When Paul exhorts the church in Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:19 to teach and admonish one another with “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs,” the question naturally arises—what exactly does he mean by this threefold expression?
Many Christians assume Paul is speaking of three distinct categories of music: psalms from the Old Testament, hymns composed by the church, and spontaneous spiritual songs.
But there is another historic interpretation worth careful attention: that Paul is describing different types of psalms within the Book of Psalms itself.
The Common View: Three Types of Songs
In modern evangelical thought, Paul’s words are often taken to validate a wide range of Christian music.
“Psalms” refers to the biblical psalter, “hymns” to songs written by Christians throughout history, and “spiritual songs” to more informal or contemporary compositions.
Under this interpretation, Paul’s phrase functions as a broad endorsement of variety in corporate worship music.
While this understanding is widespread today, it is not the only way Christians have read these words.
Another Perspective: Categories Within the Psalter
Some Reformed interpreters have argued that Paul’s expression should not be divided into three different sources of song but understood as three overlapping categories already present within the inspired Psalter.
The Greek translation of the Old Testament—the Septuagint (LXX)—uses precisely these terms throughout the headings of the Psalms. For instance:
- Some psalms are titled “psalm” (Greek: psalmos).
- Others are titled “hymn” (hymnos).
- Still others are labeled “song” (ōdē), often coupled with the word “spiritual” to highlight their God-given nature.
In other words, Paul is not necessarily introducing new categories of church music but pointing his readers back to the divinely inspired songbook already given to God’s people.
His language echoes the categories already used in Scripture itself.
So, let’s look at how the Greek Septuagint (LXX) actually uses the words Paul later echoes: psalms (psalmoi), hymns (hymnoi), and songs (ōdai). These aren’t arbitrary categories—when Paul wrote to Greek-speaking churches, they already knew these words as labels in their Greek Bibles.
Here are some examples from the superscriptions (titles) of the Psalms in the LXX:
Psalms (psalmoi)
Many psalms in the LXX bear this title.
- Psalm 4 (LXX 3) – A psalm of David when he escaped from before his son, Absalom.
- Psalm 5 (LXX 4) – For the end, among the psalms, a song of David.
- Psalm 6 (LXX 5) – For the end, on behalf of the inheritance, a psalm of David.
Other psalms (LXX numbering, add 1 to get the English numbers) classified as a “psalm”: Psalms 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 29, 30, 37, 39, 40, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 72, 74, 75, 76, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 86, 87, 91, 93, 97, 98, 99, 100, 107, 108, 109, 138, 139, 140, 142, 146, and 151.
Hymns (hymnoi)
The term hymn in the LXX refers to a song of praise directed to God. Some psalms are explicitly labeled as hymns.
- Psalm 7 (LXX 6) – For the end, among hymns upon the eighth, a psalm of David.
- Psalm 54 (LXX 53) – For the end, among hymns of understanding by David,
- Psalm 55 (LXX 54) – For the end, among hymns of understanding by David.
Other psalms (LXX numbering) classified as a “hymn”: Psalms 60, 66, and 75.
Songs (ōdai)
The word song (ōdē) often denotes more general singing, sometimes with a festive or celebratory tone.
- Psalm 5 (LXX 4) – For the end, among the psalms, a song of David.
- Psalm 18 (LXX 17) – For the end, of David, the servant of the Lord, that which he spoke to the Lord, the words of this song, in the day in which the Lord rescued him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
- Psalm 30 (LXX 29) – For the end, a psalm of a song of the consecration of the temple, of David.
Other psalms (LXX numbering) classified as a “song”: Psalms 38, 44, 47, 64, 65, 67, 74, 75, 82, 86, 87, 90, 91, 92, 94, 95, 107, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 130, 131, and 133.
Sometimes psalm and song appear together in the same heading—psalmos ōdēs—suggesting a fluid overlap between the terms.
Overlap of Categories
It’s worth noting that many psalms carry more than one label. For example:
- Psalm 76 (LXX 75) is called both a hymn and a song.
- Psalm 65 (LXX 64) is called both a psalm and a song. So are Psalms 4, 29, 47, 64, 65, 67, 74, 75, 82, 86, 87, 91, and 107.
- Psalm 7 (LXX 6) is called both a psalm and a hymn. So are Psalms 66 and 75.
This overlap shows that the terms weren’t rigidly exclusive categories but familiar descriptors in the inspired superscriptions.
The Significance for Paul’s Writings
When Paul tells Christians to sing “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” (Colossians 3:16; Ephesians 5:19), his readers—steeped in the Greek Psalter—would naturally hear echoes of these categories.
He wasn’t inventing new distinctions or urging them to explore uninspired music traditions but directing them back to the Psalter itself.
The terms were already written above the very songs of David, Asaph, and the sons of Korah.
Implications for the Early Church
If this interpretation is correct, Paul is urging the churches of Colossae and Ephesus to sing the psalms of David and the inspired songs of the Old Testament.
These were already familiar to Jewish and Gentile believers alike, and they provided a rich means of teaching and admonishing one another in the truth of Christ.
Far from endorsing every kind of human composition, Paul may actually be narrowing the church’s focus to the Spirit-breathed songs of Scripture.
Why “Spiritual” Songs?
One key detail is Paul’s use of the adjective “spiritual.”
He does not merely say “songs” (ōdai) but “spiritual songs” (ōdai pneumatikai).
This suggests songs given by the Holy Spirit, not songs of mere human invention.
The Psalter, inspired by the Spirit, certainly qualifies.
By this reasoning, Paul directs the church to use songs that bear the Spirit’s authority, not simply any tune that happens to mention God.
Christ in the Psalms
This reading also fits the broader New Testament witness.
Jesus Himself declared that “everything written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44).
The apostles constantly quoted and interpreted the Psalms as testimony to Christ’s kingship, His suffering, His resurrection, and His reign.
Singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, therefore, becomes a way of singing Christ Himself into the hearts of the congregation.
Conclusion
So, what did Paul mean by “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs”?
While it is true that the church has produced many edifying hymns and songs through the centuries, there is strong biblical and historical evidence that Paul was directing the church first and foremost to the Psalter—the inspired songbook of God’s people.
Far from being restrictive, this view enriches our worship.
It reminds us that the church’s singing is meant to be grounded in God’s Word, filled with Christ, and empowered by the Spirit.
Whether in joy, lament, thanksgiving, or praise, the psalms already provide the church with everything needed to sing to the glory of God.
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