Learning to Listen Part 4

Psalm 25This psalm does not track a central themeWhat I mean, is that we cannot say, “This is a psalm of praise,”- or “Psalm of confession,” or “thanksgiving psalm,” or “supplication psalm”• this doesn’t mean the structure of the poem is random,◦ only that it doesn’t tell a story or develop a specific point• nevertheless, there is a pattern to the psalm,◦ but we don’t find it arranged in an obvious pattern- the first Hebrew letter in the first word of the first verse is alef(like 'A' is the first letter of our alphabet)• the first letter in the first word of the second verse is bet(like 'B' is the second letter of our alphabet)◦ alef and bet are the first two letters in the Hebrew alphabet◦ that’s what the poet used for the outline of the entire psalm• it’s like the nursery rhyme, “A is for apple; B is for ball . . . .”◦ except that two letters from the Hebrew alphabet are missingThere are several psalms that use this acrostic device- Psalm 119 is the most radical example, supplying eight verses (each beginning with the same letter) for every letter of the Hebrew alphabet