Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Essays

Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Essays Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Paper Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Paper Europe centered on Christianity and the Bible for centuries, and the holy book shaped the lives in all living during those times. Although the Bible nearly governed the people of Europe, most of them were never able to have access to it. The Bible was originally only available in Latin, the language of the Church, but during the Reformation of the 1500s, the Bible was translated into the vernacular languages for the common people to read. The King James Bible was the official English translation, and it was created by the consent of King James himself. Throughout the generations, the King James Bible has become an important part of life for English-speakers, often lending hundreds of phrases to the English language. The passages in the Bible all convey themes of faith, and three examples of such passages are the psalms, sermons, and parables. Although they all appear within the Bible, there are significant differences between all three of these genres, including a distinct form for each, a unique use of literary techniques, and different ways of communicating deep messages about life. While sermons and parables are both spoken passages that praise God, psalms are poetic religious songs that are sung to praise God. To keep the audience interested, psalms sometimes feature vivid metaphors, or comparison of unlike things. For example, in Psalm 23, phrase 4, a metaphor is used to strengthen the image of the psalm: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. (p. 277) The speaker is not actually walking through a valley of death; it symbolizes the person going through hard and evil times, but he or she is not afraid because God is with him or her. Using inference, the reader can denote the meaning of the metaphor I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever as a way of saying that he will go to heaven. Another example of word usage that creates an image is in the opening phrase: The Lord is my shepherd; He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. (p. 277) This creates a sense of peace and comfort to the listener, which is what the psalm is known for. A more serious example of a passage from the Bible is the sermon, which are speeches that offer religious or moral instruction. The Sermon on the Mount, a speech given by Jesus in Galilee, contains the basic principles of Christianity. Since sermons are rather serious and harder to understand, they usually contain analogies, or explanations comparing unfamiliar relationships to familiar ones to help people understand them. For example, in the 28th phrase in The Sermon on the Mount, the narrator takes the concept of clothing and not to concentrate on apparel, and compares it to the lilies in the of the field, which do not wear clothes but flourish anyway. The speaker wants the audience to speculate life as a lily or the green field, where just the necessities are used: food, air, and water. The analogy about birds in this sermon also makes people realize what God has given them: Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not must better than they? (p. 278) This analogy compares the needs of the birds to the needs of the human, which is similar to the analogy of the lilies and the green field. Another element of the sermon is the rhetorical question, which are questions that are not meant to be answered. These kinds of questions are thought-provoking, and cause the audience to think about what the sermon is about on a deeper level: Is not the life more tan meat, and the body than raiment? (p. 278, 25) and Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, shall he not much more clothe you, o ye of little faith? (p. 278, 30) are examples of rhetorical questions used in The Sermon on the Mount. Both of these are also reprimand the audience and listeners in a way. They force the audience to think about what was said and realize what God really wants them to do. A parable also features religious or moral instruction, but unlike the sermon, they are lighter in tone and are told in the form of a simple story. Parables illustrate messages from which lesson can be drawn. The Parable of the Prodigal Son tells a tale about a man with two sons, the younger of them asks his father one day to go out into the world alone with a few possessions, but ends up wasting his substance with riotous living. p. 279, 13) After a while, a famine came upon the land, the younger son does not have enough to eat, and decides to return home. When he arrives, the father greets him like a king, and says to the servants to bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. (p. 279, 22) The older son, however, is not pleased with the manner of his return or the reaction of his brothers arrival from his father. The lesson learned from this narrative is that everyone is able to and has opportunities to make a change within themselves. We do not have to remain in a hopeless state. This parable also shows the attitude of the older son, who quarreled with his father that his brother messed up but was still given a fatted calf (p. 279, 23). The older son did not realize all the riches available to him in his fathers household. Instead, he chose to focus on the fact that he considers himself to be better than the younger son, and therefore could not share his fathers joy. The morale of this story is that both sin and self-righteousness (as shown by the older son) separate people from God, and that we all need Gods love and grace, no matter what state we are in. The metaphors used in the psalm, the analogy of the birds and lilies in the sermon, and the narrative used in the parable are all aimed at the original audience they were written for: the simple, rural folk. Although these three types of writings are quite different from each other, they all have a common purpose: to educate the people who choose Christianity as their religion about discipline, love, and Gods grace.