School of Prayer 49

WEEK 49

psalms this week

"Here, then, is the first step in apprehending the greatness of God: to realize how unlimited are His wisdom, and His presence, and His power."
- J.I. Packer

Psalms 139, 140, and 141

introduction to the Series

Most of what we learn how to do, we learn from other people. Sometimes it is the learning that comes from specific and deliberate instruction. At other times it is the learning that comes by way of example and imitation. During 2023, our endeavor is to learn how to pray from the Psalmist.*

The Book of Psalms is the longest book in the Bible, and it is mostly a book of prayers. We will spend the year going through the book, beginning to end, and letting the Psalmist teach us by example how to pray.

In this endeavor, we cannot benefit from his deliberate instruction, of course. What we can do, however, is take full advantage of his example. We will observe how he prays, and we will learn to imitate him.

Our approach will be week by week. The recommended practices and exercises are not daily, but rather suggestions for an individual to implement throughout the whole week.

Exercises for this week

Psalm 139

Psalm 140

Psalm 141

Read Psalm 139. This Psalm is altogether a prayer from start to finish. The Psalmist never turns his attention from talking to God. Furthermore, it is an intensely personal prayer inasmuch as the language is consistently first-person-singular and second-person-singular. This is a one-on-one conversation. Of course, we are only privy to the human half of the conversation. As you read it, therefore, make notes about what you are able to discern about the One to whom the Psalmist is talking.

Reflect back on the notes just made. Talk to the Lord about them.

In what ways does the Psalmist's experience and understanding of God resonate with your own?
Talk to Him about that resonance.
In what ways is the Psalmist's experience and understanding of God different from your own?
Talk to Him about those differences.

Reflect on how the Psalmist addresses God.

How would you describe his tone?
What does his voice sound like as he says these words?
What does his face look like?
In what ways might you learn how to pray from the author of Psalm 139?

Reflect specifically on verses 1-4.

What do these verses reveal and affirm about God?
How and why are these verses good news?
To what extent do you believe that you are able to make the same affirmations as the Psalmist?
Assuming that verses 1-4 also apply to you and your relationship with God, flesh out the implications of those verses. Thinking back on yesterday in your life, schedule, and contacts, for example, list some specific implications or applications of the truths of verses 1-4.

Reflect specifically on verses 7-12.

What do these verses reveal and affirm about God?
How and why are these verses good news?
To what extent do you believe that you are able to make the same affirmations as the Psalmist?
To what extent do these verses resonate with your own experience or discovery?

Reflect specifically on verses 13-16.

What do these verses reveal and affirm about God?
How and why are these verses good news?
To what extent do you believe that you are able to make the same affirmations as the Psalmist?
Speak these verses aloud as your own prayer to Him.

While the rest of the Psalm seems quite serene, in verses 19-22 there is perhaps a sense of agitation.

What is the problem implied by these verses?
What does the Psalmist want the Lord to do about the problem?
To what extent do you understand the Psalmist to be praying in accordance with God's will and nature?
What do you perceive to be the relationship between the prayer of these verses and the affirmations found in the rest of the Psalm?

Read verses 23-24 in several translations in order to gain a full sense of the meaning.

Rewrite those verses in your own words.

Speak your rewritten version of those verses aloud in prayer, making them your own personal word to the Lord.

Read Psalm 140. This Psalm is, from start to finish, a prayer seeking God's deliverance and help from human enemies. The Psalm remains vague, however, and lacks details about the Psalmist's circumstances. Accordingly:

Identify a half-dozen different characters from Scripture who might have prayed this prayer -- that is, people who were in similar circumstances.
What happened in each of those situations? How did the individuals navigate their troubles? What did the Lord do?
When in your life might you have prayed this prayer? What was your experience? What did the Lord do? Talk to the Lord about it.

As you read the Psalm, focus your attention on the people/enemies being described.

What have they done or do they threaten or endeavor to do?
What characters in Scripture do similarly?
How would you describe those people in terms of their characteristics or attributes.
What characters is Scripture are similar?

Reflecting on the deeds and attributes of the enemies in Psalm 140:

Read Exodus 20:1-17. What commandments do the enemies of Psalm 140 break or seem to break?
Read Proverbs 6:16-19. What overlap do you sense between the enemies of Psalm 140 and the things the Lord hates?

As you read the Psalm, focus your attention now on the specifics of what the Psalmist prays for.

Make a list of the things the Psalmist prays for the Lord to do.
Reflecting on the list, to what extent do you understand the Psalmist to be praying within the will and character of God?
To what extent have you prayed similarly?
To what extent should you pray similarly?

Consider the implicit or explicit reasons given by the Psalmist why the Lord should do what the Psalmist asks.

What reasons have to do with the Psalmist?
What reasons have to do with the enemies?
What reasons have to do with the Lord?
Reflecting on the implicit and explicit reasons, what does the Psalmist teach you about prayer?

Inasmuch as Psalm 140 is primarily a prayer asking the Lord for help, we want to focus a bit more on the specifics of the Psalmist's requests. To that end:

Make a list of the verbs that the Psalmist uses to express what he wants the Lord to do.
Which of those verbs (actions) do you see the Lord doing at some point in Scripture?
Which of those verbs (actions) have been part of what you have seen the Lord do in your own life experience?
Which of those verbs (actions) would be appropriate to include in your prayers today?

The Psalm concludes (verses 12-13) not with more requests but with affirmations.

Read those two verses in several different translations in order to get a full sense of their meaning.
What do the affirmations reveal about the Lord?
What do the affirmations reveal about the Psalmist?
What do you understand to be the relationship between the final two verses and the rest of the Psalm?
What do the final two verses teach you about how to pray?
Consider what you have been praying for earnestly in recent days and weeks. In the spirit of Psalm 140, what might be an appropriate 'final two verses' for your prayer?

Read Psalm 141. In this Psalm, as in the previous one, the Psalmist is seeking the Lord's help. In this case, however, the help he seeks is mostly of a different kind. In the course of his prayer, he attributes some actions to himself and some actions to God.

Focus your attention first on the Psalmist's own actions -- either what he does or says he will do.

Make a list of the verbs that express the actions of the Psalmist.
What does each verb indicate or reveal about the Psalmist?
To what extent does each verb resonate with you and your own experience?
Which verbs make the Psalmist an appropriate role model for you?

Now focus your attention on the Lord's actions.

Make a list of the verbs associated with the Lord?
Identify which verbs are employed to describe what the Lord does or has done?
What do those verbs reveal to you about Him?
Identify which verbs are employed to describe what the author wants the Lord to do.
What do those verbs reveal about the author of the Psalm?
To what extent do you understand each of those verbs to be consistent with the Lord's will or character?
Which of those verbs has been part of your own prayer life? Talk to the Lord about them.
Which of those verbs has not been a part of your prayer life. Talk to the Lord about them.

Read verses 3 & 4 in several translations in order to gain a full sense of the meaning. Then:

Read James 3:2-12. How does James' teaching add to your understanding of Proverbs 141:3?
As you reflect on what the apostle and the Psalmist say, make a list of the various sins associated with the tongue/mouth/lips?
Reflecting on the list just made, talk to the Lord about which ones have been (or are) particular problems for you.
Read Matthew 15:10-20. How do Jesus' words influence your understanding of Psalm 141:3-4?
Read Proverbs 6:16-19. How many of the things that the Lord hates are likely sins of the tongue or mouth?
Read Matthew 12:36-37. How do these words of Jesus impact your understanding of Psalm 140:3?

Having reflected considerably on verses 3-4, as well as the significance of words, the tongue, and one's heart, rewrite verses 3-4 in your own words.

Now make those rewritten verses your own prayer to the Lord.

Read verse 5 in a variety of translations. Then:

Read Proverbs 3:11-12.
Read Proverbs 12:1.
Talk to the lord about the value and benefits of correction.
When has someone tried to correct you and you have not been appropriately receptive? What kept you from responding properly?
When has someone corrected you and you have been appropriately receptive? What was the result?

Read verse 8 in several translations in order to get a full sense for the meaning.

Based on this verse, how would you describe the Psalmist's relationship with the Lord?
As you reflect on verse 8, give thought to the nature of a person's relationship with the Lord: specifically, how much is determined by the Lord's initiative and grace and how much is determined by the human being's choices, decisions, and attitude.
Rewrite verse 8 in your own words.
Speak your rewritten version of verse 8 as your own personal prayer to the Lord.

* We will refer to the author as “the Psalmist,” though of course not all of the Psalms were written by the same person. A significant number are attributed to David. Others are associated with Asaph, the sons of Korah, and an assortment of other individuals. Also, several dozen Psalms have no name attached to them. For the sake of ease and uniformity, we will simply refer to “the Psalmist.”