Rude Praise
Sermons on Poorly Behaved Psalms
- Preaching & Worship
- Biblical Studies & Commentaries
- Publisher: Cascade Books (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2026
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Publisher's Description
When we read the Bible, we tend to race to our favorite passages. When we encounter a passage we don’t understand or like, or even one that is positively offensive, we tend to move on. We “eat the fish and leave the bones,” in a popular way of putting this approach to reading. But what if the bones are what we need? The psalms of Israel are full of glories that anyone can access: “The Lord is my shepherd.” “I lift up mine eyes to the hills.” But there are other, more infamous passages: “Happy are they who take your little ones and dash them against the rock.” Other passages insist that I, I alone, am righteous, and my enemies should be destroyed. These verses don’t find their way into needlepoint or cat posters at the dentist’s office. We usually ignore them in our teaching and devotional reading. But what if they’re in the Bible for a reason? What if they offer a kind of fiber in the diet that the body needs? What if they offer good, Jewish ballast so the ship of the church doesn’t tilt entirely over into saccharine spirituality and other-worldly Gnosticism? This book takes on the “rude psalms” that refuse to sit still and behave, and it sets them loose in the spiritual life of the church.
Endorsements (5)
“If preaching feels impossible when grief has no polite language—when rage and protest keep breaking into worship—these sermons are for you. Rude Praise refuses to police language, choosing instead to listen, to name sorrow, and to sit in the darkness without rushing to fix it. In these pages, preaching becomes communal—where God’s lament meets ours, and no one is left alone.”
“Read these sermons if at times you weep for our current world. Read them to be reminded of what great preaching is: filled with rich biblical and contemporary stories, good humor, and smart theological analysis. But most of all, read them because you need good news. Jason Byassee takes psalms of anger and lament and skillfully wrestles from them the joyous gospel of Jesus Christ and what God is doing today.”
“Once upon a time, our greatest theologians—Augustine, Jerome, Luther—preached often on the Psalms. After a hiatus, they’re at it again in this elegant volume. Much to ponder and be blessed by here!”
“What an extraordinary volume with its invitation into rude praise—as surprising as it is necessary. God invites us to be absolutely honest in our prayers, and this exceptional group of preachers helps us to wrestle with, and then to accept, God’s invitation. As they probe some of the harsh and honest words of the Bible, the words of these sermons give us permission to embrace the biblical tradition of rude praise for ourselves and in our time. With endless reasons for lament and anger, for grief and despair swirling around us, this volume offers a pathway forward in prayer that we all need.”
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