The Benefits of Psalm Singing

By D. Bryan Rhodes
TE, Gulf South Presbytery

Back in 2011, I packed my bags and moved to Scotland to pursue graduate work at the University of Edinburgh. While there, I joined a congregation of the Free Church of Scotland. At that time, the Free Kirk practiced exclusive psalmody, a term I had never heard of. It was quite the transition! I went from the Trinity Hymnal and Indelible Grace arrangements to singing about Baals, bull’s flesh, and broken teeth. It felt strange, nearly like trying to sing in a foreign language. But funnily enough, by the time I came back home to Louisiana, I loved it and was sad to leave it behind.

The Psalter is a glorious tome, perfect for recitation, memorization, and preaching. But it was made to be sung. Paul explicitly commands us to sing “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” in Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16. While we tend to think of these as three categories of stylistic options (i.e., psalms, selections from the Trinity Hymnal, and praise songs), I remain convinced that these are actually three categories found within the Psalter itself. While this interpretation does not necessarily demand “exclusive psalmody,” it does affirm what I like to call “inclusive psalmody” — the good work of singing psalms and everything that sounds like psalms.

For the last few years, our congregation has been incorporating “metrical psalms” (psalms arranged like hymns) into our worship. The benefits have been numerous, and I share some of them below. My hope is that you might consider including singing whole psalms in the public worship of God in your congregation, even as I admit that’s a bit like saying you should consider including sugar in a recipe for simple syrup. There are at least three benefits for singing the Psalms today: their rootedness in the Word, our security in singing, and our hope in working.

Rooting God’s Word in Our Hearts

The Psalmist sings, “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (119:11 ESV). This is one of the clearest statements of the power of God’s words in the Bible. It sings of something different than reading or hearing God’s word, blessed as that is. This is possessing God’s words, or rather, being possessed by them. That’s why Christians have historically emphasized memorizing Scripture. The Sword of the Lord’s Word does us limited good if we do not have it at the ready when the prowling lion comes hunting for us.

While there are many methods and techniques for Scripture memory, nothing helps us to memorize quite like singing. Years from now, my children will probably remember precious little from my sermons. But they will know by heart the songs they grew up singing. As a pastor, I have visited dementia patients who can scarcely recall my name. But they have no trouble singing along with their favorite hymns. God calls us to sing, and Christians — as a tribe — love to sing. Wherever Christians gather, you will find bread, wine, water, preaching, and songs (and probably not a small amount of good food and coffee). We should weaponize our love for singing and learn to sing God’s own songs. The Gettys have written some real winners, but you could hardly ask for a better singer/songwriter than the Ancient of Days.

You’ve probably also noticed how we use our songs for comfort and wisdom. It could be a praise song we love, or it could be the latest pop-trash from a lavender-scented boyband. When pain comes, we flee to our songs, and we encourage each other with our songs, even if paraphrased.

“It’s been hard, but I just keep remembering Be still my soul, the Lord is on your side.”

“Yes, I’ve been sad, but I also try to count my blessings.”

“It’s been a discouraging few months, but when I get knocked down, I get up again.”

Only the children of the 90s will get that last reference, but the examples above still help make the point. Our songs (for better or worse) are the words that come spilling out of us when we seek to reassure ourselves or others. You can see this throughout Paul’s letters. He is constantly quoting the Psalms to argue his points and encourage his readers. Why? Not just because those are God’s words, but because that’s what he grew up singing. When Paul got pressed, Psalms came spilling out. If that was true of Paul, why should it not be true of us?

Security in Our Singing

Have you ever had the experience of singing a song during a worship service, and you unexpectedly “trip over” some goofy line? One moment it all sounds biblical, and then the next moment you’re trying to figure out whether it’s right to call God’s love “reckless,” or what a “sloppy wet kiss” has to do with redemption. This trouble is not avoided by hymnals, either. Did the Son really empty himself of all but love? With all love for Charles Wesley (God bless history’s most Reformed Arminian), that’s a bit overstated — however sweet the sentiment.

I am not saying that once you start singing the Psalms, you will never again “trip over” a line or lyric. Belting out ballads about the bulls of Bashan will make even the most “Truly Reformed” among us squint for a moment. I am saying that if you’re singing a Psalm and you start tripping over the words, you can rest assured that the problem is with you and not with the lyrics. This Songwriter has perfect theology. There is great freedom in coming to a befuddling clause in a song, and getting to quickly say “Lord, the problem is me! Correct this in me!” and then keep on singing merrily.

Along the same lines, the Psalms are a strong comfort because they contain the full spectrum of human emotion in the context of various circumstances. If you don’t know how to articulate your experience, God has given you words to sing. Has God rescued you out of some great trouble or difficulty? How shall you thank Him? There’s a psalm for that (Psalm 124). Are you going through suffering or sorrow or trial that seems to have no end? There’s a psalm for that (13). Is your soul troubled, and in need of God’s comfort? There’s a psalm for that (23). Have you been deeply wronged and sinned against, maybe even abused? Take heart. The Lord hears your cries. And if you don’t know what to pray, there’s a psalm for that, too (5).

Hope in Our Working

Our cultural moment is thoroughly cynical and pessimistic. The reasons are numerous, and they range from sobering to silly. Sadly, that cynical pessimism dominates, even in churches. We believe that God is good, but if we watch the news for too long we are tempted to conclude that He might be disinterested. Indeed, some of us have resigned to throwing up our hands and muttering, “Well, I suppose that the gates of hell won’t prevail,” forgetting that gates do not advance, and those words from Christ are an offensive (not defensive) encouragement.

It is very difficult to be a pessimistic Psalm Singer. It would be far easier to find a trustworthy politician or a humorous late-night host. The Psalms are absolutely bursting with hope and optimism. Even as plenty of them descend “into the pit,” almost all of them refuse to stay there. They look up and conclude with a strong note of trusting in the Lord and His goodness to His people.¹ Dogs bark. Snakes slither. Psalms look up. It’s what they do by design. For that reason, reclaiming Psalm-singing is a move to reclaim hope and restore sanctified optimism to our hearts and lips.

Conclusion

If you are not familiar with the long and glorious tradition of Psalm Singing, I heartily recommend that you start learning the Songs of God. If you’re looking for a good place to start, I would recommend the Trinity Psalter Hymnal (published by the OPC and URCNA), which contains musical settings for all 150 Psalms as well as some of the greatest hymns of Christianity. I might also recommend The Book of Psalms for Worship (Crown & Covenant), which is a Psalter-only volume that tends to favor the most familiar hymn tunes. Both of these volumes boast their own smartphone apps as well, which is a great help to familiarization and family worship.

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¹ I recognize that Psalm 88 is the exception to this pattern. Psalm 88 begins in darkness and it stays there. Its presence in the Psalter is a reminder that God still has words for us to pray and sing even when we can’t find the words to be hopeful. However, the fact that 149 out of 150 Psalms do find the strength to look up is its own kind of encouragement and admonition for us as we walk through difficult times.