for eternity.

Any thoughts on psalms and their purpose?
Thanks.

 

[charity]

Hello @GaryAnderson,

Through Moses the Israelites received the five books of the law, and through David they received the five books of the Psalms (the No. 5, in Scripture, denoting Divine grace). The Psalms rejoice in and instruct on God and His ways:-

1) The Genesis Book:- Psalms 1-14 - ( Concerning Man)
2) The Exodus Book:- Psalms 42-72 - (Concerning Israel as a Nation)
3) The Leviticus Book:- Psalms 73-89 - (Concerning the Sanctuary)
4) The Numbers Book:- Psalms 90-106 - (Concerning Israel and the Nations of the Earth)
5) The Deuteronomy Book:- Psalms 107-150 - (Concerning God and His Word)

* The Lord quoted from them repeatedly, and through the Holy Spirit by the Evangelists and Apostles. The 90th Psalm is a prayer of Moses, found in 'The Numbers Book', concerning Israel and the Nations of the Earth:-

'Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
.. Before the mountains were brought forth,
.... or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world,
...... even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God.
Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
.. For a thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.
.... Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.
...... In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.
........ For we are consumed by Thine anger, and by Thy wrath are we troubled.
.......... Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance.
............ For all our days are passed away in Thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.
.............. The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years,
................ yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
.................. Who knoweth the power of Thine anger? even according to Thy fear, so is Thy wrath.
So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
.. Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent Thee concerning Thy servants.
.... O satisfy us early with Thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
...... Make us glad according to the days wherein Thou hast afflicted us,
........ and the years wherein we have seen evil.
.......... Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants, and Thy glory unto their children.
............ And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us:
.............. and establish thou The work of our hands upon us;
................ yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it.'
(Psa 90:1-17)

Thank you Gary

 

[charity]

Hello again, @GaryAnderson,

* Psalm 22:18 fulfilled in John 19:23-24

'They part My garments among them,
and cast lots upon My vesture.'
(Psa 22:18)

'Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus,
took His garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part;
and also His coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.
They said therefore among themselves,
'Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be:
that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith,
'They parted My raiment among them, and for My vesture they did cast lots.
These things therefore the soldiers did.'
(Joh 19:23-24)​

* Psalm 34:20 fulfilled in John 19:36

'He keepeth all his bones:
not one of them is broken.'
(Psa 34:20)

'For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled,
A bone of Him shall not be broken.'
(Joh 19:36)​

* As you will know there are more examples of these Psalms and their NT fulfilments, for as the verse you quoted from Luke 24:44 tells us, the law, the prophets and the psalms speak of Christ, and have and will be fulfilled.
I am away to my bed now.

Thank you again, Gary.

 

[Robert Gwin]

Psalms are very war-like to me but as far as I can understand the war-like aspect is a picture of fallen man's flesh always at war against God's purpose with our spirit. Galatians 5:17 says the two are contrary to each other and fight against each other. Psalms is a picture of man transitioning out from the law to living by Christ in our spirit. The central thought of the whole Bible and God's Eternal purpose is Christ not the law. The Psalms speak of Christ as the Lord himself said to the two on the road to Emmaus Luke 24:44 "And he said to them, These are my words which I spoke to you while I was with you, that all the things written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and Psalms concerning me must be fulfilled." Psalms shows a contrast between the law and Christ. Only Christ Himself, not the law, can make us members of Christ and conform us to Christ that we may be his Complement his body, Bride and Kingdom on the earth for eternity.

Any thoughts on psalms and their purpose?
Thanks.

View attachment 19466

Hi Gary, yes sir, many of those songs were about war, but also many other things as well. It is really a good overview of the message of the Bible. Psalms are songs of praise to Jehovah, and not only that, they also contain prayers of supplication for mercy and help, as well as expressions of trust and confidence. They abound with thanksgivings and exultations and with exclamations of great, yes, superlative, joy. Some are recapitulations of history, contemplating Jehovah’s loving-kindness and his great deeds. They are packed with prophecies, many of which have had remarkable fulfillments. They contain much instruction that is beneficial and upbuilding, all of it clothed in lofty language and imagery that stirs the reader to the very depths.

They are a living message from the Supreme Sovereign of all the universe, Jehovah God himself. They give deep insight into the fundamental teachings of the Bible, speaking first and foremost of Jehovah, its Author. He is clearly shown to be the Creator of the universe and everything in it. (8:3-9; 90:1, 2; 100:3; 104:1-5, 24; 139:14) The name Jehovah is indeed magnified in the book of Psalms, where it appears about 700 times. Additionally, the abbreviated form “Jah” is to be found 43 times, so that all together the divine name is mentioned about 5 times, on the average, in each Psalm. Moreover, Jehovah is spoken of about 350 times as ʼElo·himʹ, or God. Jehovah’s supreme rulership is shown in references to him as “Sovereign Lord” in a number of psalms.—68:20; 69:6; 71:5; 73:28; 140:7; 141:8.

 

[GaryAnderson]

Thank you for your comments @Robert Gwin and @charity .
Let’s discuss for a moment Psalm 3 as an example.


1 Lord, how many are my foes!
How many rise up against me!
2 Many are saying of me,
“God will not deliver him.”

3 But you, Lord, are a shield around me,
my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
4 I call out to the Lord,
and he answers me from his holy mountain.

5 I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
6 I will not fear though tens of thousands
assail me on every side.

7 Arise, Lord!
Deliver me, my God!
Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
break the teeth of the wicked.

8 From the Lord comes deliverance.
May your blessing be on your people.


As we can see this is quite a contrast for how we treat our enemies in the New Testament after Jesus’ teachings.
I don’t pray to God to strike down my enemies for example, or people I don’t like. This is a direct contrast from “turning the other cheek” and the best way to explain it as I mention on my first post is to take into context the customs of the times and most importantly The Law, which at the time they couldn’t see that it points to Jesus Christ.
We see a lot of “rightnesses” in the time of David, but we also see him humble in other verses which is quite a statement for that time and knowing who David was. This also confirms the eternal struggle between flesh and spirit which Jesus overcame.

 

[Wrangler]

Psalms are very war-like to me

They should for 2 reasons.

1st, historically every region had a deity and every battle was seen as a battle between competing deities. The deity of the Israeli's was supreme through the period Psalms was written, mostly credited with David.

2nd, God is primarily fighting a spiritual war. That we know how it will end does not change the WIP of the unfolding spiritual war.