Psalms

Summary

This volume on Psalms in the Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary series aims to serve two purposes at once. It helps the reader grasp what the psalms say in their literary and canonical setting, and it also presses toward theological interpretation, asking how the Psalter shapes faith, worship, and Christian reading. The result is not a technical commentary in the narrow sense. It is a guided reading that moves from the text to doctrine and doxology, seeking to keep the church close to the words while also lifting the eyes to the God those words proclaim.

The commentary is especially helpful in the way it treats the Psalms as Scripture for the people of God. It pays attention to genre, structure, and repeated themes, and it keeps returning to the Psalter as a book, not merely a collection. Readers will find a steady concern to read the psalms as prayer and praise, not simply as objects of analysis. Where detail is needed, it is supplied with restraint, and where the larger theological shape matters, the discussion becomes more expansive.

Strengths

Its chief strength is theological proportion. Many treatments of Psalms either drown the reader in philological detail or float above the text with general spiritual reflection. This volume tries to hold the middle ground. It gives enough interpretative guidance to keep the reader anchored in what the psalm is actually doing, and then it traces how that meaning reverberates across the canon. That makes it an excellent companion for sermon preparation, especially when a preacher wants more than a paragraph of background but less than a full technical dossier.

The series framework also encourages good habits. The commentary repeatedly asks, what vision of God is being formed here, and what shape of faithful life follows. That keeps application from becoming a bolt on at the end. Instead, pastoral use grows out of the psalm itself, whether lament, praise, confidence, or instruction. The treatment of suffering and complaint is particularly steady, helping readers see that biblical lament is neither unbelief nor self absorbed therapy, but covenant speech addressed to the Lord.

Limitations

The trade off for this broad usefulness is that the commentary is not designed to resolve every textual question. Those looking for sustained discussion of Hebrew syntax, textual criticism, or exhaustive interaction with specialist debates will need a more technical work alongside it. Even when the author engages disputed matters, the argument often moves quickly to the theological and pastoral implications rather than lingering over competing scholarly options.

A second limitation is that the Two Horizons approach can feel uneven across different psalms. Some texts lend themselves naturally to theological synthesis, while others require patient close reading before bigger connections become clear. In places, a reader may wish for a touch more slow exegesis before the commentary turns toward canonical and doctrinal horizons.

How We Would Use It

We would use this volume as a weekly companion for preaching and teaching from Psalms, especially in series where the congregation needs both interpretative clarity and spiritual formation. It pairs well with a more technical commentary when a passage raises detailed exegetical questions, but it often supplies what pastors most need, a clear handle on the psalm and a faithful pathway into proclamation.

It is also well suited for pastors in training who are learning to move from text to sermon without flattening the Psalms into moral lessons. For general readers, it can be read selectively, psalm by psalm, as a serious guide to prayer and praise, though some sections will still require careful attention.

Closing Recommendation

If you want a Psalms commentary that keeps the church in view, this is a strong choice. It reads with reverence, thinks theologically, and serves the pulpit. Use it to steady your grasp of the text and to deepen the spiritual weight of your preaching, then supplement it when you need the extra technical detail.