Paul wrote, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Col 3:16). He lists three categories of “Christian music”—psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. What’s the difference? Truthfully, the distinctions aren’t crystal clear, but it appears as if he is listing three theological categories. “Psalms” would be songs drawn directly from Scripture. “Hymns” would be songs, rich in theology, written by believers. And “spiritual songs” would be more testimonial, personal, expressive. Psalms, then, are about what God said, hymns about who He is, and spiritual songs about our spiritual response … loosely speaking. The categories overlap and interweave, and they counter heresy (“teaching and admonishing”) by anchoring us in His Word and clearly articulating His doctrines while making sure it doesn’t become dry or merely intellectual.
Think about that. Think about, say, “psalms” as “scripture-based.” That would include the classic The Lord's My Shepherd written in 1650, or the newer Getty version, Psalm 23. You know ... “Psalms.” But go farther. “From Scripture” would include The Christ Hymn directly from Philippians 2:5-11 or Oh, the Depth of God, right out of Romans 11:33-36. Or “hymns” might be like Reginald Heber’s enduring hymn, Holy, Holy, Holy, based on Revelation 4:8, but a celebration of the Trinity. Or the more modern, In Christ Alone, that declares plain biblical truth. (In 2013, the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s Committee on Congregational Song voted 9–6 to exclude the popular hymn from its new hymnal. The decision centered on a single line from the third stanza: “Till on that cross as Jesus died, The wrath of God was satisfied.”)
We have a rich heritage of Christian music for worship, “sanctioned” by Paul in both Colossians and Ephesians (Eph 5:19). Today, however, the first two categories—Scripture‑songs and doctrinal hymns—seem largely sidelined in favor of the “spiritual songs” category that focuses more on our personal feelings and experience. This category is also “sanctioned” by Paul, and I wouldn’t want to diminish it, but if we are commanded to teach and admonish through our music—if this three‑layer system is part of how we teach and admonish—then neglecting the Scriptural and doctrinal layers is unwise. There is a depth in those first two categories that is not always present in the experiential one. Perhaps this is why modern worship gravitates toward the experiential—we naturally resonate with songs that express our feelings. But Paul’s vision is broader. If “the word of Christ” in Colossians 3:16 refers to the words from Christ (Rom 10:17) and the message about Christ—the gospel as revealed in Scripture—and if “dwell in you richly” means that this message is to make its home among us, saturating and shaping the church’s shared life, then we need all three categories. Each plays a role in letting the word of Christ dwell richly in us.
2 comments:
The Psalms also show us that our music can also be all three, flowing from what God said, to praising Him for who He is, to expressing our response. I assume that's what some of the modern reworking of classic hymns is trying to do (though I'd prefer just a new song rather than cobbling on old). At my church, for example, we sing a version of the classic hymns Amazing Grace that is only the first stanza of the hymn and shifts into another more modern style with bridges and choruses, completely omitting the remaining stanzas. Yet the title card (because who uses hymnals or printouts anymore) calls it Amazing Grace (with some parenthetical addition I can't recall). I have little problem with creating new worship music, but when we do so with the omission of that which came before, we separate ourselves from the Church that has come before us.
I recall that we discussed the meaning of “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” a bit during your “Col 3:16” post series (and elsewhere). At your 10/13/24 post (“Worship Wars”), I made this comment:
Whenever I read Col. 3:16, I always wondered, what was a “hymn” in Paul’s day? Even the entire phrase, “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs,” needs interpretation, in my mind--i.e. the Book of Psalms set to music? 200-year-old hymns accompanied by pipe organ? Negro spirituals? So I looked it up (Google to the rescue :); I found this at a commentary for Col. 3:16: A “psalm” is "a song set to music.” “Hymn” denotes a solemn, religious composition, or song of Divine praise. The word “song” is wider in sense; hence is qualified by “spiritual,” i.e. “songs of a spiritual nature, inspired by the Holy Ghost.” So I can see that all forms of singing that Paul mentioned have equal potential to be worshipful to God and edifying to me, as they focus on the “word of Christ” rather than, say, likeability.
And at your 11/03/24 post (“Nearer My God to Thee”), you offered this additional clarification in a comment to me:
Scholars are not in agreement as to the exact definitions, but the idea seems to be that psalms are the songs taken from the Jewish "hymnal" -- the book of Psalms. Hymns were poetic expressions of praise, like our modern "ode." Spiritual songs were simplified praises. It appears that Paul was not trying to define different genres, but to refer to a wide range of music used to praise God, where the praising of God is the main theme.
I like your additional clarification today on the “three-layer system” (“loosely speaking”)--i.e. our proper response to our knowledge of who God is and all He has done; this is the very definition of worship, afterall. Still, I am mindful that neither Col. 3:16 or Eph. 5:19 are directives made strictly in the context of “corporate worship assemblies” but are part of general admonitions regarding walking in the Spirit and personal interactions. Thus, it is proper and good to be a person who regularly sings around the house, in the car, working in the yard, gathering with family and/or friends, etc.--like all aspects of worship, 24/7 and not just Sunday mornings.
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