Hey friends,
This morning, I took a few minutes to recite part of the Sermon on the Mount—not all of it, but just enough to keep it fresh. I don’t do it every day, but I try to go back to it often. Because even though it’s been a few months since I memorized the whole thing, I don’t want to forget what it did in me.
A Surprise Email from Across the Country
A few days ago, I got an email from someone named Scott. He lives in Connecticut and recently felt prompted to start memorizing Scripture, specifically, the Sermon on the Mount. He started in Matthew 6, made it to verse 13, and then went to Google for some help. He stumbled across an article I had written about my experience and decided to reach out.
Honestly, that email meant a lot. Scott wanted to know if I had a method for memorization because, in his words, he was kind of winging it. His message brought me right back to when I started this journey myself.
How It Actually Started for Me
Here’s the truth: I had every intention of starting early. Like, months in advance. But January rolled around, and all I had was the Beatitudes. The first sermon in the series was only a month away, and I had a choice to make: slowly ease into it… or buckle down.
I chose to buckle down. And by God’s grace, I memorized the entire Sermon on the Mount in a month.
Now, I’m a pastor, and studying the Bible is part of my job. But this went way beyond that. I memorized most of it in my off hours—late nights, early mornings, swapping out Netflix or podcasts for Scripture memory. It was challenging. It was messy. And it was one of the most spiritually rewarding things I’ve ever done.
So, Here’s What Helped Me
If you’re thinking about doing something like this, or you’re already in it, here’s what helped me:
- Print It Out
Either a copy of the passage or a photocopy of the Bible page. Something you can carry, mark up, and refer to anywhere.
- Write It by Hand
There’s something powerful about writing Scripture. It slows you down. It shows you what you know—and what you don’t.
- Move Around
I paced a lot. I’d walk in circles, repeat lines aloud, and let the rhythm of the text settle into my mind and heart. And sometimes, I’d just stop and pray mid-memorization because a line would hit me that hard.
- Involve Others
Once I felt more confident, I asked others to help check my memorization. I gave them a printed copy and had them mark spots I missed, without interrupting me. And the cool part? They got immersed in the passage, too.
It’s Not About Perfection
Look, it doesn’t have to be perfect. I didn’t get every word right when I recited it for the first time in front of our church. But that’s not the point.
The point is: God’s Word does something to you when you let it in deeply. Even now, months later, I still catch myself whispering parts of it during the day. It anchors me. Convicts me. Lifts me.
So if you’re memorizing or thinking about it, keep going. Even if you don’t finish the whole thing, God will use what you do learn to shape you. You’re hiding His Word in your heart, and that’s never wasted.
Be Encouraged
For all of you who’ve started this journey. I’m praying for you and cheering you on. And for anyone else considering this journey, I’ll drop the link to the message where I recited the sermon from memory. It’s not perfect, but it’s one of the most meaningful things I’ve ever done.
Let’s keep letting Jesus’ words form us as we are equipped and encouraged to trust in Jesus, become like Jesus, and do as Jesus did.
Mark Deering
Lead Pastor
Epikos Church
How Hebrew Poetry Works
Rhyming Thoughts
While Western poetry often relies on metered rhyme (similar-sounding words), ancient Israelite poetry doesn’t follow a master system of meter or sound. Instead, its primary organizing principle is the parallelism of lines—essentially, biblical poets “rhyme” thoughts and ideas rather than sounds.
- The Heartbeat: Parallelism Parallelism is an “associative mode of thought” where two things are placed next to each other to show their relation. It assumes that to truly understand an idea, you need to grasp another idea that is both similar and distinct. There are three main types:
- Synonymous: The second line repeats the first using different words (e.g., “The heavens declare the glory of God; / the skies proclaim the work of his hands”).
- Antithetical: The second line contrasts the first, often using the word “but” (e.g., “The Lord watches over the way of the righteous, / but the way of the wicked leads to destruction”).
- Synthetic (Progressive): The lines build on each other to tell a developing story or narrative.
- The Color: Imagery & Metaphor Biblical poems are “terseness” personified—they use fewer words than normal speech to communicate rich, imaginative experiences. To understand them, we must understand the ancient Israelite worldview. Common metaphors include:
- The Shepherd: Signifying God’s care, provision, and leadership.
- The Rock/Fortress: Representing stability, safety, and refuge.
- Unsafe Landscapes: Using deserts, storms, or waves to signify fear or tests of faith.
The Architecture: Structural Glue
The psalmists didn’t just write individual lines; they used sophisticated “structural glue” to organize their prayers into larger units.
- Stanzas: Groups of lines that form a distinct “paragraph” or unit of thought.
- Refrains: A phrase repeated at intervals, like a musical chorus, grounding the reader in a recurring truth during shifts in mood.
- Inclusio (The Envelope): This is when a poem begins and ends with the same phrase. These “bookends” signal that everything in the middle should be interpreted through that specific frame.
- Chiasm (Symmetry): A pattern where themes are repeated in reverse order (A-B-C-B-A). In a Chiasm, the “C” (the center) is the “hinge”—it is the most important point the author wants to make.
Our Language of Faith
Themes to Look For
As we dive into the Psalms together, use your reading guide to look for these six specific themes. These aren’t just categories; they are the “language of faith” that helps us trust in Jesus, become like Jesus, and do as Jesus did.
- Praise & Hymns (The Language of Adoration) These are songs of “orientation”—they recognize the right order of the world with God at the center. This language is used to express direct worship for who God is, not just what He has done. When we pray these, we align our hearts with the truth of His character.
- Lament (The Language of Raw Honesty) About one-third of the Psalms are laments—cries of pain, protest, and confusion. This is the language of “disorientation.” These psalms give us permission to bring our grief and anger to God. They remind us that God welcomes our honesty, and bringing our pain to Him is actually a profound act of faith because it assumes He is listening and He is the only one who can help.
- Petition (The Language of Asking) Petition often goes hand-in-hand with lament. It is the specific cry for help, protection, or intervention. Whether asking God to “wake up” or to “be a shield,” this theme gives us the words to express our total dependence on Him when we are in distress or facing injustice.
- Thanksgiving (The Language of Rescue) This is the language of “new orientation.” These psalms are the “before and after” stories of the Bible. They are prayed after God has delivered or rescued the psalmist. They move beyond general praise to specific gratitude for a concrete act of God’s faithfulness in time and space.
- Wisdom (The Language of Reflection) Wisdom psalms (like Psalm 1 or 119) invite us to reflect on how to live life well. They often contrast “two ways” of living—the way of the righteous who meditate (hagah) on God’s Word and the way of those who ignore it. This language helps us navigate the complexities of life in light of God’s instructions.
- Royal (The Language of Hope) Royal psalms focus on the King or the promised “Anointed One.” While they originally spoke of the Davidic kings, they point us toward the ultimate King, Jesus. This is the language of waiting and hope, looking forward to the day when God’s Kingdom fully arrives on earth as it is in heaven.
Reflect & Apply:
The 150-Day Challenge
Our challenge to you is to read one Psalm a day over the next 150 days.
Choose Your Journey
- The 150-Day Challenge: Read one Psalm a day for a steady, transformative experience.
As you read, use these three questions from your bookmark to guide your meditation:
- How should this psalm make you feel? Notice the psalmist’s raw honesty. What emotion is it designed to help you express to God right now?
- Where is Jesus? Many psalms come from someone waiting on God. What is this psalm waiting for? Does Jesus answer that wait, or did He experience that same wait Himself?
- Can you use this psalm to talk to God right now? If so, pray it! If not, “hide it in your heart”—you may need it soon.
Happy meditating (hagah-ing)!
Dive Deeper
Recommended Resources
If you want to go even further in your study of biblical poetry and the Psalms, here are some excellent resources compiled from our class:
Watch & Learn
The BibleProject has created several incredible video series that bring these concepts to life. We highly recommend checking out:
How to Read the Bible series: Includes specific videos on Poetry, Poetic Metaphor, and The Book of Psalms.
Read & Explore