Psalms study section
Psalms word studies
A handful of Hebrew words carry the theology of the Psalms. Tap the speaker next to any word to hear it pronounced.
Key words
תְּהִלָּה (tehillah) — “Praise”
Usage: Psalms 22:3; 33:1; 100:4; 145:1 (title)
Meaning: A song of praise, laudation, or a hymn. The Hebrew name of the whole book is Tehillim, “Praises,” so that the Psalter is, at its core, a book of praise.
Theological Significance: Though the Psalms include laments and confessions, their gathered goal is praise — even the darkest cries reach toward it, and the book ends in unbroken tehillah. This anticipates the eternal praise of the redeemed in Christ, who offers “a sacrifice of praise” (Hebrews 13:15) and leads His people in praising the Father (Hebrews 2:12).
הָלַל (halal) — “To Praise, Hallelujah”
Usage: Psalms 113:1; 146-150 (“Praise the LORD”)
Meaning: To praise, celebrate, boast in, and shine — the root of “Hallelujah,” “Praise Yah(weh).” It is the ringing command with which the Psalter closes.
Theological Significance: Halal summons all creation to exult in God for who He is. Its fullness is heard in the “Hallelujah!” of heaven’s worship around the throne of God and the Lamb (Revelation 19:1-6), the destiny of all who are in Christ.
חֶסֶד (chesed) — “Steadfast Love”
Usage: Psalms 23:6; 100:5; 136 (refrain); 145:8
Meaning: Loyal, covenant love — God’s faithful, unfailing kindness that keeps its promises. It is perhaps the Psalter’s most characteristic word for God’s character.
Theological Significance: The refrain “his steadfast love endures forever” grounds every prayer and praise in God’s covenant faithfulness. That chesed is poured out fully in Christ, in whom “the steadfast love of the LORD never ceases” and from whose love nothing can separate His people (Lamentations 3:22; Romans 8:38-39).
מָשִׁיחַ (mashiach) — “Anointed One”
Usage: Psalms 2:2; 18:50; 20:6; 132:10, 17
Meaning: The anointed one, especially the Davidic king set apart by God. The word gives us “Messiah” (and, in Greek, “Christ”).
Theological Significance: The royal psalms celebrate the LORD’s mashiach, whose reign and sonship reach beyond David to the true Anointed King, Jesus the Christ, the Son to whom God gives the nations and the throne forever (Psalm 2; Acts 4:25-27).
תּוֹרָה (torah) — “Law, Instruction”
Usage: Psalms 1:2; 19:7; 119 (throughout)
Meaning: The law, teaching, or instruction of the LORD — His revealed Word for the guidance and delight of His people.
Theological Significance: The Psalter opens by blessing the one who delights in God’s torah and devotes its longest psalm to loving it. This delight in Scripture is fulfilled in Christ, who perfectly kept the law and is Himself the living Word, and it shapes the believer whose feet are lit by God’s Word (Psalm 119:105; John 1:14).
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