The need for such a section is due to the fact that in our churches the Psalter is read in Church Slavonic, and of course it is best to read the Psalter in its original version. During private (home) reading of the Psalter, some words and expressions may not be clear. Of course, on the Internet you can find answers to many questions, but not all the information posted on the network is correct.

Each Psalm is posted on a separate page and includes:

• a brief history or reasons for the appearance of the Psalm,
• the text of the Psalm in Church Slavonic, written in the modern alphabet,
• the text of the psalm in modern Russian,
• interpretation of the Psalm by A.P. Lopukhin,
• text of the Psalm written in Church Slavonic.

Alexander Pavlovich Lopukhin(October 10, 1852 - August 22, 1904) - Russian Orthodox

church writer, translator, biblical scholar, theologian, researcher and interpreter of the Holy Scriptures.

As a teacher at the Theological Academy, he translated and published a number of works by Farrar, the works of Thomas of Kempis, G. Ulhorn (German: Gerhard Uhlhorn), a translation of the complete collection of the works of St. John Chrysostom

From 1886 to 1892, he led the department of foreign chronicles in the academic journal Tserkovny Vestnik. In 1892 he was elected editor of both "Christian Reading" and "Tserkovnago Vestnik" (consisted as editor of magazines for the next ten years). In 1893 he became the editor and publisher of the magazine "The Wanderer".

During his work as an editor, the number of publications on Holy Scripture, general church history, liturgy, church archeology, and theology has increased. He began to publish free supplements to magazines, which in themselves were of literary and scientific value; in particular, the "Explanatory Bible, or Commentary on all the books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament" began to be published as a similar free application. The Orthodox Theological Encyclopedia or Theological Encyclopedic Dictionary was published as an appendix to the Stranger magazine in five volumes (the publication was not completed due to the death of the author).

General information and history of the emergence of the Psalter

It can be said without exaggeration that for a Christian the Psalter is the most precious book of the Old Testament. The Psalter is a book of prayers for all occasions: in sorrow, in a sense of hopelessness, in fear, in calamities, in tears of repentance and in joy after consolation received, in need of thanksgiving and to offer pure praise to the Creator.

St. Ambrose of Milan writes: “In all Scripture the grace of God breathes, but in the sweet song of the psalms it breathes predominantly.”

The Psalter got its name from the Greek word “psalo,” which means to tinkle on the strings, to play. King David was the first to begin to accompany the singing of the divinely inspired prayers composed by him by playing a musical instrument called the “psaltyrion,” similar to a harp.

(Read about King David at the bottom of the page)

The Psalter, being composed over 8 centuries - from Moses (1500 years BC). to Ezra-Nehemiah (400 years BC) contains 150 psalms. The largest number of psalms belongs to King David (more than 80). In addition, the Psalter includes psalms: Moses (89th ps.), Solomon (71st, 126th, 131st), Asaph the seer and his Asafite descendants - twelve; Yeman (87th), Etham (88th), the sons of Korah - eleven. The rest of the psalms belong to unknown writers.

Often at the beginning of the psalms there are inscriptions that indicate:Content “prayer” (a pleading psalm), “praise” (a laudatory psalm), “teaching” (a cautionary psalm), “repentance”On the way of writing: “pilgrimage,” i.e. epigrammatic.On the execution method , “psalm” - i.e. with accompaniment on a musical instrument-psalters; “song” - i.e. voice performance, vocal; “on string instruments;” “on the eight-string;” on the Gathian gun” - i.e. on zither; “about changeables” - i.e. with a change of instruments.

The Prophetic Side of the Psalms

Being a king and a prophet, and also to a certain extent a priest, King David represented the greatest King, Prophet and High Priest - Christ the Savior, a descendant of David according to the flesh. The personal experience of King David, as well as the poetic gift that he possessed, gave him the opportunity in a whole series of psalms with unprecedented brightness and liveliness to prophetically outline the personality and feat of the coming Messiah.

Here is a list of the most important prophetic psalms: about the coming of the Messiah: 17, 49, 67, 95-97. About the Kingdom of the Messiah: 2, 17, 19, 20, 44, 65, 71, 109, 131. About the priesthood of the Messiah: 109. About the suffering, death and resurrection of the Messiah: 15, 21, 30, 39, 40, 65, 68, 98:5 (40, 54 and 108 - about Judas the traitor). About the ascension of Christ to heaven: 23, 67. Christ is the foundation of the Church: 117. About the glory of the Messiah: 8. About the terrible judgment: 96. About the inheritance of eternal rest by the righteous: 94.

About reading the Psalter

The way to pray according to the Psalter is much older than the Jesus Prayer or the reading of akathists. Before the appearance of the Jesus Prayer, it was customary in ancient monasticism to read the Psalter by heart (to oneself), and in some monasteries only those who knew the entire Psalter by heart were admitted. In tsarist Russia, the Psalter was the most widespread book among the population.

A psalm is a refuge from demons, entry under the protection of Angels, weapons in night insurances, repose from daytime labors, safety for babies, decoration in a flourishing age, comfort for the elderly, the most decent decoration for wives. The psalm inhabits the deserts, makes the markets chaste. For newcomers, these are the beginnings of the doctrine; for those who are successful, an increase in e denia, for the perfect - approval; this is the voice of the Church" ( Discourse on the first part of the first psalm).

On the Reading of the Psalter for the Dead

Reading the Psalter in memory of the dead brings them more consolation, because this reading is accepted by the Lord himself as a pleasing propitiatory sacrifice for the cleansing of the sins of those who are commemorated. “The Psalter… prays to God for the whole world,” writes St. Basil the Great.

There is a custom to ask to read the Psalter in memory of the departed. But it is more comforting for those who are commemorated if we ourselves read the Psalter, thereby, as it were, showing that we ourselves personally want to bear the labor in memory of the departed, and not replacing ourselves in this hard labor with others. Such a feat of reading the Psalter will not only be a sacrifice to the Lord Himself for those who are commemorated, but also a sacrifice for the readers themselves. And, of course, the reader himself receives from the word of God both greater consolation and greater edification, which can be lost if you entrust this good and charitable deed to others.

In the books for worship, there are no exact instructions on the order of the cell reading of the Psalter for the departed. If the Psalter is read only for commemoration, it is necessary after each "Glory ..." and after each kathisma to offer a memorial prayer to the Lord. Various prayers, sometimes arbitrarily composed, are suitable for this. The practice of Ancient Russia consecrated the use in this case of a funeral troparion

“Remember, Lord, the soul of your departed servant” or “Remember, Lord, the soul of your departed servant (Thy servant who has departed)”,

moreover, during the reading of the troparion, bows are made, and the troparion itself is read three times. And also the reading of the Psalter for the repose begins with the reading of the canon for the dead many or for the one who died, after reading which the reading of the Psalter begins. After reading all the psalms, the funeral canon is read again, then the reading of the first kathisma begins. This order continues throughout the reading of the Psalter for the dead.

Sections of the Psalter

The Psalter consists of 150 songs of psalms and glories, divided into 20 kathismas (kathisms). The division into kathismas is made in such a way that all kathismas are approximately the same length. Therefore, different kathismas contain a different number of psalms. Most of the psalms are in the 18th kathisma, 15 psalms (psalms 119-133) are included there, called "songs of degrees". Kathisma 17, on the contrary, contains only one psalm, divided into 3 parts. This is Psalm 118. Each kathisma, in turn, is divided into three parts, called "stations" or "glories." This second name comes from the doxology, which is customary to read between the glories. The word kathisma The name comes from the Greek word meaning "sitting", referring to the practice of sitting in worship while reading kathismas

1. To read the Psalter, you must have a burning lamp (or candle) at home. It is customary to pray “without a spark” only on the way, outside the home.

2. Psalter, on the advice of St. Seraphim of Sarov, it is necessary to read aloud - in an undertone or quieter, so that not only the mind, but also the ear listens to the words of the prayer ("Give joy and joy to my hearing").

3. Particular attention should be paid to the correct placement of stress in words, because a mistake can change the meaning of words and even whole phrases, and this is a sin.

4. You can read the psalms while sitting (the word “kathisma” translated into Russian is “what is read while sitting”, in contrast to the word “akathist” - “not sitting”). You need to get up when reading the opening and closing prayers, as well as at the Glory.

5. Psalms are read monotonously, without expression, a little in a singsong voice - dispassionately, because. God dislikes our sinful feelings. Reading psalms and prayers with theatrical expression leads a person to a demonic state of delusion.

6. One should not lose heart and be embarrassed if the meaning of the psalms is not clear. The machine gunner does not always understand how the machine gun fires, but his task is to hit the enemies. Regarding the Psalms, there is a statement: "You do not understand - the demons understand." As we grow spiritually, the meaning of the psalms will also be revealed.

King David - chief author of the Psalter

David, born a thousand years before the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, was the youngest son of the poor and large shepherd Jesse. Even in his early youth, being a shepherd, David began to compose inspired prayers to the Creator. When the prophet Samuel, sent by God, entered the house of Jesse to anoint the king for Israel, the prophet thought to anoint one of the elder sons. But the Lord revealed to the prophet that the youngest son, still quite a youth, David, was chosen by Him for this high ministry. Then, in obedience to God, Samuel pours holy oil on the head of his youngest son, thereby anointing him to the kingdom. From that time on, David became the anointed of God - the messiah (the Hebrew word "messiah," in Greek "Christ," means the anointed one).

But not immediately David proceeds to the actual kingship. He still has a long way of trials and unjust persecution from the then ruling King Saul, who hated David. The reason for this hatred was envy, since the lad David defeated the hitherto invincible Philistine giant Goliath with a small stone and thereby gave victory to the Jewish army. After this incident, the people said: "Saul defeated thousands, and David - tens of thousands." Only a strong faith in God as an intercessor helped David endure all the many persecutions and dangers that he was subjected to by Saul and his servants for almost fifteen years. Wandering for months in the wild and impenetrable desert, King David poured out his grief to God in inspired psalms (see psalms 7, 12, 13, 16, 17, 21, 39, 51, 53, 56, 58). The victory over Goliath is depicted by David in the 43rd psalm.

By reigning in Jerusalem after the death of Saul, King David became the most eminent king ever to rule over Israel. He combined many valuable qualities of a good king: love for the people, justice, wisdom, courage and, most importantly, strong faith in God. Before solving any state issue, King David appealed to God with all his heart, asking for enlightenment. The Lord helped David in everything and blessed his 40-year reign with many successes. As a ruler of the kingdom, David saw to it that the worship in the tabernacle would be splendid, and for it he composed psalms, which were often sung by the choir, accompanied by musical instruments. Often, David himself led the religious holidays, bringing sacrifices to God for the Jewish people and singing psalms (See his psalms on the transfer of the Ark: 14 and 23).

But David did not escape severe trials. One day he was seduced by the beauty of a married woman, Bathsheba. King David mourned his sin in the well-known 50th, repentant psalm. The heaviest sorrow for David was the military uprising led against him by his own son Absalom, who dreamed of prematurely becoming king. In this case, David experienced all the bitterness of black ingratitude and betrayal of many of his subjects. But, as before under Saul, faith and trust in God helped David. Absalom died ingloriously, although David tried his best to save him. He pardoned other rebels. David captured his emotional experiences in connection with the uprising of Absalom in the psalms: 4, 5, 6, 10, 24, 40-42, 54, 57, 60-63, 83, 140, 142.

With their poetic beauty and depth of religious feeling, David's psalms inspired the imitation of many subsequent compilers of psalms. Therefore, although not all the psalms were written by David, the name that is often given to the book of psalms is still true: “The Psalter of King David.”

Name: Psalter in Church Slavonic
Pages: 152
Formats: pdf
Year of publication: 2007

Psalterion, in Greek, is a stringed musical instrument, accompanied by prayer chants addressed to God in ancient times. The hymns themselves therefore received the name of psalms, and their collection became known as the Psalter. The Psalms were combined into one book in the 5th century BC. The Psalter was translated into Slavic from Greek by the brothers Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Methodius and Cyril, teachers of the Slavs, in the middle of the 9th century, as St. Nestor the Chronicler (died c. 1114) mentions about this. The Psalter was first published in Slavic in typographical embossing from ancient manuscripts in Krakow in 1491.
In the Church of Christ, the Psalter was especially widely used in worship. Among Christians, the liturgical use of the Psalter began already in apostolic times (1 Cor. 14:26; Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). The Psalter was the source of much of the evening and morning prayers. Psalms are part of almost every rank of Orthodox worship.
In Russia, the Psalter was widely distributed. It was of no small importance in the life of a Russian person: it was used both as a liturgical book and as an edifying book for home reading, and was also the main educational book.
In the Psalter of 150 psalms, a part refers to the Savior - the Lord Jesus Christ; they are important in the soteriological plan (soteriology is the doctrine of the salvation of man from sin). These psalms are called messianic (Messiah, from Hebrew, means Savior). There are messianic psalms in the direct and in the transformative sense. The former speak only of the coming Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ (Ps. 2:15, 21, 44, 68, 71, 109). The second tells about the persons and events of the Old Testament (King and Prophet David, King Solomon, etc.), representing the New Testament of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Church (Ps. 8, 18, 34, 39, 40, 67, 77, 96, 101 , 108, 116, 117). The 151st psalm is dedicated to the psalmist David. This psalm is found in the Greek and Slavic Bibles.
The Psalter was originally divided into five parts in relation to the ancient liturgical order. In the modern liturgical Charter of the Orthodox Church, it is accepted to divide the Psalter for convenience when using it during worship and in the home (cell) rule into 20 sections - kathism (kathism), each of which is divided into three "Glories", or articles. After each “Glory”, “Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, glory to Thee, God!” is read three times.
Psalms are read in the church every day at every morning and evening service. The Psalter is read in full during each week (that is, a week, and during Great Lent - twice during a week).
The home prayer rule is in a deep prayer connection with church services: the morning cell prayer, starting a new day, precedes the service and internally prepares the believer for it, the evening, ending the day, as it were, completes the church service. If the believer was not in the temple for worship, he can include psalms in his home rule. The number of psalms in this case may be different - depending on the intentions and capabilities of the believer. In any case, the fathers and ascetics of the Church offer the believer to read the psalms daily, considering it an indispensable condition
the spiritual benefit of reading and studying the psalms is piety and purity of heart.

For those who begin their spiritual path in Orthodoxy, naturally, there are a lot of questions about the terminology used in the ritual and prayer practice of worship. An important concept is also "kathisma". By answering the question "What is it?", one can take one more step in comprehending such a comprehensive truth as Faith in God.

At present, there is a favorable background of an increase in the growth of the population's initiation to Orthodoxy. This is objectively due to overcoming the “vacuum of faith” that was observed over several generations of the previous era of building a “bright future” (1917-1991) and the subsequent stage of the redistribution of property in the “dashing nineties”. The search for God among modern people is inevitable, because the dynamics of life implies undoubted dead ends and unexpected turns in overcoming a variety of obstacles and hardships.

And in this case, it is prayer that helps to preserve that spiritual comfort and peace, which, like a light in the darkness, help to preserve the main life guidelines. But for effective prayer it is necessary to follow the rules established from the ages. In this matter, it is important to join the reading of such a liturgical book as the Psalter and deal with the order of its reading (kathisma). Consequently, it turns out that the concept of "kathisma" is the key in the order of prayer reading. That is why it is necessary to understand this issue at the very beginning of a long path of spiritual ascent.

What is a kathisma?

So, the kathisma is the liturgical section of the Psalter. Translation from the Greek language, from which all Orthodox terminology originates, the word "kathisma" means "to sit." This should be taken literally. That is, while reading the kathisma in the service, you can take advantage of the indulgence and not stand on your feet. It should immediately be said that there are twenty sections in the Psalter, which determine the order in which the kathismas are read. So, for example, the 17th kathisma consists of only one psalm 118 "Immaculate", and the 18th consists of fifteen psalms (119-133).

Thus, the reading of the Psalter is carried out according to kathisms. And each part of the kathisma consists of "articles" or "glories", which are translated as "subsections" or "chapters". Accordingly, each article or glory may include one or more psalms.

Reading order of kathisma

To connect the text of the kathisma with the invocation of prayer in the official reading, the first part of the doxology, pronounced by the reader, consists of the words: “Glory, and now. Amen". And the second part is pronounced by the singers on the kliros. And the third part again ends with the reader: “Glory, and now. Amen". Alternate praise of God during the service creates that necessary atmosphere of connection between the natural and supernatural worlds, which symbolizes man and angels in their single impulse of unity with the Lord.

Taking as a short designation "K - kathisma" and "P - psalms", it is possible to present their structural construction using the example of the first and last (twentieth) kathisma: "K. I: P. 1-3 (first glory), P. 4-6 (second glory), P. 7-8 (third glory)" and "K. XX: P. 143-144 (first glory), P. 145-147 (second glory), P. 148-150 (third glory)."

In this context, one nuance should be noted. The fact is that the official (canonical) Psalter contains 150 psalms, but in the Greek and Slavic Bibles there is the 151st psalm, written by a certain Levite living in the Qumran caves in epic times. It was the so-called Dead Sea Scrolls that resurrected it for the current generations of believers. This 151st psalm, if necessary, can be considered the final to the twentieth kathisma.

It is important to know that the Charter of the Orthodox Church defines a very clear order for reading kathismata, which implies a weekly course of reading the Psalter. That is, on ordinary days of one week, all one hundred and fifty psalms of the Psalter (twenty kathismas) are fully recited. And during the period of Great Lent, this volume of reading doubles. Thus, in Great Lent, the Psalter is read twice in one week. There are special tables that indicate the day of the week and the list of kathismas to be read at Vespers and Matins. Moreover, the concept of "ordinary kathisma" refers to those kathismas that should be read on a given day in accordance with the Charter.

In the course of the weekly reading of kathismas, it should be taken into account that the week begins on Sunday. Moreover, one kathisma is read at the evening service, and two at the morning service. According to the Charter, the Sunday evening kathisma (first) is read on Saturday evening, and if the All-Night Vigil falls on the eve of this day, this order is canceled. Since, according to the Rule, it is allowed to perform vigils on the eve of each Sunday, then the kathisma is not read on Monday evening.

Important points when reading kathisma

A special place is occupied by the seventeenth kathisma, which, together with the sixteenth, is read not on Friday, but on Saturday. This is due to the fact that it is recited precisely at the Midnight Office. You should also know that, provided there is a polyeleos for the feast (reading of Psalms 135-136), the reading of an ordinary kathisma at Vespers is already canceled due to the glory of the first of them. Moreover, it is also pronounced at Sunday Vespers.

During the Great Feasts, the reading of kathisma at Vespers is canceled, but except for Saturday evening. In this case, the first kathisma is recited. This exception also applies to Sunday evening, when the first article of the kathisma is read. However, at Matins they are read even on the days of the Great Feasts of the Lord. But this rule does not apply to Paschal Week (the first week of Easter), since there is a special order of worship for this.

The special order of reciting kathisma during Great Lent implies reading the Psalter twice during the week. Such a volume of recitation of kathismas implies reading at Vespers, Matins and at certain hours after special psalms. In addition, it should be borne in mind that, in addition to the fifth week, this order is carried out according to a clear schedule. But on the fifth week, on Thursdays, the canon of Andrew of Crete is served, and only one kathisma is read at Matins. In addition, during Holy Week the Psalter is read only from Monday to Wednesday and only once. Further, kathismas are not recited, and only on Great Saturday Matins is the psalm "Immaculate" with doxology read.

A special order of psalmody is provided for the Bright Week. It is called the "six psalms" because the following psalms are recited instead of kathismas: 3, 37, 62, 87, 102, 142 (six in total). On this Great Feast, a solemn conversation between Christians and God himself takes place, during which it is forbidden to sit and move.

Conclusion

Summing up all of the above, it should be understood that kathismas are a separate kind of solemn chants, which differs from other types of prayer, which are recited in a more calm form. At home, the kathisma is read with a burning lamp, and the words of the psalms must be pronounced better in an undertone, putting the stresses in a clear order. This must be done in order not only for thoughts, but also for hearing itself to be immersed in miraculous prayer syllables.

It is also important to remember that reading kathismas can be done while sitting. However, with glories, as well as initial and final prayers, it is imperative to get up on your feet. The words of the psalms are read without pathos and theatricality, in an even voice and somewhat in a singsong voice. And even when some words and phrases are not entirely clear, one should not become embarrassed, since the Tradition on this matter says very clearly: "You yourself may not understand, but the demons understand everything." In addition, with constant reading and according to the degree of spiritual enlightenment, the whole meaning of the texts being read will be revealed.

By the way, regarding the fifteenth kathisma, believers often wonder about the time of its reading. After all, there is an opinion among superstitious people that it is this kathisma that is recited only if there is a dead person in the house, and under other circumstances it can bring on many troubles. According to Orthodox priests, these conjectures are clearly erroneous. And all kathismas can and should be read without any restrictions.