The 1650 Psalter

Why should Christians today sing the Psalms of the Bible? And why do some churches sing only from the Psalms in their worship services?

Many different reasons could be given to these questions — some focusing on the excellent qualities of the Psalms, others focusing on concerns about specific hymns that are not found in the Bible, and still others noting from church history that hymns tend to displace the Psalms in worship when they are introduced. While all of these reasons are helpful to consider, it is of first importance that our faith and practice be rooted in and grounded upon the Bible.

It is hoped that the following summary reasons taken from Scripture will help the reader understand the biblical basis for exclusive psalmody — that in public worship, only the Psalms of the Bible should be sung.

1. Sola Scriptura and the Regulative Principle of Worship

It is important to understand what is commonly called “the regulative principle of worship.” This principle requires that we include in our worship only what God has commanded, and exclude from our worship whatever He has not commanded. We see this principle clearly in Deuteronomy 12:32: “What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it” (see also Lev. 10:1–3; Col. 2:18–23). This is helpfully stated in the Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 35: “What doth God require in the second commandment? That we in no wise represent God by images, nor worship Him in any other way than He has commanded in His Word” (see also Belgic Confession, Articles 7 and 32).

The Protestant principle of the alone or sole sufficiency of Scripture (sola Scriptura) also points to the regulative principle of worship. Scripture alone is the sufficient rule by which we are to regulate the public worship of God, and human inventions or innovations have no place in God’s worship (including non-canonical hymns of merely human authorship).

2. Sola Scriptura and Exclusive Psalmody

The Book of Psalms has been given as a divinely-authored and divinely-authorized hymnbook. As Scripture is sufficient for the purposes for which it has been given, the Book of Psalms is therefore a perfect, sufficient hymnbook. Nothing ought to be added to it, either in the canon (as it is a book of Scripture), or in worship (as it is a hymnbook).

3. Exclusive Psalmody and 2 Chronicles 29:30

“Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.”

The Book of Psalms (“the words of David, and of Asaph the seer”) is the divinely-appointed songbook for the public worship of God. This is an example of the way in which God has chosen to regulate this part of His worship — not by merely allowing any songs that are correct, or agreeable to Scripture, but by appointing songs given by the Spirit, with specific divine approval for those specific songs. As good as other songs or songbooks might be, no other songs or songbooks have such approval.

4. Exclusive Psalmody and Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16

“Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” — “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom: teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

Instead of pointing us to the use of songs outside the Psalter, to be sung alongside the Psalms (as many suppose on a first reading), these passages point us to the use of the Psalms, exclusively. Remember that these are, first of all, exhortations to New Testament Christians during the time of Paul. The only compositions they would have had available to them for singing God’s praise were the Psalms. Paul did not urge the Ephesian and Colossian Christians to sing songs they didn’t possess.

They are “the word of Christ,” or the Word of God — not merely a word about Christ, but the Word from Christ, by David, Asaph, and others. We are to turn, not to the mere words of men, but to the Word of Christ, from which alone we have “all wisdom,” and by which alone we can rightly be “teaching and admonishing one another.” And these songs are “spiritual” — that is, given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Moreover, the terms “psalms,” “hymns,” and “songs” are all used in the Greek Version of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint) to refer to the Book of Psalms, especially in the titles of individual Psalms — for example, the Septuagint titles for Psalm 67 and 76 use all three terms. The word “hymn” is elsewhere used in the New Testament to refer to Christ leading His disciples in the singing of Psalms (Matt. 26:30; Mark 14:26). — It is very common in the Bible to use several similar terms together, to give a fuller expression to one thing (Exod. 34:7; Deut. 5:31; 1 Kings 8:38; 2 Cor. 12:12, etc.), which is why these three terms are here used together — not to refer to compositions outside the Psalter, but to give expression to the range of songs found within the Psalter. — Additionally, the phrase “singing and making melody” uses two verbs based on the words “song” and “psalm” — literally translated, it would be something like “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, songing and psalming in your heart to the Lord.” This further confirms that these terms are collectively referring to the Psalter, since the terms are being used interchangeably for each other, and every term is used for the Book of Psalms.

As the Lord extends to us His gracious invitation to commune with Him in His worship, may our hearts and voices always join together in singing His glorious praises, from His own songbook: “O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms” (Ps. 95:1–2).

“Moreover, that which St. Augustine has said is true, that no one is able to sing things worthy of God except that which he has received from Him. Therefore, when we have looked thoroughly, and searched here and there, we shall not find better songs nor more fitting for the purpose, than the Psalms of David, which the Holy Spirit spoke and made through him. And moreover, when we sing them, we are certain that God puts in our mouths these, as if He Himself were singing in us to exalt His glory.” —John Calvin