Verses 1-21
This acrostic psalm begins a series of six psalms, the last six in the Psalter, which are especially full of praise to God. The title, "a psalm of praise," occurs only here in the Book of Psalms. The word "praise" appears 46 times in the last six psalms. In this psalm David praised God for His powerful acts, for His mercy and grace, for His everlasting kingdom, and for His response to those who pray to Him. As such it resembles history psalms, but its genre is most similar to the psalms of descriptive praise.
"In the psalm there is no development of plot or building of intensity. Indeed, it is essentially static in form, articulating what is enduringly true of the world. What is true at the beginning of the psalm is still true at the end. What is true from beginning to end is that Yahweh securely governs, and that can be counted on. We are given a series of affirmations that could be rearranged without disrupting the intent. . . . This is Israel in its most trustful, innocent, childlike faith." [Note: Brueggemann, pp. 28-29.]
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