Johnson, Terry L.
The Messiah and the Psalms: Preaching Christ From all the Psalms (Belcher)
Many Christians today have only a very limited knowledge of the Psalms and are oblivious to the relevance and significance this portion of scripture has, both to the New Testament and to their lives in the 21st century.
This book will help pastors, seminary students, lay leaders and Christians in personal study, to understand how the psalms relate to Christ so they will be better equipped to preach and teach the psalms. Some psalms have a direct relationship to Christ but with other psalms the link is not always as evident. Belcher shows that all the psalms relate in some way to Christ’s person or his work. The biblical basis for this view is laid out and then how it works with different types of psalms is examined. In addition to this Belcher then goes on to offer deeper exposition into those psalms that have a direct relationship to Christ.
Enlightening, perceptive and balanced, Belcher has successfully filled a void in the study of the Psalms. By doing so he has provided a methodology and a model other can use to understand the psalms in their Old Testament context and how they relate to Christ and to Gods people today.
Table of Contents:
- Key Issues in Interpreting the Psalms
- Different Approaches to the Messianic Psalms
- The Christological Approach to the Messiah in the Psalms
- Indirect Messianic Psalms: Psalms of Orientation
- Indirect Messianic Psalms: Psalms of Disorientation
- Indirect Messianic Psalms: Psalms of New Orientation
- The Royal Psalms
- Direct Messianic Psalms
- Conclusion: The majesty of Christ in the Psalms
Author
Richard Belcher is the Professor of Old Testament, Reformed Theological Seminary, Charlotte, North Carolina
Endorsements
"Belcher successfully combines scholarship and devotion. His rigorous study of the psalms fuels passion for Christ. The reader cannot fail to derive much benefit from using this book as a guide to a Christian understanding and use of all Psalter." - New Life ~ Australia's Christian Newspaper
"The Psalter is a most important book of the Old Testament in terms of its testimony to Christ. Richard Belcher explores this theme against the background of his wide knowledge of modern psalm scholarship while successfully avoiding too much use of technical language. His love for Christ and Scripture are evident and he expounds psalms representative of particular genres, considering various ways each has been handled in terms of its application to Christ. He is convinced that every psalm contains a Messianic element, although not all will agree with his identification of this in every instance." - Geoffrey Grogan (1925-2011) ~ Late Principal Emeritus of Glasgow Bible College and well respected author