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A man looking so hard for God that his eyes fail. Enemies forcing people to pay back what they didn’t steal  A man out of his depth as waters continue rising. A king so mocked and shamed that drunks sing about him. These are some of the darker passages in the Bible, but hope remains for the psalmists that God will prevail, and that they will see triumph over their adversaries.

A psalm quoted at the coronation of King Charles III and the first words tapped out by Samuel Morse. The Psalms are a treasure of literary gems while remaining a source of inspiration and encouragement to millions.  Expect gratitude and joy as these ancient songwriters continue to use words to give shape to thankfulness.  

From Bethlehem Shepherd, to all conquering general, to king of Israel. Few people have had a story arc quite as extraordinary as David's. But his journey was not without extreme adversity, and fortunately for readers of the Book of Psalms, he captured his struggle with both enemies and the God who he hoped would protect him in poetry that has endured the centuries. Written and produced by Cha...

In this sequence of Psalms, Israel's king, David suffers a long dark night of the soul after sending a man to his death, he berates an evil shepherd who massacred a community of Israel's priests and is betrayed by a close friend. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover art by Lisa Goff

The temple musicians known as the Sons of Korah are in full song. A psalm about a glorious king and his bride, three songs eulogising God's earthly capital, Zion, and a song that promises death to those who trust in their own wisdom. \Join us as we jump back into the Jews' ancient song book  Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover art by Li...

The Book of Psalms is so long that it is divided up into five smaller books. This is where Book One ends and Book Two begins. However, the familiar themes of God as a rock and refuge continue, and the spirit of David looms large as both author and inspirer of many of the songs. However, the tone is notably darker and gloomier in Book Two, as praise makes way for lament. Join us as we continue thro...

A betrayal: ruthless witnesses coming forward; accusations, people repaying good deeds with evil ones.  Prayers unanswered, enemies laughing, and slander that appeared never to end.  At what point will God intervene? David asks. These are some of the darkest verses in the Book of Psalms, and some of the most beautiful.  Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Mu...

Hate one another is not a verse you'll find in the Bible but this particular four letter word raises its head in the Book of Psalms. Join us as we navigate our slow moving tourbus through the Bible's longest book and into what seem like stormy waters. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover art by Lisa Goff

The Jews' songbook continues. Join us as we travel through this richly poetic literature, much of it believed to be written by Israel's king David - or his more than able ghostwriter. What we lose in story or plot twists, we gain in deeply felt emotion as a man bares his heart before God. These are songs that sing to their own tune. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael...

By far the most famous Psalm and one of the standout passages in the Bible, the shepherd who leads his sheep into green pastures has inspired writers, artists and musicians throughout the ages. It is just one of the beautiful poems you'll encounter in this podcast. Travel with us as we continue our journey through the Jews' epic songbook. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Mi...

Join me on my audacious attempt to narrate the entirety of the Bible, roughly 20 minutes at a time.  I do my best to keep it secular; this podcast is aimed at people who might never open a Bible, but who feel that it is too important book not to have a working knowledge of. We're making headway into the Bible's longest book, the Book of Psalms, which is effectively an anthology of 150 hy...

The fearless bravado of the young Bethlehem shepherd has long gone. Now he is Israel's king, David has to face threats far more personally draining that that of either the giant Philistine, Goliath or the lions who preyed on his father's sheep. In these songs, David seems worn down by the stress of being Israel's king, and feels threatened from every side. Yet he knows to cry out to...

Adoration, schadenfreude, vindication and hate take centre stage in these songs purported to have been written by shepherd turned giant killer turned king of Israel, David. The king remained close to God for his entire life, and his devout petitions have helped shape how countess Christians and Jews still view God today.

Cancelled. It's easy to think of this as a 21st century phenomenon, but three millennia ago, David is deeply concerned about reputational damage. These songs speak of the king's desire for peace, his distress and his need for healing, but most of all they demonstrate his deep need for - and love of God. What's more, these psalms demonstrate remarkable humility for a proven military...

The poetry continues as we embark on a journey through the Bible's songbook. The Book of Psalms is an epic collection of ancient, beautiful poems in which the writers cry out to God for help, profess their love for God, marvel at his creative power and generally eulogise about him, his temple, his kings and his sheer awe-inspiring majesty. Its 150 songs make the Book of Psalms the Bible'...

Once Job's friend Elihu has wrapped up, it's time for one of the only two people who actually know the truth behind Job's suffering to step up. Having begged for an audience with God and having been ridiculed for seeing himself as worthy of a tribunal with God, God himself joins in the conversation. Prepare to meet two of the Bible's most fearsome creatures as he does so. The B...

Having seen Job go through the rounds with three of his friends, readers now have a "wait, what?" moment as a fourth man steps up, having witnessed the entire conversation so far.  This man is Elihu, and until now, his youth has prevented him from speaking.  Now however, he's had enough of Job's nonsense and proves that age - or lack of it is no guarantor that you will get to t...

Tired of hearing his friends' near endless tirade against him, Job launches into a monologue that charts the depths of his distress. It's less a defence and more a wistful look back at how wonderful life was before tragedy struck. Meanwhile God seems utterly indifferent and leaves Job with no answers as to why his life has taken such a dramatic U turn. Written and produced by Chas Bayfie...

The suffering of  Job simply does not add up for his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. Despite what they know of Job from their own experience, their brains simply cannot compute that he might be innocent. Even when Job points out the very obvious fact that God allows many evil people to thrive, his friends maintain their unswervable position that his suffering has been brought on himself...

Job is utterly bewildered. His friends are convinced that he has done something dreadful to warrant so much suffering. He knows that he hasn't, and simply wants a hearing with God. This opens a can of worms. Is Job, a mere human,  claiming that God has made a mistake? Listeners feel especially smug knowing that all parties are wrong. Job hasn't sinned, at least no more than the average p...

A man sits in rags while his woulds fester. Three of his friends sit with him, explaining to him why he is suffering. It is crystal clear to them: his suffering is a punishment from God, and because the suffering is severe, so must be the sin that he is being punished for. What none of tyhem know is that Job is the subject of a game that is being played in the heavenly realm by God and the Devil....

Job is a good man. He enjoys a prosperous life. He worships God. The Devil is confident that Job's faith is paper thin and that a bit of adversity will soon have him rejecting God. God takes the opposite position and so the experiment slash wager begins. With his skin itching and sore, all his material wealth gone and his children dead, Job must now endure the "wisdom" of three of h...

In one of the most extraordinary gambits in the Bible, and possibly in the whole of literature, God and the Devil have a wager over the virtue of one man, a farmer named Job. Now synonymous with suffering, Job endures both terrible harships and the judgemental pontification of some of his closest friends. This is where the history section of the Bible ends and the poetry begins and the Devil is ab...

This has to be the Bible's greatest moment of schadenfreude. A man intent on genocide realises that the person who he believes is one of his closest allies is actually part of the ethnic group who he wants to cleanse. Furious back-pedalling ensues, vengeance is dealt and what might have been the darkest day in Jewish history is averted thanks to the bravery and cool-headedness of a single Jew...

From the pampered luxury of Persia's royal harem to a life or death encounter with the world's most powerful man. It's incredible that Shakespeare didn't write a play about Esther, the characters are so vivid. Then again, he didn't need to as the story is already told so well. Esther, the beautiful queen, ensconced in the harem. Mordecai, who directs the action from the pa...