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This setting of Psalm 145 was submitted by Paul Neeley, and was composed by Paul Neeley and Josh Davis. The chorus text includes a New Testament prayer to help us live out the psalm text.
Psalm 145
How does this psalm piece interpret the psalm?
The kingdom of God is a key theme throughout the Bible. It is highlighted in verses 9–13 of Psalm 145, and that became the basis for the song’s chorus, with a New Testament prayer added. The lyrics are multilingual to audibly connect the kingdom of God with the global church. The musical scale we chose is from Korea, there called Pyeong jo. In today’s fractured world, it is vital to help North American congregations remember their God-appointed ties to the global church.
The song may be freely used by churches in services (live or streamed). It would also be a good piece for liturgical dance or congregational hand movements.
Text and Music: Psalm 145; Paul Neeley and Josh Davis, © Paul Neeley and Josh Davis
Used by permission. Creative Commons.
Contact: Paul Neeley, paulneeley@gmail.com; Josh Davis, jd@proskuneo.org
Why and how did psalm singing become such a hallmark of Reformed worship? Join Dr. Karin Maag for a fascinating journey through time, from Reformation Geneva to Scotland and from the Netherlands to New England, exploring the roots and impact of metrical psalm singing. Along the way, we will hear the voices of early modern Christians as they learned how to sing the psalms, both in unison and in harmony.
Sister Kathleen Harmon of the community of the Ohio province of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in Dayton, invites us to be transformed by the psalms and experience them as the whole story God is revealing to us. As we keep praying and singing them, the psalms interpret us, and that’s when the transformation comes.
Vinroy D. Brown Jr.—conductor, musicologist, educator, and minister of creative worship and music at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City—explores the vibrant intersection of Black sacred music and the psalms. He talks about Black composers and how they have reimagined the psalms through choral music, spirituals, and the gospel tradition for the benefit of everyone.
Why and how did psalm singing become such a hallmark of Reformed worship? Join Dr. Karin Maag for a fascinating journey through time, from Reformation Geneva to Scotland and from the Netherlands to New England, exploring the roots and impact of metrical psalm singing. Along the way, we will hear the voices of early modern Christians as they learned how to sing the psalms, both in unison and in harmony.
Sister Kathleen Harmon of the community of the Ohio province of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in Dayton, invites us to be transformed by the psalms and experience them as the whole story God is revealing to us. As we keep praying and singing them, the psalms interpret us, and that’s when the transformation comes.
Vinroy D. Brown Jr.—conductor, musicologist, educator, and minister of creative worship and music at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City—explores the vibrant intersection of Black sacred music and the psalms. He talks about Black composers and how they have reimagined the psalms through choral music, spirituals, and the gospel tradition for the benefit of everyone.
John Goldingay, an Anglican priest and the senior professor of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary, posits the psalms are the densest material in the entire Old Testament. They expound the nature of God as the compassionate, faithful, and committed one, but also as the one who makes demands upon us. The psalms help us talk to God, even about difficult things—and when we do, we are talking to someone who is in a position to do something about it.
