JANUARY Attributes: Psalms 1-5

Welcome to the first post in the Psalms Challenge! Based on the reading I’ve done, resources I’ve found, and ideas I have, this is going to be a really beneficial study. Check out the blog post from a few days ago for more details. This specific post is the first of the weekly Sunday blog posts. Each week, I’ll take the Psalms from the 5-day a week reading plan and share some thoughts and resources with you to aid you if you’re following along on the plan. These posts will also have a recommendation for one Psalm to read. This means you can still join in even if you’ve already chosen a different study or you want something simpler. Alright, let’s dive into chapters 1-5!

“for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” -Psalm 1:6

CHAPTER OF THE WEEK: Psalm 1 You can read it every day or just once, pray it, meditate on it, talk about it, or find other resources about it.

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Psalm 1:6 You can memorize it, read it every day or just once, pray it, meditate on it, talk about it, or find other resources about it.

ON THE LOOKOUT: This month’s theme is attributes of God. Need a reminder about what an attribute is? Check out this post. Be on the lookout for attributes of God in your Bible reading this week. You can highlight them, keep track in a separate journal, make some kind of art with them, pray them to God, or text them to your friends.

RESOURCE OF THE WEEK: Dramatized spoken word poetry Video, “The Bible Explained: Psalms” by Spoken Gospel. This is a really neat intro to the book of Psalms.

SONG OF THE WEEK: “Psalm 1” by Sons of Korah YouTube link, Spotify link

PLAYLIST FOR THE WEEK: Here is a playlist with songs from Psalms 1-5 YouTube link, Spotify link

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: In addition to watching out for attributes of God (and some attributes of Jesus that pop up in this week’s reading!), also be on the lookout for the difference between the righteous and the wicked. 

THOUGHTS ON Psalms 1-5

Once upon a time, I had the grandiose idea to memorize the book of Psalms. I only managed to get through chapter 4 before giving up. But getting to read these first five chapters felt like catching up with an old friend. I have been blessed by these many times in the past, yet found myself discovering a fresh perspective even now.

Psalm 1 seemed the obvious chapter to highlight this week because it not only intros the book, it summarizes life. Everyone has to choose between following or forsaking God and that affects everything. This first chapter sets the tone for the whole book by comparing the righteous and the wicked. The righteous being not those who are perfect, but who follow God and the wicked being those who choose not to follow God. Throughout the whole book, we’re going to see the struggles and emotional rollercoasters of life and how we should communicate with God. These are first songs/poetry and second prayers to the God of the universe. As Ortlund observed in his book, In the Lord I Take Refuge, this is the one book of the Bible that was written to God. In Psalms we see how we are to communicate with God as we travel through the hills and valleys of life. 

“To know how to meditate on and delight in the Bible is the secret to a relationship with God and to life itself. Views contrary to God’s Word are no anchor in time of need.”

-Timothy Keller in The Songs of Jesus

It was so great to read chapters 1-5 slowly and back to back. Psalms is much like a modern day “hits” album. They’re written by different authors, at different times, and come from different contexts. The book we have today was likely compiled and put in order by the Jews who returned to Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile. That means they don’t need to be studied in the immediate context like you would say, John chapters 3 & 4. Even though they likely weren’t written at the same time, it does seem clear why the Jews would put these 5 near each other.

For starters, there are so many similarities with comparing the righteous and the unrighteous. I found myself looking for things that benefit the righteous and things that will happen to the ungodly. Looking for these comparisons reminds me how blessed I am to be saved by Jesus Christ and gives me contentment and hope in the troubles of my day. When I pray, I can thank God He has given me the things of the righteous.

Since this is a prayer blog, I also found it fascinating what the Psalmist asked of God. It reminds me that when I talk to God, I too can ask Him for the following: to save me, answer me, be gracious, give ear to my words, consider my groanings, give attention to the sound of my cry, lead me, make Your way straight before me, bring justice, to let us rejoice and sing for joy, and to spread His protection over us. If that doesn’t give you variety in what to request of God, you might consider re-reading!

I could go on and on about different themes like calling attention to our five senses, lament, the struggle for contentment, the truth of God’s faithfulness, what verbs are used when the Psalmist is responding to God, and so many more! I just get so excited about the depth of these verses. It already has greatly encouraged my attitude approaching the daily grind of life by reminding me the struggle is real, but God is good. Hopefully you’ll take the opportunity to read through Psalms 1-5, or even just chapter one, and delve into some of these amazing themes as well!

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