Psalms 11-20 Categorized

Here Psalms 11-20 are categorized.  You can scroll down or click the Psalms Category on the right hand side of the page to see Psalms 1-10 and the initial post about categorizing.  You can download the better looking PDF with psalms 1-20 categorized.

David is the author of each of these Psalms

Ps.    Category                                Description                              OT Ref.         NT Ref. 

 

11	Righteous and Wicked Contrasted	The LORD is the refuge for the righteous and the judge of the wicked
12	Petitions	May God protect the upright and the poor from those who do evil.
13	Petitions	David does not receive immediate relief from his trouble, yet He maintains faith in the LORD.
14	Righteous and Wicked Contrasted	The wicked are foolish in believing there is no God. God is with the righteous.		Romans 3:10-12
15	Righteous and Wicked Contrasted	Psalm 15 is a description of the character of a righteous person.
16	Worship and Thanksgiving	We can be thankful if we know that we are safe in God’s hands, and that God fullfilled the prophecy of Jesus being raised from the dead.		Acts 2:25-28, 13:35
17	Petitions	David urgently prays for protection from those who desire to kill him.
18	Worship and Thanksgiving	David is thankful for victory over the evil people who tried to kill him.	II Samuel 22	Romans 15:9
19	Worship and Thanksgiving	It is a beautiful Psalm that speaks of the power, wonder, and wisdom of God.		Romans 10:18
20	Petitions	David asks for God’s blessings in battle for those who follow the LORD.

 

 

May God add His blessing to our study of Psalms.

 

Psalms – categorizing is helpful!

The Psalms are incredibly broad and deep.  Though David wrote more of them than anyone else, there are a variety of authors who wrote over about a 1400 year period. When reading the Psalms it is helpful to understand that there are different types of Psalms, and that some Psalms are more or less appropriate for the situation you are currently in than others.  When the information is available it is also a great blessing to know the context of when and why the Psalm was written. How to classify the Psalms is in large part a personal preference.  It can be a useful tool to keep a chart for yourself or put notes by different Psalms in your Bible.  I’m looking forward to making my own chart as I read through the Psalms.  In the meantime I can share some categories from  The Believer’s Bible Commentary by William MacDonald.  I’ve added a couple of categories and given examples for each.

1. Worship and Thanksgiving – Psalm 93 (probably the greatest number of Psalms fall into this category for the purpose of enhancing our fellowship with God.)

2. Messianic (Prophetic Psalms that specifically speak of Jesus Christ).  It is important to remember that sometimes part of the Psalm has to do with Jesus while other parts refer to someone else.  – Psalm 22

3. Confession and forgiveness – Psalm 32,51

4. Petitions – Psalm 17

5. The righteous and wicked contrasted – Psalm 1

6. Historical – Psalm 78

7. Prophetic but not Messianic – Psalm 14

(Note:  It is also important to note that some of the Psalms in the petition category are not appropriate for us to use in prayer today.  The author was writing in the context of the Old Testament law of an eye for an eye.  Jesus calls us to a higher standard of loving our neighbors – whether friend or enemy.