If the Bible had a hymnal, it would be the book of Psalms. This diverse collection of 150 poems and prayers runs the gamut of emotion and experience, from songs of highest praise to the deepest depths of lament, from prayers for help and salvation to vehement curses against the psalmist's enemies. We will not cover all the psalms in this podcast, nor take them in order. But my hope is that each episode will help you connect more personally with the riches of the Psalms. All biblical passages will be read from the New International Version, unless otherwise noted.
Some of the language of Psalm 84 suggests that it may have been sung by God’s people as they made pilgrimage to Jerusalem; the pilgrimage may even have been led by the king. One of the places the people pass through on the way to the temple is “the valley of Baka,” which can be translated as “The Valley of Tears.” It may have been a literal place, or a metaphorical reminder of the people’s suffering. But either way, the song reminds those who sing it of the beauty that can spring up along the way.
29 Sept 2026
Episode 121: His eye is on the sparrow
When reading Psalm 84, one gets the sense that the psalmist feels a bit rootless when away from the temple, almost envying those who get to spend more time there. That includes not only those with priestly duties, but…the birds. Sparrows and swallows have made their nests there. Did the Korahites think of their twittering as praise? We might also think of how Jesus used the image of tiny sparrows to teach his followers about the tender care of God.
29 Sept 2026
Episode 120: Living temples
Typically, we speak casually of “going to church” without thinking about the meaning of what we’re saying. As you may already know, however, the New Testament word that’s translated as “church” doesn’t refer to a building; it refers to a people. Still, how should we understand a song like Psalm 84, in which the psalmist aches to be in the temple? The psalmist isn’t longing for the building per se, but for the presence of God. And that should give us pause when we think of the New Testament image of believers as temples of the Holy Spirit…
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