Many moments in life, whether moments of joy, grief, awe, strength, wisdom, worship, or petition, require a means of communication that is beyond normal, day-to-day means. Poetry uses imagery, repetition, contrast, structure, and thought to become more meaningful and powerful than can be expressed any other way. Psalms, which are defined as sacred songs sung to musical accompaniment (Vines 497), are fascinating to us, and use elements of poetry to help us learn moral lessons and grow closer to God. Tremper Longman III, who wrote How to Read the Psalms, writes, "For frankness, directness, intensity, and intimacy, they are unrivaled in all of Scripture." (cover), when talking of the Psalms. Psalm 59 helps us to know God by telling us of David's experiences and thoughts in his dealings with Saul so as to help us identify with him and give glory to God through his use of poetic devices.
There are few things that do not change over time. Most things, such as rivers, the human body, and society, for example, are an ever changing matrix of complex factors; this is not true of God. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, as is taught in Hebrew 13:8. He is and always will be the same God that was before the beginning. The state of constant is uncommon in the world we live in, but there is one thing that is constant other than God, and that is emotion. Emotion has affected and influenced every person that has and ever will live, and that is emotion. From birth we experience feelings of anger, excitement, happiness, sadness, fear, and kindness. God has given us emotions, as well as guidelines when dealing with them. We know that God has emotions also, as so many verses in the Bible describe God expressing feelings such as love, tende...
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...periences and thoughts in his dealings with Saul so as to help us identify with him and give glory to God through his use of poetic devices.
Works Cited
Coffman, James Burton. "Commentary on Psalms 59:1". Coffman Commentaries on the Old and New Testament. . Abilene Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. 1983-1999. Web. 27 February 2014.
James Strong. Strong's Comprehensive Concordance of the Bible. Iowa Falls: World Bible, 1986. Print.
Longman, Tremper. How to Read the Psalms. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1988. Print. “
“Psalms 59 (King James Version)." Blue Letter Bible. Sowing Circle. Web. 28 Feb, 2014.
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Vine, W. E., Merrill F. Unger, and William White. Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: With Topical Index. Nashville: T. Nelson, 1996. Print.
The Bible: The Old Testament. The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed. Sarah Lawall et al. Vol 1. 7th ed. New York: Norton, 1999. 47-97.
St. Albans Psalter Psalm 68 is not long, but it does have lots of detailed material to study the author’s choice of language, and the power of the images that are being conveyed to the readers through an emotional and sentimental way. The simplicity of this psalm’s gives it power, since it expresses an emotional despair in a careful shaped prayer, which comes from a human being in what seems to be a life-threatening situation. In the image and the content, the psalmist’s travels an arc of desperation to salvation, in a vivid personal plea to Christ to save him from what seems to be a swirling vortex of hopelessness that threatens to pull him under forever.
Robinson, B. A. (2008, March 30). Books of the Hebrew Scripture . Retrieved May 7, 2011, from Religious Tolerance: http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_otb3.htm
(Michigan;Dunham Publishing Company,1969). pages 76-108 Other resources: Strong’s Concordance young’s Analytical Concordance Harper’s Bible Dictionary NIV Application Commentary
Harris, Stephen. Understanding The Bible. 6 ed. New York City: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages, 2002. Print.
Mounce, William D., gen. ed. Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006
New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997. Osborne, Grant R. Revelation. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002.
Bromiley, Geoffrey William, Fredrich, Gerhard, Kittel, Gerhard. “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.” Struttgart, Germany. W. Kohlhammer Verlag. 1995. Print.
Today’s culture is one where people like to do as little work as possible. Even when it comes to reading our own scripture, The Holy Words of God, a lot of people like to look up one verse and reference it to something without knowing what the rest of the passage says. Psalms 109 is no exception, it is one the more widely misused passages as of late. A popular verse from Psalms 109 is verse 8 which reads “Let his days be few; and let another take his office”, this is seen in reference to our current president, but what people fail to realize is what else David is actually praying. This paper is going to go through Psalms 109 and unpack it verse by verse to show the true meaning of what David was praying and to give us a new look at how to pray.
Wall, Robert W., Robert W. Wall, N. T. Wright, and J. Paul. Sampley. The New Interpreter's Bible. Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 2002. Print.
Unger, Merrill F. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Ed. R. K. Harrison, Howard F. Vos, and Cyril J. Barber. Chicago: Moody, 1988. Print.
New Revised Standard Version. New York: American Bible Society, 1989. Print. The. Russell, Eddie.
Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version. New York: American Bible Society, 1995. Print. (BS195 .C66 1995)
Kohlenberger, III, John R. and Barker, Kenneth L., eds. Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary: An Abridgement of the Expositors Bible Commentary. Chicago: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994.