Psalms 9:1-20

Psalm PSALM—NOTE ON Psalms 9:1. Psalms 9:1 together follow a basically acrostic pattern, with the first word of each line beginning with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The acrostic is not perfect, however. Several letters of the alphabet are missing or are out of order. Both psalms say that God cares about those who are “oppressed” (Psalms 9:9; Psalms 10:18); both mention “times of trouble” (Psalms 9:9; Psalms 10:1); both call on God to “arise” (Psalms 9:19; Psalms 10:12); and both are sure that God will not “forget the afflicted” (Psalms 9:12; Psalms 10:12). The key difference between the two psalms is that Psalms 9:1 is full of praise and thanks while Psalms 10:1 is mostly a lament.