Why read Psalm 151?
Read Psalm 151 for humility and courage when a challenge makes you feel small. David's youth, his calling and his encounter with Goliath show that a person's worth is not measured by outward strength alone.
You can read this psalm when its themes speak to your circumstances, or as part of your regular reading of the Psalter. This explanation draws on the text itself; the psalm is not reserved for one particular need.
«I was small among my brothers and...» — this is how Psalm 151 begins, a work of 7 verses from the appendix to the Psalter. The Psalter is read in the Orthodox Church at every service, and this psalm has its place in the order of prayer.
The text of Psalm 151
1. I was small among my brothers and young in my father’s house; I tended my father’s sheep.
2. My hands made the harp, and my fingers fashioned the psaltery.
3. And who will tell my Lord? The Lord Himself, He Himself will hear.
4. He sent His angel and took me from my father’s sheep, and anointed me with the oil of His anointing.
5. My brothers were good and great, but the Lord did not take pleasure in them.
6. I went out to meet the foreigner, and he cursed me with his idols.
7. But I seized his sword, cut off his head and removed the reproach from the sons of Israel.
When Psalm 151 is read
- It is found at the end of the Psalter as an appendix and may be read daily alongside the prayer rule (see the morning and evening prayers).
- At the end of each psalm, tradition adds: «Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.».
Adjacent psalms
Psalm 151 is included in the Orthodox Psalter. Many Western Bible editions contain only 150 psalms.
