Lesson 115

Psalms (Part 2)

Introduction

This lesson is the second lesson on the book of Psalms. Psalms 51–150 contain praise for the Lord’s mercy and goodness. These psalms include pleas for forgiveness (Psalm 51), expressions of gratitude for the word of God (Psalm 119), and a declaration that children are cherished gifts from the Lord (Psalm 127).

Suggestions for Teaching

Prepare each lesson with students in mind

As you prepare to teach, consider what you hope will occur in students’ lives as a result of the lesson. President Thomas S. Monson (1927–2018) reminded gospel instructors: “The goal of gospel teaching … is not to ‘pour information’ into the minds of class members. … The aim is to inspire the individual to think about, feel about, and then do something about living gospel principles” (Thomas S. Monson, in Conference Report, Oct. 1970, 107).

Doctrinal Mastery Review—Genesis 2:24 (5 minutes)

Explain to students that you are going to give them a visual clue to one of the doctrinal mastery passages. Hold out both hands in front of you, and then bring your hands together into a tight clasp. Repeat this action several times.

Invite students to turn to Genesis 2:24 and read it silently, looking for how the action you demonstrated relates to this passage. Ask a few students to share their thoughts with the class. (Ideas may include that the hands represent a husband and wife; bringing the hands together represents cleaving together; and two hands could remind students of Genesis 2.)

Invite all class members to stand and repeat the motion as they read Genesis 2:24 aloud, bringing their hands together into a tight clasp when the word cleave is read. Read the scripture aloud several times.

Psalm 51

David pleads for forgiveness and the Lord’s help

Show students a picture of David facing Goliath, such as David Slays Goliath (Gospel Art Book [2009], no. 19; see also lds.org/media-library). Then ask the following questions:

• What are some of the great things David did in his life?

• What are some of the sinful things David did in his life?

Explain that David “was guilty of grave crimes; but … he was capable of true contrition and was therefore able to find forgiveness, except in the murder of Uriah” (Bible Dictionary, “David”). David’s sincere remorse for these sins is recorded in Psalm 51. David’s humility and heartfelt desire to be restored to God’s grace and acceptance demonstrate the attitude of one who is seeking to truly repent. As students study Psalm 51, invite them to consider what lessons they can learn about repentance and about the Lord from David’s pleas for forgiveness.

Divide students into groups of three. Ask each group to assign each person in the group to look for answers to one of the following questions (you may want to provide each group with a copy of the following questions or write the questions on the board). Invite students to read Psalm 51 aloud in their groups. Invite them to consider marking in their scriptures words and phrases from the psalm that help answer the following questions:

1. How did David demonstrate the attitude of one who is seeking to truly repent?

2. How did David describe forgiveness of sins?

3. What did David know about God that motivated him to seek forgiveness?

After students have read the psalm, invite them to share their answers to their individual questions with their group. You might suggest that they mark in their scriptures words and phrases shared by others in the group. Then ask the class:

• What are some of the answers to these questions that stood out to you?

• According to verse 17, what must we offer in order for the Savior to make us clean? (Students may use other words, but help them understand that if we acknowledge our sins and offer the Savior a broken and contrite heart, then He can make us clean.)

• What does it mean to offer the Savior a broken and contrite heart?

Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Bruce D. Porter (1952–2016) of the Seventy. Ask the class to listen for what Elder Porter teaches about having a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

“Those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit are willing to do anything and everything that God asks of them, without resistance or resentment. We cease doing things our way and learn to do them God’s way instead. In such a condition of submissiveness, the Atonement can take effect and true repentance can occur” (Bruce D. Porter, “A Broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2007, 32).

• How can we tell if we have a broken heart and a contrite spirit?

Share your testimony that the Lord can make us clean if we acknowledge our sins and come before Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

Invite students to consider what they will do to offer the Lord a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Encourage them to turn to the Lord with confidence, trusting that the Lord will forgive them of their sins.

Psalm 119

The Lord blesses those who keep His laws

Display several items that help provide people with direction or guidance, such as a flashlight, a compass or GPS, a map, and a picture of a lighthouse.

• How can each of these objects provide someone with guidance and direction?

• What are some situations in which youth today may need divine guidance and direction?

Invite students as they study Psalm 119 to look for what can help give guidance and direction for our lives.

Explain that Psalm 119 is a poem containing eight verses of scripture for each of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

Invite a student to read Psalm 119:1–8 aloud. Ask the class to follow along and look for what the Psalmist said makes a person blessed. Explain that the word blessed in these verses means happy and that the word undefiled in verse 1 means to be pure or free from sin.

• According to the Psalmist, what makes a person blessed or happy?

• What do you think it means to “walk in the law of the Lord” (Psalm 119:1)?

• How can we learn “the law of the Lord”?

Explain that the writer of Psalm 119 used symbols to describe his love for the word of God and the blessings that can come through diligently studying and obeying His words. To help students understand these symbolic expressions, write the following references on the board (do not write the words and phrases in parentheses):

1. Psalm 119:14, 72, 127 (riches, gold, and silver)

2. Psalm 119:24 (counselor)

3. Psalm 119:35 (path)

4. Psalm 119:54 (songs)

5. Psalm 119:103 (sweeter than honey)

Divide students into five groups, and assign each group one of the references on the board. (For smaller classes, you may need to assign several references to individual students.) Display the following objects or pictures of these objects: a hymnbook, coins (or something representing riches), honey (or something sweet), a picture of a path, and a picture of a counselor (for example, a counselor in the First Presidency of the Church or a school counselor). Provide each group with the following handout, and invite them to complete the activities listed:

The Word of God is Like …

1. Read your assigned scripture passage together, looking for what the Psalmist compared to the word of God.

2. Take the object or the picture of the object from the front of the classroom that corresponds to your assigned scripture passage.

3. Discuss how the object is helpful in understanding the importance of the word of God.

4. Share examples or experiences that illustrate how the object is like the word of God.

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After students have had sufficient time to complete the handout, ask them to select one student from each group to read their group’s assigned scripture passage to the class, display their item, and share what they learned.

Invite a student to read Psalm 119:105 aloud, and ask the class to look for what the Psalmist compared the word of God to.

• What did the Psalmist liken the word of God to?

You may want to dim the lights in the room and turn on a flashlight.

• How might the word of God be like a lamp or light to us as we study it? (Write the following truth on the board: As we study the word of God, we can receive guidance for our lives. You may want to suggest that students record this truth in their scriptures next to Psalm 119:105 or in their study journals.)

• How can the word of God provide light and guidance for our lives?

Write the following question on the board, and ask students to ponder it and then write a response in their study journals: When has the word of God been like a lamp or light to you, giving guidance for your life?

After sufficient time, invite a few students to share what they wrote. You may want to share how God’s word has helped guide and bless your life.

Invite students to write down a specific goal for what they will do to become more familiar with the word of God so they can receive His guidance.

Psalm 127

Children are a cherished gift from the Lord

Display a picture of children to the class. Read the following scenario, and ask students to consider how they would respond:

A friend says to you, “Having a family seems like a burden that would prevent me from doing other important things with my life. When I get older, I think I would be much happier if I did not have children.”

• What are some priorities people might put ahead of having children?

Explain that Psalm 127 teaches the Lord’s views on having children.

Invite a few students to take turns reading aloud from Psalm 127:3–5. Ask the class to follow along, looking for what these verses teach about children.

• In verse 3, what words did the Psalmist use to describe children? (Heritage and reward. Explain that the word heritage in verse 3 refers to an inheritance, possession, or gift from the Lord.)

Explain that the word quiver in verse 5 refers to a case for holding arrows.

• According to verse 5, what did the Psalmist say about the man who has a “quiver full” of children?

• What truth do these verses teach about children? (Although students may state it differently, help them identify the following principle: Children are gifts from the Lord and can bring parents great happiness. Write this truth on the board.)

Invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Ask the class to listen for why children are cherished gifts from God:

“It is a crowning privilege of a husband and wife who are able to bear children to provide mortal bodies for [the] spirit children of God. We believe in families, and we believe in children.

“When a child is born to a husband and wife, they are fulfilling part of our Heavenly Father’s plan to bring children to earth. …

“Families are central to God’s eternal plan. I testify of the great blessing of children and of the happiness they will bring us in this life and in the eternities” (Neil L. Andersen, “Children,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2011, 28, 31).

• Why do you think bearing children is “a crowning privilege” for a husband and wife?

• How can children bring parents great happiness?

• How can remembering that children are gifts from the Lord influence our attitude toward having and rearing children?

Share your testimony of the blessings and happiness that can come from having children.

Commentary and Background Information

Psalm 51. David’s fall from his exaltation

Although David “hath fallen from his exaltation” because he had planned the death of Uriah (D&C 132:39), he received “a promise that his soul should not be left in hell” (History of the Church, 6:253; see Psalm 16:8–10; Psalm 86:13).

President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught:

“David committed a dreadful crime, and all his life afterwards sought for forgiveness. Some of the Psalms portray the anguish of his soul; yet David is still paying for his sin. He did not receive the resurrection at the time of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Peter declared that his body was still in the tomb, and the Prophet Joseph Smith has said, ‘David sought repentance at the hand of God carefully with tears, for the murder of Uriah; but he could only get it through hell: he got a promise that his soul should not be left in hell’ [History of the Church, 6:253]. Again we ask: Who wishes to spend a term in hell with the devil before being cleansed from sin?” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. [1957], 1:74).

Psalm 51:5. “In sin did my mother conceive me”

President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) commented on Psalm 51:5:

“No matter what David said, he was not born in sin. The opening verses of this psalm give us the key to the nature of David’s remark [in Psalm 51:5]. …

“In the midst of his sorrow because he violated the moral law, he may have felt his sin keenly and in this manner expressed himself, but this did not make the statement true that his parents were guilty of sin and that he partook of it in his birth. Let it be remembered also that David was speaking only for and of himself, and that his words cannot in justice be universally applied.

“… The first commandment given to Adam was that he and Eve should multiply and fill the earth. After the flood this same commandment was reiterated and was required of Noah and his posterity. To declare that children born in lawful wedlock come into the world through a sinful act, is making our Eternal Father guilty of commanding that a sin be committed, hence he would be a party to the sin” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. [1960], 3:14, 15).

Psalm 51:17. A broken heart and a contrite spirit

Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

“In ancient times when people wanted to worship the Lord and seek His blessings, they often brought a gift. For example, when they went to the temple, they brought a sacrifice to place on the altar. After His Atonement and Resurrection, the Savior said He would no longer accept burnt offerings of animals. The gift or sacrifice He will accept now is ‘a broken heart and a contrite spirit’ [3 Nephi 9:20]. As you seek the blessing of conversion, you can offer the Lord the gift of your broken, or repentant, heart and your contrite, or obedient, spirit. In reality, it is the gift of yourself—what you are and what you are becoming” (D. Todd Christofferson, “When Thou Art Converted,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2004, 12).

President Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) explained what it means to have “a broken heart and a contrite spirit”:

“Godly sorrow is a gift of the Spirit. It is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering. Our sins caused Him to bleed at every pore. This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having ‘a broken heart and a contrite spirit.’ (See 3 Ne. 9:20; Moro. 6:2; D&C 20:37; 59:8; Ps. 34:18; 51:17; Isa. 57:15.) Such a spirit is the absolute prerequisite for true repentance” (Ezra Taft Benson, “A Mighty Change of Heart,” Ensign, Oct. 1989, 4).

Psalm 127:3. “Children are an heritage of the Lord”

In “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” we learn:

“The family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. …

“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. ‘Children are an heritage of the Lord’ (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 145).

Sister Julie B. Beck, former Relief Society General President, explained the importance of the rising generation preparing in their youth to have their own families:

“The rising generation need to understand that the command to ‘multiply, and replenish the earth’ (Genesis 1:28; Moses 2:28) remains in force. Bearing children is a faith-based work. … Motherhood and fatherhood are eternal roles. Each carries the responsibility for either the male or the female half of the plan. Youth is the time to prepare for those eternal roles and responsibilities” (Julie B. Beck, “Teaching the Doctrine of the Family,” Ensign or Liahona, Mar. 2011, 15).