The Rhythmic Psalter (words edition) is now available to buy from Amazon here
The journey which began this collection of 150 short psalms started in 2010 when I first moved to Leeds Minster. In my time they had a service of short morning prayer in the church every day at 9.45, which often used a short psalm. However, there weren’t many of these psalms and I made a resolution to edit a few more to use in this service.
In my psalm edits I tried to get a sense of the whole journey of the psalm within ten brief verses, but I put down the task after a few months and let it lie to one side. It sat there for rather a long time... Eventually I picked up the text in 2019 because I was concerned that the psalms were not being used enough in public worship, which diminishes both our biblical knowledge and our vocabulary in prayer. I wanted to help churches to learn different and creative ways of using these wonderful texts which encompass the whole spectrum of human emotion.
This was when I realised that what was actually needed was a more rhythmic psalter that could be used in churches where bands, drum circles and percussion are used to accompany the worship.This is why the rhythms are very tight in this collection. I also hope that the strong rhythms within these psalms will help those who read them to memorise some of the texts so that they can carry them with them throughout their daily lives. I have given the “music” to the rhythms of the psalms as a guideline, however, many of these psalms will work to different rhythmic patterns, so do not feel “bound” by these suggestions. Some words can be said to different rhythmic patterns. (eg. heaven, violence or glorious); in these cases I have used dashes to indicate how to split the word, and an apostrophe above a word if it is to be said on one syllable.
I must also give a confession in this introduction. I am not a Hebrew Scholar, but I did study translations of the psalms which stick very closely to the Hebrew whilst writing this book. However, due to the rhythmic constraints of my task, some of these psalm verses have had to be paraphrases. I have used the Anglican numbering of the psalms and the verse numbers within this book so that clergy (if they wish) can look up the more “traditional” version within the Common Worship psalter which is freely available online here . I cannot aim to properly do justice to every psalm within a mere ten verses, and in the case of psalm 78 I really felt that I had to write another ten verses. Psalm 119, however, despite it’s length, is consistent in its theme declaring the blessings of God’s law.
The texts within the book come with full permission to photocopy, project or disseminate the texts within an act of divine worship. and permission for musicians to create their own tunes to the texts if they feel inspired to do so.
Psalm 11
I I hide and take refuge in my God;
how then can you say before my face,
‘Go fly like a bird, and seek the hills.’
2 Now see how the wicked bend their bows.
They fit their sharp arrows to the string,
to hide and shoot at the true of heart.
3 When all the foundations are destroyed,
what can those who love God’s justice do?
4 The Lord in his holy temple dwells;
God has made the hea-vens as his throne.
5 His eyes look down and behold the world,
his gaze probes through every human heart.
6 God judges the just with wicked ones,
yet those who love vi-o-lence he hates.
7 He sends burning sulphur on the vile;
he punishes them with scorching wind.
8 For our God is just and loves just deeds;
and those who are upright see his face.
Psalm 69
1 Please save me, O God, for the waters reach my neck.
2 I swim in the swamp where there is no foothold.
I come to deep waters and the flood swallows me.
3 I’m weary with crying; my throat skinned and raw;
Now my eyes are failing from searching for my God.
10 I love your Great House, scorning you insults me.
11/12 I fasted in sackcloth, they turned and taunted me.
22 Their taunts broke my heart; I am filled with sadness.
22 I looked for some comfort, but no-one pitied me.
23 They gave gall to eat, vinegar for my drink.
28 They persecute the one that you have stricken down,
and increase the sorrows of him that you pierced.
24 Make their meals a trap, and their sacred feasts a snare.
30 Blot them from your book, don’t list them as righteous.
32 I praise God in song, and proclaim in gratitude.
34 The humble are glad, seek God, and your heart lives.
37 For God will save Zi’on and rebuild all Judah’s towns
38 and God’s loving children, they will live in them.
