The Message of Psalms, 2 vols. (The Bible Speaks Today | BST)

by Michael Wilcock

Publisher:

Inter-Varsity

, 2001

The book of Psalms is a favorite of Christians, even though we frequently read it in portions and pieces, hopscotch through the familiar, and avoid the odd, the unpleasant, and the difficult. But though the individual psalms arose from an assortment of times, experiences, and settings, the book of Psalms is composed in a deliberate pattern, not as a random anthology. The meaning of the Psalms is discovered in this pattern and order.

Michael Wilcock has written a sort of travel guide to the Psalms. In his previous book, The Message of Psalms 1–72, he invited us to begin our journey through the gateway of Psalms 1 and 2, with their summons to obedience. In this sequel, he ends with Psalm 150, singing its song of praise. In between, we pass through all the “yes, buts” of faith—the conflicts, the burdens, the mysteries, and the sufferings of life. In these laments and praises, hymns and liturgies, the Bible continues to speak clearly today.

Volume 2, The Message of Psalms 73–150, picks up where he left off and Wilcock guides his readers through all the “yes, buts” of faith—the conflicts, the burdens, the mysteries, and the sufferings of life. In these laments and praises, hymns and liturgies, the Bible continues to speak clearly today, concluding with Psalm 150, singing its song of praise.

Key Features

• Applies the truth of Scripture to everyday life in the contemporary world
• Engages a variety of readers with accessible, nontechnical language
• Analyzes the flow of thought in passage-by-passage exposition of Old Testament books
• Provides insightful treatment of key themes

Contents

Top Highlights

“Psalm 1 sings of the choice between two ways that each of us has to make; Psalm 2 unveils the cosmic confrontation which that choice reflects.” (Volume 1, Page 19)

“Even the most individualistic of the psalmists would recognize that God’s concern for him personally is bound up with God’s promises to that great assembly, ‘the blessed company of all faithful people’.¹¹ All their poetry is to be read in the light of this. Throughout Psalm 1 righteous and wicked are plurals; both our present experience and our future destiny (v. 6) depend on which of the two companies each of us belongs to, not in name only but (as the way implies) in practice.” (Volume 1, Page 22)

“The very words Why have you forgotten/rejected me? (42:9; 43:2) show that in the psalmist’s mind God is remote enough for him to feel deserted, yet near enough for him to talk to.” (Volume 1, Page 154)

“C. S. Lewis has perceptive comments. Unlike some other psalms, he says, 119 ‘is not, and does not pretend to be, a sudden outpouring of the heart … It is a pattern, a thing done like embroidery, stitch by stitch, through long, quiet hours, for love of the subject and for the delight in leisurely, disciplined craftsmanship.’” (Volume 2, Page 193)

“So long as I am looking to my own self-pleasing and away from God, I shall feel his overwhelming knowledge of me as a threat. As soon as I turn from sin and back to him, it becomes a comfort.” (Volume 2, Page 258)

Product Details

• Title: The Message of Psalms: Songs for the People of God
• Author: Michael Wilcock
• Series: The Bible Speaks Today
• Publisher: Inter-Varsity
• Print Publication Date: 2001
• Logos Release Date: 2015
• Pages: 543
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subject: Bible. O.T. Psalms › Commentaries
• Resource ID: LLS:BST19PS
• Resource Type: Bible Commentary
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-05-02T19:43:02Z

About Michael Wilcock

Michael Wilcock was formerly director of pastoral studies at Trinity College, Bristol. He retired from many years of pastoring churches in the United Kingdom, most recently St. Nicholas’ Church, Durham. He is the author of The Message of Revelation and The Message of Luke.