Chapter 12
A Song on Their Lips

1.	Which are the only two groups of God’s creatures who can put words and music together?
Humans and angels

2.	How might this lovely gift of God be abused? (See Genesis 4:23,24 for an example.)
-	The words put together with song are not all God-pleasing
-	The object of the song, if giving praise and worship, can be wrong if given to someone other than the true God

3.	Give several examples of Old Testament children of God who used this special gift to God’s glory.
Miriam; David; Moses; Hannah

The Psalms
1.	Illustrate from Psalm 104 how the Psalms can teach us the language of praise.
-	Psalm 104 uses words and phrases such as: “very great”; “set earth’s foundation”
-	They remind us of all of God’s blessings
-	The universe and everything in it was not an accidental development.  It was God’s creative design.  Everything true, beautiful, good in universe comes from a generous Creator

2.	How do the Psalms help us to see Christ?
They speak to his work, his person, and salvation in him

3.	What do the messianic psalms tell us about the person of the Savior? about the work of the Savior? about forgiveness?
a.	He would be true God; He would be King
b.	He would serve as the suffering servant
c.	That his work would not end in defeat
4.	How did the book of Psalms help to open Luther’s eyes?
It opened his eyes to see Jesus came not only to set an example, but also to come and trade places with sinners

5.	What painful spiritual journey did David sing about in Psalms 32 and 51?
The disharmony of trying to live his way.  The pain of the law upon him.  The “pain” of confession.  The sorrow of having offended God.  Confession/repentance and a plea for mercy.

6.	What stressful situations served as backgrounds for some of the psalms?
Here are some examples:
-	David’s sin with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah
-	David on the run from King Saul
-	David taken captive by the Philistines
-	Struggle to believe in God while world around us is collapsing
-	Trying to harmonize what one knows about God with what is experienced in life
-	Weakened by pain
-	The destruction of the temple

7.	What did Luther mean when he wrote: “It’s better to be sorrowful than overconfident”?
It keeps the human heart focused and thinking about God

8.	What familiar song do you hear when you read Psalm 34?
“Oh Taste and See”

9.	It’s easy to sing when the skies are bright and life is good, but what help can the Psalms offer when life is hard and you feel alone and God seems far away? or when God seems to be doing nothing to put an end to the evil in our world?
We find that the Psalms answer the questions to these difficult questions and problems

Your song
Since you got up this morning, what reasons have you found to praise God?
		Truth be told, we don’t praise him enough.  Every aspect of my day is reason to praise: the fact that I woke up; the food I have eaten; the safety through the night; my family; a job; my Savior.  The list is endless.