Search This Blog

Followers

Thursday, March 19, 2015

The Psalter as a Book of Theology -- essay - article by Patrick Miller, Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary

from Psalms in Community [Jewish & Christian Textual, Liturgical, and Artistic Traditions] (SBL, 2003):
"In book 4 the climax of the Psalter's theology is reached.  In this book the voices of both Moses (Psalm 90) and David (Psalms 101 & 103) are heard.  The anointed of the Lord is still in view, but the larger picture of God's rule and of God's work in creation and history is to the fore.  That is indicated in several ways.  These include the placing of the other great leader of the people, Moses, as the opening voice; the presence of two extended recapitulations of Israel's history at the end of the book, one recounting the Lord's acts of deliverance (Psalm 105) and one recounting the many deeds of rebellion that brought the people of Israel under judgment but not to full abandonment (Psalm 106); and especially the sustained and repeated exaltation of the rule of Yahweh over the whole world.  Yahweh's rule over Israel and all the nations is declared again and again in the enthronement psalms at the center of book 4, Psalms 93 - 99, with their ringing cry: "The Lord is king / The Lord rules!"  The book concludes with a response to the claims and queries at the end of book 3, declaring that "for their sake he remembered his covenant and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love" (Psalm 106:45), notes that have been sounded again and again (Psalm 92:2 / 94:18 / 98:3 / 100:5 / 103:4, 8, 11, 17 / 105: 8 - 10, 42 / 106: 2, 7)." (pages 92 - 93)

No comments: