Who Wrote The Psalms?

About three-fourths of all psalms have a superscription. In other words, at the beginning of a psalm there are comments, often about who wrote it, under what circumstances it was written, and how it is to be sung. According to the superscriptions, the following people are credited with various psalms:

• David: 73 psalms (nearly half of them)
• The sons of Korah: 10 psalms
• Asaph: 12 psalms
• Solomon: 2 psalms
• Heman the Ezrahite: 1 psalm
• Ethan the Ezrahite, who may be the same as Jeduthun: 1 psalm
• Moses: 1 psalm

It is difficult to be certain, however, whether the superscriptions are truly speaking of authorship or whether they are indicating some other information about the psalm. This is because it is difficult to know exactly how to interpret the phrase “a psalm of.” It could be translated “a psalm concerning,” “a psalm in the style of,” or a few other ways. These other interpretations are supported by the fact that some of the psalms attributed to David in the latter half of the book seem to have been written after David’s time.

Some of these superscriptions seem to have been written after the psalms themselves, while others may have been written along with the psalms they describe. The translators of the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament completed around 200 B.C.) included these superscriptions, so they had to have been written before then. Some of these superscriptions may be quite old, since the translators of the Septuagint apparently didn’t understand all the technical musical words and left them in Hebrew.

Probably the best way to understand the superscriptions is to see them as ancient Hebrew tradition, an understanding of how the psalms were written and how they were meant to be used. Thus, the superscription should be viewed as an aid to our appreciation of the psalm but not necessarily authoritative.

Although these superscriptions may not be authoritative, we can learn a great deal from them. These superscriptions show that the psalms have been associated with many different people, from kings to Temple singers. The psalms reflect the thoughts and feelings of people in all sorts of positions and circumstances, and these same psalms still speak to us today in all our situations. Wherever you are today, know that there are others who have gone before you and have found great peace in trusting the Lord in all things.

How precious is the Book divine

By inspiration given

Bright as a lamp its doctrines shine

To guide our souls to heaven.

JOHN FAWCETT