In Hebrew, the Psalms are called The Book of Praises. But strangely, lament is the most common type of psalm in the Psalter. How should we think about this seeming contradiction?

Ellen F. Davis sees a vital connection between lament and praise. She writes:

When you lament in good faith, opening yourself to God honestly and fully — no matter what you have to say — then you are beginning to clear the way for praise. You are straining toward the time when God will turn your tears into laughter.

— Ellen F. Davis, Getting Involved with God: Rediscovering the Old Testament (Lanham, MD: Cowley Publications, 2001), 15.