, 1670 text of Psalm 1:1–2 man reads
Psalm 119 at the
Western Wall.
Overview Individual psalms were originally hymns, to be used on various occasions and at various sacred sites; later, some were anthologised, and might have been understood within the various anthologies (e.g.,
Psalm 123 as one of the
Psalms of Ascent). Finally, individual psalms might be understood within the Psalter as a whole, either narrating the life of
David or providing instruction like the
Torah. In later Jewish and Christian tradition, the Psalms have come to be used as prayers, either individual or communal, as traditional expressions of religious feeling.
Commentaries Many authors have commented on the Psalms, including: •
Hilary of Poitiers •
Augustine of Hippo •
Saadia Gaon •
Salmon ben Jeroham •
Yefet ben Ali •
Rashbam •
Abraham ibn Ezra •
David Kimhi •
Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno •
Joseph ben Abraham Gikatilla •
Joseph Kara •
Benjamin ben Judah •
Rashi •
Menachem Meiri •
Isaiah di Trani •
Thomas Aquinas •
John Calvin • Emmanuel (pseudonym), Jewish Commentary on the Psalms. •
Isaac Satanow Use in Jewish ritual Some of the titles given to the Psalms have descriptions which suggest their use in worship: • Some bear the
Hebrew description
shir (;
Greek: ). Thirteen have this description. It means the 'flow of speech', as it were, in a straight line or in a regular strain. This description includes secular as well as sacred songs. • Fifty-eight Psalms bear the description
mizmor (; ), a lyric
ode set to music; a sacred song accompanied with a musical instrument. •
Psalm 145 alone has the designation
tehillah (; ), meaning a song of praise; a song the prominent thought of which is the praise of God. • Thirteen psalms are described as
maskil ('wise'):
32,
42,
44,
45,
52–
55,
74,
78,
88,
89, and
142.
Psalm 41:2, although not in the above list, has the description
ashrei maskil. • Six Psalms (
16,
56–
60) have the title
michtam (, 'gold').
Rashi suggests that
michtam refers to an item that a person carries with him at all times, hence, these Psalms contain concepts or ideas that are pertinent at every stage and setting throughout life, deemed vital as part of day-to-day spiritual awareness. •
Psalm 7 (along with
Habakkuk 3) bears the title
shigayon (). There are three interpretations: (a) According to Rashi and others, this term stems from the root
shegaga, meaning "mistake"—David committed some sin and is singing in the form of a prayer to redeem himself from it; (b)
shigayon was a type of musical instrument; (c)
Ibn Ezra considers the word to mean "longing", as for example in the verse in
Proverbs 5:19
tishge tamid. Psalms are used throughout traditional
Jewish worship. Many complete Psalms and verses from Psalms appear in
Shacharit. The
pesukei dezimra component incorporates Psalms 30, 100, and 145–150.
Psalm 145 (commonly referred to as "
Ashrei", which is really the first word of two verses appended to the beginning of the Psalm), is read three times every day: once in
shacharit as part of
pesukei dezimrah, as mentioned; once, along with Psalm 20, as part of the morning's
concluding prayers; and once at the start of the
afternoon service. On
festival days and
Shabbatot, instead of concluding the morning service, it precedes the
Mussaf service. Psalms 95–99, 29, 92, and 93, along with some later readings, comprise the introduction (
Kabbalat Shabbat) to the Friday night service. Traditionally, a different "Psalm for the Day"—
Shir shel yom—is read after
Shacharit each day of the week (starting Sunday, Psalms: 24, 48, 82, 94, 81, 93, 92). This is described in the
Mishnah (the initial codification of the Jewish
oral tradition) in the tractate
Tamid. According to the Talmud, the Levites originally recited these daily Psalms in the Temple in Jerusalem on that day of the week. From
Rosh Chodesh Elul until
Hoshanah Rabbah, Psalm 27 is recited twice daily following the morning and evening services. There is a
Minhag (custom) to recite Psalm 30 each morning of
Chanukkah after Shacharit: some recite this in place of the regular "Psalm for the Day", others recite this additionally. When a
Jew dies, a watch is kept over the body and
tehillim (Psalms) are recited constantly by sun or candlelight, until the burial service. Historically, this watch would be carried out by the immediate family, usually in shifts, but in contemporary practice this service is provided by an employee of the funeral home or
chevra kadisha. Many Jews complete the Book of Psalms on a weekly or monthly basis. Each week, some also say a Psalm connected to that week's events or the
Torah portion read during that week. In addition, many Jews (notably
Lubavitch, and other
Chasidim) read the entire Book of Psalms prior to the morning service, on the
Sabbath preceding the
calculated appearance of the new moon. The reading of psalms is viewed in Jewish tradition as a vehicle for gaining God's favor. They are thus often specially recited in times of trouble, such as poverty, disease, or physical danger; in many synagogues, Psalms are recited after services for the security of the
State of Israel.
Sefer ha-Chinuch states that this practice is designed not to achieve favor, as such, but rather to inculcate belief in
Divine Providence into one's consciousness, consistently with
Maimonides'
general view on Providence. (Relatedly, the Hebrew verb for prayer,
hitpalal התפלל, is in fact the
reflexive form of
palal פלל, to intervene, petition, judge. Thus, "to pray" conveys the connotation of "judging oneself": ultimately, the purpose of prayer—
tefilah תפלה—is to transform ourselves.)
In Christian prayer and worship 's psalter, 14th or 15th century,
Polish translation (Laudate Dominum)
New Testament references show that the earliest Christians used the Psalms in worship, and the Psalms have remained an important part of
worship in most Christian Churches. The
Eastern Orthodox,
Catholic,
Continental Reformed Protestantism,
Presbyterian,
Lutheran and
Anglican Churches have always made systematic use of the Psalms, with a cycle for the recitation of all or most of them over the course of one or more weeks. For example, in the
United Reformed Churches in North America, the Psalms have the “principle place”—although not exclusive—in singing. In the early centuries of the Church, it was expected that any candidate for
bishop would be able to recite the entire Psalter from memory, something they often learned automatically during their time as
monks. Christians have used
Pater Noster cords of 150 beads to pray the entire Psalter.
Paul the Apostle quotes psalms (specifically
Psalms 14 and
53, which are nearly identical) as the basis for his theory of
original sin, and includes the scripture in the
Epistle to the Romans,
chapter 3. Several conservative Protestant denominations sing only the Psalms (some churches also sing the small number of hymns found elsewhere in the Bible) in worship and do not accept the use of non-Biblical hymns; examples are the
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, the Presbyterian Reformed Church (North America), and the
Free Church of Scotland (Continuing). •
Psalm 22 is of particular importance during the season of
Lent as a Psalm of continued faith during severe testing. •
Psalm 23,
The is My Shepherd, offers an immediately appealing message of comfort and is widely chosen for church
funeral services, either as a reading or in one of several popular hymn settings; •
Psalm 51,
Have mercy on me O God, called the
Miserere from the first word in its Latin version, in both
Divine Liturgy and
Hours, in the sacrament of repentance or confession, and in other settings; •
Psalm 82 is found in the
Book of Common Prayer as a funeral recitation. •
Psalm 137,
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, the
Eastern Orthodox Church uses this hymn during the weeks preceding Great
Lent. •
Psalm 145 by title 'A psalm of praise", is an acrostic of praise and David's final Psalm. Verses from it are frequently used in contemporary worship songs and read by contemporary worship leaders in services. New translations and settings of the Psalms continue to be produced. An individually printed volume of Psalms for use in Christian religious rituals is called a
Psalter.
Imam-ud-Din Shahbaz (1845–1921), a Punjabi evangelist and a poet, produced the first metrical translation of the Psalms in Punjabi, known as Punjabi Zabur. For a hundred years, the Punjabi Zabur has been used as an essential part of singing and praising in the majority of Urdu and Punjabi Churches around the globe. Furthermore, psalms often serve as the inspiration for much of
modern or
contemporary Christian worship music in a variety of
styles. Some songs are entirely based on a particular psalm or psalms, and many quote directly from the Book of Psalms (and other parts of the Bible).
Eastern Orthodox Christianity Orthodox Christians and Greek-Catholics (
Eastern Catholics who follow the
Byzantine rite) have long made the Psalms an integral part of their corporate and private prayers. The official version of the
Psalter used by the Orthodox Church is the Septuagint. To facilitate its reading, the 150 Psalms are divided into 20
kathismata (Greek: καθίσματα; Slavonic: кафизмы, ; lit. "sittings") and each
kathisma (Greek: κάθισμα; Slavonic: каѳисма, ) is further subdivided into three
stases (Greek: στάσεις, lit. "standings", sing. στάσις,
stasis), so-called because the faithful stand at the end of each
stasis for the
Glory to the Father .... At
Vespers and
Matins, different
kathismata are read at different times of the
liturgical year and on different days of the week, according to the Church's calendar, so that all 150 psalms (20
kathismata) are read in the course of a week. During
Great Lent, the number of
kathismata is increased so that the entire Psalter is read twice a week. In the twentieth century, some lay Christians have adopted a continuous reading of the Psalms on weekdays, praying the whole book in four weeks. Aside from
kathisma readings, Psalms occupy a prominent place in every other Orthodox service, including the
services of the Hours and the
Divine Liturgy. In particular, the penitential
Psalm 50 is widely used. Fragments of Psalms and individual verses are used as
Prokimena (introductions to Scriptural readings) and
Stichera. The bulk of
Vespers would still be composed of Psalms even if the kathisma were to be disregarded;
Psalm 118, "The Psalm of the Law", is the centerpiece of
Matins on Saturdays, some Sundays, and the
Funeral service. The entire book of Psalms is traditionally read aloud or chanted at the side of the deceased during the time leading up to the funeral, mirroring Jewish tradition.
Oriental Christianity Several branches of
Oriental Orthodox and those
Eastern Catholics who follow one of the Oriental Rites will chant the entire Psalter during the course of a day during the
Daily Office. This practice continues to be a requirement of
monastics in the Oriental churches.
Catholic usage , . The Psalms have always been important in
Catholic liturgy. The
Liturgy of the Hours is centered on chanting or recitation of the Psalms, using fixed
melodic formulas known as
psalm tones. Early Catholics employed the Psalms widely in their individual prayers; however, as knowledge of
Latin (the language of the
Roman Rite) became uncommon, this practice ceased among the unlearned. However, until the end of the Middle Ages, it was not unknown for the laity to join in the singing of the
Little Office of Our Lady, which was a shortened version of the Liturgy of the Hours providing a fixed daily cycle of twenty-five psalms to be recited, and nine other psalms divided across Matins. The work of Bishop
Richard Challoner in providing devotional materials in English meant that many of the psalms were familiar to English-speaking Catholics from the eighteenth century onwards. Challoner translated the entirety of the Little Office into English, Sunday Vespers, and daily Compline. He also provided other individual Psalms, such as 129/130, for prayer in his devotional books. Bishop Challoner is also noted for revising the
Douay–Rheims Bible, and the translations he used in his devotional books are taken from this work. Until the
Second Vatican Council, the Psalms were either recited on a one-week or, less commonly (as in the case of
Ambrosian rite), two-week cycle. Different one-week schemata were employed: most
secular clergy followed the Roman distribution, while
regular clergy almost universally followed that of
St Benedict, with only a few congregations (such as the
Benedictines of St Maur) following individual arrangements. The
Breviary introduced in 1974 distributed the psalms over a four-week cycle. Monastic usage varies widely. Some use the four-week cycle of the secular clergy, many retain a one-week cycle, either following St Benedict's scheme or another of their own devising, while others opt for some other arrangement. Official approval was also given to other arrangements by which the complete Psalter is recited in a one-week or two-week cycle. These arrangements are used principally by Catholic contemplative religious orders, such as that of the
Trappists. The
General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours 122 sanctions three modes of singing/recitation for the Psalms: • directly (all sing or recite the entire psalm); •
antiphonally (two choirs or sections of the congregation sing or recite alternate verses or strophes); and •
responsorially (the cantor or choir sings or recites the verses while the congregation sings or recites a given response after each verse). Of these three, the antiphonal mode is the most widely followed. Over the centuries, the use of complete Psalms in the
liturgy declined. After the
Second Vatican Council (which also permitted the use of vernacular languages in the liturgy), longer psalm texts were reintroduced into the Mass during the readings. The
revision of the
Roman Missal after the Second Vatican Council reintroduced the singing or recitation of a more substantial section of a Psalm, in some cases an entire Psalm, after the first Reading from Scripture. This Psalm, called the
Responsorial Psalm, is usually sung or recited responsorially, although the
General Instruction of the Roman Missal 61 permits direct recitation.
Lutheran usage In the
Mass of the
Lutheran Churches, the Psalms are sung according to the
lectionary. It typically follows the
lection from the
Old Testament in the
Order of Mass. The
Divine Office is centered on chanting or recitation of the Psalms, using fixed
melodic formulas known as
psalm tones. These are prayed in Lutheran monasteries and convents, as well as by secular Lutheran priests and deacons, in addition to a number of Lutheran laypersons.
Martin Luther's
"Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott" ("A Mighty Fortress Is Our God") is based on Psalm 46.
Reformed usage in a form of the
Sternhold and Hopkins version widespread in
Anglican usage before the
English Civil War (1628 printing). It was from this version that the armies sang before going into battle. Following the
Protestant Reformation, many of the Psalms were set as
hymns. These vernacular translations of the psalms were arranged into rhyming strict-
metre verses, known as
metrical psalms and used for
congregational singing. The metrical psalms were particularly popular in the
Calvinist tradition, where in the past they were often sung to the exclusion of other hymns (
exclusive psalmody).
John Calvin himself made some French translations of the Psalms for church usage, but the completed
Genevan Psalter eventually used in church services consisted exclusively of translations by
Clément Marot and
Théodore de Bèze, on melodies by a number of composers, including
Louis Bourgeois and a certain Maistre Pierre. Among famous hymn settings of the Psalter were the
Scottish Psalter and the paraphrases by
Isaac Watts. The first book printed in North America was a collection of Psalm settings, the
Bay Psalm Book (1640). Metrical psalms are still widely sung in many
Reformed congregations. Additionally, the Psalms are popular for private devotion among the Reformed. There exists in some circles a custom of reading one Psalm and one chapter of
Proverbs a day, corresponding to the day of the month.
Anglican usage Anglican chant is a method of singing prose versions of the Psalms. In the early 17th century, when the
King James Bible was introduced, the metrical arrangements by Thomas Sternhold and John Hopkins were also popular and were provided with printed tunes. This version and the
New Version of the Psalms of David by Tate and Brady produced in the late seventeenth century (see article on
Metrical psalter) remained the normal congregational way of singing psalms in the Church of England until well into the nineteenth century. In Great Britain, the 16th-century
Coverdale psalter still forms the heart of daily worship in
Cathedral and many
parish churches. The new
Common Worship service book has a companion psalter in modern English. The version of the psalter in the American
Book of Common Prayer prior to the 1979 edition is the Coverdale psalter. The Psalter in the American Book of Common Prayer of 1979 is a new translation, with some attempt to keep the rhythms of the Coverdale Psalter.
Islam According to the Islamic holy book, the
Qur'an,
God has sent many messengers to humanity. Five universally acknowledged messengers (
rasul) are
Abraham,
Moses,
David,
Jesus and
Muhammad, each believed to have been sent with a
scripture. Muslims believe David (
Dāwūd) received Psalms (
Zabur) (cf.
Q38:28); Jesus (
Īsā) the
Gospel (
Injeel); Muhammad received the Qur'an; and Abraham (
Ibrahim) the
Scrolls of Abraham; meanwhile, the
Tawrat is the Arabic name for the Torah within its context as an
Islamic holy book believed by
Muslims to have been given by
God to the
prophets and messengers amongst the
Children of Israel, and often refers to the entire Hebrew Bible. God is considered to have authored the Psalms.
Use in the Rastafari movement The Psalms are one of the most popular parts of the Bible among followers of the
Rastafari movement. Rasta singer
Prince Far I released an atmospheric spoken version of the psalms,
Psalms for I, set to a
roots reggae backdrop from
The Aggrovators. ==Psalms set to music==