Psalm 90-Psalm 106 are the psalms in Book 4. There are 17 psalms in this section. David wrote 2 psalms, Moses wrote his only psalm, the remaining 14 psalms are anonymous.
This lesson is based on Psalms 90-95.
Psalm 90
READ PSALM 90. This is the oldest of the 150 psalms. It is attributed to Moses. It is well known for its reference in verse 10 to human life expectancy being 70 or 80 ("threescore years and ten", or "if by reason of strength ... fourscore years" in the King James Version). It is believed that this verse was the influence for the opening words of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. The hymn, "O God, Our Help in Ages Past" is a lyrical version of Psalm 90 written by Isaac Watts.
Moses addresses the frailty and brevity of human life as a consequence of sin and as a motive for repentance and obedience.
In Psalm 90:1, God is introduced as both a refuge and the Creator. The time of God is eternal, “from everlasting to everlasting.”
In Psalm 90:3, there is a contrast between the Creator and His creatures. Verse 3 states that man will be destroyed, giving reference to inevitable death.
Psalm 90:4, further compares the eternal time of God to man’s temporal, fleeting time: “For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past, and like a watch in the night.” Furthermore, man himself is passing away, here and gone like a sudden flood, soon
forgotten like the sleep of night. Though he flourishes in the day, by evening he is withered and gone. So is man’s time when compared to God's eternality.
Verse 4 is quoted in 2 Peter 3:8.
Verses 1-4 tells of the eternality of the Creator.
Verses 5-17 tells of the mortality of God's Creatures: Our lives are as grass, fresh at sunrise, withered and dry at sunset. We live an average of 70 years. Our days are filled with pain and trouble.
In Verses 12-17, there are petitions:
1. "Teach us to number our days."
2. "Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love."
3. "May your deeds be shown to your servants."
4. "May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us."
5. "Establish the work of our hands for us."
Psalm 91
READ PSALM 91. Psalm 91 is a psalm about faith and describes the perfect security of one who trusts in God. It is known as the Soldier's Psalm or Soldier's Prayer. Camouflage bandanas imprinted with the psalm are often distributed to US troops. In modern times, Christians have adopted it as the Christian Emergency Psalm.
The psalmist gives four names for God in Verses 1 and 2.
1. "The Most High"
2. "The Almighty"
3. "The Lord"
4. "My God"
Not only does the psalmist call out God by names, he also uses metaphors in Verse 2.
1. refuge
2. fortress
Notice the bird the enemy is compared to in Verse 3.
Pay attention to all the body parts mentioned in Psalm 91.
Notice the four creatures in Verse 13.
Also, pay attention the number of times the words "I will" appears in the Verses 14-16. Notice who is speaking. Notice that in Verse 16, it is not "I will." Instead, it is "Will I."
What is the good news of Verses 14-16?
Psalm 92
READ PSALM 92. This psalm was composed as a Sabbath song of praise to God for His power and wisdom in His providential dealings with the wicked and the righteous.
Notice that God and the redeemed are contrasted to God and the rebellious. See what the redeemed do and the rebellious don't do.
Psalm 93
READ PSALM 93. This is just one of the royal psalms which include Psalms 93–99. The psalmist praises God as the King of His people. In this short psalm of only 5 verses, the psalmist extols God's supremacy over all things and the resulting security of those who are His people.
1. How is God robed?
2. How does God reign?
3. What's significance about God's precepts and His purity?
Psalm 94
READ PSALM 94. This is another royal psalm. Even though the psalmist praises God as the King of His people, he has a complaint. He complains about the Lord's apparent desertion. He compares the Lord and His foes with the Lord and His friends. Notice how He deals with each group.
Verse 11 is quoted in 1 Corinthians 3:20.
Verse 14 is quoted in Romans 11:1, 2.
Psalm 95
READ PSALM 95. The psalm is a hymn as well as one of the royal psalms. Notice that in this psalm, the psalmist mentions both positive and negative elements. He also invites the Jews to praise the Lord and to respond to Him.
Be able to separate the psalmist's positive things and what he considers negative things.
According to the psalmist in Verses 1 and 2, how should we approach God?
According to the psalmist in Verse 6, how should be approach God?
"Forty years" in Verse 10 refers to what?
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