Psalms in Poetic Form: Psalms 9 and 10

Click here to read PSALMS 9 AND 10 in poetic form.

Background

Psalms 9 and 10 form a unit and are linked together by an irregular acrostic arrangement. This is the first Psalm that has an acrostic, where a Hebrew letter is used to begin a verse. In a regular acrostic, each of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet are set in order and begin one or more verses. Psalm 119 is an excellent example of this, and many English Bibles show the Hebrew letter that begins each of the 22 sections of that Psalm (that contain eight verses all beginning with the corresponding letter).

For The Psalms in Poetic Form, the acrostic letters are highlighted for easy reading. The following English letters are transliterated from the Hebrew alphabet:

Aleph………………………A

Beth………………………..B

Gimel………………………G

Daleth…………………….D

He……………………………H

Vau …………………………V

Zain…………………………Z

Cheth……………………..CH

Teth…………………………TE

Yod………………………….Y

Kaph……………………….K

Lamed……………………L

Mem ………………………M

Nun………………………….N

Samech …………………S

Ain…………………………..AI

Pe…………………………….P

Tsaddi…………………….TS

Qoph……………………….Q

Resh………………………..R

Shin…………………………SH

Tau…………………………..T

These two Psalms are separated by the Hebrew term “Selah,” which means to pause. Some Bible teachers say this connected the truths that come before and after the term.

This pair of Psalms describes the evil men that the Messiah would face and shows him going to God in prayer. God promises to bring deliverance and to be a “refuge in times of trouble.”

Structure

(9:1-10) Messiah’s rescue from the wicked

(9:11-20) Messiah’s prayer and God’s answer

Pause

(10:1) Messiah’s prayer

(10:2-6) The deeds and thoughts of the wicked

(10:7-11) The deeds and thoughts of the wicked

(10:12-18) Messiah’s prayer

Key Scriptures

Psalm 9, Verses 7,8—“he hath prepared his throne for judgment. And he shall judge the world in righteousness.” God is the Lord Who rules over all. He gave that authority to His Son, Jesus Christ. Paul quotes verse 8 in Acts 17:31: “Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.” God has given the authority to judge to His Son (John 5:22,27), and when all is judged, Jesus Christ will submit to his Father (I Corinthians 15:28).

Psalm 10, Verse 7—“His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud.” This is quoted in Romans 3:14, where all men are shown to be wicked and incapable of keeping the law. The Messiah, Jesus Christ, was the only one righteous enough to fulfill the law (Matthew 5:17; Romans 10:4).

Psalm 10, Verse 16—“ The Lord is King for ever and ever.” This is quoted in Revelation 11:15: “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.” God is King over all, and His Son, Jesus Christ, is king under his Father.

FOR FURTHER STUDY

All 150 of The Psalms in Poetic Form are available from Amazon in a book, either Large Print or a smaller Bedside Reader. Also available for free with a Kindle Unlimited membership. Enjoy!

The entire blog series is now available in the publication The Psalms: Background & Structure with Key Scriptures Explained.