Psalms

No teacher can adequately cover all of Psalms in one short lesson. If I were teaching this lesson, I would concentrate on the ones cited in the lesson guide.

Also, please note that I am not going to use initial uppercase for pronouns that refer to Christ. I intend no disrespect by doing this; I know that many people do use initial uppercase because they want to indicate their respect for the Savior. I often follow the same convention when I am writing to someone who has a strong love for the Savior and who might think I was being disrespectful by not following that convention. However, the King James scriptures themselves don’t use initial uppercase for pronouns that refer to Christ, and since I am going to be referring to Christ repeatedly during the course of this essay, while also quoting verses that concern him, it just seems easier to bow to what is in the scriptures and not switch back and forth constantly between capitalization and lower case.

The first set of scripture references for this lesson is a set of prophecies from the Psalms that were fulfilled by Christ. Psalms 69:20 is heartrending: “Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.” If ever there were a reason for religion, this is it, because religion is (ideally) what teaches us to take pity and to give comfort. The fulfillment cited is Mark 14:32–41. These are the verses where Christ went to the Garden of Gethsemane with his disciples, and he withdrew with Peter, James, and John, but they kept on falling asleep even though he had asked them to stay awake. In the end (verse 41), he tells them, “Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.” This is so typical of Christ: although he was in need of comfort himself, he gave comfort to those very friends who failed him.

The next reference, Psalm 22:7–8, reads, “All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.” The fulfillment of this is found in Matthew 27:39–43. Quoting only from verse 43, it reads, “He trusted in God: let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.”

This pair of scriptural references addresses one of the great paradoxes of religion. It may be that God will deliver us from some of the trials that face us, and it may be that he will not. Christ was not able to skip being crucified. My personal tendency is not to ask to be spared from difficulties, on the theory that we are here specifically to experience those difficulties, but I recently read an essay by Spencer W. Kimball called: “The False Gods We Worship,” which appeared in the June 1976 issue of The Ensign. (No, I wasn’t reading old issues of The Ensign: it was reprinted at the back of Hugh Nibley’s book Teachings of the Pearl of Great Price, which I happened to be examining.) This essay was a good reminder to me that although we have to be willing to go through whatever experiences come to us in this life, that there is such a thing as divine intervention.

The next three pairs of references all refer specifically to aspects of Christ’s death. Psalm 22:16, which was fulfilled in Mark 15:25, predicts the crucifixion as the means of execution. Psalm 22:18, fulfilled in Mathew 27:35, refers to the soldiers gambling for Christ’s clothing. Finally, Psalm 22:1 was fulfilled in Matthew 27:46 when Christ called out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The final set of citations (Psalm 16:10, Acts 2:31–32, and 13:34–35) refers to Christ’s resurrection.

The second set of references contains scriptures about gratitude. Psalm 13 is a lament that ends with an affirmation of David’s trust in, and praise for, the Lord. Who doesn’t know Psalm 23? Psalm 51 was also cited in the last lesson (and I talked about it briefly in my last essay). Psalm 59:16 has a good reference to “Adversity” on p. 7 of the Topical Guide.

I like Psalm 78:38 better if you also read verse 39, which talks about why it is that God is so forgiving: “For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.” Psalm 86:5 encourages us to repent (which is interesting in light of David’s own situation, where his sin was so very serious that he lost his exaltation). Psalm 100:4–5 is an expression of gratitude and praise. Psalm 103, which has several verses cited, is interesting. I liked verse 3, which says the Lord “healeth all thy diseases.” It reminds me of Annie Dillard’s book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, which has (among many other equally interesting points) the idea that part of living means becoming scarred over the course of time. No one gets out of this life without some damage. The remaining verses (Psalm 103: 8–11 and 17–18) are just plain beautiful.

The remaining set of citations all have to do with trusting in the Lord. I liked Psalms 4:5, which says, “Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord.” What better sacrifice could there be than to give up our sins?

Psalm 5:11 reads, “But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.” This reminds me of the Council in Heaven (Topical Guide, p. 77).

Psalm 9:10 reads, “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” What more beautiful promise in an unjust and unkind world could we have than this?

Psalm 18:2 is cited in the hymn book for hymn number 68, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” which was written by Martin Luther. I’ve always thought that this was one of the most majestic hymns ever written. If Luther had done nothing else during the course of his life than write this hymn, I think that would have been enough to say that his time here was well spent.

Psalm 56:11 reads, “In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.” This one shows up on our currency, although I think most people don’t know it is a quotation from Psalms. (I didn’t.)

Psalm 62:8 reads in part, “Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us.” Do we do this? Do we do it often enough and long enough to find strength? I am reminded of many people in scripture, but I am especially reminded of Enos in The Book of Mormon.

Psalm 118:8–9 contain the sort of wisdom you would expect from someone like Benjamin Franklin: “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” These would be good verses to remember during the Fourth of July holiday, or for that matter any other patriotic holiday, and to help you put your patriotism in perspective.

The final set of scriptures is all about the temple. I am not going to talk about all of them, because this is getting long and because you ought to look them up yourself. However, I would particularly recommend all of Psalm 15 rather than just the three verses cited. This psalm would be a good one to consider when you are wondering whether you are worthy to attend the temple. In Psalm 24, I particularly liked verses 3 and 4, which read: Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.” I also like Psalm 24:7–10 and Psalm 27:4 because of their beauty.

Hugh Nibley made Psalm 84:10 his own: “I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”

Sunday School Notebook -July 2006 - Susan Morgan