I have spent more than 40 years reading the Bible, thinking seriously about being a Christian and making a variety of attempts at being a "Jesus follower." Amidst the pleasure of reading and learning, I have focused on processing knowledge and information. (I am, after all, a university professor by training.)
I have tended to ignore -- or make weak attempts at -- worship and prayer.
To address this shortcoming, I hope to spend this summer studying (again) the Old Testament Psalms. Yes, this will be a study, so that, yes, I do get to read and learn -- but the subject of the study will be the texts of David (and others) on worship. If I can study and learn from David, maybe I can use my strength (love of learning) to address a weakness (my random, weak attempts at worship.)
I will use three books (commentaries) in this study. An old favorite is the two-volume monograph Psalms 1-72, Psalms 73-150, by Derek Kidner (Tyndale Press, 1973.) A second text is the delightful The Book of Psalms: A Translation with Commentary, by Robert Alter (2007.) In that book, Alter offers his own careful and loving translation of the ancient Hebrew, with an emphasis on the most reasonable meanings and interpretations of the text.
A third book I am reading is Reflections on the Psalms, by C. S. Lewis. The first two texts, above, are written by Hebrew scholars but the book by Lewis, in contrast, is described by the author as the work of an "amateur", one who wants to meditate on the psalms and learn of them, while admitting that he knows little of Hebrew. Lewis's motive resonates with me. I hope to be an amateur this summer, stimulated by Lewis while educated, at least a little, by Alter and Kidner.
For the English text of the various psalms, I will use the New International Version (NIV) translation of the ancient Hebrew texts.
Questions about this material or the Wednesday night study can be sent to me by email at kenwsmith54@gmail.com.
So ... on to Psalm 1!
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For next time: Read Psalm 1. Note the parallelism, typical of the psalms. Also note the "binary" nature of the choices offered. Like much Old Testament wisdom literature, one's choices are divided into just two. What are these two choices here?
What metaphor describes the "blessed" (or "happy") person? What does this metaphor say about the geographical environment of the writer?
Why is this psalm at the very front of the book of Psalms?
I will post a blog on Psalm 1 tomorrow (April 1.)
