Acrostic poems include Psalms 9–10 (considered as one poem), 25, 34, 37, 111, 112, 119, and 145; Proverbs 31:10-31; Lamentations chapters 1-4, and Nahum 1:2-8.
Acrostic poems are structured such that the first letter of each line spells out a word, phrase, or the alphabet when read vertically. The Bible contains fourteen alphabetic acrostic poems. However, acrostic poems can be difficult to recognize in modern languages due to translation from ancient Hebrew.
Using alphabetical order helped students of Scripture in its original language to memorize the lines more easily. It symbolizes a completeness in the teaching as well as bringing organization and order to a world that often seems chaotic. Learning about Scripture in its linguistic context can bring new insight to readers who desire to study the Bible more deeply. Reading God's truth expressed in poetry and music in one's own language can enhance a student's ability to retain the teaching. What a gracious God to give us His Word and provide methods to help us remember it!
Psalm 119 is an important acrostic poem and the longest chapter in the Bible, made up of twenty-two stanzas of eight verses each. All eight verses in each stanza start with the same Hebrew letter with the stanzas progressing through the twenty-two successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Psalm 37 is similar in that two lines, rather than eight, begin with the same Hebrew letter. Psalms 25, 34, and 145 all advance through the Hebrew alphabet one line at a time. In contrast, Psalms 111 and 112 move through the Hebrew alphabet by clause, with two clauses per verse (and three clauses in the last two verses) to make it through the twenty-two letter alphabet in only ten verses each. Psalm 9 uses the first half of the Hebrew alphabet to start each verse and Psalm 10 uses the second half of the alphabet to finish the pattern. Outside of the Psalms, we see acrostic poems in Proverbs 31:10-31, Lamentations chapters 1-4, and Nahum 1:2-8.