Psalm 88, Psalm 91, Psalm 95, Psalm 108-109
Ryan: H.C. Leupold referred to Psalm 88 as “the gloomiest psalm found in the Scriptures” (Truth for Today Commentary: Psalms 51-89, p. 661). I would have to agree with that statement. It was so depressing to read that I had to include the clip from Monty Python and the Holy Grail where God refers to “those miserable psalms” (see below). It lacks that thread of hope that David always wove in through all of his songs and prayers. This psalm is written from the perspective of one who has yet to obtain a reprieve from a very difficult situation afflicting him. Whether the author himself was going through such a time when he wrote it is unknown, but he definitely has been through a similar situation at some point, as have most of us. We have all had a time in our lives when it seems like God is not listening to our prayers, or that he simply doesn’t care about us and there is no end in sight to the pain we are enduring. It’s extremely difficult to maintain our hope during those times, but remember that even Jesus felt once in his life like God had forsaken him, and yet just three days later, he conquered the immutable boundary we call death.
Samantha: Today’s reading made me think of songs that we sing in church in this generation. After every couple verses I would say, “that verse is in this song” or “I just sang along to that in the car”. Several songs (psalms) that stood out to me were On Eagles’ Wings (Psalm 91), Come Let Us Worship & Bow Down and the Chris Tomlin version Come Let Us Worship (Psalm 95:6-7), and the Sons of Korah version Come Let Us Sing (Psalm 95:6-11). These are just the songs I found on YouTube–there are many more out there. I am amazed that poetry written three thousand years ago is still popular today, just with updated music!
[...] Thanks to all “those miserable psalms,” it’s been a while since I’ve gotten to do a nice solid math post. Having gotten [...]