Click here to read PSALM 32 in poetic form.
Background
This Psalm shows that God answers the prayer of the godly, His Messiah. Jesus Christ went to his Father as his “hiding place” Who would “preserve me from trouble” and “compass me about with songs of deliverance” (verses 6,7). God continually instructed and taught Jesus Christ “in the way which thou shalt go” (verse 8) and encircled His Son with grace (verse 10).
Structure
The Psalm is 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. Psalm 32 is structured as follows:
(Verses 1-4) God’s blessings on the man with no guile (Messiah)
Pause
(Verse 5) God forgives those who acknowledge their sin
Pause
(Verses 6,7) God answers the prayer of the godly (Messiah)
Pause
(Verses 8-11) God’s deliverance for the upright in heart (Messiah)
Key Scriptures
Verses 1,2—“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.” This is quoted in Romans 4:7,8. The context is that God’s righteousness is now imputed to those who make Jesus lord and believe that God raised him from the dead (Romans 4:6,24). The Messiah anticipated the blessings that he would bring for all mankind by his righteous life and deeds.
Verse 8—“I will guide thee with mine eye.” Jesus Christ always did the will of his Father. He saw things as God showed them to him.
Verse 9—“Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding.” Jesus Christ could see from God’s perspective and was not like a brute beast that needed a bit and bridle. That was the way of religion that Jesus Christ so often confronted in his earthly ministry. He called the hard-hearted religious leaders “blind” and unable to see God’s way (Matthew 15:14; 23:16,17,19,24,26; Luke 6:39; John 9:40,41). These evil people hated the light and “loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19,20).
Verse 10—“Many sorrows shall be to the wicked.” Because they love darkness rather than light and “fall into the ditch” (Matthew 5:14).
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.
