Psalms of Praise: Their form

75% of Psalms are 1 of three main types: lament, thanksgiving or praise. Here is the general form for praise psalms.

---

The Call to Praise

• Prologue: Hallelujah

The Cause for Praise

• Summary statement (e.g. His Greatness, Lord of creation; His Grace, Lord of History)
• Specific illustrations

Conclusion

• A renewed call to praise, exhortation or petition.
• Epilogue

Examples: Psalm 33; Psalm 36; Psalm 105; Psalm 111; Psalm 117; Psalm 135; Psalm 136; Psalm 146.

Example: Psalm 33

• Call to Praise – vs 1
• Summary Statement – vs 2-4
• Specific illustrations – vs 5-9
• Conclusion – vs 10

For more: Claus Westermann, The Praises of God in the Psalms (1965). You’ll probably have to track it down in a library.

Psalms of Lament: Their Form

Psalms of Thanksgiving: Their Form

Resources: Psalms

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash