Psalms Blog

This blog is authored by Garth, a retired pastor of our church. He started the blog while still working and produced blogs for Psalms 1 thru 79. He has volunteered to continue providing (try) weekly blogs on the Psalms as his time allows. We accept, with sincere thanks, his contribution of these writings to our website. Here is his introduction, from September 8, 2021, to this series of blogs on the psalms. Psalms

The whole series can be found in the Blog Archive, under the Blogs tab on the main menu above.

November 29th

Psalm 90

BOOK 4 (Psalm 90-106)

"Life is short and we have not much time for gladdening the hearts of those who travel the way with us. Oh, be swift to love, make haste to be kind." (Martin Marty)

Psalm 90 is perhaps most famous for two verses:

¹² So teach us to count our days
that we may gain a wise heart.

¹⁷ Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!

I want to focus on verse 12.

November 22nd

Psalm 89

It is an unforgettable scene: Jesse’s sons lined up before the prophet Samuel, each of them assuming he will be named as the next king of Israel. But no, it is the last and the least – David – not even deemed worthy to be present, a young shepherd boy out looking after the sheep, who is chosen.

November 14th

Psalm 88 (pt 2)

(Last week we explored this psalm with disturbing example from the Holocaust. This week I will focus on some examples closer to our own experience).

Les Murray describes his experience. A successful writer, highly esteemed, he suddenly was struck with debilitating depression. Here is how he describes it:

November 7th

Psalm 88

The Psalter is full of psalms of lament, as any reader of this blog knows. Most laments follow a pattern: a description of suffering, a testimony to commitment to God, an expectation that God will deliver, and finally a word of praise. This psalm breaks the pattern. The prayer is bitterly and brutally honest. Let’s note several key things about this psalm: