Trinity Theological College
Introduction to Biblical Interpretation
Psalm 90: The Beginning to Find the Heart of Wisdom
Name: Gladys Grace Caole
Mail Box: 112
Lecturer: Dr Mark Chan
Word Count: 3118
I. Introduction
This paper aims to study the structure of Psalm, determining to find the chiasmus in order to understand its meaning and apply it in our present context. However, this study does not attempt to rearrange the verse rather this can evoke a new appreciation for the ancient poets who were inspired by God to write meditations, songs and poems to declare the majesty of God. II. Observation
A. Structure The structure of this psalm is undoubtedly uncommon for it covers numerous of genres in just one chapter.…show more content… The phrase the fear of the Lord can be identified with King Solomon who is regarded as the wisest person in the East. The word how long can be also possibly alluded to David’s lament (Psalm 13) and the grass withers to second Isaiah. (Isaiah 40:8). The language used to Yahweh as being older than any mountains depicts the legend of the creation which is similar to the creative drama portrayed in Job 38-39. The temporal expression of the word before and the dust is similar to the divine presence of God depicted in Proverbs…show more content… I observe that there is a wrong kind of teaching about fearing God in Sunday School when I was a small girl. We were taught that we must always be good like Joseph the Dreamer or Samuel in order to escape from the eternal punishment. From then, it is inculcated in my mind that God hates me when I did something wrong. I began to think that God is terror and tyrant and I always wanted to do good things in order to please Him. Anxiety is formed is my life that I am always afraid of bad and dangerous people.
But the right kind of fearing God is when we begin to discover that the high and eternal God gave His beloved Son for us all taking upon himself our sin and our misery. Once this is discovered, even the most evil or most foolish person may quite simply begin to know the wisdom of good living. Fearing God is the beginning to know more about God and His Son Jesus, and the beginning to get away from the self-centeredness of life and a start to understand the heart of service for other