The repetition of Psalm 14 in Psalm 53 reminds us of the 1,000 years of time that Israel was writing and collecting their psalms. These Hebrew poems were evoked out of the life of Israel and used in their public and private worship. In them, YHWH’s chosen people are sharing His way of life with one another and, ultimately, with all the people of the world.
Psalms 42 and 43 are usually treated as one psalm because:
- Psalm 43 doesn’t have a superscription;
- the refrain is repeated three times in 42:5, 11, and 43:5;
- the thought develops from remembrance to a specific hope
- the 2 poems form a typical psalm of lament with several elements of the lament form.