Psalms are the Stomach of Scripture

Chances are, you haven't thought of the Psalms as a stomach before, but let me explain the analogy, in hopes that it may give you a new incentive to re-read them.

First of all, the Psalms are meant for singing and worship. Worship is one of the most important themes throughout the Bible. Ephesians 1, verses 6 and 12 in particular talk about God's purpose, or better said, our purpose. Theologians call this the doxological purpose of mankind.

Secondly, the Psalms contain parts of every aspect of scripture: God's mercy, justice, truth, His Word, good, evil. It contains the major themes of scripture: God, man, sin, prophecy, law, grace, and Christ. The Psalms also contain a large portion of references to historical events, in which an attribute of God is emphasized. The most frequently mentioned event is the Exodus.

Finally, the reason to call the Psalms the stomach of scripture in the first place is the psalmist's ability to take a portion of scripture and meditate on the thought and process the thoughts into 'food.' The result is worship. In most cases, the psalmist comes through either a personal situation or national situation and relates it to scripture, but almost always comes through with nourishment for the soul, and praise through the lips, a radiance of worship overflowing towards God. In the process, bad thoughts and ideas are sorted out and let go: bitterness, materialism, and other worldly practices are released for a hold on the nutrition of worship.

You may be asking for some more either of the analogy or more evidence of this in the Psalms and more scripture references. In conclusion, I will leave two passages behind. Actually, the Psalms are also a microcosm of the Bible as well. Psalm 1 contains a picture of the godly and ungodly persons. If you take a broad survey through the Psalms, you begin with a picture of the righteous man, who meditates on scripture constantly. The idea of meditation is to chew thoughts. The result from a human perspective is that the way of the godly will prosper. If you jump to the end of the Psalms, skipping over the journey of digestion, you end in the overflow of Praise to God in Psalm 150. It is interesting to observe Joshua 1:8 in this context. The verse commands meditation on God's word, which in essence is digestion, thinking over verses over and over. The result of this meditation is overflow of praise, which is expressed in that God's word does not leave the mouth. The meaning of not departing is that it is always flowing out of the mouth.

Therefore, meditate on God's word and allow it to go through the whole spiritual digestive system: from the eyes to the mind, to the heart, to the stomach, and the nourishment to proceed to the bones and muscles, so that God's Word becomes part of your very being. As a result, the radiance of God's Word will flow from our mouths constantly. What better way to share what God is doing and to witness?

Welcome to Rejoicing in God!

Thank you for visiting this site. I intend to publish thoughts, songs, poems, and ideas about God throughout the whole site. I ask only one thing of posts, that they be God-centered, and God-focused. Many of the Worlds problems are a result of their view of God. God-willing, I will dispel some of those beliefs with the help of God's word, and solve problems on the root level. God is the solution to all life's problems, the answer to all life's questions, and the purpose of all His creation is his glory. When we discover Him, glorify Him, and love Him, we give Him glory. When we give Him glory, He gives us joy and peace.