October 23, 2006

MINNEAPOLIS – Christians have always found that the psalms provide encouragement in times of despair, compassionate voices in times of anger and self-pity, compelling acknowledgment of guilt, and words of thanksgiving in times of rejoicing. The psalms are a record of men and women wrestling with God, pleading, thanking, lamenting, cursing, blessing-and much more.

New for 2007, Psalms through the Year: Spiritual Exercises for Every Day by Marshall D. Johnson, is a unique daily devotional that proceeds in sequence from Psalm 1 to Psalm 150 through the whole of the biblical book, with texts divided into one unit for each day of the year.

By reading one page each day, along with the assigned psalm text from the Bible, readers will be comforted and strengthened as they gain a better understanding of the concerns and themes of the psalmists of old as well as come to recognize the various forms of the psalms, noting especially the frequency of laments and hymns and their application and reflection in their own lives.

"Marshall Johnson brings to the interpretive task all of the best gifts of faith – heart and mind and imagination and realism. He matches the sequence of the Psalms to the days of the year, so that every day becomes a day with the Psalter. The result, to our benefit, is a read through of the Psalms in all of their "stark reality," a reality rooted in and addressed back to God. Marshall ducks none of the hard questions, and shows how Israel's deep resolve of faith will comfort and sustain the church in every deep crisis. I anticipate that this book will be warmly welcomed and widely used, for its clear, accessible, well-said witness." – Walter Brueggemann, Professor Emeritus, Columbia Theological Seminary.

"I have never read a better study of the Psalms. It not only sets them in their historical context but also applies them wonderfully to our contemporary lives. Those who choose these studies for daily devotions will be richly rewarded. – Dr. C. Arthur Christiansen, Dean, Dana College, retired.

The author concentrates on the stark reality of the psalmist's world and when possible, the actual occasion of the psalm and how it functioned in ancient Israelite worship. The Introduction explores the origin of the psalms and their major types, the psalms as Hebrew poetry, ongoing issues of interpretation, major motifs, and more. A glossary, index, and a list of books for further reading are included.

Features:

• Situates each psalm within its original world

• Includes all 150 psalms in biblical sequence

• Each meditation concludes with a prayer that invites readers to add their own petitions

Marshall D. Johnson, Th. D., is a biblical scholar, pastor, and former editorial director of Fortress Press. He has written several books, including Making Sense of the Bible (Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2002) and The Evolution of Christianity (Continuum, 2005). He lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Psalms through the Year: Spiritual Exercises for Every Day, By Marshall D. Johnson, Format: 5.5" x 8.5," paperback, 400 pages, ISBN-10: 0-8066-5332-9, ISBN-13: 978-0-8066-5332-7, Price: $14.99/ CAN $17.99, Publisher: Augsburg Books.

To order Psalms through the Year please call Augsburg Fortress at 1-800-328-4648 or visit the Web site at http://www.augsburgfortress.org/.

Augsburg Books