Answering God: The Psalms as Tools for Prayer

by Eugene H. Peterson

Eugene H. Peterson speaks to Christians who realize the necessity for prayer and yearn for it but who find their prayer unconvincing and unsatisfying. Addressing the causes of this dissatisfaction, Answering God offers guidelines for using the Psalms as dynamic tools for prayer.

Genres: Prayer, Christian, Theology, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian Living, Spirituality

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Eugene H. Peterson was a pastor, scholar, author, and poet. For many years he was James M. Houston Professor of Spiritual Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He also served as founding pastor of Christ Our King Presbyterian Church in Bel Air, Maryland. He had written over thirty books, including Gold Medallion Book Award winner The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language a contemporary translation of the Bible. After retiring from full-time teaching, Eugene and his wife Jan lived in the Big Sky Country of rural Montana. He died in October 2018.

Reviews

[Bill Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book is not only one of the best books I have read on the subject of prayer, it is also one of the finest books on Christian spirituality.

Though I have read other books by Peterson, this may be Peterson at his authorial best. With laser-focus, he etches into each chapter the contour of his thesis: that prayer is initiated by God's acting, speaking, revealing and that our prayers are responses, answers in a dialogue that lifts us to the realization of His purpose. The vocabulary of both initiation and response is found in the book of Psalms.

Concise chapters focus on Psalms as text, way, language, story, etc., while within each chapter, individual psalms furnish sparse yet rich interaction with the biblical text. The goal is to reinforce the theme, not exposit the material, yet Peterson's brief interactions demonstrate exegetical precision and insight. Brief as this 151 page monograph may be (HarperCollins paperback, 1989), recognition of lament, complaint, imprecation, community (liturgy) and praise as dimensions of the Psalter are neither lacking nor trivial. In fact, each chapter provides the reader with intellectually substantive, soul-nourishing satisfaction.

The plain language, aimed at a spiritually hungry reader rather than a specialist, masks the author's depth of study in his subject. Footnotes reveal the time spent in Gunkel, Mowinckel, Westermann, Brueggemann, Luther, Calvin, Barth, and other theological giants. Insights from linguistic philosophy, psychology, literature and ordinary life-experience round out the mine from which the author effortlessly quarries gemstones and offers riches to the attentive, receptive reader. The material on metaphor is, in itself, a shining facet, valuable to any user of words.

Receptivity in reading, hearing and praying the Psalms is what Peterson is after from his audience. Read in a single day to supplement preparation for teaching a course on Psalms, I was arrested by the spiritual impact of this book, convicted by its call to God-centered prayer not simply informed by psalms, but directed by the Psalms, serially and habitually. My own prayer life needing revitalizing, this book has begun what I hope will turn out to be an entire renovation.

I would recommend this to anyone who is receptive to deepening his or her spiritual life, particularly those who are ready for a maturing interaction with the Psalms and the self-revealing Lord who inspired them.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Excellent. So many nuggets of pure gold in here, and Peterson’s writing is some of the most beautiful and invitational I’ve encountered in a long time.

His suggestions for liturgies involving the praying of the Psalms is so instructive and challenging, and I have a lot of work to do before I’m in a place to really experience them.

I’ve started reading them regularly, rhythmically since beginning this book though, and I have noticed small ways it has changed the way I pray. Contentment in the silence, drawing in the rhythms of my body’s daily needs, being unafraid to sit in the animosity my heart naturally but unjustly holds for my enemies, and letting God meet me there in that anger. I’m looking forward to leaning in to the Psalms further with sharper eyes, and an appreciation for the construction and artistry that is so pervasive, but which I had never really seen. It also makes me really want to study ancient Hebrew - there’s so much untapped richness we lose in any English translation.

This is a book that won’t necessarily reshape your world, but it gives you the gentle prodding and the right set of tools to do it yourself. Its magic is revealed over time, and toil, and return again and again to the words of the “Praises.”

[Rhys · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book I have ever read on the Psalms. Get it and read it, whoever you are. It will expand your understanding of the psalms with scriptural expertise, but above all it will show you how the psalms are inescapably crucial for becoming a person of prayer.

Peterson's poetic prose may not agree with everyone, but I would recommend this book freely to anyone who asked me about the psalms. I've reread it numerous times in the last year, and will keep doing so.

No other book more helped me in seeing the depth, beauty, and riches of the psalms for my prayer life.

[Joyce Weaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book was such an excellent and helpful book on praying the Psalms! Peterson’s writing is just beautiful and contains so many gold nuggets that capture the wonder and awe of the gift of the Psalter.

His thesis that praying the Psalms is primarily “answering” speech, to the God who first speaks to us, is such a helpful perspective, that naturally leads us to approach God in prayer with humility as well as thanksgiving and praise!

I appreciated how Peterson approached the Psalter—rather than focusing on systematically categorizing or over-analyzing the types or the structure of Psalms, he explores the overall shape and purpose of the Psalter. He parallels the journey of the Psalms with our own lives, a path that includes a mix of laments as well as declarations of faith, but one that eventually leads to praise!

I especially enjoyed chapter 6 on Metaphor, and how the Psalms encourage us to live a “sacramental life, a life in which everything mediates God…a means for meeting God.” It felt helpful in thinking about teaching my children (and reminding myself!!) about who God is, that there are opportunities everywhere to learn about him!

I highly recommend this book, as I have been so encouraged to more intentionally pray the Psalms and let them lead and teach me to pray to the God who speaks to me!

[Luke Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

2024 Review: This is my second time through Eugene’s treatment of the Psalms, and I am still struck by his ability to say so much in such a short amount of pages. There are some wonderful insights in this little book on the psalter, the life of prayer, and Christianity/the church. It’s always good to revisit a favorite text and remind yourself of all you’ve forgotten, and I’m sure I’ll return to this one again in the coming years.

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2022 Review: This is a wonderful book on the use of the Psalms in one’s prayer life. Eugene Peterson has a wonderful way with words, and shares deep, yet accessible, insights from the Psalter.

I especially loved the chapter on the many references to enemies in the Psalter, in which Peterson wrestles with some of the Psalms that Christians try to put out of mind, because of their harsh, vindictive, and graphic nature. Peterson recognizes the humanity of these Psalms, insisting that praying our hatred is one of the best things we can do with our less-than-Christlike emotions and feelings.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone with a love for the Psalms; and especially to those who are looking for a devotional and spiritually enriching work that also takes into account historical, critical, and literary issues. No one does it better than Peterson, who is both scholar and pastor.

[Tony Villatoro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get it. Spend time in the psalms, especially in Psalm 1, 2, 4, 5, 18, 137, since they are subjects of some of the chapters. Eugene Peterson helps us see the Text (ch. 1) of the psalms, the Way (ch. 2), Language (ch. 3) and Story (ch. 4) of the psalms, their Rhythm (ch. 5), the way the psalms use Metaphor (ch. 6), the Liturgy (ch. 7), how to view our Enemies (ch. 8), how Memory (ch. 9) plays in them and what the true End (ch. 10) result is for us in the psalms. Get this book and let Peterson teach you a few things about how to use the psalms in prayer. He won’t tell you exactly what to do, but he will light a match and illuminate you to see God’s word in a way that will lead you to use a few new “tools" in your prayer time. Get it.

[Jenny Ilderton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I savoured this book and will read it again and again. Eugene Peterson has a wonderful way with words but also simplifying and clarifying what it means to pray; the psalm book is open again in wonderful paths to learn to pray to the God who invites us to respond to Him.

[Tanner Hawk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was not what I was expecting. I was expecting (and kinda hoping) that it would be a very practical book that would grow my prayer life and deepen my experience of God (I blame the word "tools" in the subtitle for these expectations). The book was much more conceptual, with Euge P. explaining a theology of prayer and using the Psalms to support that theology. But now that I think about it, it is probably a good thing that it wasn't as practical as I was wanting, because I most likely would've tried to turn prayer into a formulaic routine rather than a process of listening to God and authentically responding in prayer. So despite subverting my expectations, this book did grow my understanding of prayer and deepen my appreciation for it and for the God who speaks to us and listens to us.

"The Psalms are acts of obedience, answering the God who has addressed us. God's word precedes these words: these prayers don't seek God, they respond to the God who seeks us. These responses are often ones of surprise, for who expects God to come looking for us? And they are sometimes awkward, for in our religious striving we are usually looking for something quite other than the God who has come looking for us...What is essential in prayer is not that we learn to express ourselves, but that we learn to answer God. The Psalms show us how to answer" (p. 5-6).

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am one of Eugene Peterson's biggest champions - obviously he's known more for writing The Message, but his theology books are, I think, his greatest contribution.

A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society is one of my favorite books because in the forward Peterson talks about how there are no gimmicks to growing in Christlikeness. Prayer, community, scripture. That's it. This book expounds on the first of those, prayer.

Deftly going through themes in the Psalms, Peterson weaves a picture of a life of prayer based in the Psalms. One of the biggest ideas he draws out is the idea that prayer is not meant to be something we do in isolation, but it is meant to be done together. The praying community, the church, is the Biblical model and we would do well to focus more of our prayer life in community. The Psalms are, as he says, the key to doing that.

I love the Psalms and have read many books in the Psalms, but this one is one of the best. Get it, read it, you won't be disappointed.

(As an aside, don't miss the endnotes! Peterson is one of my favorites for the way he uses endnotes alone!)

[Jose · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started out rocking my view on the Psalms and leading me to reconsider how I pray. I really enjoyed the first half of it.
About half way through, it seemed like the analyses on the psalms ceased. He began to repeatedly dive into deep philosophical monologues where he would present colorful metaphors as he attempted to drive home points that could have been simply stated as-is in a few sentences.

I had to slog through the last few chapters. Maybe I was in the wrong place mentally when I read them, but it seemed to me like there were two books here:
Part one focused on the psalms.
Part two focused on his ideas on prayer.

I’d still recommend reading this book, if only the first half.

[Blake Chenoweth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book about prayer, the Psalms, and spiritual growth. If you know me, you probably know I love the Psalms and this book shares all the reasons why. So much honesty and passion wrapped up in the Psalms and their prayers and Eugene shares that in this brief but challenging book. It was a great follow-up book to Hearing God by Dallas Willard because after God speaks this should be our answer to him.

I recommend this book to anybody who wants a renewal of prayer in their life. A wonderful read.

[David J. Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peterson's short volume on the Psalms somehow manages to be as practically helpful as it is awe-inspiring. The book drives you to the Psalms - not back onto itself - it points away at the higher, better thing that drove the author to write in the first place.

[Molly Grimmius · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my third Eugene Peterson book. I am late to the game in knowing who he is but I have so enjoyed getting to him this past year. This one was read with my Bible Study as we went through the Psalms. It is not a commentary of each one but a looking at the Psalms as model of how we pray that we should just pray and answer our God through these psalms. “What is essential in prayer is not that we learn to express ourselves, but that we learn to answer God. The Psalms show is how to answer”
“ if we dismiss the Psalms, preferring a more up to date and less demanding school of prayer, we will not be without grace, but we will miss the center where Christ worked in his praying. Christ prayed the Psalms”
Looking forward to revisiting this in the future.

[Matthew McConnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peterson masterfully teaches us how to be taught by the Psalmists how to pray. His prose is winsome, his theology is deep, and his wisdom is profound.

[Stefanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always struggled when it comes to the book of Psalms. I've heard many speak of the Psalms as beloved friends and as a place where they go again and again to connect with the Father but they have always seemed distant and difficult to me. I'm determined to change this. This book is a good first step. I've gained insight into the Psalms that is new to me and I'm looking forward to the discipline of praying the Psalms.

[Stephen H]

(Introduction) — “Prayers are tools, but with this clarification: prayers are not tools for doing or getting, but for being and becoming… At the center of the whole enterprise of being human, prayers are the primary technology… People of faith take possession of the Psalms with the same attitude and for the same reason that gardeners gather up rake and hoe on their way to the vegetable patch, and students carry paper and pencil as they enter a lecture hall. It is a simple matter of practicality—acquiring the tools for carrying out the human work at hand.”

(Ch 2, Way) — “‘Meditate’ in Psalm 1 and ‘plot’ in Psalm 2 are the same verb. And it is the same action: a murmuring, absorbed, ruminative interest over the word of God, realizing that this is the important word, the word that determines all existence. But while Psalm 1 directs us to approach this word with delight, receiving it as life-giving, Psalm 2 shows people plotting against this word, devising schemes for getting rid of it so that they can be free of all God-interference in their lives. These people see God’s words not as javelins penetrating their lives with truth, but as chains that restrict their freedom… The people who do this appear impressive: they are both numerous (nations and peoples) and prominent (kings and rulers)… These people command most of the armies of the world, direct the advances of science, run school systems, preside over governments, and rule in the marketplaces. If these people are in active conspiracy against the rule of God, what difference can prayer make?… Intimidation is as fatal to prayer as distraction. If we are intimidated, we will forfeit the entire world of culture and politics, of business and science to those ‘who set themselves against the Lord’…

“What is at issue here is size: we require an act of imagination that enables us to see that the world of God is large… to see that the world of God’s ruling word is not an afterthought to the worlds of the stock exchange, the rocket launching, and summit diplomacy, but itself contains them. Far more is involved here than simply asserting God’s sovereignty. We need a way… for realizing the largeness of God in the midst of the competing bigness of the world. If we fail here, prayer will be stunted… Psalm 2 answers our need by presenting Messiah. Messiah is God’s person in history... Messiah is God’s entry into the world where people go to school, go to work, go to war, go to Chicago. He enters—and he enters in person. His word is not only what we meditate in the scriptures, it takes shape in history and we see it in action in a person.”

[Adam Callis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good thoughts, and Peterson definitely matches the poetry of the Psalms and respects it. He is a helpful guide to understanding them rightly and maintaining a high view of them. A few of my favorite quotes:

"Our habit is to talk about God, not to him. We love discussing God. The Psalms resist these discussions...We don't learn the Psalms until we are praying them" (12).

"Prayer requires that we deal with God—this God who is determined on nothing less than the total renovation of our lives. We would rather have a religious bull session" (12).

"The Psalms...were prayed by people who understood that God had everything to do with them. God, not their feelings, was the center. God, not their souls, was the issue. God, not the meaning of life, was critical" (14).

"There is a sense in which we can be spectators to the narratives of our own lives, detached and gossipy. Prayer is a way in, the way to receive and deepen the meaning of the narrative...Prayer is the means by which holiness/health is grafted into the unfaithful parts, inserted into the empty parts" (50).

"God does not impose his plot of salvation on the people of his story. He speaks in order to be answered...We are in a world of salvation in which God is speaking to us" (53).

"A sacrifice is the material means of assembling a life before God in order to let God work with it. Sacrifice isn't something we do for God, but simply setting out the stuff of life for him to do something with" (66).

He lost me a bit in the section on liturgy. His thesis is that the Psalms give us a liturgy for basing prayer in community, and that all prayer must rise out of community and out of liturgy, rather than out of our own feelings or experiences. Great thesis, but some of his language was confusing, almost to the point of arguing against having private prayer at all. He did go on to say that this communal, liturgical prayer will naturally spread to our private moments of praying. He refers to the Psalms as giving us a tool for undergoing the "unselfing of prayer," and I think he makes good points here. But the language was a bit confusing.

Additionally, Peterson really likes metaphor. A lot. It's good. But sometimes it made his points a bit unclear.

Great resource overall that I'll likely continue to reference. This was my first Peterson exposure aside from The Message, and I look forward to reading more.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of Peterson's books I've read so far are either directly or indirectly about prayer. And in Working the Angles, he helpfully articulated the idea that prayer is answering speech, a response to God's initiating first word. It's this idea that he takes up more fully in Answering God, helping us see how the Psalms train us in how to answer.

In this book, Peterson continues to stretch my imagination for what prayer is. He says that we won't find in the Psalms ideas about God or direction for moral conduct, but instead will "find the experience of being human before God exposed and sharpened.” Like most poetry, the Psalms "drag us into the depth of reality itself" and give us language for seeking after the best, what we most long for. And he gives clear, practical advice for how we are to mature in prayer, as most Christians in most times have done: "open our Bibles to the book of Psalms and pray them – sequentially, regularly, faithfully, across a lifetime."

Two more excellent quotes:

“Prayer is the developing of speech into maturity…This conversation is both bold and devout – the utterly inferior responding to the utterly superior. In this exchange we become persons. The entire life of faith is dialogue. By means of the Psalms we find our voice in the dialogue. In prayer we do not merely speak our feelings, we speak our answers.”

“In the crossfire of daytime voices, we become strangers to ourselves. Get acquainted again with the being that God created…There is something more important than liking or not liking yourself, more significant than the day’s accomplishments and failures; there is you. In the silence simply be the person that God is gathering into salvation.”

[Joe Colley · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those that I already feel that I need to reread.

“Prayer takes place in every detail of life, in the loneliest reaches of our hearts and the most isolated of exiles, whether geographical or emotional. There is much silence to be cultivated, and great stretches of solitude to be guarded, for these, silence and soli-tude, are as essential to the soul as meat and potatoes are to the body. But all the same, just as the basic form of humanity is community so the basic form of prayer is liturgical: the structure in which we learn to pray is the assembled and ordered community before God.

Even when we pray the Psalms by ourselves (which most people will do most of the time), we are not by ourselves: community is always implicit in the Psalms and the moment we pray them we are drawn into the community.”

[Zan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In attempting 25 in '25, I was going to just move on to my 3rd book of the year...but this book stopped me dead in my tracks. It would be a foolish thing indeed to just read it and move on. Eugene Peterson's books are always beautifully written, as he is an artist with language (I'll admit I look alot of his words up!) And they so often focus on prayer and Psalms, but this one is defining. This one gets to the root of prayer. It is foundational for seeing the largest book of the Bible as more than just a book with poetry, crying, and revenge. Answering God speaks of the bookends of Praise and Blessing, the "promise and expectation of the rich goodness of God spilling over into creation & creatures." Peterson pulls in language & liturgy, rhythm, metaphors, and even raw anger. And he ends with the beginning: Praise. Read it. You'll see.

I will take a few days to think and journal, then I will immerse myself into book #3. But I will return to #2. I will re-read and chew on it probably for many years to come. It will stay with me, I am sure, until that day when I praise Him in person.

[KentValerie Laws · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! So much in the book to think about and ponder. It is not a casual read, nor a book you would quickly read through for information. The book is filled with deep thoughts about prayer and God. One of the main ideas is “What is essential in prayer is not that we learn to express ourselves, but that we learn to answer God. The Psalms show us how to answer”
What the book is not: a book of how to pray the Psalms nor a book about the history of the Psalms.
It is a book that you could read just bits at a time or go back to for 2nd or 3rd readings. I also think it would be a good book for a Bible study with those who are deep thinkers.

[Renee Doty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a good book to reframe and reignite a desire to engage with the Psalms as tools for prayer. I keep thinking about the notion that God has already spoken to us — through his Word, his Son, his Spirit. And our response to him, our answer, is our prayer.

Rather than being a book that explores the Psalms as kinds of literature or even the histories of each individual Psalm, Peterson instead discusses the Psalms as a probe for our own lives to uncover what’s hidden and turn all of it — the beautiful and the terrible — back toward our Creator.

[Seth Norris · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I read Eugene Peterson, I can tell that I am reading someone who has prayed over the Psalms, and has grown after doing so. Passion stains the pages of this book. His writing style feels like someone woke in the middle of the night and started writing about a joyful dream. Sometimes it almost feels too philosophical, but it never feels distant from the gritty, sloppy world in which we live.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short little book is best consumed slowly. It gave me a dozen different ways to think about prayer and the Psalms. Peterson is such a thoughtful and gifted writer. And I love how he is willing to wrestle with the parts of the Psalms that are hard for our modern eyes (his chapter on their treatment of "Enemies" is fantastic).

[Aliyah Rattray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book changed the way I view the Psalms and prayer. I don’t know how to describe it other than to say that you must read it for yourself to discover the heart behind the book of Psalms and the intentionality with which it was crafted. There is so much depth waiting to be uncovered and this book greatly aided me in realizing and understanding this.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Masterful at bringing us to reality, Peterson's early work on the Psalms is inspiring. Surely our prayer life can be enlivened to match this ancient guide and experience the resulting praise we are meant for. As usual Peterson has a way with words that invites us in and it is a fun journey.

[Terence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book on prayer. I felt that I learned more from this small book than from any other book on the topic that I've read.

Mr. Peterson is right. You can't be taught what prayer is. You must learn by doing it, but this book helps.

Highly recommend.

[Haley · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is one of the most forming I’ve read. It almost feels vital. I highly recommend this book and the practice which is so patiently and honestly encourages us towards.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book I have read on the place of the Psalms in the life of the Christian. Highly recommend.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent