Psalm 1

Ancient lens

What’s the historical context?

Wisdom Song

It is not too far a stretch to imagine an eager young person sitting at the feet of a well-seasoned elder and receiving the words of this Psalm, “In life, there are two ways to walk. We can delight in God’s law or not. One way leads to life and the other leads to death. Do you wish to be happy and blessed or dead and depressed?” 

The first song of the Psalter is reminiscent of a wisdom song, a proverb for a life well-lived and one not so well-lived. The Psalm takes the form of a beatitude.

A Beatitude

Beatitudes express the truth of a good life. Psalm 1 begins with the Hebrew word asher,…