Psalm – Community Circle Europe

Verse: ‘Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continuously upon the things which I have seen and heard’, (2 Nephi 4:16).

When we think of the psalms, we most likely, understandably enough, immediately picture the Book of Psalms, also known as the Psalter, found in the Hebrew Bible. The Bible is certainly rich in its various works of poetry, but many may not know that it is not only the Hebrew Bible that contains these things. The Book of Mormon too has a beautiful psalm hidden away inside of it. The Psalm of Nephi, or otherwise known simply as Nephi’s Psalm, is found in 2 Nephi 4:16-35. This is called a psalm as the text shares many similarities with psalms found in the Hebrew Bible’s Book of Psalms. This psalm is important as it shares the five common elements found in psalms. These are the recognition of sins, pleading for forgiveness, dedication to the Lord’s commandments, petitioning, and finally rejoicing in the forgiveness that God has given in His all-merciful nature. The Psalm of Nephi shares all five of these elements and is one of my favourite psalms found within scripture.

In Nephi’s Psalm Nephi lays out his hopes, joys, sorrows, and problems in his life, following the footsteps of the psalmist. When analysing or prayerfully reading this psalm it is crucial to understand the situation in which it is created. Nephi has just lost his father, Lehi, and these emotions of loss, which are familiar to many of us, are clear to see in this moving passage. These doubts and fears he brings up may be due to the fact that, as we know from the Book of Mormon, he is due to take over and lead not just his family but his people as their leader. Whilst we know how successful and great a leader he was, we must remember that at that time he must have been feeling all the anxieties and fears that we as humans feel also. These words of fear and sorrow are quickly replaced by praise for God and reminders of all that He has done for Nephi. We too can use these proclamations in our own prayer life as inspiration and worship.

I personally find it useful to prayerfully read and meditate this psalm in the evening before I sleep, alongside other psalms from the Hebrew Bible. It is indeed a beautiful reminder of how we should approach God, and our faith. Nephi encourages himself, as we can do ourselves if we pray his psalm as ours, to ‘no longer droop in sin’ but to ‘rejoice … and give place no more for the enemy of my soul’ (2 Nephi 4:28). He also promises that he will ‘praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation’ (2 Nephi 4:30). Let us too meditate on the words of this psalm and use it to remind ourselves how we should approach and thank God, as well as reinforce and re-establish our covenant with him as disciples.

Verse: ‘Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions’, (Psalm 51:1).

Those who are familiar with typical prayer rules will likely know Psalm 51 by heart. As it belongs to the collection of penitential psalms found in the Book of Psalms it is traditionally used as a psalm of repentance and many Christians belonging to a wide range of denominations will recite it in both the morning and the evening – if not more. Charles Spurgeon, famous Baptist preacher and author, referred to Psalm 51 as The Sinner’s Guide due to the manner in which it outlines how to return to God’s grace after committing sin. As we read this psalm, we can understand how we should come before God, confess and repent, and seek forgiveness. It is also a testament of faith; in this psalm David has complete faith in God and this faith leads him to believe he is certainly forgiven, something that can be hard for us to believe at times when we come before God to pray and ask for forgiveness.

Like David in this psalm, we should not stand before God and make excuses for our sins and wrong behaviour, but instead should admit our wrongdoings and repent, asking Him for forgiveness and a fresh start once again. This psalm is a great example of trusting in the mercy of God. We can come before Him completely sinful and spiritually spoiled, in both word and deed, and with a contrite attitude we can be forgiven and given a new chance to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. Whenever we fail, we know we can turn back and ask for forgiveness and repent, our God is a loving God, and a merciful God. It is important to remember, however, that repentance is not just being sorry but it is the act of promising not to repeat the transgression. It is no good to simply keep coming back for the same issues as this proves we are not actually sorry for what we have done.

Repentance and forgiveness are important tenets of Christian faith. As Christians we are told to come and confess and repent of our sins so that we may become clean. In the Book of Proverbs, we are called to confess and renounce our sins, ‘He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy’ (Proverbs 28:13). The Gospel of Luke describes the importance in Heaven placed on repentance, ‘In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents’ (Luke 15:10). It is regarded as so important that in some traditions within Orthodoxy such as Coptic Orthodoxy this psalm is even used in every daily office. Reciting this psalm is a humbling and practical way in which we can learn to repent and ask for forgiveness during our daily prayer routines.