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Psalter Catechism: An Introduction to the Psalter

The following is the first section of a helpful *Psalter Catechism* written by Pastor Brad Johnston and under development by Crown & Covenant Publications. Like the *Westminster Shorter Catechism*, this is written simply enough to be understood by many children and yet contains valuable truths for adults, including those who did not grow up singing and using the Psalter. Enjoy this sneak-peak into a future publication!

  — | Features, Theme Articles | November 05, 2014 | Read time: 10 minutes



The following is the first section of a helpful Psalter Catechism written by Pastor Brad Johnston and under development by Crown & Covenant Publications. Like the Westminster Shorter Catechism, this is written simply enough to be understood by many children and yet contains valuable truths for adults, including those who did not grow up singing and using the Psalter.

Enjoy this sneak-peak into a future publication!

1. What musical gift did God give to his church?

God gave to his church the musical gift of the Psalter.1

2. Where does the name “Psalter” come from?

The name “Psalter” comes from the Greek title of the Book of Psalms (Psalmoi), which is a translation of the Hebrew title (Tehillim) meaning “Praises.”

3. What is a metrical Psalter?

A metrical Psalter is a singable translation of the Book of Psalms, which is found in the heart of the Holy Bible.2

4. What is unique about the Psalter?

The Psalter is unique because it is a collection of a hundred and fifty songs given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to be offered in praise to the one true God.3

5. Who wrote the Psalter?

The Psalter was written mostly by David (1010-970 BC), king of Israel and ancestor of Jesus, with his assistants, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.4

6. What qualifies King David to be the main human author of the Psalter?

King David was a man after God’s own heart, the sweet psalmist of Israel, a prophet chosen by God to serve as His messianic (or anointed) king in Israel and to bring forth the Word of the Lord.5

7. What are the inscriptions of the Psalter?

The inscriptions of the Psalter are ancient titles attached to many of the Psalms to give understanding of the Psalm’s historical circumstances, literary type, or directions for use in worship. In the Hebrew (Masoretic) text they are part of the Psalm itself.6

8. How is the Psalter helpful to Christian saints?

There is no one book of Scripture that has been more helpful to Christian saints in all the ages of the church than the Psalms, ever since it was written.7 When we sing the Psalter we join our voices with true worshipers among the nations and in history who lift their souls to the Lord in faith (Ps. 25:1).

9. Why should Christians sing the Psalter?

Christians should sing the Psalter because the New Covenant is like a marriage bond between God and his people, bringing joy and delight.8 But the main reason we ought to sing Psalms is because this practice is commanded by God through the apostles.

10. What did the apostles command about Psalm singing?

The Apostle Paul commanded the Ephesian (Eph. 5:19) and Colossian (Col. 3:16) churches to sing the Psalter and commented on the Corinthians’ psalm singing (1 Cor. 14:15, 26). James likewise commanded his readers to sing psalms (James 5:13). 9

11. What did the Apostle Paul command the Ephesian church?

The Apostle Paul commanded the Ephesian church to “understand what the will of the Lord is” by being “filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and songs of the Spirit10, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Eph. 5:18-21).

12. What did the Apostle Paul command the Colossian church?

The Apostle Paul commanded the Colossian church to “let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and songs of the Spirit,11 with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col. 3:16-17).

13. Why does the Apostle Paul use the words “psalms and hymns and songs” to teach the churches about singing?

The Apostle Paul uses the three words “psalms and hymns and songs” to teach the churches about singing because they were featured in the Greek Old Testament (LXX) used by his original readers. The inscriptions of the Greek Psalter use “psalm” 67 times, “hymn” 6 times, and “song” 36 times. All three words are used repeatedly in the text of the Psalter itself.12

14. Why does the Apostle Paul say these compositions are “of the Spirit”?

The Apostle Paul says these compositions are “of the Spirit”13 because the Holy Spirit directly inspired them. That is why they are included in the Scriptures and why the Apostle commanded Christians to sing them.

15. What does James command his readers?

James commands his readers who are cheerful to “sing Psalms” or “sing praise” (James 5:13).14 Likely writing in the late 40s AD from Jerusalem where the temple was still in use, James should probably be understood to be referring directly to the Psalter.

16. How should we meditate upon the Psalms?

We should meditate upon the Psalms with care, singing them thoughtfully, and engaging with the Holy Spirit to guide us into the full meaning of each Psalm. We should also strive to be faithful like those saints who wrote the Psalter.15

17. What does the Psalter provide us in worship?

The Psalter provides us in worship with what we need to understand God and how to relate to him. The Psalter teaches us how to speak to God and one another and provides us with the language to use.16

18. Does the Psalter cover the whole range of Christian experience?

The whole range of Christian experience finds expression in the Psalter. Athanasius says it “embraces the whole life of man, the affections of his mind, and the motions of his soul.” One may find, he says, “a Psalm suited to every occasion, and thus he will find they are written for him.”17 John Calvin often referred to the Psalter as “the anatomy of all the parts of the soul.”18

19. Should we regard the Psalter as merely a hymnal for the Old Testament?

The location of the Book of Psalms (after Job and before Proverbs) can be misleading. Though many of its songs were sung in the time of David,19 the Psalter is probably one of the last Old Testament books to attain its final form, and it is placed in the final division of the Hebrew Bible. The Psalter should be understood as the final product of Old Testament temple worship, compiled in preparation for New Testament worship.20

20. With what heart attitude should we sing the praises of the Psalter?

With all my heart my thanks I’ll bring, before the gods Your praise I’ll sing. I’ll bow down toward Your holy place, And praise Your name for truth and grace.

For You have magnified Your word, so far above Your name adored. You answered me the day I called, You strengthened me and made be bold.

All kings of earth will thank You, LORD; They’ll sing when they have heard Your word. The LORD’s ways they will celebrate; The glory of the LORD is great.

Your right hand, LORD, will set me free, And work out what pertains to me. Your love, O LORD, forever stands; Leave not the work done by Your hands. (Psalm 138B, stanzas 1-3, 6, from The Book of Psalms for Worship, Crown & Covenant Publications: 2009.)

ENDNOTES

  1. “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” (Rom. 15:4). ↩︎

  2. The Book of Psalms For Worship (Crown & Covenant Publications: 2009) is a psalter that presents the 150 Psalms in 437 different selections. ↩︎

  3. The Psalter’s divine origin is demonstrated in the Bible in 2 Sam. 23:2-3; Ps. 22:25; Acts 4:25; and 2 Tim. 3:16. ↩︎

  4. Each of these propositions can be shown from the Scriptures. See Luke. 20:42; 2 Sam. 2:4, 5:3; 2 Sam. 5:4; 2 Tim. 2:8; 2 Sam. 23:2; Acts 4:25; and 2 Pet. 1:21. ↩︎

  5. See 1 Sam. 13:14; 2 Sam 23:1; Acts 2:29-30; 1 Sam. 16:12-13; and 2 Sam. 23:2. The Psalm inscriptions indicate David himself wrote about half of the 150 Psalms, but 1 Chron. 25:6 clarifies that all the writers/editors were working under his direction. ↩︎

  6. Most commentators regard the Masoretic inscriptions as authentic, while questioning the originality, though not antiquity, of the Greek Septuagint (LXX) inscriptions. For a helpful introduction to the Psalm inscriptions see Geoffrey Grogan, Psalms, in the Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary Series, pp. 8-10. ↩︎

  7. Matthew Henry, “An Exposition with Practical Observations of the Book of Psalms” in Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible (MacDonald Publishing Company), vol. 3, pp. 236-238. ↩︎

  8. See the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America’s Directory For Public Worship 2.7. Eph. 5:18-32 presents a glorious description of Christian marriage that Paul says “is profound, and I am saying it refers to Christ and the church” (v. 32). ↩︎

  9. Some English translations obscure the similarity of these five references. They all contain words from the same Greek root meaning “to sing a psalm, to sing praises” and in context likely refer to singing from the God-breathed Psalter used in the temple and the synagogues. Jesus uses this same word to refer to the “Book of Psalms” in Luke 20:42 as does Peter in Acts 1:20. Paul refers to “the second psalm” in Acts 13:33. These uses clearly have in mind the canonical Psalter. ↩︎

  10. The Greek word here translated “of the Spirit” is often translated more generically as “spiritual.” However, this adjective refers to the source of these compositions and modifies all three nouns: psalms, hymns, and songs. ↩︎

  11. The same Greek word is used here as in Question 11 above. ↩︎

  12. John W. Keddie, Singing the Lord’s Song: Biblical Songs in Worship (Crown & Covenant: 2003), p. 33. It is not good exegesis to read modern definitions and distinctions into these three biblical words. ↩︎

  13. B. B. Warfield notes of this Greek word that “of the twenty-five instances in which the word [translated “of the Spirit”] occurs in the New Testament, in no single case does it sink so low in its reference as the human spirit; and in twenty-four of them [clearly refers to the work of] the Holy Spirit” (The Presbyterian Review, vol. I, p. 561 [July 1980]). The single difficult exception Warfield grants is Eph. 6:12. ↩︎

  14. Though James “the Lord’s brother” (Gal. 1:19; 2:9) is not himself an apostle, he wielded influence in the church in Jerusalem (see Acts 12:17; 15:13-21; 21:18-25) and his general epistle is included in the New Testament. Eusebius records that “James the Righteous” was appointed by the Apostles as overseer in Jerusalem and was martyred in 62 AD (Church History 1:12; 2:1, 23; 3:5; 4:5). ↩︎

  15. This answer is a paraphrase of what Athanasius, an overseer of the church in Alexandria, Egypt stated in the fourth century AD in his important work Letter To Marcellinus (Paulist Press: New York), p. 129. Access this document online at www.fisheaters.com/psalmsathanasiusletter.html. ↩︎

  16. Terry Johnson, “Restoring Psalms Singing To Our Worship” in Give Praise To God: A Vision For Reforming Worship (P&R Publishing, 2003), p. 259. ↩︎

  17. Athanasius (c. 296-373 AD), quoted in Michael Bushell’s book Songs of Zion: The Biblical Case For Exclusive Psalmody (Norfolk Press), p. 32. ↩︎

  18. John Calvin, Commentary On The Psalms (republished by Baker Books: 2003), pp. 36-37. ↩︎

  19. The books of Samuel and Chronicles record usage of particular psalms in the time of David. See 2 Sam. 22 (cf. Ps. 18), 1 Chron. 16:8-36 (cf. Ps. 105:1-15; 96:1-13; and 106:1, 47-48). ↩︎

  20. Michael LeFebvre, “The Hymns Of Christ: The Old Testament Formation of the New Testament Hymnal” in Sing A New Song: Recovering Psalm Singing for the Twenty-First Century (Reformation Heritage Books 2010), 92. ↩︎