Category: How to benefit from the Psalms

God doesn’t judge people on the basis of race, sex, or national origin. He judges them on the basis of their faith in him and their response to his revealed will. Those who diligently try to obey God’s will are blessed. They are like healthy, fruit-bearing trees planted along a riverbank with strong roots (Jeremiah 17:7, 8), and God promises to watch over them. God’s wisdom guides their lives. In contrast, those who don’t trust and obey God have meaningless lives that blow away like dust. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2  But his delight is in the law of the…

By saying that he “will not be shaken,” David was talking about the unique sense of security felt by believers. God does not exempt believers from the day-to-day circumstances of life. Believers and unbelievers alike experience pain, trouble, and failure at times (Matthew 5:45). Unbelievers have a sense of hopelessness about life and confusion over their true purpose on earth. Those who seek God, however, can move ahead, confident in knowing what is right in God’s eyes. They know that God will keep them from straying off his chosen path. (Source: Life Application Bible)   5  LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. 6  The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. 7 …

Realizing that life is short helps us use the little time we have more wisely and for eternal good. Take time to number your days by asking, “What do I want to see happen in my life before I die? What small step could I take toward that purpose today?” (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  A prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. 2  Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. 3  You turn men back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men." 4  For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like…

The person who can have fellowship with God and dwell in His sanctuary is one who walks upright before God. David describes a person in whom is no false way at all, no pretenses, deceit, gossip, guile, or hypocrisy. He neither makes hollow friendships nor speaks vain compliments. His heart, hand, and tongue are unified in believing and practicing truth. He is faithful, responsible, and trustworthy, a person of integrity because his heart is pure. Therefore, his speech and example witness of truth.   1  A psalm of David. LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? 2  He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart 3  and has no slander on his tongue,…

Depression is one of the most common emotional ailments. One antidote for depression is to meditate on the record of God’s goodness to his people. This will take your mind off the present situation as you focus your thoughts on God’s ability to help you rather than on your inability to help yourself. When you feel depressed, take advantage of this psalm’s antidepressant: Read the Bible’s accounts of God’s goodness, and meditate on them. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah. As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. 2  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? 3  My tears have…

When the foundations are shaking and you wish you could hide, remember that God is still in control. His power is not diminished by any turn of events. Nothing happens without his knowledge and permission. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  For the director of music. Of David. In the LORD I take refuge. How then can you say to me: "Flee like a bird to your mountain. 2  For look, the wicked bend their bows; they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart. 3  When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" 4  The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne. He observes the sons of men; his eyes examine them.…

Here David expresses the joy of forgiveness. God had forgiven him for the sins he had committed against Bathsheba and Uriah (2 Samuel 11–12). Paul quoted these verses in Romans 4:7, 8 and showed that we can have this joyous experience of forgiveness through faith in Christ. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  Of David. A maskil. Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. 2  Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. 3  When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 4  For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah 5  Then I acknowledged…

God is always there to help, providing refuge, security, and peace. God’s power is complete and his ultimate victory is certain. He will not fail to rescue those who love him. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth. A song. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3  though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah 4  There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. 5  God is within her, she will not fall; God…

David accepted God’s punishment, but he begged God not to discipline him in anger. Jeremiah also asked God to correct him gently and not in anger (Jeremiah 10:24). David recognized that if God treated him with justice alone and not with mercy, he would be wiped out by God’s wrath. Often we want God to show mercy to us and justice to everyone else. God in his kindness forgives us instead of giving us what we deserve. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  For the director of music. With stringed instruments. According to sheminith. A psalm of David. O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. 2  Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint; O LORD, heal me, for my bones…

In this psalm, Asaph explains that until he entered God’s sanctuary, he could not understand the justice in allowing the wicked to thrive while the righteous endured hardship. But when he saw that one day justice would be done, he acknowledged God’s wisdom. (Source: Life Application Bible)   1  A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2  But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3  For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4  They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. 5  They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. 6  Therefore pride is their necklace;…