angela hormberg

Tag: Reading Through the Psalms

  • Psalm 30

    Psalm 30

    Commonplace –

    “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;

    To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever” (Psalm 30:11-12)

    Oh, what a difference a week can make. I haven’t been posting this week, as I completed a big school project. Five late nights and a couple of gallons of coffee later, I am thrilled to be back in my chair reading my daily psalm and conversing with Matthew Henry and you. When I sat back down and looked at my last post, it was actually a draft of Psalm 30. The commonplace I had chosen was verse 9:

    “What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?

    Clearly, I was in a different place. But isn’t that the wonder of the Psalms? They meet you where you are. And that is exactly what happened to me this morning. I am in a very different place today than I was a week ago, when I had a major final project looming for school. I still have another week, but the hardest part is over. All that to say, my outlook today is bright and sunny. So, it’s no surprise my focus in the Psalm has shifted, and my commonplace changed. So, let’s get to it.

    In Psalm 30, David begins with extolling God for all the good God has done for him: healed him, brought him out of the grave, kept him alive, kept him from the pit. David encourages all the saints to join his song of praise, remembering that God’s anger passes quickly and his favor is eternal. At this point, David declares:

    “And in my prosperity I said, “I shall never be moved” (Psalm 30:6).

    Yet in verse 7, David signals a turning point, when God’s face was no longer shining on him. He cried out. He prayed. He begged.

    “Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me: Lord, be thou my helper” (Psalm 30:10).

    And that is exactly what happened. Because, as we see just a few verses later, David declares:

    “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou has put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;

    To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever” (Psalm 30:12).

    This change left me wondering: Did God hide his face or did David get so comfortable in his prosperity that he stopped pursuing God in the same way he did during times of trouble or trial? And, then something happened in his life, and David felt the loss, recognizing he had forsaken seeking God. We can see it in the psalm. Just as quickly as David turned from a place of confidence, “thou hast made my mountain to stand strong” (v. 7a), to a place of fear, “thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled” (v. 7b), in one verse, David turned again from crying out for mercy, “Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me: Lord, be thou my helper” (v. 10), to praising God in joy, “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness” (v. 11)in the space of two verses. How much time those verses encompassed we cannot know, but, by framing them in such quick succession within the psalm, we get the idea of how quickly we can reclaim confidence and joy in God and our relationship with Him. It only requires a returning, and it is immediate. It doesn’t mean our circumstances change that quickly, but life isn’t really about circumstances. It’s about our mindset. If we set our mind on God, it reframes how we perceive our circumstances, and that’s where the real, daily battle is fought.

    Matthew Henry notes the following in the opening of his summary of Psalm 30,

    “This is a psalm of thanksgiving for the great deliverance which God had wrought for David, penned upon occasion of the dedicating of his house of cedar, and sung in that pious solemnity, though there is not any thing in it that has particular reference to that occasion” (276).

    Henry closes his summary with the following,

    “In singing this psalm we ought to remember with thankfulness any like deliverances wrought for us, for which we must stir up ourselves to praise him and by which we must be engaged to depend upon him” (276).

    What a terrific topic for the first post of November – being thankful!

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 30.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 29

    Psalm 29

    Commonplace –

    “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is upon many waters” (Psalm 29:3).

    Psalm 29 is a meditation on God’s might and glory as it is exhibited through natural weather events. In it, David draws us back to the beginning, when the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. David stresses in verse 3 that God is upon many waters; God is present in this very moment just like He was at the beginning of the world. We are able to readily observe this through changes in the weather.

    David repeatedly stresses “the voice of the Lord” throughout Psalm 29 (v. 3, 5, 7, 8 and 9). He is using His voice to make things happen:

    1. break the cedars (v.5),
    2. cause the cedars to skip like a calf, like a young unicorn (v.6),
    3. dividing the flames of fire (v.7),
    4. shaking the wilderness (v.8),
    5. making the cows give birth (v.9),
    6. discovering the forest (v.9).

    One cannot help thinking of God’s voice as the wind, which comes to us in many forms: soft and gentle, loud and aggressive. Again, we are reminded of the old testament, when God spoke to Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11-12. First, God sent a great and strong wind that broke apart the rocks of the mountain. Then, God sent an earthquake. Next, God sent a fire. Finally, God came to Elijah in a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:13). How often in life do we walk around seemingly in control only to be confronted with our frail humanity by some incredible weather event, which exposes how little control we actually possess.

    Matthew Henry provides some worthwhile insight into Psalm 29.

    “It is the probable conjecture of some very good interpreters that David penned this psalm upon occasion, and just at the time, of a great storm of thunder, lightning, and rain, as the eighth psalm was his meditation in a moon-light night and the nineteenth in a sunny morning” (274).

    David, too, was reminded of the power of God through the medium of the weather.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 29.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 28

    Psalm 28

    Commonplace –

    “The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him” (Psalm 28:7).

    Psalm 28 is a prayer. David confesses his allegiance to the Lord by acknowledging he will turn to God alone. He petitions God to answer when he cries and lifts up his hands to Him. He prays to not be included with the wicked, those who say one thing but mean another, and asks they be punished according “to the wickedness of their endeavours” (v.4a) and that they be sent to “their desert” (v.4b), because they, unlike him, do not turn to God. David ends his prayer with faith, blessing God for hearing his prayer and proclaiming “my heart trusted in [God], and I am helped” (v.7) and closes with a prayer for his people, that God will save them, bless them, feed them, and lift them up forever” (v.9).

    Matthew Henry presents the following two viewpoints regarding Psalm 28.

    “The former part of this psalm is the prayer of a saint militant and now in distress (v. 1-3), to which is added the doom of God’s implacable enemies (v. 4,5). The latter part of the psalm is the thanksgiving of a saint triumphant and delivered out of his distresses (v.6-8), to which is added a prophetical prayer for all God’s faithful loyal subjects (v.9), so that it is hard to say which of these two conditions David was in when he penned it. Some think he was now in trouble seeking God, but at the same time preparing to praise him for his deliverance, and by faith giving him thanks for it, before it was wrought. Others think he was now in triumph, but remembered, and recorded for his own and others’ benefit, the prayers he made when he was in affliction, that the mercy might relish the better, when it appeared to be an answer to them” (272).

    From my summary, it’s apparent which view I believe it is, which is that he is in distress when he prays it. Which view do you think it is?

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 28.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 27

    Psalm 27

    Commonplace –

    “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4).

    Psalm 27 is a meditation on “Whom shall I fear?” (v.1), if I have God as my light, salvation, and strength.

    This meditation immediately causes David to recall an instance, where God has saved him. His enemies came to kill him, and they stumbled and fell. (v.2) This reminder encourages him that even if enemies and war come against him, he should not fear in his heart, knowing God is with him. (v.3) Knowing God has led him to desire God even more, asking God to allow him to be with God in eternity, which will be the ultimate victory. There he will sing with joy. (v.4-6) He then petitions God to hear him, have mercy on him, answer him, not hide his face from him, to never leave him, to never forsake him, even if his parents forsake him. (v.10) He asks God to teach him and deliver him from his enemies. (v.11-12) Finally, he declares he would have been lost without God and encourages others to “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord” (v.13-14). What a lovely meditation! We have the privilege of following along with David as he moves from thought to thought, giving us a perfect example of how we, too, can meditate on God.

    Matthew Henry notes:

    “[Psalm 27] is very expressive of the pious and devout affections with which gracious souls are carried out towards God at all times, especially in times of trouble” (269).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 27.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 26

    Psalm 26

    Commonplace –

    “I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass thine altar, O Lord:

    That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works” (Psalm 26:6-7).

    Psalm 26 is a ‘mark the day’ song, in which David has had a good day. Among the psalms, this type of psalm is not often seen, but it is important. It is a day of victory, when we may stand and say “Judge me, O Lord; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the Lord; therefore I shall not slide” (v.1). Yet, this is not a boastful psalm centered on David’s accomplishment, but it is a psalm of praise to God for his leading along the paths of righteousness. It is a psalm to which we daily aspire. In it we see the following framework:

    David begins by asking God to:

    1. judge him. (v.1)
    2. examine him. (v.2)
    3. prove him. (v.2)
    4. try his reins. (v.2)
    5. try his heart. (v.2)

    He is able to ask God to do these things, because he has committed himself to the Lord’s leading. He lists what he has done and has not done in order to have a good day.

    He has

    1. walked in his integrity. (v.1)
    2. trusted in the Lord. (v.1)
    3. kept the Lord’s lovingkindness before his eyes. (v.3)
    4. walked in the Lord’s truth. (v.3)
    5. hated the congregation of evildoers. (v.5)
    6. loved the Lord’s house. (v.8)

    He has not

    1. sat with vain persons. (v.4)
    2. gone in with dissemblers. (v.4)
    3. sat with the wicked. (v.5)

    By following the Lord, he is able to stand in innocence and on an even foot before the altar of the Lord, where he may give thanks, tell of God’s “wondrous works”, and bless the Lord.

    He petitions the Lord

    1. not to put his soul in the company of sinners. (v.9)
    2. not to put his life with bloody men, who are full of mischief and bribes. (v.10)
    3. to redeem him. (v.11)
    4. be merciful to him. (v.11)

    Matthew Henry notes the following in his summary:

    “In singing this psalm we must teach and admonish ourselves, and one another, what we must be and do that we may have the favour of God, and comfort in our own consciences, and comfort ourselves with it, as David does, if we can say that in any measure we have, through grace, answered to these characters” (266).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 26.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 25

    Psalm 25

    Commonplace –

    “All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies” (Psalm 25:10).

    Psalm 25 is a daily prayer, one in which we can call on at any time. It reflects our day-to-day need. Within its verses, David prays for God’s mercy and truth to fill his life.

    Prayer for Mercy

    David recognizes his own sin and cries out for mercy,

    “Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins” (V. 18).

    He reminds himself that God is “good and upright…therefore will he teach sinners in the way” (v.8). This is a promise on which the believer may rely.

    Prayer for Truth

    He commits his soul to God and prays for God to teach him in truth,

    “Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths.

    Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day” (v.4-5).

    He reminds himself that God will guide him in truth, but he, as a believer, must commit to being meek and teachable and keeping God’s covenant’s and testimonies.

    Matthew Henry describes Psalm 25 as a psalm “full of devout affection to God, the out-goings of holy desires towards his favour and grace and the lively actings of faith in his promises (262).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 25.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 24

    Psalm 24

    Commonplace –

    “Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place?

    He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully

    He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation” (Psalm 24:3-5).

    “Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah” (Psalm 24:10).

    Psalm 24 is simply divine. It is a lovely meditation with many splendid verses. Verse 1 is one of my personal favorites:

    “The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1).

    Psalm 24: A Psalm of Wonder

    Psalm 24 inspires a sense of wonder, as David meditates on the creation around him. The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. What a beautiful reminder that God is the God of creation. Whether good or evil, He holds it all in His hands, which means He works all of it ultimately to the good, no matter the intent of the wicked (Rom 8:28).

    Psalm 24: A Psalm of Instruction

    David also instructs the reader on how to enter the Kingdom of God. One must do the following:

    1. Maintain clean hands.
    2. Keep a pure heart.
    3. Refrain from vanity and deceitful swearing.

    If one is able to do these things, he will receive blessing and righteousness from God. And praise be to God, who sent his Son to save us, knowing a person would be unable to achieve these ends alone. Philipians 4:13 tells us that one can do all things through Christ, who alone supplies the necessary strength to endeavor hardships and trials.

    Psalm 24: A Psalm of Praise

    Here is the heartfelt praise of the people of the King. They stand in unity, physical and spiritual, those present in the body and those gone before, and look with anticipation toward the gates waiting for the King to enter. David looked forward, even as the Christ dwelt within Him, waiting for His time. Our vantage point is looking back to hear of Christ’s coming, living, dying, rising, and entering the gates of Heaven to take His place next to the Father. In that way, we stand on one side of time looking, as one through a mirror, at David looking forward. And we both can say: He is the King of Glory; He was present inside of David, even as David was writing, and He is present in all those who submit to Him.

    Matthew Henry observes:

    “It is supposed that [Psalm 24] was penned upon occasion of David’s bringing the ark to the place prepared for it, and that the intention of it was to lead the people above the pomp of external ceremonies to a holy life and faith in Christ, of whom the ark was a type” (260).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 24.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 23

    Psalm 23

    Commonplace –

    “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).

    Psalm 23 is a beloved and well-known psalm.

    John Parsons, author of the website Hebrew4Christians.com, offers the following insight into the Hebrew translation of the first verse of Psalm 23:

    “Mizmor le-David. Adonai Ro’i, lo echsar

    Adonai Ro’i – “The LORD my shepherd,” hearkens to Gen 49:24, where God is described as “The Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.”  If God is Israel’s Shepherd, then His followers are (tzon mar’ito) – the sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3). Note that the word “shepherd” is thought to derive from (re’a), meaning friend. Lo echsar – “I shall not lack,” hearkens to Gen 22:14, where God is called (Adonai Yireh), “The LORD will Provide (or will see).” Since the LORD is our Shepherd, we will not lack His provision. God will see and fully understand our needs” (Parsons).

    We must take note of the present tense of the verb to be used in this Psalm: IS. He is my shepherd. In every moment, he is present with us. And he is not just a shepherd off in the distance; he is an active shepherd. In verses 2 and 3, David gives us three action verbs to describe what God is doing as our shepherd:

    1. “He maketh me to lie down” (v.2a) is translated from the Hebrew word yarbitzeini, which specifically refers only to animals and their being made to lie down.
      • Animals are meant for work; they are up and active. Yet, here is the shepherd bringing them to lush grasses, where they makes them lie down.
    2. “He leadeth me beside the still waters” (v.2b)
      • He guides me to places that are calm and where a refreshing drink of water is available.
    3. “He restoreth my soul” (v.3a)
      • The living water offered renews the soul.
    4. “He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (v.3b)
      • He is a shepherd who takes me only to good places.

    This is an idyllic picture. Here we see that God is concerned with our physical and spiritual needs. He provides rest and nourishment and brings us to good places. Yet the reality is we face difficult challenges and find ourselves in trying places. David addresses these circumstances in verses 4 and 5. Even when we are in those types of places and situations, if we are following God, we are still on the path of righteousness and need not fear evil. He is with us; his rod and staff are working for our good. The rod correcting and the staff guiding are working together for our good. We must remain confident not in ourselves but in everything He has taught us. Victory is ours if we persevere (v.6). And, ultimately, if we stay the course, we, too, “will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever” (v.6b).

    Matthew Henry offered the following words regarding Psalm 23:

    “In this [David] certainly had an eye, not only to the blessings of god’s providence, which made his outward condition prosperous, but to the communications of God’s grace, received by a lively faith, and returned in a warm devotion, which filled his soul with joy unspeakable” (257).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 23.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    Parsons, John. “Psalm 23 in Hebrew”. Hebrew4Christians.com. https://hebrew4christians.com/Scripture/Ketuvim/Psalms/Psalm_23/psalm_23.html. Accessed 17 Oct 2025

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 22

    Psalm 22

    Commonplace –

    “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” (Psalm 22:1).

    Psalm 22’s lament stands in stark contrast to Psalm 21’s joy. They are desperate and sorrowful. Later, Jesus would echo David’s words on the cross in one of his last mournful cries.

    “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

    But God.

    Midway through Psalm 22, David offers the following prophetic words:

    “Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.

    For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard” (Psalm 22:24-25, emphasis mine).

    Jesus knew God’s word. He had clearly read this psalm. So, even though his last words sound like a defeat, there is a seed of hope in them. We know Jesus cried out, but we also know God heard. So, if Jesus had hope in his worst hour, and David had hope in his horrible hour, shouldn’t we have hope in our difficulties? We can share in their cry and claim the promise of deliverance, at the same time. It is a great act of rebellion against evil to face a challenging circumstance with hope. May that hope never leave us, whatever situation we face.

    Matthew Henry’s summary offers a judicious assessment of Psalm 22.

    “The Spirit of Christ, which was in the prophets, testifies in this psalm, as clearly and fully as any where in all the Old Testament, “the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow” (1 Pet 1:11); of him, no doubt, David here speaks, and not of himself, or any other man. Much of it is expressly applied to him, and some of it must be understood of him only. The providences of God concerning David were so very extraordinary that we may suppose there were some wise good men who then could not but look upon him as a figure of him that was to come. But the composition of his psalms especially, in which he found himself wonderfully carried out by the spirit of prophecy far beyond his own thought and intention, was (we may suppose) an abundant satisfaction to himself that he was not only a father of the Messiah but a figure of him” (251).

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 22.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 21

    Psalm 21

    Commonplace –

    “The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!” (Psalm 21:1).

    Psalm 21 is a joyful psalm full of praise of the Lord. We have encountered many psalms when David was downtrodden and calling on the Lord in his anguish, but here he revels in answered prayer and the faithfulness of God.

    “Thou hast given him his heart’s desire, and hast not witholden the request of his lips. Selah” (Psalm 21:2).

    It is right and good when our prayers are answered to be as passionate of our praise of God, as we are when we petitioning Him with desperate prayers. David goes on to list all the ways God has answered his prayers. God has

    1. given him his heart’s desire
    2. not withheld his request
    3. set a crown of pure gold on his head
    4. given him long life
    5. made him glad with God’s face

    David notes his own trust in God and how God’s mercy is what allowed him to remain steadfast in trials. He trusted in God and acknowledged it was only through God he was able to be unmoved.

    Next, David discusses his ongoing prayer: that God will destroy the wicked. He expresses confidence that God will do it: “Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of thine anger: the Lord shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them” (Psalm 21:9). It’s important to note that David isn’t simply calling them wicked, because they oppose him but because they oppose God: “they intended evil against thee” (v. 11).

    Finally, he ends in praising God for His strength: “Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength” (v. 13).

    Matthew Henry noted the following in his summary:

    “As the foregoing psalm, [Psalm 20], was a prayer for the king that God would protect and prosper him, so this is a thanksgiving for the success God had blessed him with” (250).

    Let us give thanks!

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 21.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg