The Psalms begin by saying a man is blessed if his “delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Ps. 1:1-2). This was clearly true of Jesus and His apostles. They were so saturated in the Psalms that they quoted these inspired songs nearly 110 different times, more than almost any other Old Testament book! Yet, these quotes were never just window-dressing, a splash of poetic color.
The deepest New Testament letters quote the Psalms most! When Paul describes God’s judgment in Romans 2, Psalm 62:13 supplies the words. Romans 3’s description of sin’s impact is shaped by Psalms 5:9, 10:7, 14:1-3, 51:4, 53:1-3, and 140:4. Psalm 32:1 helps explain our justification by faith in Romans 4, and Psalm 44:23 perfectly drives home the point in Romans 8 that nothing separates us from God’s love. The Psalms help inform Paul’s understanding of the roles in God’s plan played by gospel preaching (Ps. 19:4, 107:26), Israel (Ps. 69:22, 94:14), and the unity of Jews and Gentiles in Christ (Ps. 18:49, 69:9, 117:1), explored in Romans 10, 11, and 15 respectively.
When the writer of Hebrews quotes from the Psalms, it always packs a punch, too. In the inspired writer’s hands, eleven different Psalms – Psalm 2, 8, 40, 45, 95 (a lot!), 97, 102, 104, 111, 118, and 135 – show the superiority of Christ (Heb. 1-2), the need for our tenderhearted obedience (Heb. 3, 4, 10), the nature of Christ’s better priesthood and sacrifice (Heb. 5, 7, 10), and the reality of the Lord’s help in our lives (Heb. 13). Important elements of who Jesus is and how we live the Christian life are expressed with the Psalms in I Corinthians, II Corinthians, Ephesians, and I Peter, as well.
While their beautiful poetry makes them great for our praise songs, greeting cards, and church marquees, the Psalms were more than a songbook to the early church and should be more to us, too. They are deep, rich, and worthy of our meditation. As we do, we will discover a delightful blessing.
Are you ready to have your faith shaped by these powerful songs? Check out our sermon series, Climbing Higher: Songs of Ascents.