Exegesis On Psalms 1

Allahabad Bible Seminary
Topic on: Exegetical Tools: Structure, Form, Literary: on Psalms 1

Tutor: Dr. Baby Sigamony
Submitted by: G. Krupakar Babu
Submitted on: 12.10.21
Class: B.D. IV (English)
Subject: Hope in Suffering and Joy in Liberation
1. Structure
The structure of the psalm 1 contrast between the two ways: the way of the faithful, and the way
of the Wicked:
1.1. 1-2 Contrasting sources of guidance and values
“The righteous” are those who embrace the Lord’s gracious covenant by repenting of their
sins and believing his promises, and continuing in faith, repentance, and obedience
throughout their lives. “The wicked” are those who refuse to do so, whether by rejecting the
covenant altogether.1
1.2. 3-4 Contrasting similes of the effects of their lives
He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water: A tree by a river has a continual source of
water. It will never wither away, because it is always getting what it needs. If people are
constantly needy, it may be worth examining if we are planted by the rivers of water or not. This
would also be a tree that is strong and stable, sinking down deep roots. The life of the righteous
man is marked by strength and stability.
Everything true about the righteous man stable as a tree, continual life and nourishment, fruitful,
alive, and prosperous is not so regarding the ungodly. It may often seem like the ungodly have
these things, and sometimes it seems they have them more than the righteous. 2
1
C. John Collins, Psalms 1 Structure and Rhetoric. (PDF) "Psalm 1: Structure and rhetoric" | Jack Collins -
Academia.edu (Accessed on 12.10,21, 4:19Pm).
2
-, The Way of Righteous and the Way of Ungodly. https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/psalm-1/
(Accessed on 12.10.21, 4:23Pm).
1.3. 5-6 Contrasting outcomes of their ways
The ungodly shall not stand in the judgment: Because the ungodly have no “weight,” they will be
found lacking on the Day of Judgment. Sinners will not share the same glorious future of
the righteous. The LORD knows the way of the righteous: The righteous can have peace
because a loving God in heaven knows their way, and will protect and preserve them. He is
constantly looking on their way, and though it may be often in mist and darkness, yet the Lord
knows it.”
The way of the ungodly shall perish: The way of the ungodly leads to destruction. They are on a
broad path that may seem comfortable now and the path gives them lots of company, but in the
end they shall perish.3
2. Form
Formal, metrical poetry takes advantage of received poetic forms (sonnets, rondelets, limericks,
and the like) as well as metrical patterns of verse (iambic pentameter, double dactyls, and so on)
to create rhetorical and aural structure that sets up an expectation in the reader (or, really, in the
listener, as all poetry is really meant to be heard).
2.1. Part A
Uses multiple images to present a multitude of unrighteous people (“wicked,” “sinners,”
“scoffers”). The “happy” (NAB) or “blessed” ones are to avoid the company of these people.
2.2. Part B
Provides a contrast: happy people spend time with the Torah rather than with sinners, and the
Torah is what makes them happy.
2.3. Part C
It Describes the result of living in the way of the Lord. Nourished by their Torah study, they are
not only fruitful and prosperous, but their lives are firmly grounded (“like a tree planted”). This
is the largest part of the psalm, which implicitly emphasizes the abundance that will be
experienced by the blessed ones who keep God’s law.4
3
-, The Way of Righteous and the Way of Ungodly…, (Accessed on 12.10.21, 4:26Pm).
4
-, Psalms 1 Poetic Forms. Psalm 1 and Poetic Forms | BLT (bltnotjustasandwich.com) (Accessed on
12.10.21, 5:00Pm).
3. Literary
“Happy”, the first word of the first line of the first of King David’s praise songs. The Hebrew,
“ashrai”, voices the same opening note of joy as does the English, but, simply because the word
“ashrai” starts with an “aleph”, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, the Hebrew underscores a
sense of joyful beginning that the English word cannot.5
3.1. Opening Verses (1-2)
The auspicious opening, whatever the language, makes even more jarring the repeated negatives
that follow: “Happy the man who has not walked in the counsel of the wicked ones, and in the
way of sinners has not stood, and in the gathering of the scornful has not sat” (v.1). What the
first verse does, then, is to establish the dichotomy that is the song’s basis: the righteous, who
6
delight in God’s teachings, will flourish like a tree they will thrive and prosper.
3.2. Middle Verses (3-4)
“The Hebrew of verse 3, “streams of water”, suggests a forking, a stream that takes more than
one direction. And, with this image, the song describes the two opposite directions of the wicked
and the righteous. That both are imagined as water may indicate their common source: both
beginning with the possibility of creativity but one leading to what the singer calls happiness, the
stream following its natural course; the other, not merely to unhappiness, but indeed, to promise
cut off, the stream blocked from further flow. The image of the dried-up stream is given another
form in verse 4, the wing-blown chaff; thus, each image the one implicit in Hebrew, the other
explicit in Hebrew and in English describe an extinction that allows neither growth nor rebirth. 7
3.3. Ending Verses (5-6)
But it is the striking phrase “the assembly of the righteous ones“ in verse 5, that both re-iterates
and explains the opposite fates of the righteous and the wicked: the righteous will form a
community; the wicked will be outcasts. The negatives of verse 1 are thereby clarified: the
righteous must not walk, stand or sit with the wicked; must not, that is, include them in their
community. The progression walk, stand, sit reverses the natural order of human milestones: the
5
-, Literary Analysis of Psalms 1, 2014. Literary Analysis of Psalm 1 - Psalms (psalmsstudy.com)
(Accessed on 12.10.21, 5:11Pm).
6
-, Literary Analysis of Psalms 1…, (Accessed on 12.10.21, 5:20 Pm).
7
infant first sits, then stands, then walks. Thus the wicked are diminished even by the verbs of the
verse line.8
8

Exegesis On Psalms 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Exegesis On Psalms 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Exegesis On Psalms 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Allahabad Bible Seminary

Topic on: Exegetical Tools: Structure, Form, Literary: on Psalms 1

You might also like