Psalms Introduction

Psalms for Skeptics

The thing that stands out about the psalms is how violent, vengeful, and vindictive they are.

Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth ... let them be cut pieces.

Such prayers fill the psalms along with statements like this:

The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

Here are some highlights:

"My God ... thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly." 3:7
God hates sinners. 5:5
Dead people neither remember God nor give him thanks. 6:5
"God will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow ... He hath ... prepared ... the instruments of death." 7:11-13
"Thou hast destroyed cities." 9:6
God hides from those who need him the most. 10:1
"His eyelids try the children of men." 11:4
God will rain fire and brimstone upon "wicked" people. 11:6
Atheists are fools who never do anything good. 14:1, 53:1
"At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." 16:11
Smoke comes out of God's nose and fire comes out of his mouth. 18:8
God rides upon cherubs and can fly. 18:10
The God of Peace teaches us to kill our neighbors in war. 18:34, 144:1
God helps believers kill and enslave their enemies. 18:40-43
If you make God angry, he'll burn you and your children to death and shoot you in the back with his arrows. 21:9-12
Hate people, but trust in God. 31:6
Those who are poor or hungry just aren't seeking God enough. 34:9, 37:3
God laughs at those he will later torment. 37:13
"My loins are filled with a loathsome disease." 38:7
God's clothes smell like myrrh, aloes, and cassia. 45:8
If you forget God, he will tear you in pieces. 50:22
If you don't trust God, he'll kill you, and while you're dying the "righteous" will laugh at you. 52:5-6
Bad people are bad from birth -- God made them that way. 58:3
"Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth, ... let them be cut pieces." 58:6-8
"The righteous" will rejoice when they see "the wicked" being dismembered by God. They'll "wash their feet in the blood of the wicked." 58:10
The heathen "make a noise like a dog ... Behold, they belch out with their mouths." 59:5-7
God will "wound the head of his enemies" and the righteous will dip their feet in their blood. 68:21-23
"Let their eyes be darkened ... and make their loins continually to shake." 69:23
The earth is stationary and does not move. 93:1, 104:5
God heals all diseases. Medical science is unnecessary. 103:2-3
God will "fill the places with dead bodies." 110:6
"The dead praise not the Lord." 115:17
God is praised for slaughtering little babies. 135:8
"To him that smote Egypt in their first born: for his mercy endures forever." 136:10
Happiness is smashing your little children against rocks. 137:9
"If I make my bed in hell, behold thou art there." 139:8
"Do not I hate them, O Lord? ... I hate them with a perfect hatred." 139:19-22
A prayer that God will burn people to death. 140:10
"Praise the LORD ... ye dragons." 148:7

Psalms

Psalms for Skeptics

Useful Links

External Links