the.com/psalm
ancient songs of rage, grief, and praise, set to instruments nobody remembers how to play.
means A sacred song or hymn, especially one of the 150 in the biblical Book of Psalms.
from From Greek 'psalmos,' meaning a song sung to a plucked string instrument — built on 'psallein,' to pluck or twang. That silent 'p' is a fossil of the Greek; English swallowed the sound but kept the spelling. The Greek was itself a translation of the Hebrew 'mizmor,' music made on strings, which is why the essence's forgotten instruments are no exaggeration — the harps and lyres are long gone, but the word still remembers them.
- original genre
- lyrics for harp and lyre, music long lost
- count
- 150 in the standard biblical collection
- longest chapter
- Psalm 119 runs 176 verses
- acrostic tricks
- several spell the Hebrew alphabet in order
- royal credit
- tradition assigns many to King David
psalm 23 — the most famous psalm, recited in christian and jewish worship for over 2,000 years, begins 'the lord is my shepherd'
psalm 137 — babylonian captivity lament from 6th century bce, begins 'by the rivers of babylon' and influenced bob marley's song
improperia psalms — psalms 79 and 80 sung during good friday tenebrae services in catholic tradition since medieval times