The psalms, Near Eastern literature, were probably written in pre-exilic time for use in public worship. In translation, we lose the rhythm of this poetry. However, translators have preserved its parallelism. Most of the psalms are lamenting psalms i.e. the psalmists invokes the Divine for help and deliverance from misfortune. Psalms 3-7 are individual laments. Psalm 1 is a wisdom psalm while psalm 2 in a royal psalm. In psalm 6 the psalmist writes “O Lord, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is sorely troubled. But, thou, O Lord-how long?” The phrase how long occurs more than fifty times in Scripture. Some times the answer is to wait, not a favorite answer of mine. Some times the answer is now! The miracles. Other times the answer is not for us to know. Yet, with a heart of faith, we know that in some mysterious way God is working, and most of the time, not exactly the way we had hoped for. Often the work has to done in spite of us.
The psalms, Near Eastern literature, were probably written in pre-exilic time for use in public worship. In translation, we lose the rhythm of this poetry. However, translators have preserved its parallelism. Most of the psalms are lamenting psalms i.e. the psalmists invokes the Divine for help and deliverance from misfortune. Psalms 3-7 are individual laments. Psalm 1 is a wisdom psalm while psalm 2 in a royal psalm. In psalm 6 the psalmist writes “O Lord, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is sorely troubled. But, thou, O Lord-how long?” The phrase how long occurs more than fifty times in Scripture. Some times the answer is to wait, not a favorite answer of mine. Some times the answer is now! The miracles. Other times the answer is not for us to know. Yet, with a heart of faith, we know that in some mysterious way God is working, and most of the time, not exactly the way we had hoped for. Often the work has to done in spite of us.
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