Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible Reviews

• 
  Darla

  God's speech in Jesus Christ meets us in the Holy Scriptures. If we wish to pray with confidence and gladness, then the words of Holy Scripture will have to be the solid basis of our prayer. For here we know that Jesus Christ, the Word of God, teaches us to pray. The words which come from God become, then, the steps on which we find our way to God.
  
  What a gem! This is a keeper. I will definitely be returning to this little volume in the future as a resource on prayer and the Psalms. Bonhoeffer takes the Lord's Prayer (which Jesus used to teach his disciples how to pray) and breaks it down into ten subjects: the creation; the law; holy history; the Messiah; the church; life; suffering; guilt; enemies; the end. Each of the subjects has its own chapter in this book in which the corresponding Psalms are listed and discussed. Thus, one could take use this book and pray through the Psalter in the order of the Lord's Prayer. At the end of the book, it is recommended that this prayer time be a morning habit. More than seven years ago, I read an article on Scripture memory which convicted me of my lack in this area. I decided to begin memorizing the Psalms. Rather than memorize a chapter and move on, I use a method where I am continually reviewing and adding on new text. So far my journey has brought me to Psalm 116, but this is clearly a project that will stay with me many years yet, Lord willing. Storing these chapters in my heart has helped make my prayer life more robust and pervasive in my day. Verses come to mind throughout the day the apply to the needs of others or happenings in my own life. Boenhoeffer has reminded me of the value of the Psalter and will enrich my studies in the future.
  
  Thank you to Broadleaf Books and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
• 
  Ian

  I found this very short book useful for 2 reasons:
  
  1. It provided a good overview of how to classify Psalms under particular topics. So those psalms that are about guilt, suffering, the church, the Law, etc. This is particularly useful when understanding how to use them when praying.
  
  2. It had a brief 20 page biographical sketch of Bonhoeffer's life that I appreciated. Reading more extensive bios on him has always been on my list but I haven't been able to get to it, so having this abridged version gave me some insights into the man.
  
  I've been using the Psalms in my daily prayer life for a little while now and this is a very useful accompaniment to better understanding how to use particular Psalms when praying.
• 
  Philip

  This work is one of Bonhoeffer’s great but oft overlooked contributions to Christian devotional literature. Many works have been written on prayer and call readers to greater prayer lives, but few succeed in offering a true methodology for doing so that is not mundane, legalistic, or self-centered. Bonhoeffer, ever the man of prayer, offers a unique method of approaching the throne of grace that empowers fresh, grace-filled, and God-centered prayers. Bonhoeffer’s solution is not complex or mysterious. The writer offers the reader one of the simplest concepts this reviewer has ever seen – pray the Psalms!
  
  Relying on Luther’s proclamation that the Psalms are really a book of prayers, Dietrich lays out some extremely practical methods of approaching each major type of Psalm and praying them. If one wishes to get an interesting little perspective on the Psalter or the topic of prayer, this little book written by one of the great saints of modern Christendom is worth every penny; however, if the reader is looking for a scholarly tome on the Psalms, then it is certainly not the book for this need. The book is short, insightful, devotional, inspiring, and convicting.
• 
  Jeanie

  Such a short book with a long lasting impact. I have always thought of Psalms as songs unto the Lord however, Psalms are the basis of the Lord's Prayer. Many times Jesus quoting a psalm in prayer. Which makes perfect sense with the Sela in many Psalms. Sela indicates that one must be still and quickly think through the words of the Psalm, to quiet the heart, and to know the greatness and goodness of the Lord.
• 
  Julie Davis

  A good basic guide and overview.
• 
  Becky Pliego

  2017 -- Always good.
  2016 Review: So tiny and yet it has some exhortations that have stayed -and will stay with me always:
  
  "If we wish to pray with confidence and gladness, then the words of the Holy Scripture will have to be the solid basis of our prayer."
  
  "If we want to read and pray the prayers of the Bible and especially the Psalms, therefore, we must not ask first what they have to do with us, but what they have to do with Jesus Christ."
  
  "If we are to pray aright, perhaps it is quite necessary that we pray contrary to our own heart. Not what we want to pray is important, but what God wants us to pray."
  
  "The richness of the Word of God ought to determine our prayer, not the poverty of our heart."
  
  "The morning prayer determines the day."
  
  
  
  
  2013 Review: In the words of the author, this is a "short stroll through the Psalter in order to learn to pray a few psalms a bit better."
• 
  Bill

  An unusual book, so short. It's almost like a pamphlet promoting and introducing daily praying of the psalms, but because of Bonhoeffer's insight and authoritative manner, not to mention reputation, it becomes something more weighty. The little chapter on morning prayer is a gem.
• 
  Chad

  A brief but splendid introduction to the Psalms which teaches us how to pray them in light of the first and most important pray-er, Jesus. In him the psalms are fulfilled, prayed aright, and become our own.
• 
  Alex Lopez

  I ordered this book not knowing anything about it, and was surprised, almost disappointed to find a small 80 page book. Bonhoeffer however, did not disappoint and went into great detail in how to practically pray the Psalms, and to apply them to everyday life. This book is a must read for an intro to the Psalms and the Christian life. This work has gleaming insights into what prayer is and isn't. Also, how the Old Testament agrees and points to the New Testament. Jesus is the one praying in the Psalms, and Bonhoeffer points out how every prayer in the Psalter can be seen also in the Lord's Prayer. 10/10 book. Would recommend
• 
  Marietta Stechmeyer

  The chapter "The Enemies" really helped me understand how we can pray with Jesus that our enemies be directed to him, the righteous one, who forgives the sins of the world. Super helpful for those Psalms that seem so vengeful, violent and just plain antiquated- not loving our enemies like Jesus instructs in the New Testament. Now I can pray these Psalms with confidence knowing that Jesus is petitioning God alongside us to place God's wrath for sin on himself and forgive his enemies (including myself!) through his righteousness.
• 
  Clifford Luebben

  Bonhoeffer took on all my major questions and confusions when approaching the psalms and I received the answer: Jesus. Confused? Read the book and it will make sense. How can I pray the destruction of wicked people when I too am wicked? How can I proclaim my righteousness to God? I now know thanks to God speaking through this man. Reading the Psalms can now be such a richer part of my prayer life, and hopefully I can encourage so in my family and other community.
• 
  Peter Jones

  A very short, but good introduction to some themes in the Psalms. As usual, Bonhoeffer connects the Psalms to Jesus and shows how we can only pray them by looking at Christ. A lot of wonderful insight into how the Psalms affect our prayer life. He closes with a short exhortation to morning prayer. This book would be good to pick up every now and then to put some spiritual adrenaline back in one's prayer life.
• 
  Chakib Miraoui

  This is a very intelligent study of Psalmodic themes and how they relate to Christ and Salvation.
  
  The latest scholarly reconstruction of Psalms might disagree with this pamphlet by a German priest and martyred activist, yet applaude the sincerety and humility that went into its making.
  
  Bonhoeffer is a deeply faithful lover of the Son, he show how despite being written by David and his literary agents, the Psalter is also the making of Christ in David.
• 
  Leslie

  This is a beautiful little introduction into the Psalms and how they teach us to pray. Bonhoeffer points always to the dual nature of Christ, of His and only His ability to teach us to pray, and the necessity of our accepting both our guilt and, through Christ's great sacrifice, our innocence - our right and the rightness of our taking everything to God.
• 
  Sierra Struble

  This book was just ok. The language is beautiful and moving, but the theology is questionable in some places, and some of his arguments have shaky evidence.
• 
  Zack Clemmons

  Our prayer is prayer insofar as it’s joined with the prayer of Jesus.
• 
  Dan Glover

  This is a brief, concise, winsome, and Christological case for praying the Psalms as Christian prayer. Bonhoeffer interprets the Psalms as the prayer book for the church as read in light of the gospel, and particularly as interpreted and understood as subsumed and fulfilled in the spirit and form of the Lord's Prayer. I would gladly recommend this to a Christian who does not think of the Psalms (either some or all) as legitimate for the regular prayer life of God's new covenant people, and I would recommend it also to Christians who struggle with the idea of "set", "form" or "written" prayers as being truly legitimate and genuinely 'real' prayers. I enjoyed the several Luther quotes sprinkled throughout (they are Luther the gentle shepherd rather than Luther the ranting polemicist). And particularly refreshing was Bonhoeffer's "Christ first" interpretive principle, when examining Psalms of any stripe, from lament, to praise, to imprecation, etc.: ultimately they all find their centre in Jesus.
• 
  Steve Nation

  I think I read this at just the time I needed to. It was a balm to my soul. So many moments of God giving me His grace as I read it
• 
  Kevin Halloran

  This book was both much shorter and much richer than I expected. An encouragement to dig into the Psalter and use it as a path to communion with God.
• 
  Ptaylor

  Very powerful. The book is only 88 pages, but it takes time to read and digest. I kept stopping to read and re-read the Psalms that Bonhoeffer cited. Highly recommended.
  Favorite quote: "Decisions become easier and simpler where they are made not in the fear of men but only in the sight of God."
• 
  Adam Shields

  Very short, but worth reading for a Christological look at the Psalms.
  
  My full review is at
  http://bookwi.se/psalms-the-prayer-bo...
• 
  Peter Stonecipher

  Short read, great encouragement to pray the Psalms.
• 
  Susan

  a beautful exploration of the psalms by Bonhoeffer. would have like more psalms written out but a beautiful book overall
• 
  Kris

  A very short and accessible way to get into Bonhoeffer’s writing. Nice little biography at the back.
  
  Quotes:
  
  If we want to read and to pray the prayers of the Bible and especially the Psalms, therefore, we must not ask first what they have to do with us, but what they have to do with Jesus Christ. We must ask how we can understand the Psalms as God’s Word, and then we shall be able to pray them. It does not depend, therefore, on whether the Psalms express adequately that which we feel at a given moment in our heart. If we are to pray aright, perhaps it is quite necessary that we pray contrary to our own heart. Not what we want to pray is important, but what God wants us to pray.
• 
  Tessa

  This is a short overview of Psalms, but it is a very good one.
  
  If I am not guilty, why does God not forgive me? If I am not guilty, why does he not bring my misery to an end and thus demonstrate my innocence to my enemies? (Psalms 38, 44, 79). There are no theoretical answers in the Psalms to all these questions, as there are none in the New Testament. The only real answer is Jesus Christ. But this answer is already sought in the Psalms. It is common to all of them that they cast every difficulty and agony on God: “We can no longer bear it, take it from us, bear it yourself, you alone can handle suffering.” That is the goal of all the lamentation Psalms. They pray concerning the one who took upon himself our diseased and bore our infirmities, Jesus Christ. They proclaim Jesus Christ to be the only help in suffering, for in him, God is with us. (pg 48)
  
  The entire day receives order and discipline when it acquires unity. This unity must be sought and found in morning prayer. It is confirmed in work. The morning prayer determines the day. Squandered time of which we are shamed, temptations to which we succumb, weakness and lack of courage in work, disorganization and lack of discipline in our thoughts and in our conversation with other men, all have their origin most often in the neglect of morning prayer. (pg 64)
  
• 
  Yari

  I read this with a book club. There are a few wise thoughts like “The child learns to speak because his father speaks to him. He learns the speech of his father. So we learn to speak to God because God has spoken to us and speaks to us. By means of the speech of the Father in heaven his children learn to speak with him. Repeating God’s own words after him, we begin to pray to him.” And the idea of learning to pray and praying being more than just an outpouring of our heart. I just didn’t get much more from the book. The biographical sketch at the end is written like a doodle found in the corners of an old notebook- all over the place.
• 
  John Funnell

  There is not a book by Dietrich Bonhoeffer that has not transformed my thinking.
  
  Every sentence is Christ centred and points you to Christ. This little book is no exception.
  
  A wonderful morning devotional
• 
  Bryan Neuschwander

  "Prayer does not simply mean to pour out one's heart. It means rather to find the way to God and to speak with him, whether the heart is full or empty. No man can do that by himself. For that he needs Jesus Christ" (9-10).
  
  "The child learns to speak because his father speaks to him. He learns the speech of his father. So we learn to speak to God because God has spoken to us and speaks to us. By means of the speech of the Father in heaven his children learn to speak with him. Repeating God's words after him, we begin to pray to him" (11).
  
  "Whenever the Psalter is abandoned, an incomparable treasure vanishes from the Christian church. With its recovery will come unsuspected power" (26).
• 
  Trace

  I listened to this on through Audible but would love to have a physical copy in my library to refer back to. I adore the Psalms and read at least one every single day, along with my regular scripture reading.
• 
  George van Popta

  If you like the Psalms and Bonhoeffer then you will like this little book.