Exegetical Research Paper of Psalm 1
Valerie Bouier
RTCH500: Research, Writing, and Ministry Preparation
October 8, 2023
Contents
Historical Context..........................................................................................................................1
Cultural Context............................................................................................................................2
Literary Context............................................................................................................................3
Meaning of Passage........................................................................................................................3
Textual Analysis.............................................................................................................................4
Textual Synthesis............................................................................................................................6
Significance of Passage..................................................................................................................7
Application.....................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion......................................................................................................................................9
Bibliography.................................................................................................................................10
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1
The approach in writing the exegesis research paper on Psalm 1 entails building a
foundation for the context or literary neighborhood for the passage. First, the author will zoom
out to the historical context and consider the time period in which he/she wrote the scripture and
the historical situation confronting the original participants. Next, he/she will zoom in to the
cultural context to understand how the people lived, and finally, they will zoom in a little closer
to explore the literary setting which outlines the internal flow, storyline, and narrative sequence.
“The psalm consists of three stanzas which describe the blessings that come on those who
are righteous (Psalm 1:1-3), while the second presents the contrasting destiny of the wicked (vv.
4-7), and the final stanza provides a summary statement concerning both the righteous and the
wicked (v. 6).” When a person is obedient to the Torah they will obtain inward happiness, and if
1
they are not subject to the Torah they will face the ultimate judgment.
Historical Context
The book of Psalms is the longest in the Bible consisting of 150 psalms. “The Masoretic
Text of the Psalms appears to be compiled in five major books (Ps. 1-41; 42-72; 73-89; 90-106;
107-150).”2 “Each of the books ends in doxology which indicates that the Psalter is structured to
focus praise on Yahweh. “ The traditional approach to historical interpretation correlates the title
3
and content of the psalm to an incident in the life of the psalmist, usually presumed to be David.
To address the problem of Weiser’s singular setting for the psalms, “Kraus uses a more
comprehensive cultic approach in which there are three formative traditions: a tent festival
1 Tremper Longman III, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Psalms, Volumes 15-16, (Downers Grove, IL: IVP
Academic, 2014), 56, Kindle.
2 Daniel J. Estes, Handbook On The Wisdom Books And Psalms (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005), 145,
Logos.
3 Ibid.
2
remembering the exodus and wilderness wanderings, a festival of covenant renewal that
antedated the monarchy, and a Zion festival from the period of the united monarchy that adopted
the Canaanite mythological conceptions of kingship.” The majority of the psalms (116) have a
4
title and the ones that do not are considered to be “orphan psalms.” The historical title gives
5
details about authorship and on rare occasions the historical event that led to the poem’s
composition, musical titles, genre titles, titles that indicate the setting in which the psalm was
used, and liturgical titles. There are biblical characters that have historical titles attributed to
them: David thirteen psalms, Moses one psalm, Solomon two psalms, Asaph twelve psalms,
Jeduthun three psalms, and Sons of Korah seven psalms. The book of Psalms is often referred to
as “The Psalms of David” because he is the only author mentioned in the New Testament (Lu
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20:42), and his name appears in more titles than that of any other writer.
Cultural Context
The Hebrew title for the book of Psalms is Tehilim (“praises” or “hymns”) the leading
feature is praise and it is the hymnal of ancient Israel. “The compilation of 150 songs reveals
how the people of Israel turned to Yahweh in the full range of their life experience.” The
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Psalm’s distinguishing feature is their devotional character. The Psalms reflect the emotions of
Old Testament believers as they approached Yahweh which can be seen in their tearful laments to
their jubilant shouts of praise. The language of the Psalms tends to be general and universal.
Yahweh manifested in the psalms is rooted in his revelation in history. Just as the Pentateuch
4 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 40, Kindle.
5 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 24, Kindle.
6 Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
(GraceWorks Multimedia, 2013), 345, Logos.
7 Estes, 345, Logos.Handbook,
3
narrates how Yahweh initiated a covenant with Israel, so it is in the book of Psalms that the
people express the different aspects of their unique relationship with him.
Literary Context
“Psalms is a book of poetry with highly artistic form and particularly, lyric poetry, which
expresses the inner emotions of the composer.” The three most common types of poetry in the
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Book of Psalms are hymns, laments, and thanksgiving psalms. There are also prophetic psalms,
wisdom psalms, confidence psalms, remembrance psalms, and royal psalms. The Psalms must be
read as poems if they are to be understood. The basic form of Hebrew poetry is parallelism
including psalms. The psalms are written in a poetic style. The other conventions distinguishing
Hebrew text from prose are terseness, parallelism, and imagery. The Psalms is comprised of
figurative language, namely imagery created by comparison, metaphor, and simile.
Meaning of Passage
Psalm 1 and Psalm 2 form a two-part introduction to the Psalter and lack a superscription
making the psalms anonymous. As previously noted, Psalm 1 is in the first book of the Psalter.
The first and the last psalms (Psalms 1 and 41) are marked off as a unit by a “bookending”
feature as they both begin with the phrase happy are/is …(asre). “Psalm 1 and Jesus Christ:
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Jesus is the perfect God-man, and His instruction of wisdom begins with beatitudes (M 5:3-10),
as does the Psalter (1:1).” According to Longman, Psalm 1 focuses on Torah obedience which
10
8 Longman III, Tyndale Old , 38, Kindle.
9 Nancy L. deClaisse-Walford, Rolf A. Jacobson, and Beth LaNeel Tanner, (Grand Rapids: The Book of Psalms
William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014), Accessed September 25, 2023, ProQuest Ebook Central.
10 Willem A. VanGemeren, (Grand Rapids: HarperCollins Christian Publishing, 2017), Accessed September Psalms
25, 2023, ProQuest Ebook Central.
4
makes a distinction from those who delight in the law and those who are wicked.11 Psalm 1 is a
wisdom psalm and shares many features similar to Proverbs as they both make a strict distinction
between righteous and the wicked. The wisdom psalms are didactic in that they provide practical
guidelines for godly living and give direction for righteous living in the pursuit of God’s will (Ps.
1; 37; 119).
12
There are three stanzas in Psalm 1: “The first describes the blessings that come to those
who are righteous (vv.1-3), while the second presents the contrasting destiny of the wicked (vv.
4-7), and the final stanza provides a summary statement concerning both the righteous and the
wicked (v.6).” The literary devices in Psalm 1 are antithetical parallelism (Ps.1:6), and chiastic
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parallelism (Ps. 1:1-2), this parallelism employs and A-B-B-A pattern in which the second line
advances the first then restates the second line in the third and finally returns to the truth of the
first line. The author also employs similes in the psalm (i.e., “like a tree,” “like chaff”).
14
Textual Analysis
The Way of the Righteous (1:1-3)
1:1. In the original language, blessed is repeated, and this is the Hebrew method of
indicating the plural, intensifying its meaning. This promise of blessing is what Jesus
15
announced in the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-12). The psalm opens with three colons, the first
describes a person who does not , if you walk with the wickedwalk in the steps of the wicked
11 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 55, Kindle.
12 Steven Lawson, Holman Old Testament Commentary – Psalms, (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group,
2004), Accessed September 25, 2023, ProQuest Ebook Central.
13 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 56, Kindle.
14 Lawson, , 23.Holman Old
15 Lawson, , 29.Holman Old
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you are associated with them, but the relationship to do evil is more intense when you stand in
the way of sinners sit in the seat of the mockers (colon 2) and (colon 3), and uses more
forceful terms for evil (wicked, sinners, mockers). The psalmist pronounces a blessing to those
16
who avoid evil. The Hebrew term used by the psalmist (‘sr) ‘stresses a state of happiness. Here
you have the negative requirements for righteousness and the resultant blessing.
1:2. Next, we have a more positive description as the righteous man who is blessed
delights in the law of the LORD. It is unclear what the author means by law (Torah) here. It
could mean the Ten Commandments and the 613 law or it could be the first five books of the
Hebrew Bible. However, it seems correct to understand it to mean to delight in the obedience of
17
God’s Word as the Hebrew word tora signifies primarily instruction that comes from God. “In
the Wisdom literature, the way of Tora signifies adherence to God’s will in everyday life and
enjoying this application of his will.” The godly delight in doing the will of God in everyday
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life, and he/she “meditates” (haga) in its basic meaning (“to murmur,” “mutter”) it alludes to the
sound of animals (Isa. 31:4; 38:14) or a moaning noise (Isa. 16:7).”19
1:3. The author employs metaphors that depict the vibrant condition of the person who
avoids evil and embraces righteous obedience. They will be like a tree planted by the streams
of water (simile), the image suggests life, productivity, fruitfulness, health, and the
final colon (whatever they do prospers) comes out of the image and states that just as a
well-watered tree produces fruit, so will the righteous person.20
16 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 56.
17 Ibid.
18 VanGemeren, Psalms, 117.
19 Ibid., 118.
20 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 56 - 57.
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1:4-5. In verse 4 there is a sudden turn from the rewards of righteousness to the
punishment of the wicked - The wicked are not a well-watered treethe wicked are not so.
instead they are like chaff which means they are dry. The tree has deep roots and is productive,
and the chaff has no connection to the earth, instead it is blown away by the wind. The chaff is
worthless and has no value and is usually burned in the fire. As a result, the wicked will not
stand in the judgment. They will not survive God’s judgment; they will be exposed for what
they are (Rev. 20:11-15).21
1:6. The last verse provides a summary of the two ways in life – the way of the
righteous and The way is either the way of wisdom and righteousnessthe way of the wicked.
that is straight, well lit, smooth and leads to life, or it is crooked and filled with obstacles and
leads to death.” Since the LORD watches over the way of the righteous it means they are safe,
22
but the warning given to the way of the wicked is death.
Textual Synthesis
Psalm 1 introduces the Psalter by contrasting the way of the righteous and the way of the
wicked. The righteous are defined as those who delight and meditate in the law of the LORD
continually. Living in subjection to the law is the way of the righteous, but the wicked do not
allow the law to work in his/her life, therefore his/her way is bleak. The imagery of the psalm
depicts the righteous as being like a tree planted by the streams of water the wicked is , and
like the chaff which the wind taketh away. The ultimate reward for the righteous is that the
LORD will watch over them if they stay in subjection to the law (Torah), however, if the wicked
does not partake of this blessing, instead they will perish.
21 Lawson, , 31.Holman Old
22 Ibid., 58.
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Significance of Passage
The Psalter opens as a conditional covenant in which five books of the Psalter have been
likened to the Torah by various scholars. The significance of Psalm 1 as the opening poem is that
“all the psalms should be read through the prism of Torah piety and obedience thereby the psalm
calls the faithful to obedience.” “The Hebrew word torah (“law,” GK9368) signifies primarily
23
instruction that comes from God.” Psalm 1 has been described as a “gatekeeper of the literary
24
sanctuary as the physical sanctuary had Levitical gatekeepers who would restrict access to those
who are righteous.”
25
As previously noted, Psalm 1 is a didactic psalm that invites the wise to Godly living.
“The psalmist does not speak here about the deadening effects of the law but of its life-giving
aspects such as life responds to life, and spirit responds to spirit; so, it is with the new life of the
believer, who responds joyfully to the living God and to the Spirit, who has inspired God’s
word.”26
In addition, Psalm 1 is “understood to establish the meditation and practice of the Torah
as the central theme of the book, and he discovers that happiness has to do with the fundamental
orientation of self to God.” As contrasted with Deuteronomy 28, Psalm 1 depicts one who
27
obeys God’s covenantal law as happy and Deuteronomy 28:2 denotes that covenant obedience
leads to blessings. It should be noted that “the law is not at variance with the Gospel but is
23 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 59.
24 VanGemeren, Psalms, 118.
25 Longman III, Tyndale Old, 35.
26 VanGemeren, Psalms, 118.
27 Gordon McConville, “Happiness in the Psalms,” 31 (01, 2011): 81, Acta Theologica, Suppl.15
https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/happiness-
psalms/docview/2183291237/se-2.
8
already a step in the direction of the Gospel, the law is not challenged as false by the saying of
Jesus, “I have come not to abolish the law but to fulfill it,” He regards the law as the
presupposition of the Gospel on which he can base his own teaching.”
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Application
God has given every man the freedom of choice, as He did in the Garden of Eden and
man chose to disobey God. As a result, the relationship between man and God was severed. God
has always desired that man remain connected with him and to each other, as His Word tells us
“It is not good for man to be alone.” (Gen. 2:18) Today, every person must make the same choice
whether to obey God or go his own way and be disconnected from Him. As noted in Psalms 1 the
righteous man that delights in the law of the LORD will be blessed, and the wicked will be
punished. The psalm depicts the righteous man as a “tree planted by the rivers of water” which
“bringeth forth fruit in his season” Just as nature requires nutrients and nourishment from the
physical environment to produce fruit, so does the Spiritual man require nutrients from the Word
of God and interaction with the body of Christ to grow and produce fruit. The path a person
takes in life whether the way of the righteous or the way of the wicked, will determine the type
of spiritual fruit they will produce. The choice is yours!
Conclusion
In Psalm 1 the psalmist gives us imagery of what will happen if we make the right choice
as well as the consequences associated with making the wrong choice. God is true to His
promises, so we should strive to be like the wise man and choose the way of the righteous who
28 Artur Weiser, Psalms-OTL: A Commentary, (Louisville: Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, 1962), 108,
ProQuest Ebook Central.
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delights in the law of the LORD day and night. There is a blessing for everyone who makes a
conscience decision to obey the Word of God, and the person who chooses the way of the wicked
it will with ultimate doom.
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Bibliography
deClaisse-Walford, Nancy L., Jacobson, Rolf A., and Tanner, Beth LaNeel. The Book of Psalms.
Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014. Accessed September
25, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Estes, Daniel J. Handbook On The Wisdom Books And Psalms. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Academic, 2005. Logos.
Jamieson, Robert, A.R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the
Whole Bible. GraceWorks Multimedia, 2013. Logos.
Lawson, Steven. Holman Old Testament Commentary - Psalms. Nashville: B&H Publishing
Group, 2004. Accessed September 25, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Longman, Tremper III. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Psalms, Volumes 15-16. Downers
Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2014. Kindle.
McConville, Gordon. "Happiness in the Psalms." 31 (01, 2011): 81-Acta Theologica, Suppl.15
100, https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/happiness-
psalms/docview/2183291237/se-2.
VanGemeren, Willem A. . Grand Rapids: HarperCollins Christian Publishing, 2017. Psalms
Accessed September 25, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Weiser, Artur. Psalms-OTL: A Commentary. Louisville: Presbyterian Publishing Corporation,
1962. Accessed October 9, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central.
