Psalm 51

The book of Psalms is an anthology comprising 150 psalms, organized into five collections, or “books,” some with embedded subcollections (like the Songs of Ascent, Psalms 120–134). The two final collections contain some psalms dating to the Persian period (late sixth–fourth century BCE). The dating of the psalms in the first three collections is less certain. Some may date from the early monarchy (tenth–ninth century BCE), but many are later or are later reworkings of earlier pieces. Three general types of psalms have been identified—praise of God, thanksgiving (thanking God for what He has done), and lament or petition (describing the worshiper’s troubles and asking for God’s help)—although many psalms combine elements of two or three of these types. Other subcategories of psalms have been suggested, such as “royal psalms” recited by kings or speaking about kings. In fact, not all psalms are addressed to God, and not all are prayers in the usual sense. Some sound like lessons for the edification of worshipers, such as Psalm 1, which proclaims the good fortune of those who shun evil and devote themselves to the study of God’s teaching.

There is little indication of when psalms were recited. A few superscriptions (titles added at the beginnings of some psalms after they had been written) link the psalm with a ritual occasion, for example, Psalm 30, “A song for the dedication of the House,” and Psalm 92, “A song for the sabbath day.” Numerous superscriptions and musical references within some psalms suggest that they were sung by choirs and/or recited to instrumental accompaniment (see Music and Dance). The book of Chronicles links the singing of psalms to the Levitical singers in the Temple. Although the authors of psalms are unknown, many superscriptions associate the individual psalms with David and a few assign them to events in David’s life; this attests to an ancient tradition that ultimately came to see David as the author of the book of Psalms.