The Psalms
The book of Psalms is well-loved by modern readers, but not always well-understood. Full of literary techniques, the Psalms offer a wonderful opportunity to learn more about how the Bible works and how God speaks through human language and culture.
150
poems
5
books
2,461
verses
Hebrew
language
How to use this resource...
This resource is designed to help you go deeper in your reflection on the Psalms. Each section covers a different aspect of the literary design of the book of Psalms. Explainer videos can be found on our YouTube channel and free downloads are available below.
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Five Books of Psalms
The Psalms is not simply a random collection of poems. Each psalm is carefully ordered into one of five books to convey an overarching narrative about Israel's history.
Psalms 1 and 2 act as the introduction to the book of Psalms. They explore the themes of wisdom and kingship which run as two interweaving threads throughout the five books.
Book 1
Psalms 1-41 centre on David as God’s King.
Book 2
Psalms 42-72 focus on Jerusalem, the temple and the theme of kingship.
Book 3
Psalms 73-89 highlights the exile, the destroyed temple and Israel without a king.
Book 4
Psalms 90-106 refocus on Yahweh’s kingship and His faithfulness in Israel’s history.
Book 5
Psalms 107-150 reflect on the situation post-exile and future longings for a Messiah.
How to use...
Zoom in to see the subcollections of psalms within each of the five books. Click here if the embed does not appear.
Types of Psalms
Scholars separate psalms into different types based on their structure, features and thematic content. These also point to how the psalm was likely used within the context of Ancient Israel's worship. The types are descriptive rather than prescriptive so there is some variation between theologians.
1
Lament
Lament psalms express the psalmist's sorrow in the midst of current hardship or distress. They are the most abundant type (about two fifths) and are more common at the start of the book. ​Importantly, lament psalms also offer praise to God and express trust that God will deliver them. ​A few subcategories of lament psalms are imprecatory psalms, penitential psalms and fugitive psalms.
General structure:
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Addressing the Lord as the recipient of the prayer
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Stating the complaint or problem
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Expressing trust in God
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Crying out for deliverance
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Expressing assurance that God will deliver
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An offer of praise
2
Praise
While praise is a feature of every psalm, there are specific psalms that only express praise. Praise psalms centre on praising God for who He is, His greatness and His love for His world and people. Unlike laments or thanksgiving psalms, these psalms do not mention distress.
General structure:
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A call to praise
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A list of those who should praise God
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Reasons for praise
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A final call to praise
3
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving psalms act like testimonies to what God has already done to deliver the psalmist. They may mention distress but it is now in the past, thanks to God's saving mercy. There are individual and corporate psalms of thanksgiving.
General structure:
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Summary of testimony and praise
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Description of past distress
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Call for God to help
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Description of how God delivered
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An offer of praise
4
Trust
Psalms of trust (sometimes called confidence psalms) focus on God’s goodness even in times of despair and highlight how God cares for His people. They often include exhortations encouraging people to trust God.
Five Famous Trust Psalms
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Psalm 23
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Psalm 27
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Psalm 63
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Psalm 91
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Psalm 131
5
Wisdom
Wisdom psalms extol the merits of wisdom and the life of the wise. They often contrast this with the life of the foolish who ignore God’s instruction. These psalms sit within the Biblical tradition of wisdom literature so they have similar phrasing and themes to books like Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.
Five Famous Wisdom Psalms
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Psalm 1
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Psalm 19
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Psalm 37
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Psalm 112
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Psalm 119
6
History
History psalms offer a poetic retelling of Israel’s history and often include theological reflections on salvation, God’s work in creation and in delivering His people from Egypt. They offer deep theological insights into the historical narratives found elsewhere in the Bible.
The Five History Psalms
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Psalm 78
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Psalm 105
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Psalm 106
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Psalm 135
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Psalm 136
7
Celebration
Celebration psalms were often used for specific purposes as part of Ancient Israel’s liturgy. Thematically they focus on kingship, messiah and covenant. They make up about a fifth of all psalms and they are spread quite evenly across the five books. Celebration psalms can be broken into subcategories depending on how they were used: ​
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liturgical psalms focus on covenant
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royal psalms centre on the king and ultimately the Messiah
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enthronement psalms were likely used in royal ceremonies
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Songs of Zion focus on Jerusalem as the holy city
Subcategories
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liturgical psalms
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​Psalms 50, 81, 89 &132
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royal psalms
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Psalms 2, 18, 20, 21, 45, 72, 101, 110, 132 & 144
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enthronement psalms
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Psalms 24, 29, 47, 93 & 95-99
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Songs of Zion
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Psalms 46, 48, 76, 84, 87 & 122
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How to use...
Filter by book to see more detail and select each psalm to view its type. Click here if the embed does not appear.
Literary Structures
​Hebrew literature employs different literary structures to provide food for theological thought. You will find different structures at a micro and macro level, from a couple of lines, through to whole chapters and books. It’s often hard to see the structure at a macro level so the Psalms offer a way to practice spotting structures within one poem.
​Forward Symmetry
Sections are repeated in a forward direction (i.e. ABCABC).
Inclusio
Outer elements provide a bookend for the centre (i.e. ABCDA).
Chiasm
Each layer is set in parallel from the outer layer to the centre (i.e. ABCBA).
Refrain
A repeated line or idea throughout a section (i.e. ABCBDB).
Literary Devices
A key feature of Hebrew poetry is parallelism. Parallelism works by comparing and contrasting. The writer takes two or more lines and makes them correspond with each other in some way. There are lots of types of parallelism but the most obvious in translation are syntactic and semantic.
Syntactic Parallelism
This type of parallelism relates to sentence structure (called syntax). Two or more lines follow the same or similar grammatical order. Sometimes, the order uses forward symmetry (ABAB). Other times, it may be chiastic (ABBA).
Lord, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me!
E.G.
Psalm 3:1
E.G.
Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Psalm 2:10
Semantic Parallelism
This type of parallelism relates to the meaning of the words (called semantics). The psalmist repeats, adds and contrasts different ideas through parallel couplets. This device invites you to think more deeply about the psalm.
Repeat
The second line repeats or reinforces the first line to give a full idea or picture. This is known as synonymous parallelism.
Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
E.G.
Psalm 51:11
Add
The second line adds more detail to the first line to by explaining or expanding on it. This is known as synthetic parallelism.
For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe.
E.G.
Psalm 61:3
Contrast
The second line contrasts the first line to provide two opposite ideas or pictures. This is known as antithetic parallelism.
For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
E.G.
Psalm 1:6
How to use...
Answer the quiz questions to practice identifying types of parallelisms. Click here if the embed does not appear.
Psalms Explorer
Dig into the full list of psalms to discover which book they belong to, how many verses they include and which type of psalm they are. See all the psalms together to find patterns in length and type.
How to use...
Click on the arrows to move between visualisations. Click here if the embed does not appear.
How to use...
Search by book, type or psalm to discover more. Click here if the embed does not appear.
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Recommended Resources
Websites
Articles
Books
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How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart
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How to Read the Bible Book by Book by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart
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Understanding the Old Testament, Vol. 3, The Psalms and Wisdom Literature by Ernest Lucas
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The Art of Biblical Poetry by Robert Alter