Overview
A collection of 150 poems used in the worship and prayer of Israel; its Hebrew title is Tehillim ("praises"). It comprises a range of forms, including hymns, laments, thanksgivings, wisdom psalms, and royal psalms, arranged in five books.
Theme Praise and prayer offered to YHWH, and a life of meditation on the Torah
Historical background
Each book closes with a doxology (41:13, 72:19, 89:52, 106:48), and the fivefold arrangement has long been understood as corresponding to the five books of the Torah. Many psalms originated in the worship of the Davidic and First Temple periods, and the collection appears to have reached its present form in the Second Temple community after the Babylonian exile. The Songs of Ascents (Psalms 120–134) are associated with pilgrimage to the appointed feasts.