The Super Epic Psalms - How the Longest Psalms Point to Jesus

“Everything
written about me
in the law of Moses
the prophets and the Psalms
must be fulfilled
Luke 24:44
“Everything
written about me
in the law of Moses
the prophets and the Psalms
must be fulfilled
Luke 24:44

The first long Psalm is
Psalm 18
found in book 1
(which are Psalms 1-41 )
The first long Psalm is
Psalm 18
4th
longest
Psalm

I love you Lord, my strength
Psalm 18
The 4th longest Psalm
book 1
The greatest commandment
is to love God
but this is a rare place where someone directly tells God
“I love you”
4th
longest
Psalm

The earth shook
Psalm 18
book 1
David recounts times in his life
of great trials and deliverances
He uses language from stories about Moses
and the Exodus and Sinai to describe his deliverance
and to point to a greater future deliverance
by Jesus
Psalm 18
4th
longest
Psalm

Psalm 18
book 1
Cords of death and destruction encircle me
I call for help
horn of my salvation!!
(In Luke, Zechariah calls the baby Jesus
a horn of our salvation)
Psalm 18
4th
longest
Psalm

The earth shook
Psalm 18
book 1
God responds to the cry
flying to help riding on a cherub
smoke in nostrils
The earth shaking
the sea parting
Psalm 18
4th
longest
Psalm

Your gentleness makes me great
book 1
You show yourself pure to the pure
you show yourself twisted to the twisted
You give me strength
( God allows Himself perceived differently
by his servants and by his enemies )
David (and his descendant) are rescued
In contrast to
the forceful way God comes to David’s help
God described as gentle
toward David
Your gentleness makes me great
Psalm 18
book 1
4th
longest
Psalm

A song of good news sung to the nations
book 1
Psalm 18
The singer of the Psalm
Jesus
and singing to the nations
quoted by Paul in Romans 15
4th
longest
Psalm

Psalm 18:2 - Luke 1:67-69
Luke 1:67-69

…Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, 9 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in
the house of his servant David;

Psalm 18:2b - Hebrew 2:13
Hebrews 2:13

And again ‘I will put my trust in Him’
Psalm 18:49 - Romans 15:9
Romans 15:9
And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the
Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.

4th
longest
Psalm

Psalm 18 completes a trio
of resurrection Psalms
Ps 16 - answers who can ascend the Mount
of the Lord (from Ps 15)
Ps 17 - Draws on images from
the song of Moses (Deut 32-33)
Ps 18 - A song likely written at the end of David’s life
and by title about God giving him victory and
deliverance
all portend the death and resurrection
of Jesus

Three pictures beginning with
long Psalm 22
Psalm 22 will start a trio
of Psalms painting a picture of the
redeemer
Ps 22 - the cross
Ps 23 - the crook
Ps 24 - the crown
Three pictures beginning with
long Psalm 22

Psalm 22 A suffering servant
Psalm 35 The trials and dangers of Jesus
Psalm 28 Death and resurrection
Psalm 37 The meek shall inherit the earth
A song of good news sung to the brethren
in Psalm 22
A song of good news sung to the brethren
in Psalm 22
Together with the other long Psalms
Psalm 22 sings of good news
Together with the other long Psalms
Psalm 22 sings of good news
1 Col 15: 3,4: Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was
buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

The good shepherd
who gave his life for the sheep, the king
The good shepherd
Psalm 22 is among the most heavily quoted
(of Psalms) as far as number of different verses
quoted from that Psalm (in the New Testament)
Psalm 22 side by side with two other Psalms
paint a picture of the cross,
the crook (shepherd’s) and the crown
in Psalms 22,23 and 24
12th
longest
Psalm

The good shepherd
The good shepherd
The first 21 verses are laments
The last 10 verses look to the future with praise
12th
longest
Psalm
“My God, my God why have you forsaken me!”
The doubling of ‘my God’ is a cry of deep familiarity
“A people yet to be born will be told He has done it”

The good shepherd
The good shepherd
Promise of Abraham to bless all nations fulfilled
they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,

that he has done it.
All the ends of the earth will hear and turn to the Lord
The righteousness of the Lord will be seen by all
generations
12th
longest
Psalm

Psalms 22:1 - Matthew 27:46; Mark:34
Matthew 27:46

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?
Psalm 22:7 - Matthew 27:39; Mark 15:29;
Luke 23:35
Matthew 27:39
And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,
Psalm 22:8 - Matthew 27:43
Matthew 27:43 King James Version (KJV)
He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
Psalm 22:18 - John 19:24; Mathew 27:35;
Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34
John 19:24
They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled,
which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.
Psalm 22:22 - Hebrews 2:12
Hebrews 2:12
Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

Psalm 22:30-31 - Romans 1:16,17
Romans 1:16,17
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the
Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith,, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.
12th
longest
Psalm

They Hated Me Without a Cause
Psalm 35
11 Ruthless witnesses come forward;
    they question me on things I know nothing
about.
12 They repay me evil for good
    and leave me like one bereaved.
11 Ruthless witnesses come forward;
    they question me on things I know nothing
about.
12 They repay me evil for good
    and leave me like one bereaved.
they hid their net for me without cause
    and without cause dug a pit for me,

The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth
Psalm 37
37 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.
Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
for there is a future for the man of peace.
37 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.
8th
longest
Psalm

Psalm 68 A victory cry
Psalm 69 A cry for help
Two contrasting cries
in long Psalms 68 and 69
Psalm 68 A victory cry
Psalm 69 A cry for help
Two contrasting cries
in long Psalms 68 and 69
found in book 2
(the ark)
(the cross)

Three levels of images
Ark images from the time of Moses
Starts with a prayer said when the Ark was moved
Mentions traveling in the desert twice and mentions Sinai
Images from David moving the Ark up Mt Zion
The mountain becomes a sanctuary
Worshipers go up the mountain to worship
Applied to Christ
In Ephesians the Psalm is applied to the Ascension
And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “ Arise, O Lord, and let your enemies
be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” (Numbers 10:35, ESV)
Which is like Psalm 68:1
Psalm 68 A victory song about the ark (applied to the
ascension of Jesus in the New Testament)
Three levels of images
Ark images from the time of Moses
Starts with a prayer said when the Ark was moved
Mentions traveling in the desert twice and mentions Sinai
Images from David moving the Ark up Mt Zion
The mountain becomes a sanctuary
Worshipers go up the mountain to worship
Applied to Christ
In Ephesians the Psalm is applied to the Ascension
10th
longest
Psalm

The long songs of book 2
Ephesians 4:7-10 But to each one of us grace has been given as
Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says:
“When he ascended on high,

he took many captives

and gave gifts to his people.”
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to
the lower, earthly regions[c]? 10 He who descended is the very one
who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole
universe.)
Psalms 68:18 - Ephesians 4:7
10th
longest
Psalm

Verse 1. Let God arise. In some such words Moses
spake when the cloud moved onward, and the ark
was carried forward. The ark would have been a poor
leader if the Lord had not been present with the
symbol. Before we move, we should always desire to
see the Lord lead the way
Spurgeon on Psalm 68

Psalm 69 A song of deliverance from suffering (applied to the
cross, election and rejection of the gospel in the New Testament)
The long songs of book 2The long songs of book 2
Psalm 69 A song of deliverance from suffering (applied to the
cross, election and rejection of the gospel in the New Testament)
• The highest becomes the lowest
• The innocent treated as if guilty
• The one Angels sang of becomes the song of drunkards
sung in the first person
a song of Jesus
by Jesus and about Jesus
• The highest becomes the lowest
• The innocent treated as if guilty
• The one Angels sang of becomes the song of drunkards
sung in the first person
a song of Jesus
by Jesus and about Jesus
9th
longest
Psalm

Psalms 69:4 - John 15:25
More in number than the hairs of my head

    are those who hate me without cause;
mighty are those who would destroy me,

    those who attack me with lies.
What I did not steal

    must I now restore?
Psalm 69:9a - John 2:17
For zeal for your house has consumed me,

Psalm 69:9b - Romans 15:3
and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

Psalm 69:21 - Matthew 27:34, 48; Mark 15:36;
Luke 23:36; John 19:28, 29
They gave me poison for food,

    and for my thirst they gave me sour wine to drink. Psalm 69 - Romans 11:9
Let their own table before them become a snare;

    and when they are at peace, let it become a trap
Psalm 69:22 - Romans 11:9
Let their own table before them become a snare;

    and when they are at peace, let it become a trap
Psalms 69:25 - Acts 1:15
Judas office is given to another

25 nMay their camp be a desolation;
let no one dwell in their tents.
9th
longest
Psalm

Psalm 78
A Long Historical Song
promising parables
found in book 3
Psalm 78
A Long Historical Song
promising parables
2nd
longest
Psalm

I will open my mouth in parables
Psalm 78:2
Matthew 13:35
Psalms 78 is the 2nd
longest Psalm
and sung in the first person
sung by Jesus 2nd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 78:2
Matthew 13:35
Psalm 78 begins with the promise of parables
Jesus used parables
Jesus was a parable
Jesus recapitulated/relived the history
of Israel, getting it right
2nd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 78:2
Matthew 13:35
Psalm 78 is significantly meant to teach the next generation
These are lessons meant to be passed on
and explicitly says so
2nd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 78:2
Matthew 13:35
Psalm 78 continues with a history of Israel
And it’s remarkably unflattering
This is a history of God’s faithfulness
despite Israel’s unfaithfulness
2nd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 89
The Priestly Books
end with the ultimate sacrifice
found in book 3
Psalm 89
The Priestly Books
end with the ultimate sacrifice

Psalm 89
The 3rd longest Psalm
Along with Psalm 88, Psalm 89 provides
a remarkable ending to the priestly Psalm books 2 and 3
that poetically represent Exodus and Leviticus
Psalm 88 the bleakest lament in the Bible
with no upturn
3rd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 89
Book 3 is sometimes called the dark book of the Psalms
and these 2 Psalms portent the ultimate sacrifice
Jesus dies
fitting for books that are song by Levites like
the Sons of Korah and Asaph
Book 3 poetically representing Leviticus with it’s
sacrifices
3rd
longest
Psalm

I will sing of the hesed of the Lord Forever
Psalm 89
Along with Psalm 88, Psalm 89 provides
a remarkable ending to the priestly Psalm books 1 and 2
that poetically represent Exodus and Leviticus
There is a hopeful upturn as Psalm 89 starts
‘I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever” hesed
hesed
hesed
hesed
3rd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 89
It feels like, it looks like Israel is rejected
God has forgotten her
but the writer looks to the character of God and God’s
covenant loyal lovingkindness, his hesed
hesed
hesed
3rd
longest
Psalm

Psalm 89
The Psalm breaks in to God speaking first person
and rehearsing the many promises to Abraham
and the seed of David (Jesus)
who will rule on the throne
who will be the Son of God
promises that can never be broken
hesed
hesed
hesed
hesed
3rd
longest
Psalm

He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and
the Rock of my salvation.’
And I will make him
the i
ﬁrstborn,
the highest of the
kings of the earth.
My steadfast love
I will keep for him forever,
and my covenant will stand ﬁrm for him. Psalm 89:26-28

Psalm 89
The Psalm ends with a plea
reminding God how his servants are mocked
and even the footsteps of God’s anointed are mocked
“And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised
but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.”
Romans 4:12
hesed
hesed
hesed
3rd
longest
Psalm

Long Psalms end
songs about
the sojourns in this world
102 through 106
found in book 4
Long Psalms end
songs about
the sojourns in this world
102 through 106

Long songs end book 4
starting with Psalm 102
(a prayer which cannot be said to an angel
but can be said to Jesus)
Long songs end book 4
starting with Psalm 102
(a prayer which cannot be said to an angel
but can be said to Jesus)

“A song of an one who is afflicted
when he is faint
and pours out his
complaint to the Lord”
when he is faint
and pours out his
used as part of an argument why Jesus is better
than the angels in the New Testamant book of Hebrews
Psalm 102
the title
used as part of an argument why Jesus is better
than the angels in the New Testamant book of Hebrews

when he is faint
and pours out his
He has broken my strength in midcourse
he has shortened my days
He has broken my strength in midcourse
he has shortened my days
v
when he is faint
and pours out his
Psalm 102
the cry
the crisis

when he is faint
and pours out his
when he is faint
and pours out his
The speaker is transitory, like smoke
even the heavens and earth will perish but you will remain
Psalm 102
the contrast
The speaker is transitory, like smoke
even the heavens and earth will perish but you will remain

Psalm 103 A (relatively) shorter transitional
Psalm after the heaviness of 102 calling on self, angels and others
for the praises to God in the long next three Psalms
a transition
between very long psalms
put between thoughts of heaviness
and high praise
Ps 102 Ps 103
Ps 104
Ps 105
Bless the Lord, Oh my soul
Ps 103:1

• Psalm 104 God’s greatness in creation
and a reason Jesus is better than the angels
By some Jewish traditions
Psalm 104 is an argument that
angels were made on the second day of creation
and the rest of creation described as well
In the book of Hebrews it is Jesus
the creator of angels who “makes his ministers (his angels)
a flame of fire”
And not just angels minister,
but all of creation made to minister: the sun, the trees,
‘he makes the wind to blow and the water to flow’
11th
longest
Psalm

• Psalm 105 God’s faithfulness in history
A song of God’s
faithfulness in Israel’s history
A song meant for the nations to hear
“Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name;

make known among the nations what he has done.” (vs 1)
6th
longest
Psalm

• Psalm 106 God’s goodness in history
(despite Israel’s unfaithfulness and a picture of the gospel)
A historical Psalm
but not flattering towards
Israel’s history
A grace of goodness
despite unfaithfulness
Both we and our fathers have sinned
we have committed iniquity,
we have done wickedness
Ps 106:6
5th
longest
Psalm

•Psalm 107 Hesed; loyal loving kindness;
God overcomes four obstacles to ‘coming home’
Coming home
overcoming obstacles
(The Passover Psalms are 113-118)
Coming home
overcoming obstacles
•Psalm 107 Hesed; loyal loving kindness;
God overcomes four obstacles to ‘coming home’
hesed
hesed
hesed
7th
longest
Psalm

• Psalm 109 Anti-Hesed; betrayal of
friendship : God provides salvation being at the right hand of
a persecuted poor man who is also raised and seated at the
right hand of God in Psalm 110
The Judas epic followed by the Melchizedek epic
Prelude to the Passover PsalmsPrelude to the Passover Psalms
(The Passover Psalms are 113-118)
• Psalm 109 Anti-Hesed; betrayal of
friendship : God provides salvation being at the right hand of
a persecuted poor man who is also raised and seated at the
right hand of God in Psalm 110
hesed
hesed
hesed
13th
longest
Psalm

Persecuted by Judas —>
psalm 109
Made like Melchizedek —>
Psalm 110
Prelude to the Passover Psalms
Ps 113-118

• Psalm 118 Hesed in the flesh; The final
passover song; the song of the last supper: The stone the
builders rejected becomes the cornerstone
The Passover Psalms end with
what is probably the song Jesus sung
after the Last Supper
The stone the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone
• Psalm 118 Hesed in the flesh; The final
passover song; the song of the last supper: The stone the
builders rejected becomes the cornerstone
hesed
hesed
hesed
the final Passover Psalm

Psalm 118
shortest
Psalm
117
before
longest
Psalm
119
after
middle verse of Bible Ps 118:8

• Psalm 119 Living a life of Hesed;
The longest of all; praise of God’s word; prayer to keep God’s
word: a relentless reception and relentless dependence
The longest Psalm, Psalm 119
in part inspired by the promise of
the New Covenant
The song sung after the last supper
is flanked by the smallest (Ps 117) and longest (Ps 119(
• Psalm 119 Living a life of Hesed;
The longest of all; praise of God’s word; prayer to keep God’s
word: a relentless reception and relentless dependence
hesed
hesed
hesed
a Postlude to the Passover Psalms
delivered to live a life of Hesed
1st
longest
Psalm

• Psalm 136 In praise of Hesed: for his
lovingkindness endures forever
A celebration of Hesed
A celebration of Hesed
• Psalm 136 In praise of Hesed: for his
lovingkindness endures forever
Postlude to the PassoverPostlude to the Passover
hesed
hesed
hesed

• Psalm 139 Sanctifying Hesed;
Search me oh God;
A deeper sanctification: God is the one who deeply
knows us and can remove sins even hidden to us
The final long psalms
asks God to turn his ‘high beams’
on one’s own heart
• Psalm 139 Sanctifying Hesed;
Search me oh God;
A deeper sanctification: God is the one who deeply
knows us and can remove sins even hidden to us
The final long psalms
asks God to turn his ‘high beams’
on one’s own heart
hesed
hesed
hesed

All or almost all Psalms
point to Jesus
however the longer Psalms
will have special opportunity for emphasis

There are also
the shortest Psalms that emphasize things
like a staccato note might

There are also
the acrostic Psalms
often providing transitions from one line of thought
to another and summing things up

The Super Epic Psalms - How the Longest Psalms Point to Jesus

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The Super Epic Psalms - How the Longest Psalms Point to Jesus