Intro-Psalms of Ascent

[DeanZF]

These fifteen psalms are also called the Pilgrim Psalms and tradition has it that they were sung and chanted and discussed by those traveling to the Pilgrim Feasts of Israel. Imagine that you were living in a village some distance from Jerusalem, maybe 400 years before Jesus walked as a human on this earth. Some of your friends and neighbors and you and your family are making the trek, going "up to Jerusalem" for the Feast of the Lord. Not everyone in the village and not everyone from each family has come along. You're not dwelling on who's missing or why, just focusing on where you're going.



Part of the tradition is that the pilgrimage is a remembrance of the Exodus. As we explore these psalms, you'll experience aspects of not only the historic trip from Egypt to the land of promise, but I hope that elements of A Pilgrim's Progress will also be evident. And of course we'll find things that are right out of our current life experiences and exposures.



It's time to start our trip, to turn our faces and our feet toward the City of God, toward the House of the Lord.



The psalms are taken from the New American Standard Version on <URL url="http://www.biblegateway.com">www.biblegateway.com with all of their verse divisions and titles.



Read them and enjoy the journey!