Sing a New Psalm:
Communicating with God Through
the Prayers of the Church
Volume I: Lauds & Vespers
Lesson 15 Let My Prayer Be As Incense
Psalm 16, Psalm 116:10–19, and Psalm 141
Sunday 1st Vespers (Week II)
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)*
New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE)*
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Rosarium Virginis Mariae (Rosary of the Virgin Mary)
ex libris (in our library)
next lesson: His Mercy Endures Forever
This material coordinates with Lesson 15, “Let My Prayer Be As Incenses,” on pages 64–67 in Sing a New 
Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. Our Catholic Bible study is based on The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, a psalms translation prepared by the monks at Conception Abbey in 2010 and first published as The Revised Grail Psalms. The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is a revision of that work, finished in 2020 and now owned by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Wording and numbering of some psalms in other translations may differ. This translation is being added to all English-language Liturgy of the Hours books used in the United States.
“Unlike other prayers in sacred Scripture, the prayers contained in the psalms are not inserted into a narrative story that specifies their meaning and function. Instead, the psalms are given to the believer precisely as a text of prayer. Since they are the Word of God, the believer who prays the psalms speaks to God using the very words that God himself has given to us. Thus, in praying the psalms we learn to pray. The psalms are a school of prayer.”—Pope Benedict XVI
welcome to our in-depth study of the psalms
We invite groups and individuals to check out the sample Introduction and Lesson 1 from this 28-
lesson Turning to 
God’s Word Catholic Bible study. Our online study pages include additional questions, commentary, and prayers based on the psalm texts. Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers has been granted an imprimatur. A digital version of can be purchased from our website shop. Volume II covers psalms prayed at Vigils, Day Prayer, and Compline. If you have a Bible-related question or comment, click on one of the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” buttons on any online study page.
open with prayer
It’s always wise to begin any Bible study with prayer, whether reading the Scriptures alone or meeting with others in a discussion study group. You can pray using your own words, pray one of the psalms in this lesson, or use one of the opening prayers on our website. We especially like the following:
Lord Jesus, you promised to send your Holy Spirit
to teach us all things.
As we read and study your word today,
allow it to touch our hearts and change our lives. Amen.
about the psalms in this lesson**
During Ordinary Time, the monks at Conception Abbey pray the following psalms for Sunday First Vespers Week II: Psalm 16, a hymn of trust written by David; Psalm 116:10–19, wisdom poetry by an anonymous composer; and Psalm 141, an individual or personal lament composed by David. (The beginning verses in Psalm 116 are covered in Lesson 27, “The LORD Remembers Us.”)
a passage omitted from Liturgy of the Hours books
A difficulty for Christians who wish to incorporate the psalms into their prayers is that in some of these 
ancient hymns the Psalmists blatantly curse their enemies and ask the LORD to deal harshly with those enemies. This is disturbing enough that the editors compiling the four-week Liturgy of the Hours books chose to leave out a few problematic verses. Psalm 141:10 is omitted from current four-week Liturgy of the Hours books but prayed by the monks at Conception Abbey and included in this lesson and in Lesson 1 Set a Guard on My Mouth). Consider why the editors of Liturgy of the Hours books might have felt that this verse shouldn’t be included in their collection of prayers.
all omissions are noted in this study
Omissions in the four-week Liturgy of the Hours books are addressed in Volume I and Volume II. For a complete list, click on this link, which includes a comparison of the two-week cursus (schedule) used at Conception Abbey and in both volumes of our study with the four-week Roman cursus followed by current Liturgy of the Hours books.
find a way to pray the psalms that works for you
“Let My Prayer Be As Incense” is the title of this lesson. There are many ways to go about praying the psalms. Although these prayers originally were intended to be sung, not everyone is musically inclined. 
Perhaps you’re more comfortable writing your thoughts. If visual arts are your thing, you might want to 
consider creating a prayer journal that focuses on your own drawings inspired by Scripture. For examples of visual lectio divina, check out the illustrated prayer journal created by Turning to God’s Word co-founder Tami Palladino. That collection of meditations accompanies the Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study The Letter to the Hebrews: An Explanation of the Mechanism of Our Salvation. Click to enlarge Tami’s illustration for Lesson 15 in our psalms Bible study. The illustration also is printed on page 65 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers.
how might your prayers be considered a sacrifice?
Although Christians often view prayer as a duty, it’s less common for us to think of praying as offering a sacrificial gift to God. The title of this lesson is taken from Psalm 141. The image of prayer as the scent of burning incense rising to God provides an important clue about David’s state of mind. Because incense is associated with sacrifice, the connection between prayer and sacrifice isn’t difficult to see. In the present day, people are likely to lose sight of sacrifice as a gift. By associating prayer and incense, David is suggesting that our prayer needs to be as persistent as smoke that rises when incense is burned. David also is suggesting that it isn’t necessary for us to do anything particularly flashy to get God’s attention. Not to be overlooked is the importance of the time factor. Our prayers are to be like incense offered during the evening oblation, a repetitive act through which we habitually address the Creator of the universe. You can read more in “Prayer as a Sacrifice” on page 64 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers.
prayers offered for the world
Throughout the psalms it is suggested that the very act of prayer constitutes a sacrifice and is a gift to God. For Christians, the obvious daily sacrifice of prayer is Liturgy of the Hours, also called the Divine Office or the Breviary. When praying Liturgy of the Hours—or any of the individual psalms—it can be helpful to keep in mind that these prayers developed as a type of sacrifice. Christians who pray the psalms join the universal Church in offering prayers on behalf of the world.
the popes inspire us—uniting prayer with existence
Don’t overlook “A Sacrificial Act” on page 65 in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. In an excerpt from a general audience, Pope St. John Paul II explains how a sincere prayer becomes a sacrifice to God, allowing the person who’s praying to offer his or her very existence to the LORD. Consider what the LORD might offer in return.
praying in the name of the LORD
Participants in one of our Des Moines groups spent some time discussing the phrase “I will call on the name of the LORD,” which appears twice in Psalm 116:10–19. Repetition indicates that these words hold special significance for the unidentified Psalmist, but the idea of the meaning of a person’s name has changed somewhat between the time that the psalms were written and now. To the ancients, a name was more than a simple label that could be used to distinguish one person from another. A person’s name represented his or her essence. When the Psalmist calls on the name of the LORD, he’s saying that he has a close and intimate enough relationship with God to know God’s name. The anonymous Psalmist already is on personal terms with God. He expects God to respond because God is familiar with him and with details of his life. God and this anonymous Psalmist know each other well.
ex libris—insights related to using God’s name in prayer
The psalms have been considered the prayer of the Church since the earliest days of Christianity, and 
Christians can benefit from thinking about the most effective ways to 
pray. The Our Father: A New Reading, a short, easily accessible work by German Scripture scholar Gerhard Lohfink, provides an antidote to something many Christians struggle with—treating the Our Father and other rote prayers in a routine or ho-hum manner. While the author writes in depth about each of the petitions in the Our Father, his insights into the title that Jesus taught us to address God are enlightening to any discussion about the name of the LORD. Read excerpts and learn more about The Our Father: A New Reading and other works related to Bible study at ex libris—main bookshelf.
the God of the Hebrews is relational
In Old Testament tradition, the name of the LORD was so holy that it never was to be spoken. The third chapter in the book of Exodus describes God revealing his name to Moses at the burning bush. In The Abbey Psalms and Canticles and The Revised Grail Psalms as well as in other English translations of Scripture, this unspeakable name of God is indicated by LORD. (Lord, on the other hand, is a simple title of respect given to another person.) It’s of some interest that prior to the time of Moses, no one knew God by name. Hebrews referred to God in terms of God’s relationship with their patriarchs—”the 
God of Abraham,” “the God of Abraham and Isaac,” or “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” The occasional use of LORD in the first five books of the Old Testament supports scholarly opinion that all of these books of Scripture were written no earlier than the time of Moses. Some scholars advance 
the idea that the Torah wasn’t compiled until much later, possibly during the reign of Josiah, and put in final form shortly thereafter at the time of the Babylonian Captivity. You can learn more about God’s conversation with Moses in Lesson 3 God Reveals His Name: ‘I AM WHO I AM’ in the Turning to God’s 
Word Catholic Bible study You Shall Have No other Gods: The Book of Exodus. Learn more about the lives of the Old Testament patriarchs in our in-depth Catholic Bible study In the Beginning: The Book of Genesis. The Turning to God’s Word overview of the prophets—Thus Says the LORD: God Speaks 
Through His Servants the Prophets—provides additional information about events leading to the Babylonian Captivity (Volume I: A Kingdom Divided) and activity of God’s people following that exile (Volume II: Restoration & Redemption).
what do you think about your relationship with God?
It’s always a good idea to consider where we stand in terms of our faith, as well as what we could be doing better.
? In the Scriptures, we read about the relationships God enters into with various men and women. Based on your previous knowledge of the Bible, which of these relationships would you like to know more about?
? With which biblical character in either the Old or the New Testament do you most closely identify?
? With which biblical character in either Testament do you feel that you have the least in common?
? Consider what an ideal relationship with God could look like.
? What can you do to come closer to that ideal?
prayer—you could look it up in our archives
When Catholics pray, we very frequently use the words of the Our Father (the Lord’s Prayer). The Gospel According to Matthew 6:7–15 records Jesus teaching this prayer to his disciples. In Lost in Translation, Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps helps readers connect with ideas expressed in the original languages of the Scriptures, including in this prayer. New Lost in Translation entries are posted on Mondays, and past entries are archived on our website. Contact us if you’d like to receive Lost in Translation by email every week.
read the Catechism—thanksgiving & sacrifice & Eucharist
Psalm 116:10–19 ends with the unidentified Psalmist offering a thanksgiving sacrifice, which Christians view in light 
of the sacrament of the Eucharist. Paragraph 1356 through paragraph 1361 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church explain the connection between thanksgiving, sacrifice and the sacrament of the Eucharist. The bare-bones gist of this teaching can be summed up this way in paragraph 1358 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
1358 We must therefore consider the Eucharist as:
—thanksgiving and praise to the Father;
—the sacrificial memorial of Christ and his Body;
—the presence of Christ by the power of his word and of his Spirit.
watch some videos—understanding Old Testament liturgy
People in one of our psalms study groups expressed interest in learning more about ancient Hebrew worship practices. We recommend the videos recorded during author Matthew Phelps’ conference talks at our 2017 summer Bible study retreat. For these videos and talks from other previous retreats, check out our video page. You can learn more about the New Testament apocalyptic 
vision of heaven that builds on Old Testament prophecy in the Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study The Revelation of Jesus Christ: The Faithful Witness.
a translation difference: good vs. happiness
Psalm 16:2 in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is translated: “I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord. You, you alone are my good.” The Revised Grail Psalms translates the same verse: “I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord. My happiness lies in you alone.” At issue is whether goodness and happiness are the same thing, and which most accurately reflects David’s original intention. Which translation do you prefer? (Note that it is not possible to link to The Abbey Psalms and Canticles or The Revised Grail Psalms; all links on the online pages are to the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition [RSVCE]).
a translation difference related to death
Psalm 16:10 in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is translated: “For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor let your holy one see corruption.” The Revised Grail Psalms translates the same verse: “For you will not abandon my soul to hell, nor let your holy one see corruption.” Similarly, Psalm 141:7 in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is translated: “As clods of earth plowed up on the ground, so their bones were strewn at the mouth of Sheol.” The Revised Grail Psalms translates that verse: “As clods of earth plowed up on the ground, so their bones were strewn at the mouth of the grave.” The word “Sheol” refers to the Hebrew abode of the dead, a place that is similar to the Greek Hades. Although sometimes thought to be synonymous with the Christian idea of hell, neither Hades nor Sheol were considered places of punishment. It’s possible that editors at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) may have made this change from “the grave” to “Sheol” in order to reflect Hebrew thinking at the time most of the psalms were written.
a translation switch in the order of phrases
Psalm 116:17 in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is translated: “I will offer you a thanksgiving sacrifice; I will call on the name of the LORD.” The Revised Grail Psalms translates the same verse: “I say to the LORD, “A thanksgiving sacrifice I make. I will call on the name of the LORD.” On the face of it, this USCCB change appears to have little to do with a change in meaning, although The Abbey Psalms and Canticles translation sets the sacrifice in the future and The Revised Grail Psalms has the same sacrifice being offered in the present tense. What are the pros and cons of each?
two translation differences: the upright vs. a good man & the just
Psalm 141:5 in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles is translated: “If the upright strike me it is kindness,” and Psalm 142:8 (Psalm 142:7 in Revised Standard Version Catholic editions) is translated: “Around me the upright will assemble.” The Revised Grail Psalms translates the same verses: “If a good man strikes me it is kindness,” and “Around me the just will assemble.” It appears that USCCB editors decided to substitute “upright” or some variation of that word for most—but not all—of the times that the original translators of The Revised Grail Psalms chose “justice” or some similar word. Why do you think that might be? (Note also that there is a difference between the plural “upright” used in The Abbey Psalms and Canticles and the singular “good man” used in The Revised Grail Psalms translation of Psalm 141.)
the best Catholic commentary about Scripture
To find out more about how Church teaching is supported by passages in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers, check out the Index of Citations in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Links to the primary Scripture passages in the lesson (Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition [RSVCE*]) and relevant paragraphs in the Catechism are provided here. Not every passage in the biblical text for this study is referenced in a Catechism paragraph, however, including Psalm 141 in this lesson.
Psalm 16:9–10—paragraph 627
Psalm 116:12—paragraph 224
Psalm 116:13—paragraph 1330
Psalm 116:17—paragraph 1330
don’t forget about our indexes & extra online material
If you’re trying to locate information about a specific Scripture passage, you can look it up in the index at the back of the study book. If you want to find a particular commentary, you can look up its title in the topics index. To learn more about another book of the Bible for which there’s a Turning to God’s Word study, visit the online study directories to read the commentaries and watch any accompanying videos. Finally, if you have a question or would like to make a comment about any of our studies, you can use one of the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” buttons to email our authors.
ex libris—Church documents & books about religious topics
Link to magisterial documents referred to in our Bible studies at ex libris—magisterial documents. This listing includes significant recent encyclicals as well as a number of historical Church documents. Recommended books related to Scripture study can be found at ex libris—main bookshelf.
wondering how to pronounce some of these words?
The following links are to readings from the New International Version (NIV) Bible. To listen, open one of the links and click on the audio icon above the printed text. Although not taken from the translations used in our study materials, the NIV readings provide an audio guide to pronunciation of many words in this lesson’s primary biblical texts. A close online version of the translation of the Bible used in Catholic liturgy in the United States as well as an audio guide for daily Mass readings for the current month can be found on the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
Psalm 141 (NIV)
Psalm 116:10–19 (NIV)
Psalm 16 (NIV)
close with a psalms-based prayer for Sunday 1st Vespers Week II
Many of our Catholic study groups like to conclude their discussions with a prayer based on the scriptural focus of their lesson. If you’re uncomfortable composing your own Bible-based prayers, you can follow our four easy steps. If you prefer, you can pray any of the psalms in this lesson, or you can use the following short prayer.
O God, you show us the safe path of life.
Grant that we may be diligent in speaking words
of kindness and truth to others,
and in speaking words of praise and thanksgiving to you.
Be at our side to guide us through difficult situations
in which we’re tempted to sin.
We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ,
whom you sent to open for us the way to eternal life. Amen.
Lesson 16 His Mercy Endures Forever, Sunday Lauds (Week II)—Psalm 118, Psalm 148, and Psalm 150
Lesson 14 Majesty Set Above the Heavens, Saturday Lauds (Week I)—Psalm 8 and Psalm 65
you also may like our study of the book of Genesis
The first seven lessons of In the Beginning: The Book of Genesis, a 28-lesson Catholic Bible study with an imprimatur, provide an in-depth look at the very earliest biblical history—including the two accounts of Creation, events surrounding the Fall of Adam and Eve, the relationship between Cain and Abel, and the baptismal foreshadowing present in the account of Noah and the Flood. Remaining lessons look at lives of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Click here to view a sample of the first lesson.
start a Turning to God’s Word Bible study
Thank you for your interest in Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. 
More information about beginning a Turning to God’s Word Bible study can be found on this website at start a Bible study, and Tami, Matthew, and I are available to answer questions or discuss concerns. Contact us to start this or one of our other studies or to have your schedule listed with other TtGW study groups on our website. —Jennifer
*There are seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament—Baruch, Judith, Sirach, Tobit, Wisdom, and First and Second Maccabees—and there are some deuterocanonical passages in the Books of Daniel and Esther. Protestants usually refer to these works as “apocryphal,” a word that means “outside the (Protestant) canon” because they’re excluded from most Protestant Bibles. Deuterocanonical means “second canon”; Catholics use that word to refer to any section of the Catholic Old Testament for which there are no extant, or existing, Hebrew manuscripts. All of the deuterocanonical books appear in the Septuagint, the earliest remaining versions of which date to the 1st century B.C. This Greek translation of the Old Testament was in common use by Jews at the time of Jesus. Learn more by reading How Do Catholic & Protestant Bibles Differ?
**You can learn more about the psalms by viewing a sample lesson from the Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church. The first volume covers psalms prayed at Lauds and Vespers; the second covers psalms prayed at Vigils, Day Prayer, and Compline. Numbering of psalms and verses may vary in different translations.
Turning to God’s Word printed Bible studies use the 2006 Revised Standard Version Second Catholic Edition (RSV2CE) translation for all Scripture references except those to the psalms, which are taken from The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, prepared by the Benedictine monks of Conception Abbey and published in 2020 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). All Scripture links for the online study pages for Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers are to the 1966 Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE) translation. The New International Version (NIV) audio recordings follow the same chapter and verse numbering as the RSV Catholic translations, but the NIV translation doesn’t include the deuterocanonical books and passages.
The 1966 RSVCE uses archaic pronouns and verb forms such as “thee,” “thou,” and “didst” in the psalms and in direct quotations attributed to God. The 2006 RSV2CE replaces these with more accessible English. The few significant translation changes in the RSV2CE include rendering almah as “virgin” in the Book of Isaiah 7:14 and restoring the term “begotten” in the Gospel According to John 3:16.
Numbering varies for some passages in this Bible study. Turning to God’s Word studies (print and digital) follow the numbering in the Revised Standard Version Catholic translations (RSV2CE and RSVCE). Discrepancies in the New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE) are noted in the Index of Scripture Citations in the study book.