Since Gerald H. Wilson’s landmark work on The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter was published in 1985, scholars have been divided on how to interpret the appearances of the king in book V (Pss 107–150). Many have supported Wilson’s argument for competing redactional frames between Psalms 1–89 and 90–150, with Psalm 89 representing the apparent … Read more
Two themes drive this proposal. First, scholars have recently examined the significance of the Psalter’s broad theological movement from lament to praise. For instance, Waltke and Zaspel (How to Understand the Psalms, Crossway, 2023, 494) note that “given the exilic or early postexilic timeframe” of the Psalms’ final arrangement, it appears probable that “it reflects … Read more
Exegetical and theological studies of the Psalms generally use the Masoretic Hebrew text or derived translations as the basis for reading with little or no engagement with alternative traditions and the discipline of textual criticism. Psalm 18 is a special case that problematizes this working practice and demonstrates how textual criticism has the potential to … Read more
The first word of the Psalter (’ašrê) encourages believers to read it (sing it and/or pray it) as a manual for (true) happiness. This understanding is supported by the following two facts: the first two psalms form a double introduction to the whole book framed by the key term ’ašrê (Ps 1:1 and Ps. 2:12), … Read more
Psalm 82 has been fraught with interpretive difficulties throughout most of the history of its reception. Most of these difficulties are focused on the gods of the divine council in verses 1 and 6. The psalm has also been a favorite for comfort in knowing that God will bring about ultimate justice. The perennial problem … Read more
This paper proposes that Psalm 145:18 alludes to Deuteronomy 4:7. To date, although some interpreters have noted the two texts as cross-references,[1] seemingly none have proposed that the psalmist alludes to Deuteronomy 4:7. This paper analyzes the lexical and contextual evidence for the allusion before considering its rhetorical role in the psalm.[2] Because of proposals … Read more
How should the reader approach the Psalms? How should he or she regard the author(s) of a psalm and the content of the psalm itself? This paper proposes the OT and NT authors present the authors of the individual psalms as prophets and the content of the psalms as prophecies. These two facts should impact … Read more
Biblical authors frequently quote psalms referring to the eschatological king and apply them to the people of God. This paper argues the prophets and apostles do not misappropriate the text in making these applications. Rather, this paper attempts to prove the psalms feature two layers of meaning. The first layer relates to the eschatological king. … Read more
Interpreters vary on the nature and significance of the superscriptions in the Psalms. Some reject their validity completely, while others believe the titles are part of the canonical text of the Psalms and, therefore, necessary for interpretation. How one understands the headings of the Psalm even has consequences for understanding key NT passages, including the … Read more
The meaning of Psalm 8:6 has long exercised interpreters. Much attention has focused on the meaning of אלהים, with some rendering it as “God” (or “divine”) in reference to the creation of humanity in the imago Dei, and others taking it to mean “angels,” i.e., residents of the celestial realm. The ancient versions witness these … Read more