Psalms, << sahmz or sahlmz, >> Book of, is a collection of 150 poems or songs in the Old Testament, or Hebrew Bible. The book is sometimes called the Psalter. The Psalms were part of the religious ceremonies of the ancient Israelites. Even today, the Psalms are used in both Jewish and Christian worship services.
Much of the Old Testament consists of the history of Israel or God’s commands to His people. The Psalms are a special part of the Old Testament because they tell about people’s personal responses to God. The Psalms reveal the individual’s feelings when faced with both the joys and the sorrows of everyday life. The Psalms contain hymns praising and thanking God and prayers to God in times of trouble. Perhaps the best known Psalm is number 23, which begins, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
The Book of Psalms is associated with the Israelite leader King David. According to tradition, David wrote 73 of the Psalms. However, many modern scholars doubt that he wrote all of them. Other musicians may have written the Psalms to honor him. King David was a famous musician, and the Psalms were probably an important part of the musical life of ancient Israel.
Many of the Psalms were probably written in King David’s time, about 1000 B.C. Some of the Psalms may have been based on ancient Near Eastern songs and thus could be even older. Many Biblical prophets were influenced by the Psalms. Therefore, much of the book had probably been established by the age of prophecy in ancient Israel, which began in the 700’s B.C. Some Psalms may reflect historical events that took place as late as the 500’s B.C.
