Psalter Hymnal Worship Edition

I find this Psalter-Hymnal quite useful for my devotional needs. As a psalm-singer, I love the psalms set to the Genevan tunes. I also find other psalm settings in the Bible Song section. For psalm-singing families and churches, I would suggest use of some of these psalm settings for variety in the song service.

This hymnal generally draws from the Euro-American Reformed traditions but does include some hymns from various countries with some more modern arrangements, generally eliminating archaic language (such as "Thou hast") from some of the older hymns. The first 150 songs are Psalms, some using the old Genevan Psalter tunes but others using later melodies. The reamining 500 or so hymns draw from many scriptural texts and a wide variety of sources, many of which will be familiar to regular churchgoers (while many may not be). A lot of thought and care went into compiling this hymnal and there aren't any "throwaway" tunes or texts. Indexed by title, tune, author/composer, topic, and scriptural references.

As a Christian in the Reformed tradition, I enjoy this hymnal a lot. It contains both great hymns and the whole Psalter, as well as great ecumenical and Reformed creeds and liturgy. Why only four stars? Though I generally support updating hymn language you can go to far, and every once in a while the PH does so. Also, some major hymns in the Evangelical and Reformed tradition are missing: in other words, "WHERE IS ROCK OF AGES???" Other than that, it's great.

The Psalter Hymnal ranks second only to the Bible, in my opinion. This book is a must have for anyone interested at all in music history, theory, or appreciation. The pages of this book are filled with amazing songs for any occasion of the Church calendar. The later pages of the Psalter Hymnal contain doctrine accepted by the Christian Reformed Church such as the Apostles' Creed and the Heidelberg Chatecism. The Psalter Hymnal is a must have for anyone of or intrigued by the Christian faith.