September 25, 1949 THE PSALMS WE SING Psa. 23; 42:1, 2; 90:1, 2, 16, 17
books, entitled, “ Our God, Our Help in Ages Past.” Psalm 148 is used for the words in the hymn, “ Praise the Lord, Ye Heavens Adore Him.” Can you think of other hymns or choruses that you sing which contain parts of God’s Word? Does it not make the people of Bible times seem more real to you as you sing the same songs of praise and of worship that they sang so long ago? Pray that from now on you will sing with your heart rather than merely with your lips. Then your singing will be a part of your love and your worship for your Lord as was the singing of those who followed Him long ago.
sufficient God. The great hymn of Dr. Isaac Watts entitled, “ Our God, Our Help in Ages Past” was based upon this psalm. It is good often to meditate upon the character of the God whom we trust. The psalm closes with a prayer for a proper appreciation of the work, glory and beauty of the Lord. There is also the petition that the work of God’s serv ants may be established. Otherwise, it will be transient like everything else about man. Memory Verse: Review Psalm 105:1-5 How ,do you sing in Sunday school and church? Do you sing with your lips while in your heart you think of the things that you are going to do after church, the new dress or suit that you are wearing, or what you want to tell your friends after thè service? Do you ever think of each word that you are singing, so that you can sing with your heart as well as with your lips? Listen carefully to the songs that you sing in God’s house today and see how many sentences from God’s Word you can find in them. Some psalms have been set to music exactly as they are written in God’s Word. Others have taken the meaning of a chapter or verse and put it to mu sic. Today we shall think of three of these psalms. Perhaps the most loved and the best known psalm is the Twenty-third or the Shepherd Psalm. See if your hymnals contain the song, “ The King of Love My Shepherd Is,” which is based upon Psalm 23. Other hymn writers have used the words exactly as the psalmist wrote them. Read together Psalm 90 and com pare it with a song found in most hymn Helps for the Children The Psalms We Sing Psa. 23; 90; 148
Pointers on the Lesson The book of Psalms is “ The Hymn- book of the Ages.” It is a collection of 150 spiritual songs and poems, many of which were set to music for the taber nacle and temple worship. John Calvin calls the psalms “ an anatomy of all parts of the soul, for there is not an emotion of which anyone can be con scious that is not represented here as in a mirror.” Down through the cen turies the people of God have been sing ing these masterpieces of devotional in spiration. We sing ,them today. A few samples have been selected for this week’s lesson. The Psalm of the Shepherd Psa. 23 According to most Christians this is the sweetest and most satisfying of all psalms. In various forms it has been set to music. It has sung comfort to the sorrowing, strength to the weak, en couragement to the downcast, assur ance to the doubting, guidance to the lost, and hope to the dying. Musical notes to be found in the psalms are as follows: the note of confidence, v. 1; the note of satisfaction, v. 2 ; the note of restoring love, v. 3; the note of comfort and assurance, v. 4; the note of victory, v. 5; and the note of endur ing grace, v. 6. This psalm should be studied in the light of John 10 which presents the Lord Jesus Christ as the Shepherd who supplies every need of His sheep. The Psalm' of the Hart Psa. 42:1,2 The hart and the water brooks be long together. The hart seeks to live in a place where there are streams of water. He may wander up into the heights of the mountains but soon he will be finding his way back to the re freshing stream. So with the child of God. He and God belong together. It was St. Augustine who said, “ Thou madest us for Thyself, and our heart is restless until it rests in Thee.” No man can have true rest apart from God. And surely it is true of the one who has found refuge in God’s salvation that he will always be longing for a fuller apprecia tion of God’s nature and benefits. They who sincerely thirst for God are bound to be blessed. The idea of the first two verses of this psalm are ex pressed in the words of Jesus: “ Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (Matt. 5:6). The Psalm of Refuge Psa. 90:1,2 There is a two-fold message in this psalm: (1) the eternity of God, and (2) the frailty of man. Frail man through all his existence has had the privilege of finding refuge and rest in an eternally A U G U S T , 1 9 4 9
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