ABSTRACT The Kingship of Yahweh and the Politics of Poverty and Oppression in the Hebrew Psalter Derek Edward

Wittman, Ph.D. Mentor: William H. Bellinger, Jr., Ph.D.

This dissertation is a rhetorical critical analysis of the Hebrew Psalters use of language connoting poverty to portray Yahweh, ancient Israel, and foreign nations and to structure the literary relationships between them. It advances the thesis that such language functions to portray ancient Israel as an oppressed nation, to portray foreign nations as oppressors, and to portray Yahweh as a royal figure who acts as a just arbiter between them. The introductory chapter outlines the rhetorical critical methodology of this study, highlighting its emphasis on the readers role in generating the sense of the text in light of the Psalters canonical context. It also contains a summary of scholarship on the topic of poverty in the Psalter, including the issues of defining the scope of terminology that connotes poverty in the Psalter and determining the degree to which the Psalter views poverty in a literal or spiritual manner. The second chapter addresses the royal portrayal of Yahweh in the Psalter through the three lenses of scholarship on the enthronement psalms, theological analysis, and canonical criticism, and it includes a discussion of the significance of the relationship between the royal metaphor and the refuge metaphor in

understanding the Psalters view of poverty. The third chapter outlines the Psalters portrayal of ancient Israel as an oppressed nation, with a particular emphasis on the communal psalms of lament and thanksgiving. It also includes a discussion of the Psalters tendency to portray foreign nations in a negative light. The fourth chapter is an exegetical analysis of ten psalms that contain these three elements: language connoting poverty, references to foreign nations, and the royal portrayal of Yahweh. It demonstrates that the structures of these psalms lead the reader toward the conclusion that foreign oppressors are to be blamed for the suffering of an impoverished ancient Israel. Chapter five consists of a contextual analysis of these ten psalms. It addresses the repetition of the three aforementioned elements in psalms that precede and follow them. The final chapter contains an assessment of the studys implications for future scholarship on the Psalter and for practical theology.

The Kingship of Yahweh and the Politics of Poverty and Oppression in the Hebrew Psalter by Derek Edward Wittman, B.A., M.A. A Dissertation Approved by the Department of Religion ___________________________________ William H. Bellinger, Jr., Ph.D., Chairperson Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Baylor University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Approved by the Dissertation Committee ___________________________________ William H. Bellinger, Jr., Ph.D., Chairperson ___________________________________ James D. Nogalski, Ph.D. ___________________________________ C. Randall Bradley, D.M.A. ___________________________________ W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., Ph.D.

Accepted by the Graduate School December 2010 ___________________________________ J. Larry Lyon, Ph.D., Dean

Page bearing signatures is kept on file in the Graduate School.

Copyright 2010 by Derek Edward Wittman All rights reserved

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF FIGURES LIST OF TABLES ACKNOWLEDGMENTS DEDICATION Chapter ONE Introduction, Methodology, Previous Scholarship, and Overview Introduction Methodology Previous Scholarship Overview TWO The Royal Portrayal of Yahweh in the Psalms Introduction The Enthronement Psalms Theological Approaches Canonical Approaches Yahwehs Kingship and the Refuge Metaphor Conclusion THREE The Portrayal of Ancient Israel and Foreign Nations in the Psalms Introduction The Psalters Portrayal of Ancient Israel The Psalters Portrayal of Foreign Nations Conclusion FOUR The Juxtaposition of Divine Kingship, Foreign Nations, and Poverty in the Hebrew Psalter Introduction Scope of Terminology to be Analyzed Analysis of Selected Psalms Conclusion

vi vii viii x

1 1 2 7 23 27 27 28 39 50 58 61 63

63 63 84 102 103

103 104 111 157

iv

FIVE

Microcanonical Analysis of Selected Psalms Introduction The Literary Context of Selected Psalms Conclusion

161 161 163 187 189 189 204 208

SIX

Implications of the Study and Conclusion Implications of the Study Conclusion

BIBLIOGRAPHY

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: The Symbolic World of Selected Psalms

158

vi

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: References to Ancient Israel in the Psalms

79

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express gratitude to Dr. Bill Bellinger for the immensely valuable and insightful contributions he has made as director of this dissertation. His guidance and encouragement have benefited me greatly throughout my journey as a doctoral student, and I consider it a privilege to have been taught by him. I am also grateful for the helpful comments of the other members of my Dissertation Committee. Dr. James Nogalskis suggestions have been invaluable in strengthening the arguments advanced in this study. I would like to thank Dr. Randall Bradley for his helpful feedback on this project and for all of the wisdom that he has imparted to me over the course of many years. I am also in the debt of Dr. Dennis Tucker, whose scholarship inspired this dissertation. Lastly, I want to express gratitude to Dr. Doug Weaver and Dr. Rady Roldan-Figueroa for participating in the oral defense of this dissertation. Many thanks also to all of the friends who provided support and encouragement throughout this process. I am grateful to my friends and colleagues in the Department of Religion at Baylor Universityespecially Dr. Trisha Wheelock, Dr. Christine Jones, Delayne Vaughn, Ginny Brewer-Boydston, Dr. Jason Whitt, and Dr. John Inscore Essickfor the myriad of stimulating conversations that challenged me to grow academically and personally. I also want to thank the partner families, staff, volunteers, and Board of Directors of Flatirons Habitat for Humanity in Boulder, CO, for their kind words of encouragement during the writing process and for welcoming me as a fellow laborer in the struggle against poverty. Thanks also to my friends in the Chancel Choir of

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St. Pauls Episcopal Church in Waco, TX, who taught me to sing the Psalms and whose support has meant a great deal to me. Finally, I want express a special word of thanks to my mother, Joyce Wittman, whose life of dedicated service as a teacher inspired my love of learning. I could not have completed this process without her love, patience, motivation, and support. I will be forever grateful to her for all of the sacrifices that she made in order to make my academic pilgrimage possible.

ix

For Leticia Aguilera, who deserves so much and gives so much more

CHAPTER ONE Introduction, Methodology, Previous Scholarship, and Overview

Introduction In the second stanza of the Advent hymn "There's a Voice in the Wilderness Crying," James L. Milligan restates the poetry of Isa 40:6-11 in this way: O Zion, that bringest good tidings, Get thee up to the heights and sing! Proclaim to a desolate people The coming of their King. Like the flowers of the field they perish, Like grass our works decay, The power and pomp of nations Shall pass like a dream away.1 The stanza opens with a reference to "Zion," thus drawing the concept of Israel into the consciousness of the reader. Israel is portrayed as a "desolate" nation, a term that in the English language can mean "destitute."2 The Israel that is addressed is a nation in need, experiencing some form of want. They are, however, the recipients of "good tidings," the content of which is the imminent arrival of God, here portrayed as a "King." Thereupon, the reader learns that the "power and pomp of nations" will pass away like a dream. These nations must be regarded as distinct from "desolate" Israel, to whom the terms "power" and "pomp" can hardly apply in this context. It is implied, though not explicitly stated, that the arrival of the divine King is the cause of the nations' downfall. It is not too great a leap of logic, either, for the reader to suppose that these nations are the cause Episcopal Church, The Hymnal 1982 (New York: Church Hymnal Corporation, 1985), 75. Jean L. McKechnie, ed., Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged (Cleveland: World Publishing Company, 1973), 494. 1
2 1

of Israel's desolation. What we appear to have in this rendering of Isaiah's words, then, is a stanza of a hymn in which God, as king, avenges a destitute Israel against powerful and pompous foreign oppressors. Such songs were sung in ancient Israel, too, and some of them were preserved in the Hebrew Psalter. It is the purpose of this dissertation to analyze how language connoting poverty and oppression combined with royal metaphors applied to God influences the portrayal of God, ancient Israel, and foreign nations in the Psalms and structures the literary relationships between them. In this study, I demonstrate how structures within the text lead the reader toward conclusions about each of these three entities through an analysis of the Hebrew Psalter's rhetoric on the subject of poverty and oppression. In so doing, I advance the thesis that the language of poverty and oppression in the Hebrew Psalter functions to portray ancient Israel as poor and oppressed, to portray foreign nations as oppressive, and to portray Yahweh in the royal role of a just arbiter between them.

Methodology Generally speaking, the methodological approach employed in this dissertation is that of rhetorical criticism. I prefer the broad definition of that term offered by James Muilenburg: understanding the nature of Hebrew literary composition, in exhibiting the structural patterns that are employed for the fashioning of a literary unit, whether in poetry or prose, and in discerning the many and various devices by which the predications are formulated and ordered into a unified whole.3

James Muilenburg, Form Criticism and Beyond, JBL 88 (1969): 8. 2

That is, I am interested in identifying and describing literary structures and devices in the Hebrew Psalter that guide the reader toward a coherent understanding of how poverty and oppression are to be understood within that text. Under the broad umbrella of rhetorical criticism, there are a number of methodological facets that shape the particular approach in this study. One such facet is the consideration of the canonical shape of the Hebrew Psalter. Canon and rhetoric are commonly discussed as distinct methodological approaches,4 but it seems, at least in the context of Psalms scholarship, that canonical criticism amounts to rhetorical analysis of a unit larger than the individual pericope. One of the most important findings yielded by canonical analysis of the Psalms is Gerald Wilsons conclusion that the Psalter counters continuing concern for the restoration of the Davidic dynasty and kingdom with the wise counsel to seek refuge in a kingdom not of this worldthe eternal kingdom in which YHWH alone is king.5 This observation that Yahwehs kingship lies at the rhetorical center of the Hebrew Psalter is of immense significance in this study, as the royal portrayal of Yahweh serves as the point of reference from which to view how ancient Israel and foreign nations are related to one another in this text. Another important contribution to the canonical analysis of the Psalter is David Howards attention to significant links between adjacent psalms.6 Howards approach of analyzing lexical See, for example, the separate chapters on canon and rhetoric in W. H. Bellinger, Jr., A Hermeneutic of Curiosity and Readings of Psalm 61 (SOTI 1; Macon: Mercer University Press, 1995), 57-88. Gerald Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter: A Consideration of Editorial Linkage in the Book of Psalms," in The Shape and Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter (JSOTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton McCann, Jr.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 81. David M. Howard, Jr., A Contextual Reading of Psalms 90-94, in The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter, 109. 3
6 5 4

repetition in neighboring psalms serves as a template for the analysis of the rhetorical effect of royal metaphors for Yahweh, references to poverty and oppression, and references to foreign nations in psalms that surround the ten psalms that are central to this study. A second facet of the rhetorical methodology employed in this dissertation is the analysis of the symbolic world that a psalm creates through its presentation of characters and the relationships between them. William H. Bellingers discussion of rhetoric as a methodological approach includes subcategories of characterization and plot; his discussion of plot includes analysis of the psalms characters and their relationships.7 The discussion of the portrayal of Yahweh, ancient Israel, and foreign nations and the structure of the relationships between them in the Hebrew Psalter resembles the approach that Bellinger describes in his analysis of the relationships between God, the speaker, the enemy, the community, and the king in Psalm 61.8 Specifically, I intend to show how, in the role of a just king, Yahweh provides justice for the poor and oppressed (of whom ancient Israel is a particular case) and exacts vengeance from their oppressors (of whom foreign nations are particular cases). A third aspect of the rhetorical approach in this dissertation will be the consideration of the way in which the text impacts the reader. Bellinger discusses rhetoric in terms of the ways the text uses language to create and communicate its message so as to convince its reader.9 Paul Ricoeur addresses this issue of the Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 85. See pp. 82-87 for his full discussion of characterization and plot.
8 7

Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 84-87. Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 71. 4

interaction between text and reader when he writes, The right of the reader and the right of the text converge in an important struggle that generates the whole dynamic of interpretation.10 For Ricoeur, the role of the author recedes, because, in the act of writing, the text acquires semantic autonomy and there is a disconnection of the mental intention of the author from the verbal meaning of the text.11 The key players in the act of interpretation, then, are text and reader. The text possesses a universal power of world disclosure,12 to which the reader responds by appropriating the text in a manner that complies with the injunction of the text, that follows the arrow of the sense and that tries to think accordingly, and thus initiates a new self-understanding.13 In the context of this study, a particularly helpful way of thinking about how the reader follows the texts arrow can be found in Wolfgang Isers discussion of gaps or blanks in literary texts that readers must fill.14 For Iser, a blank is a vacancy in the overall system of the text, the filling of which brings about an interaction of textual patterns.15 The reader becomes involved in the process of determining the meaning of the text because the blanks initiate an interaction whereby the hollow form of the text is

Paul Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory: Discourse and the Surplus of Meaning (Ft. Worth: The Texas Christian University Press, 1976), 32.
11

10

Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory, 29-30. Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory, 95. Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory, 94.

12

13

See also Bellingers discussion of this phenomenon in Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 98-99, in which he emphasizes the role of the reader in making sense of the text and describes the phenomenon's role in his own interpretation of Psalm 61. Wolfgang Iser, The Act of Reading: A Theory of Aesthetic Response (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978), 182. 5
15

14

filled by the mental images of the reader.16 These insights are instrumental in this study to the extent that the connections between ancient Israel and the poor and oppressed and those between foreign nations and the oppressors are not necessarily explicit in the text of the Hebrew Psalter. I intend to show, however, that structures that invite the reader to draw precisely those connections are present in the text. Finally, with regard to the rhetorical effect of the text upon the reader, the work of Shlomith Rimmon-Kenan informs the rhetorical approach in this dissertation as well. Rimmon-Kenan argues that the text "develops in the reader a specific competence needed to come to grips with it."17 In a fashion similar to that of Iser, Rimmon-Kenan is concerned specifically with the implied reader as a "construct" within the text.18 Specifically, she refers to the "primacy effect" in which information presented early in the text influences the reader in such a way that she is inclined to interpret the text in light of that information for as long as possible.19 Rimmon-Kenan also references the "recency effect" in which the reader is inclined to reevaluate her reading of the text in light of the information that was presented last.20 She understands the experience of
16

Iser, The Act of Reading, 225.

Shlomith Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction: Contemporary Poetics (2d ed.; London: Routledge, 2002), 119.
18

17

Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction, 120.

Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction, 121. Rimmon-Kenan's discussion draws upon that of Menakhem Perry, who applies the concept of the primacy effect as discussed in psychological research to the study of literature. See Menakhem Perry, "Literary Dynamics: How the Order of a Text Creates its Meanings," Poetics Today 1 (1979): 5358. Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction, 121. Perry argues that psychological studies are less helpful in describing the role of the recency effect in literature, and he describes it as a process of "retrospective repatterning" in which the reader replaces 6
20

19

reading to be an ongoing process of forming, testing, and rethinking hypotheses about the text.21 Such a process fosters a kind of retrospective reading of the text that can lead to the refinement or the rejection of information that was presented in the past.22 The psalms under discussion in this study invite the reader to form and confirm hypotheses about the relationship between foreign nations and the poverty and oppression that the Israelite speakers are experiencing in light of the royal metaphor used with reference to God.23

Previous Scholarship As noted above, this study is essentially a rhetorical analysis of the political significance of language related to poverty in the Hebrew Psalter. Thus, a discussion of

previously formed interpretive "frames" with new ones as she encounters new material in the text (Perry, "Literary Dynamics," 57-61).
21

Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction, 122. Rimmon-Kenan, Narrative Fiction, 122-23.

22

This process is similar to what Umberto Eco calls "forecasting." He writes, "The fabula is not produced once the text has been definitely read: the fabula is the result of a continuous series of abductions made during the course of reading. Therefore the fabula is always experienced step by step" (Umberto Eco, The Role of the Reader: Explorations in the Semiotics of Texts [Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1979], 31). He defines "fabula" as "the basic story stuff, the logic of actions or the syntax of characters, the time-oriented course of events" that may consist of "a sequence of human actions," or "a temporal transformation of ideas or a series of events concerning inanimate objects" (27). For the purposes of the present study of the Psalter, the fabula consists primarily of what Eco calls a "temporal transformation of ideas," specifically, ideas about God, ancient Israel, and foreign nations and how they are related to one another. I am concerned with the hypotheses that the text leads the reader to make and confirm about those specific relationships. Along these lines, Eco writes, "To expect means to forecast: the reader collaborates in the course of the fabula, making forecasts about the forthcoming state of affairs. . . . The end of the text not only confirms or contradicts the last forecasts, but also authenticates or inauthenticates the whole system of long-distance hypotheses hazarded by the reader about the final state of the fabula (Eco, The Role of the Reader, 32). 7

23

previous scholarship on the topic of poverty in the Psalms must precede the specific arguments that I am advancing. As has been recognized by James McPolin, scholars wishing to discuss the issue of poverty in the Hebrew Bible have generally focused less on the Psalms than on other areas of the canon,24 notably the prophetic and legal materials. Moreover, it is often the case that those who do address the issue of poverty in the Psalter do so by examining the theme in individual psalms rather than discussing it with regard to the Psalter as a whole.25 To the extent that scholars have addressed the general theme of poverty in the Psalms, the fault lines tend to lie alongside the interrelated questions of 1) whether it is appropriate to distinguish between the meaning of yn( and that of wn( (both of which have the basic meaning "poor" or "afflicted"), 2) whether in the Psalter the concept of the "poor" (Mywn() refers to a distinct party or selfidentified group within ancient Israel, 3) the extent to which terminology other than yn( and wn( factors into the Psalter's discussion of poverty and 4) whether the Psalter is referring to material poverty, spiritual poverty, or both.

James McPolin, "Psalms as Prayers of the Poor," in Back to the Sources: Biblical and Near Eastern Studies (ed. Kevin J. Cathcart and John F. Healey; Glendale: Glendale Press Ltd., 1989), 80. See, for example, Hubert Irsigler, The Quest for Justice as Reconciliation of the Poor and the Righteous in Psalms 37, 49, and 73, ZABR 5 (1999): 258-76; C. R. Dickson, The Hebrew Terminology for the Poor in Psalm 82, in HvTSt 51 (1995): 1029-45; Notker Fglister, Die Hoffnung der Armen ist nicht fr immer verloren: Psalm 9/10 und die sozio-religise Situation der nachexilischen Gemeinde, in Biblische Theologie und gesellschaftlicher Wandel (ed. Georg Braulik, et al; Freiburg: Herder, 1993), 101-24; Walter Brueggemann, Psalms 910: A Counter to Conventional Social Reality, in The Bible and the Politics of Exegesis (ed. David Jobling, Peggy L. Day, and Gerald T. Sheppard; Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 1991), 3-14; and Raymond Jacques Tournay, Le Psaume 149 et la vengeance des pauvres de YHWH, RB 92 (1985): 34958, all of which address the theme of poverty in one or more psalms without reflecting on the theme's overall role in the Psalter. 8
25

24

Since scholars often address two or more of these questions simultaneously, my discussion here treats their views in chronological order. I address the contributions of Hermann Hupfeld, Heinrich Gretz, Alfred Rahlfs, Harris Birkeland, Sigmund Mowinckel, Hans-Joachim Kraus, Carl Schultz, Steven Croft, Sue Gillingham, Rainer Albertz, Zamani Kafang, Frank-Lothar Hossfeld, Erich Zenger, and Dennis Tucker. I conclude this discussion with an assessment of the state of the four questions mentioned above.

Hupfeld and Gretz Much of the early discussion of poverty in the Psalms focused on whether yn( and wn( differ in meaning and whether the plural form of the latter denotes a faction or party within ancient Israelite society. One early advocate for the position that yn( and wn( are synonymous was Hermann Hupfeld. Hupfeld observes that the editorial activity of the Masoretes in their use of the Kethib/Qere with regard to these terms was arbitrary in nature and that the terms' derivation from a common root suggests a common meaning.26 Heinrich Gratz similarly describes the scribal decision of whether to use yn( or wn( as an arbitrary one.27 Gratz identifies the Mywn( with the Levites, a landless class subordinate to Aaronic priests.28

26

Hermann Hupfeld, Die Psalmen (Gotha: von Friedrich Andreas Perthes, 1888),

1:141-42. Heinrich Gratz, Kritischer Commentar zu den Psalmen nebst Text und bersetzung (Breslau: Druck und Verlage von S. Schottlaender, 1882), 20.
28 27

Gratz, Kritischer Commentar zu den Psalmen, 21-25. 9

Rahlfs Contrasting with the views of Hupfeld and Gretz, an early proponent of distinguishing between yn( and wn( was Alfred Rahlfs. His position is that wn( has a religious connotation that yn( does not.29 Specifically, yn( reflects a relationship between human beings over which one does not necessarily have control whereas wn( reflects a divine-human relationship that one chooses.30 He understands the Mywn( to have been a party or faction within ancient Israelite society, though he does not agree with Gratz that they are to be identified with the Levites.31

Birkeland Like Hupfeld and Gretz, Harris Birkeland argues against distinguishing between the meanings of yn( and wn(. In his view, the latter developed from the former. He suggests that originally there only existed the term yn(. For him, the corrupted form wn( is late in origin and reflects the influence of Aramaic.32

Rahlfs, yn( und wn( in den Psalmen (Gttingen: Dieterishce Verladsbuchhandlung, 1892), 73. See also J. Van der Ploeg, "Les Pauvres d'Israel et Leur Pit," OtSt 7 (1950): 263-67, where he argues that in the Psalms the Mywn( are distinct from the Myyn( in that they are not necessarily materially poor but rather are people from diverse economic backgrounds who adopt a particular stance of piety and humility toward God.
30

29

Rahlfs, yn( und wn( in den Psalmen, 73. Rahlfs, yn( und wn( in den Psalmen, 80-81.

31

Birkeland, 'Ani und 'Anaw in den Psalmen (Oslo: I. Kommisjon Hos Jacob Dybwad, 1933), 20. 10

32

Mowinickel Addressing the question of whether the Mywn( are to be viewed as a distinct ancient Israelite party, Sigmund Mowinckel sees arguments such as those of Rahlfs as exaggerations, and he warns against the assumption that references to the poor in the Psalms point to social and religious parties. He prefers to see such references as being descriptive of the nation of ancient Israel and its position relative to its neighbors.33 He writes, "the adherence of the psalmists to the 'lowly' is not based on social and political but on national and religious grounds."34 According to Mowinckel, the cultic officials who authored the psalms would have been accustomed to dealing with "oppressed" and "distressed" people who would regularly seek refuge in the cult, and it is only natural that they would compose psalms that address the circumstances of those who were seeking their services.35 At the same time, participation in the cult itself inspires feelings of humility and lowliness, and these religious feelings are expressed through the language of poverty in the Psalms as well.36

Kraus In his treatment of the poor in the Psalms, Hans-Joachim Kraus is in general agreement with Mowinckel, and he advocates strongly for a material reading of poverty in the Psalms. He writes, "The essential feature of this situation of 'poverty' is the attack

Sigmund Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship (trans. D. R. AP-Thomas, 2 vols.; Nashville: Abingdon, 1979), 2:91.
34

33

Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 2:91. Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 2:92. Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 2:92. 11

35

36

by hostile forces and the resulting state of helplessness and need."37 The Psalms portray them as seeking God's justice in the sanctuary.38 Kraus categorically rejects the notion that the "poor" are a party or faction, and with equal force he denies the validity of the claim that their "poverty" is a spiritual state of idealized piety.39 Rather, the poor in the Psalms have a legitimate claim to divine aid precisely because they are the victims of real oppression and real poverty.40

Schultz In his 1987 dissertation, Carl Schultz approaches the question of whether to distinguish between the meanings of yn( and wn( in a manner similar to that of Rahlfs. He argues that yn( and wn( are distinct in meaning, and he notes that psalmists identify themselves as yn( to express bitterness in the midst of affliction and suffering and only consider themselves to be among the Mywn( once they have experienced deliverance from their distress and find themselves in the position of expressing praise and thanksgiving to God.41 He agrees with Rahlfs that the yn( is experiencing a forced set of circumstances while the wn( assumes the role freely, adding that the yn( appears isolated while only the

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, (trans. Keith Crim; Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986), 151.
38

37

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 151-52. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 153. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 153.

39

40

Carl Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," (Ph.D. diss., Brandeis University, 1987), 225. 12

41

wn( is depicted as being engaged in corporate acts of worship.42 Schultz argues that "afflicted" is a better translation for yn( than "poor," maintaining that such a translation is more faithful to the meaning of the root hn( from which it is derived, and he goes on to say that the affliction that such a person experiences is more often mental (ridicule, ostracism, etc.) in nature than physical.43 For him, the term can also be suggestive of sickness, feelings of guilt, and can have a religious significance as well.44 Moreover, Shultz maintains that the yn( is always an individual and is in no way representative of the nation as a whole.45 In light of this observation, he concludes that the oppressors of the yn( are personal enemies from within his or her own people; they are not the foreign enemies of the nation.46

Croft A relatively nuanced approach is that of Croft. He recognizes that a literal reading of poverty in the Psalms is at times insufficient to exhaust the meaning of the concept, and he also allows that the concept can be applied to the entire nation.47 He thinks that Schultz has overstated his case with regard to the distinction between yn( and

42

Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," 226. Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," 229. Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," 230. Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," 231 Schultz, "'Ani' and 'Anaw'" in the Psalms," 231-33.

43

44

45

46

Steven J. L. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms (JSOTSup 44; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1987), 49. 13

47

wn(, noting that while their meaning is not identical, the ambiguity surrounding them appears to have increased rather than decreased over time.48 He is further critical of Schultz's insistence that the yn( is always an individual on the grounds that he ignores whether a particular psalm may be "royal or national in character" and that he is overly dependent on a "code concept of language" that leads to the hasty conclusion that the identity of the yn( is an either/or proposition.49 More importantly, Croft advances the conversation in the direction of broadening the range of terminology that is relevant to the discussion of poverty in the Psalms. He points out that the discussion of the poor in the Psalms must be expanded beyond the yn(/wn( debate to include other terms within the semantic field of poverty such as Nwyb), ld, and #yr.50 He proposes analyzing poverty language in the Psalter to see where individual instances of it fall within the following range of possible meanings: 1) afflicted, 2) destitute, 3) in need, 4) righteous, and 5) empty metaphor, based on the context in which the terminology appears.51 He further proposes to analyze these psalms in terms of whether the speaker is the community, the king speaking on behalf of the community, the king speaking as an individual, or an individual.52 He concludes that, in the vast majority of cases, the psalmists are speaking of real poverty (categories 1-3) rather than something figurative (categories 4-5), of which he identifies only three cases
48

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 51. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 52-53. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 53. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 55. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 56. 14

49

50

51

52

(Pss 34, 40, and 140).53 He further identifies at least five psalms in which the language is used to refer to the community (Pss 910, 14, 25, 68, 74, and possibly 72 and 107) and three psalms in which it is applied to the king as representative of the community (22, 31, and 69).54

Gillingham Sue Gillingham exhibits a degree of nuance similar to Croft's in that she prefers not to choose between interpreting poverty in the Psalter materially or spiritually, arguing that "a complex variety of life-settings is suggested, both individual and communal, and different aspects of suffering are implied, both physical and spiritual."55 For Gillingham, the term ld is used only to indicate physical oppression and has no clear social or spiritual connotation; the same is primarily true of Nwyb), with some exceptions.56 She argues that yn( can signify material poverty, but it also connotes "humility of spirit" and "personal degradation," and it can be applied to the nation as a whole.57 Further, she argues that wn( is indistinct from yn( in that it can also refer to material or spiritual poverty on the part of the individual or nation.58 She concludes, "we cannot feed and clothe the poor without recognizing the spiritual poverty in the world around us," any

53

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 70-71. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 70-71. Sue Gillingham, "The Poor in the Psalms," ExpTim 100 (1988): 16. Gillingham, "The Poor in the Psalms," 16-17. Gillingham, "The Poor in the Psalms," 17-18. Gillingham, "The Poor in the Psalms," 18. 15

54

55

56

57

58

more than we can adhere to a Gospel that is exclusively spiritual and does not address material needs.59

Albertz Rainer Albertz also sees the question of whether poverty in the Psalms is material or spiritual as a false choice. He writes, "The religious connotation cannot be denied, but it also includes the social connotation."60 He addresses the question of whether the "poor" were a clearly defined party in ancient Israelite society by arguing that, when articulated in the singular, an individual's claim to a state of poverty arises out of one person's distress. When the speaker identifies with a group that is identified in the plural (such as the Mywn(), however, the text has in view a group of people who are simultaneously victimized and pious.61

Kafang In his 1993 dissertation, Zamani Kafang advances the thesis that "the concept of the 'poor' is employed in the Psalms as a spiritual metaphor in a religious context rather than one of material want."62 He understands the concept of poverty to have become

Gillingham, "The Poor in the Psalms," 19. Similarly, McPolin writes, "even in the case of those Psalms which express or emphasize the spiritual aspect of poverty, the experience of being spiritually poor is essentially linked with very human, concrete situations," (McPolin, "Psalms as Prayers of the Poor," 96). Rainer Albertz, A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period (trans. John Bowden; 2 vols.; Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994), 518.
61 60

59

Albertz, A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period, 518-19.

Zamani B. Kafang, "A Semantic and Theological Investigation of the Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," (Ph.D. diss., Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1993), 256. 16

62

increasingly religious in connotation after the exile.63 Kafang analyzes a variety of terms in the semantic field of poverty, including yn(, ld, Nwyb), #r, wn( and hklx.64 He argues that while such terms can refer to material poverty elsewhere in the canon, they have been given an entirely spiritual sense in the Psalms.65 His argument is largely based on his observation that, when the psalmist is identified as "poor," the psalmist does not express a desire for material things but rather seeks more abstract things such as deliverance from enemies.66 He also seems to favor a theory of Davidic authorship of the Psalms, noting that it is nonsensical to think that David was materially poor.67 It is quite clear that he is advancing what he perceives to be a characteristically evangelical interpretation of poverty in the Psalter while seeking to refute what he understands to be the excesses of liberation theology.68

Hossfeld and Zenger One study that takes account of the significance of poverty in the compositional history of the Psalms is the commentary by Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger. They argue that the issue of the poor is key to understanding the redactional phases that Book I underwent and that the concepts that guided the first, late pre-exilic redaction were 1) that Yahweh demonstrates his divinity to and in the poor and those who suffer
63

Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 46. Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 1. Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 74-86. Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 115. Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 221. Kafang, "Concept of 'Poor' in the Psalms," 2-3. 17

64

65

66

67

68

and 2) that Yahweh saves them as "the righteous ones."69 They argue that a second, postexilic redaction was conducted around the theme of the piety of the poor, which by then was understood as a religious category rather than a social one.70 Yet another redaction in the Hellenistic period took place that reflected the view that the concept of "poor" encompassed the entire nation of Israel. The introduction of Psalm 910 into the Psalter took place at this time.71

Tucker The body of work that has the most significance for the present study, chiefly because of its analysis of poverty in the Psalms in relation to the theme of Yahweh's kingship, is that of Dennis Tucker. My study rests to a large extent upon his work and builds upon it by exploring the rhetorical and political implications of his conclusions. Tucker's 1997 dissertation examines the connection between the Psalter's portrayal of Yahweh as king and the theme of poverty in the Psalter. He is interested in developing a theology of the poor in the Psalms in light of these two considerations. Tucker begins by establishing the semantic field of poverty in the Psalter. He regards terms that can be translated "poor," "needy," or "afflicted" as first level symbols. These include yn(, wn(, Nwyb), and ld.72 To this list, he adds second level symbols (Kd "oppressed," #r "in

Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Die Psalmen I: Psalm 1-50 (NEchtB; Stuttgart: Echter Verlag, 1993), 14.
70

69

Hossfeld and Zenger, Die Psalmen I, 14. Hossfeld and Zenger, Die Psalmen I, 14-15.

71

W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor in the Final Shape of the Psalter," (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1997), 31-32. 18

72

want," Myqw#( "oppressed," hklx "helpless," Mwty "orphan," and hnml) "widow") that, while not directly translated "poor," denote individuals who are "prone to poverty through social injustice and oppression."73 A distinction between level one and level two symbols is that level one symbols can be used interchangeably, while level two symbols are characterized by "semi-contiguous synonymous relationships" and are not interchangeable.74 Tucker goes on to discuss the proper role of the king as one who maintains the social and political order in the ancient Near East in general and in ancient Israel in particular. He observes, "The rule of the divine king demonstrated cosmic concern for the poor and oppressed in the ancient Near East."75 Tucker argues that the proper role of ancient Near Eastern gods was to act out of concern for an ordered society that reflects the order of creation. They were believed to have charged human kings with the responsibility of maintaining the social order.76 He points out that the gods were portrayed as having genuine concern for the poor and oppressed and were perceived as royal figures themselves who acted out of responsibility for such people.77

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 32-33. Tucker's analysis of terminology related to poverty in the Psalms also appears in Tucker, "A Polysemiotic Approach to the Poor in the Psalms," PRSt 31 (2004): 425-39. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 34. He goes on to provide a detailed analysis of each individual symbol (42-61). Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 66. He provides a detailed discussion of the concept of kingship as it relates to poverty in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Ugarit, and Israel (66-112).
76 75 74

73

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 114-117. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 118. 19

77

Next, Tucker examines Yahweh's role as king with regard to the poor in the Psalms. He understands the concept of the "divine king" to be a root metaphor comprised of various primary metaphors. Under the sub-category of the "warring deity," these primary metaphors include the chaos battle, the exodus battle, and the protector of Zion and the temple; under the category of the "enthroned deity," they include royal trappings, the enthroned judge, the provider of the poor, and the appellation tw)bc hwhy.78 On the basis of this categorization, he proceeds with an analysis of selected psalms in which Yahweh is portrayed as king and as protector of the poor (Pss 910, 68, 82, and 146).79 He shows how in these psalms Yahweh functions as king through the establishment of a just social order (hqdcw +p#m).80 Finally, Tucker enters into a discussion of the significance of these findings in light of the final canonical shape of the Psalter. Specifically, he examines the "introduction" (Pss 1-2), "heart" (Pss 90-106), and "conclusion" (Pss 146-150) of the Psalter because of their "strategic location."81 He concludes, "The psalms that appear at the strategic locations provide a hermeneutical horizon for hearing the language of the poor in which Yahweh is proclaimed as king, and his zeal for justice and righteousness is
78

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 123-24. He proceeds to treat each of these in turn (127-52).
79

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 152-73.

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 173-74. See also his article "Democratization and the Language of the Poor in Psalms 2-89," HBT 25 (2003): 161-78, in which he argues that poverty-related language shapes Pss 2-89 in such a way that emphasis falls on Yahweh's kingship, the end of an unjust social order, and the transfer of divine promises to the house of David to the poor (163-64).
81

80

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 211-12.

20

declared."82 Thus, the hope of the poor in the Psalms is bound to Yahweh's just reign as king.

Summary I turn now to an assessment of the state of the four questions that have dominated the scholarly discussion of the theme of poverty in the Psalms. First, I do not find to be persuasive the arguments of Rahlfs and Schultz that there is a significant difference between the meanings of yn( and wn( in the Psalter. Although there are points of overlap between their approaches to distinguishing between the two terms, the significant differences in their approaches still illustrate how arbitrary such an enterprise can be. I am in agreement with Hupfeld, Gretz, Birkeland, and Gillingham that it is preferable to treat the terms as synonyms, and I treat them as such throughout this study. Hupfeld's argument for such an approach on the basis of the terms' derivation from a common root coupled with his observation of the Masoretes' arbitrary approach to their use is quite strong, and the more tenuous arguments of Rahlfs and Schultz are not sufficient to refute it. The second issue is whether the "poor" constitute a particular party within ancient Israelite society. Mowinckel is correct that proposals like those of Rahlfs (and especially Gretz's specific identification of them as the Levites) are overly speculative. Hossfeld, Zenger, and Gillingham, however, rightly point out that this language is used to characterize the nation as a whole in the Psalms, as Croft's identification of specific psalms in which this phenomenon occurs confirms. Even in such cases, however, Mowinckel's explanation of the phenomenon in terms of ancient Israel's concrete
82

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 213-14. 21

experience of subjugation to its neighbors is entirely valid. It seems plausible that smaller groups within the nation could have referred to themselves in this way, but such self-identification would have been absurd apart from some kind of concrete experience of poverty or oppression of the kind that Mowinckel describes. Thus, even if poverty language in the Psalms is being used to refer to such groups, the interpreter would do well to remember Albertz's argument that such groups collectively identify themselves as "poor" because of a concrete experience of distress that their members share in common. Third, any discussion of poverty in the Psalms that only addresses the terms yn( and wn( is incomplete. Croft's contribution to the conversation on this issue is of immeasurable value, and Gillingham and Kafang do well in following his lead in this regard. Even these approaches that encompass the broader field of terms that denote poverty or oppression are still incomplete, however. Tucker makes a very strong case for including both first and second level symbols in the discussion. References to orphans, widows, and other such groups that are characteristically subjected to poverty and oppression constitute an indispensable part of the Psalter's portrayal of poverty, and I adopt Tucker's more expansive list of terminology in my approach to this topic. Finally, it is vitally important not to minimize the material aspect of the Psalter's portrayal of poverty. I agree with Kraus that the Psalter's portrayal of poverty reflects the point of view of real victims of oppressive enemies. While not every reference to poverty in the Psalms may be rooted in a concrete experience of oppression, Croft's analysis certainly demonstrates that the more spiritualized uses of this terminology in the Psalms are relatively few in comparison with the large number of instances in which the Psalms refer to literal poverty. Furthermore, Tucker's demonstration of the link between poverty

22

language and ancient Near Eastern royal ideology indicates that the Psalter addresses poverty in the context of a just social order. If he is correct, poverty language in the Psalms cannot be exclusively, or even primarily, spiritual in nature. Rahlfs's spiritualized definition of wn( and Kafang's sweeping spiritualization of poverty language in the Psalter in general both fail to take sufficient account of this reality. A helpful warning against the spiritualizing tendency of studies like Kafang's comes from Leslie Hoppe. Hoppe writes, "It is only because the Bible considers material poverty as an evil that the book of Psalms has been able to reinterpret the vocabulary of poverty to speak about the oppression of the pious."83 Writing from a theological perspective, Hoppe argues that such spiritualizing is problematic for two reasons: 1) it has the effect of "canonizing the poor," suggesting that there may be a "socioeconomic path to salvation," and 2) it fails to take seriously the Bible's polemic against those who create social and economic structures that divide humanity into categories of rich and poor, oppressor and oppressed.84 Hoppe's argument from the broader canonical context as it relates to poverty language is especially persuasive, and I proceed in this study under the assumption that references to poverty in the Psalms are literal in the absence of explicit evidence to the contrary in individual cases.

Overview In this first chapter, I have engaged in a discussion of my methodology in this dissertation which, broadly defined, is that of rhetorical criticism. Specifically, I have

Leslie J. Hoppe, There Shall Be No Poor Among You: Poverty in the Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2004), 130.
84

83

Hoppe, There Shall Be No Poor Among You, 130. 23

discussed the role of rhetoric within the canonical context, how rhetoric relates to characterization, and the impact of rhetoric upon the reader. I have also surveyed the body of scholarship on the theme of poverty and language associated with it in the Hebrew Psalter. In particular, I have outlined scholarly discussion of the four key issues of whether to distinguish between the meanings of yn( and wn(, determining whether the "poor" mentioned in the Psalms constitute a distinct party within ancient Israelite society, determining the scope of language that references poverty in the Psalms, and whether the Psalms refer to literal poverty, spiritual poverty, or both. Chapter 2 contains a discussion of research on the royal metaphor as it is applied to Yahweh in the Psalms. I focus on works that identify the metaphor as both the editorial and theological center of the Psalter. The second chapter also includes an analysis of the relationship between the royal metaphor and the refuge metaphor in the Psalms and addresses the significance of that relationship for understanding how the Psalms relate the royal metaphor to the theme of poverty. The third chapter consists of a general discussion of the overall portrayal of ancient Israel and foreign nations in the Psalms. An analysis of works that address the role of foreign nations and enemies in the Hebrew Psalter informs this discussion. I describe the frequency with which psalmists portray ancient Israel as an oppressed nation and the degree to which foreign nations are portrayed as the enemies of ancient Israel. The third chapter also includes a discussion of the inherent Israelite identity of the speaker in the Psalms. I also address the impact of the starkly negative portrayal of foreign nations in Pss 2 and 149 upon the reader of the Hebrew Psalter in terms of the primacy and recency effects.

24

In the fourth chapter, I discuss in detail the ten psalms that contain all three of the following elements: the portrayal of God as a royal figure, language related to poverty or oppression, and a reference to a foreign nation or foreign nations in general. These psalms are Pss 910, 22, 44, 68, 74, 82, 94, 102, 113, and 149. My exegesis of these psalms focuses upon the way in which the reader is led toward the conclusion that the foreign nations mentioned are responsible for the poverty and oppression that the ancient Israelite speakers are enduring while at the same time Yahweh functions as the royal guarantor of justice for those who are oppressed. I also discuss the significance of the even distribution of these ten psalms throughout the Hebrew Psalter, with exactly two of them appearing in each of its five books. The fifth chapter contains a discussion of how the presence of one or more of the three elements common to the ten psalms discussed in the fourth chapter in psalms that closely precede or follow them amplifies the rhetorical effect of the convergence of these elements in those ten psalms. Here, I utilize the microcanonical methodology of David Howard in the process of conducting a contextual analysis of the psalms discussed in chapter four.85 In the sixth chapter, the results of the study are summarized. Moreover, I move beyond that summary into a discussion of the implications of my conclusions for modern readers of the Hebrew Psalter. I explore the question of how reading the Psalms as expressed in the first person by their oppressed speakers influences and potentially transforms the perspective of a modern reader situated in a powerful nation in the modern

See David M. Howard, Jr., "A Contextual Reading of Psalms 90-94," 108-23, for a discussion and example of this methodology. 25

85

West. In the final chapter, I also suggest additional avenues of research that remain to be pursued in light of this study.

26

CHAPTER TWO The Royal Portrayal of Yahweh in the Psalms

Introduction The purpose of this study is to analyze the way in which language related to poverty and oppression functions in the Hebrew Psalter's portrayal of the political relationships between Yahweh, ancient Israel, and foreign nations. Before proceeding to a discussion of the psalms in which such language is juxtaposed against the royal metaphor with reference to Yahweh and references to foreign nations, it is helpful at this juncture to analyze the general portrayal of each of these three characters within the Psalter as a whole. This chapter's focus is on the significance of the portrayal of Yahweh as a royal figure in the Psalms. Its purpose is to advance the argument that the royal metaphor is the dominant image associated with Yahweh in the Psalter, that it carries with it inherent political significance, and that, in tandem with the related metaphor of refuge, its dominance raises the profile of poverty as a topic of concern in the Psalter. Psalms scholarship in several areas addresses the issue of the Psalter's royal portrayal of Yahweh. In particular, scholarship on the enthronement psalms, theological approaches to the Psalms, and canonical studies of the Psalter contribute to our understanding of this metaphor's significance in the Psalter. I turn now to a discussion of each of these topics before concluding with some reflections on the interaction between the royal and refuge metaphors in the Psalms and the significance of that interaction for understanding the Psalter's treatment of poverty.

27

The Enthronement Psalms A natural place to begin a discussion of scholarship on the kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms is to examine the work that has been done on the enthronement psalms (Pss 47, 93, 95-99),1 all of which feature the royal metaphor with reference to God as the central thematic element. It is possible to identify two streams of scholarship on this topic. On the one hand, many scholars approach these psalms through the lens of their function in the ancient Israelite cult. These scholars include Sigmund Mowinckel, Julian Morgenstern, Hans-Joachim Kraus, and Walter Brueggemann. On the other hand, some scholars view the enthronement psalms as expressions of eschatological hope and associate them with related prophetic literature. Proponents of this view include Hermann Gunkel, Claus Westermann, and Marc Zvi Brettler. One scholar, Jrg Jeremias, takes a diachronic approach to the enthronement psalms. His approach does not fit easily into either of these two broad categories.

The Enthronement Psalms in the Cult

Mowinckel. The pioneering work in the area of cult-functional inquiry is that of Sigmund Mowinckel. For Mowinckel, the Enthronement Festival of Yahweh was commensurate with the autumn Feast of Tabernacles, when the New Year was celebrated.2 He emphasizes that to designate a particular group of psalms as enthronement psalms does not exclude the likelihood that many other psalms were used See the list in Sigmund Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship (trans. D. R. AP-Thomas, 2 vols.; Nashville: Abingdon, 1979) 1:106. Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:121. For his full discussion of this festival, see Mowinckel, Psalmenstudien II: Das Thronbesteigungsfest Jahws und der Ursprung der Eschatologie (Oslo: Jacob Dybwad: 1922), 16-145. 28
2 1

at the festival.3 The true enthronement psalms, however, were those that were sung on the particular day of the festival on which Yahweh's royal entry and triumph were celebrated.4 Mowinckel rejects the view held by Gunkel and others that these psalms are eschatological in orientation; rather, he argues that their content pertains to the "actual present"that is, their cultic setting as part of the enthronement festival.5 Rather than viewing the universality of Yahweh's kingship that they depict as a prophetic expression of eschatological hope, Mowinckel sees this motif as being connected with Yahweh's victory over the primeval forces of chaos as well as his triumph over the nations of Egypt and Canaan.6 While he maintains that ancient Israel inherited its concept of God as king from Canaan, Egypt, Assyria, and Babylonia, Mowinckel observes that the ancient Israelites severed the concept from the ancient Near Eastern myth of the dying and rising god and placed it within the context of Yahweh's saving acts in history.7

Mowinckel, Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:141. Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:183.

Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:110-12. For a defense of this view, see John Gray, The Biblical Doctrine of the Reign of God (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1979), 7-38. Gray goes on to show how, in addition to the enthronement psalms, various hymns, royal psalms, and individual and communal laments feature the idea of Yahweh's kingship, often associating them with the autumn festival as well (39-106). Mowinckel, Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:108. See also Aubrey R. Johnson, Sacral Kingship in Ancient Israel (Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1955), 59-61. Johnson is in agreement with Mowinckel that the enthronement psalms do not reflect the influence of Deutero-Isaiah, but rather are of pre-exilic origin and are tied to the autumn festival (47-54). Mowinckel, Psalms in Israel's Worship, 1:132-39. For a thorough discussion of the role of gods as kings in the ancient Near East, see Gary V. Smith, "The Concept of God/the Gods as King in the Ancient Near East and the Bible," TJ 3 (1982): 18-38. 29
7 6

Morgenstern. Julian Morgenstern's view is similar to that of Mowinckel in that he identifies the New Year festival as the cultic setting of the enthronement psalms.8 His interpretation is distinct from Mowinckel's in that he envisions a cultic setting in which Yahweh is venerated as a solar deity, so that the ascent of the deity described in Psalm 47 coincides with the blowing of the shophar at sunrise on the autumnal equinox.9 For Morgenstern, the universality of Yahweh's kingship depicted in the enthronement psalms best fits the historical setting of the Persian era and reflects the expectations of a restoration of the Davidic dynasty that were held by a Judean Nationalist Party.10 Thus, he disagrees with Mowinckel in that he does see the eschatological hopes of DeuteroIsaiah as having influenced their composition.11

Kraus. Hans-Joachim Kraus assigns a slightly different cultic setting to the enthronement psalms. Rather than an Enthronement Festival of Yahweh, Kraus envisions a Royal Zion Festival, the central theme of which is Yahweh's choice of Zion and of David.12 He links this festival with the narratives of David's transportation of the

Julian Morgenstern, "The Cultic Setting of the 'Enthronement Psalms,'" HUCA 35 (1964): 39-40.
9

Morgenstern, "The Cultic Setting of the 'Enthronement Psalms,'" 39-40.

Morgenstern, "The Cultic Setting of the 'Enthronement Psalms,'" 42. Similarly, Walter Williams argues that the enthronement psalms best fit a historical setting later than that of the exile, as they seem to point to a time when ancient Israel lacked a human king. See Walter G. Williams, "Liturgical Aspects in Enthronement Psalms," JBR 25 (1957): 190.
11

10

Morgenstern, "The Cultic Setting of the 'Enthronement Psalms,'" 42.

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Die Knigscherrschaft Gottes im Alten Testament: Untersuchungen zu den Liedern von Jahwehs Thronbesteigung, (Tbingen: J. C. B. 30

12

ark to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6), the narrative of Nathan's dynastic oracle concerning the Davidic dynasty (2 Sam 7), and the narrative of Solomon's dedication of the temple (1 Kgs 8).13 In this annual festival, celebrated on the fifteenth day of the seventh month (at the beginning of the Feast of Tabernacles), Yahweh's choice of David and Zion are inseparably linked.14 Kraus links the enthronement psalms to the postexilic era and associates them with the Deutero-Isaianic proclamations that 1) Yahweh has again chosen Zion and 2) Yahweh now reigns directly as king over his own people.15 In terms of a specific cultic setting for these psalms, Kraus identifies an annual festival celebrated on the first day of the month of Tishri that commemorated Yahweh's return to Jerusalem from Babylon as described in Isa 52:7-10.16

Brueggemann. Walter Brueggemann moves in a more sociological direction in his approach to the enthronement psalms, even as he remains supportive of Mowinckel's emphasis upon the function of these psalms in the ancient Israelite cult.17 He is particularly concerned with the social function of the liturgical act of the enthronement festival. He writes:

Mohr, 1951), 144. For a sympathetic treatment of this hypothesis, see Keith R. Crim, The Royal Psalms (Richmond: John Knox Press, 1962), 40-51.
13

Kraus, Die Knigscherrschaft Gottes, 40-41. Kraus, Die Knigscherrschaft Gottes, 44-45. Kraus, Die Knigscherrschaft Gottes, 106, 120-21. Kraus, Die Knigscherrschaft Gottes, 123.

14

15

16

Walter Brueggemann, Israel's Praise: Doxology against Idolatry and Ideology (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1988), 34. 31

17

The liturgic act is the moment of announcement in which old claims are made present realities, in which victories won in other places are made available as victories in this place now. Through such speech the world is changed. The world is changed because the news is that Yahweh reigns, Yahweh has become king. The power of destabilization is overcome and the world is safe. The power of enslavement is overcome, and the world is free.18 Thus, he is concerned with the way in which the statement "Yahweh reigns" functioned in the creation of a social world for the ancient Israelites. In his view, the statement articulated the option of a world that was more credible than that of the dominant empires of ancient Israel's experience.19 Taken in this context, ancient Israel's enthronement liturgy has a destabilizing, liberating function. When the Davidic monarch enters the liturgy as sponsor and benefactor, however, the liturgy provides legitimacy for the dynasty. Yahweh's authority comes to be delegated to the Davidic king.20 For Brueggemann, the enthronement psalms communicate both Yahweh's mercy (as demonstrated in ancient Israel's history) and majesty (as seen in Yahweh's victory over foreign gods and peoples).21 The enthronement liturgy serves its function properly so long as the two poles are held in proper balance, but when the king ceases to be shaped by the liturgy and actively seeks to shape it, the result is the creation of a false world.22

18

Brueggemann, Israel's Praise, 36-37. Brueggemann, Israel's Praise, 46. Brueggemann, Israel's Praise, 61-62. Brueggemann, Israel's Praise, 65. Brueggemann, Israel's Praise, 69-70. 32

19

20

21

22

In his book The Message of the Psalms, Brueggemann classifies the Psalms according to the three themes of orientation, disorientation, and new orientation.23 Psalms of orientation reflect "seasons of well-being" and express, gratitude, joy, and affirmation of God's reliability.24 Psalms of disorientation reflect life situations associated with suffering that are addressed through lament.25 Psalms of new orientation reflect situations in which "joy breaks through the despair" and affirm God's sovereignty.26 For Brueggemann, the enthronement psalms, which enact through the liturgy God's "new kingship" are "songs of new orientation par excellence."27 They affirm that God's reign extends over all nations and over all of creation.28

Eschatological Hope in the Enthronement Psalms

Gunkel. In his seminal form critical work on the Psalms, Herman Gunkel identifies enthronement psalms as a subset of the hymn genre that is particularly related to the eschatological hymns.29 He views the genre as an adaptation of psalms that were written for use at the coronations of human kings for use with reference to the deity, and

Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1984), 19.
24

23

Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms, 19. Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms, 19. Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms, 19. Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms, 140. Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms, 150

25

26

27

28

Hermann Gunkel, Introduction to Psalms: The Genres of the Religious Lyric of Israel (trans. James D. Nogalski; Macon, GA: Mercer University Press), 66. 33

29

he maintains that they are eschatological in outlook.30 Gunkel argues that the canonical enthronement psalms emerged at the end of a process of eschatological reinterpretation by Deutero-Isaiah of the psalms that had been associated with Yahweh's enthronement festival in Jerusalem, the practice of which he understands as having developed out of the Babylonian Akitu festival and the ancient Israelite coronation ritual.31 Significantly, Gunkel emphasizes that a hallmark of the prophetic influence on the canonical enthronement psalms is the universality of God's kingship over all nations that they have in view; this feature, he concludes, is evidence of the "prophetic spirit" that functioned in defiance of oppression under foreign rule.32

Westermann. The work of Claus Westermann is largely similar to that of Gunkel on this issue. Still working largely within a form-critical framework, Westermann's signature contribution is his insight that psalms of lament dominate the first half of the Psalter (Books I-III) while the latter half of the Psalter (Books IV-V), notably including all but one of the enthronement psalms, consists mostly of psalms of praise.33 Whereas Gunkel views the enthronement psalms as a subset of the hymn genre, Westermann

Gunkel, Introduction to Psalms, 68-69. On the eschatological outlook of the enthronement psalms, see also Aubrey Johnson, "Hebrew Conceptions of Kingship," in Myth, Ritual, and Kingship: Essays on the Theory and Practice of Kingship in the Ancient Near East and in Israel (ed. S. H. Hooke; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1958), 23435. Gunkel, Introduction to the Psalms, 75-81. Roy Rosenberg also argues for direct literary dependence of the enthronement psalms upon Deutero-Isaiah. See Roy A. Rosenberg, "Yahweh Becomes King," JBL 85 (1966): 305.
32 31

30

Gunkel, Introduction to the Psalms, 79.

Claus Westermann, Praise and Lament in the Psalms (trans. Keith R. Crim and Richard N. Soulen; Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1981), 257. 34

33

places them in his corresponding category of descriptive praise.34 Like Gunkel, Westermann traces the origin of these psalms' affirmation of Yahweh's kingship to the eschatological thought of Deutero-Isaiah.35 He thus views the enthronement psalms as the product of a phenomenon whereby the descriptive praise genre absorbed a prophetic motif that originated in the Babylonian exile.36

Brettler. Marc Zvi Brettler, in his analysis of these psalms, constructs an argument against Mowinckel's thesis, claiming that there is no enthronement ritual to be found behind their affirmation of Yahweh's kingship.37 He argues that these psalms present Yahweh's kingship as an eternal reality rather than a process of becoming king, except in the sense that Yahweh is becoming the king of the foreign nations who are portrayed in them as being under Yahweh's universal rule.38 Indeed, a particular problem with Mowinckel's thesis, Brettler states, is that it does not adequately account for why the foreign nations mentioned in the enthronement psalms would have a role in such a ritual, the existence of which Mowinckel has not sufficiently demonstrated on the basis of texts

Westermann, Praise and Lament in the Psalms, 151. For Westermann, hymns and psalms of thanksgiving belong together under the rubric of psalms of praise, with the distinction being that the former exhibit descriptive praise while the latter exhibit declarative praise (31-32).
35

34

Westermann, Praise and Lament in the Psalms, 147. Westermann, Praise and Lament in the Psalms, 151.

36

Marc Zvi Brettler, God is King: Understanding an Israelite Metaphor (JSOTSup 76; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1989), 157.
38

37

Brettler, God is King, 157.

35

outside of the Psalter.39 These psalms are, rather, "the projection of the desire of God's sovereignty as a reality, placed in the mouth of foreigners who are viewed as accepting God's yoke."40 In this sense, his perspective is similar to Gunkel's view that they are eschatological in nature.

A Diachronic Approach In his diachronic analysis of the enthronement psalms, Jrg Jeremias maintains that they were written at various times in the history of ancient Israel.41 He seeks to determine the relative sequence of their composition by reading them in light of ancient Israel's interaction with the portrayal of the gods as kings in Canaanite myth as presented in the Ugaritic texts.42 He regards Psalm 93 as being closely tied to the autumn enthronement festival, and he argues that it dates to the monarchic period.43 He also assigns a date prior to the exile to Psalm 47.44 Jeremias associates Psalm 95 with the Deuterononomistic school and dates it to the period of the exile, and he treats Psalm 99 in

39

Brettler, God is King, 157-58 Brettler, God is King, 157.

40

Jrg Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen: Israels Begegnung mit dem kanaanischen Mythos in den Jahwe-Knig-Psalmen (Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1987), 11. Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 12-13. Jeremias proceeds on the premise that older enthronement psalms will exhibit a more intense conflict with Canaanite myth than those that were composed at a later date (13).
43 42

41

Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 17, 26. Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 68.

44

36

a similar manner.45 On the basis of their use of terminology shared in common with Deutero-Isaiah, he assigns Pss 96 and 98 to the postexilic period, noting also textual parallels between Psalm 96 and the Chronicler's history.46 For Jeremias, Psalm 97 was the last of the enthronement psalms to have been written, having been composed in the Hellenistic period.47

Summary I generally regard the more specific claims of scholars who take the cultfunctional approach to be overly imaginative and virtually impossible to prove, and the challenges that Brettler mounts against Mowinckel's view are substantial. It seems clear, however, that these psalms did have some public, cultic function in the life of ancient Israelite society, and studies in this area demonstrate that the enthronement psalms had an overtly political function. Mowinckel notes that they draw on the traditions of Israel's victory over Egypt and Canaan, Morgenstern sees them as products of a society under foreign domination during the Persian era, Kraus associates them with the commemoration of Yahweh's return to Jerusalem after the exile, and Brueggemann sees their function in the liturgy in terms of the creation of an alternative world to that of ancient Israel's experience of domination by foreign empires. The particular historical context of these psalms and the specific liturgies of which they were a part are largely beside the point. For the purposes of this study, it is significant to note that those who

45

Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 113, 118-19. Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 121. Jeremias, Das Knigtum Gottes in den Psalmen, 143. 37

46

47

pursue this line of inquiry are in agreement that their function reinforced a particular view of ancient Israel's relationship with God and with foreign nations. Those who view the enthronement psalms as expressions of eschatological hope and associate them with the thought of Deutero-Isaiah also emphasize the political significance of their message. Gunkel reads them as expressions of defiance against foreign domination in the Second Temple period, and Brettler reads them as representations of a future in which foreign nations must recognize Yahweh's kingship over them. In both approaches, scholars recognize that the enthronement psalms function to articulate a political vision of the relationships between Yahweh, ancient Israel, and foreign nations. Jeremias demonstrates that there is merit to both of these approaches. A scholar whose work encapsulates the political significance of the enthronement psalms that is of primary concern in this study is Robert Culley. Culley reflects upon the connection between the universal reign of Yahweh as portrayed in the enthronement psalms and the issue of Israel's relationship with the nations. He notes that this theme of Yahweh's universal reign over all nations is a prominent theme in these psalms, along with that of creation.48 In his discussion of Psalm 96, Culley observes that Yahweh's reign over the nations is presented in a relatively benign manner. The nations are invited to relate themselves to Yahweh as king through Israel, and the relationship between those nations and Israel is envisioned as a positive one.49 Still, he recognizes that the nations are asked to present offerings to Yahweh and renounce their gods, which from their Robert C. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," in Reading Communities and Reading Scripture: Essays in Honor of Daniel Patte (ed. Gary A. Phillips and Nicole Wilkinson Duran; Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002), 258.
49 48

Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," 262. 38

perspective might be an unwelcome attempt at assimilation.50 He contrasts this model with that of Psalm 47, in which Yahweh's reign over the nations is enacted through conflict, humiliation, and subjugation of the nations to Israel, which is clearly a more hostile perspective.51 He concludes, "Both the vision of assimilation and the vision of subjugation carry negative implications so that neither may offer itself as a happy solution to the problem of Israel and the nations," and he suggests that the tension between them can assist the reader in the process of reflection on the theme of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms.52 I engage in a full discussion of the role of the relationship between ancient Israel and foreign nations in the next chapter, but it must be stated at this point that the enthronement psalms affirm Yahweh's kingship in a manner that sheds considerable light on that political relationship.

Theological Approaches The topic of Yahweh's kingship figures prominently in discussions of the theology of the Psalms. While they attend to the enthronement psalms in their analysis, those who take this approach also address the royal portrayal of Yawheh throughout the rest of the Psalter. Tradition history often plays an important role in these discussions. This body of scholarship includes additional contributions by Kraus and also the work of Rudolf Ficker, Bernhard Anderson, J. J. M. Roberts, J. David Pleins, James Mays, and Dennis Tucker.

50

Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," 263. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," 265. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," 268. 39

51

52

Kraus In his Theology of the Psalms, Hans-Joachim Kraus includes a discussion of the royal appellation of Yahweh, noting its close relationship with the concept of Yahweh as Nwyl( ("Most High").53 He notes that the Psalms portray God's dominion as twofold: 1) over all gods and 2) over the whole world.54 Further, the location of God's enthronement is threefold: 1) above the flood or heavenly ocean, 2) in the heavens, and 3) in Zion.55 For Kraus, the notion of Yahweh's kingship originated at Shiloh in connection with the ark, so that the idea of Yahweh as enthroned above the cherubim is the most ancient manifestation of the royal appellation.56 He argues that ancient Israel's concepts of "monarchial monotheism" and "cosmic universalism" as expressed in the royal metaphor were borrowed from other ancient Near Eastern civilizations (Canaanite, Syrian, Mesopotamian, and Egyptian) and entered the ancient Israelite cult first at Shiloh and later at Jerusalem.57 He notes that the theological development of "monarchial monotheism" in ancient Israel happened in such a way that the other powers and deities

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Theology of the Psalms (trans. Keith Crim; Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986), 25-26.
54

53

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 26.

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms 26. Kraus notes that the idea of God's enthronement in the sanctuary is reflective of the notion that the temple in Jerusalem is an earthly copy of the heavenly prototype of God's dwelling place.
56

55

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 26-27. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 29.

57

40

were "stripped of their power," often reduced to the status of spirits in service of the divine King.58 Further, Kraus notes that in addition to its cosmic aspects, Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms has a political and historical dimension as well, which is reflected in the claim that Yahweh is king over the nations, although he leaves open the question of whether this development derives from the notion of holy war, which connects the mythical notion of warfare among the gods with warfare among nations.59

Ficker Rudolf Ficker analyzes the theme of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms with particular attention to how it relates to the Psalter's portrayal of the relationship between ancient Israel and foreign nations. He observes that Yahweh's kingship is emphasized in the Psalms to a degree that is unmatched in the rest of the canon.60 He identifies two spheres in which Yahweh's kingship operates: 1) Yahweh reigns over Israel and the nations within history and 2) Yahweh reigns over the gods in myth.61 The former, he says, is related to the setting of Yahweh's activity as a warrior; it is connected to the traditions of holy war and the ark.62 Further, in the psalms of Zion (such as Pss 46, 48, and 76), Yahweh's kingship is portrayed in terms of his battle against "hostile kings and

58

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 30. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 30.

59

Rudolf Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," Bangalore Theological Forum 12 (1980): 50.
61

60

Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 52. Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 52-53. 41

62

nations" who are attacking Zion.63 Ficker suggests that the idea of Yahweh's kingship may first have developed in connection with the resting place of the ark at Shiloh sometime after the settlement of the land.64 With regard to Yahweh's kingship in the sphere of myth, Ficker understands Israel to have developed its concept through a demythologization of the Canaanite traditions concerning Baal whereby his kingship is understood to involve a reign over nations rather than gods.65 Indeed, the theme of Yahweh's battle against hostile nations attacking Zion may reflect a demythologization of the myth of a god's fight against the primeval forces of chaos.66 Thus, we have a two-stage process in which ancient Israel developed the idea of Yahweh's kingship in connection with the holy war and ark traditions at Shiloh and later identified Zion as Yahweh's dwelling place after the ark was transported to Jerusalem and the temple was constructed.67

Anderson Bernhard Anderson prefers to refer to the enthronement psalms as psalms of the "dominion of God."68 He places these psalms under the theological category of the Davidic covenant, and he argues that in them the "mythopoetic symbolism" of that

63

Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 54. Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 55. Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 56. Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 58. Ficker, "Kingship of God in the Psalms," 58.

64

65

66

67

Bernhard W. Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 1989), 211. 42

68

covenant's theology is expanded beyond the particular case of Israel in such a way that God's dominion extends over all nations.69 Anderson is in agreement with Mowinckel to the extent that he understands these psalms as having been associated with a cultic festival.70 He argues, however, that their characteristic affirmation "Yahweh malak" does not refer to a process of becoming king but rather functions as a declaration of an eternal reality, so that God's dominion is presented as the link that binds together the cosmic and social orders.71 Significantly, even though Anderson understands the enthronement psalms to have a cultic setting, he maintains that, in the final form of the Psalter, they escape their cultic moorings and take on a timeless, eschatological significance.72

Roberts J. J. M. Roberts situates the idea of Yahweh's kingship within the Zion Tradition, arguing that it achieved its full development in the context of the "Davidic-Solomonic imperial state."73 He summarizes his understanding of the Zion Tradition in three points: 1) Yahweh is king over all nations and all gods, 2) Yahweh has chosen to enact his rule
69

Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology, 211. Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology, 214-15. Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology, 216.

70

71

Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology, 217. Anderson's argument is thus compatible with the diachronic approach of Jeremias up to a point, in that he acknowledges a history of development in the enthronement psalms that took place within the cult. His theological approach to the topic, however, leads him to take the additional step of reflecting on the theological import of this collection of psalms as it is situated in the final form of the Psalter. Jeremias's concern with the historical issues of identifying sources and tracing chronological development does not necessarily require taking such an interpretive step. J. J. M. Roberts, "The Enthronement of Yhwh and David: The Abiding Theological Significance of the Kingship Language in the Psalms," CBQ 64 (2002): 676. 43
73

72

through the Davidic dynasty, with whom he has established an eternal covenant, and 3) Yahweh has chosen to rule from Zion.74 Roberts goes on to elaborate on the first point by noting that, in the Psalms, Yahweh's kingship derives from his triumph over the forces of chaos in creation.75 Thus, Yahweh's rule over the nations is a function of his having created them as part of the world.76

Pleins In his discussion of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms, J. David Pleins steers this theological topic in the direction of political ethics. In so doing, he offers a reading of the concept that dovetails with the work of liberation theologians.77 He writes: As seen in these psalms, this deeper awareness of the political implications of the reign of God engenders in the community an abiding concern for justice and for laws that embody divine justice. Likewise, this consciousness of the rule of God transforms worship: God's creative power and holiness forge a liturgy that regularly celebrates and renews God's enthronement in the world.78 Pleins notes that these psalms depict God as king both over all divine beings and all human kings, and he observes that the maintenance of justice is a key characteristic of

74

Roberts, "The Enthronement of Yhwh and David, 676. Roberts, "The Enthronement of Yhwh and David, 679. Roberts, "The Enthronement of Yhwh and David, 680.

75

76

See, for example, his references to Gustavo Gutirrez in J. David Pleins, The Psalms: Songs of Tragedy, Hope, and Justice (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1993), 13435, 139-40. Pleins, Psalms, 129. See also his discussion of God's enthronement in Pleins, The Social Visions of the Hebrew Bible: A Theological Introduction (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001), 424-28. 44
78

77

God's rule in both spheres.79 He further states that what lies behind God's justice is God's holiness, so that when God's decrees are implemented, God's holiness escapes the bounds of cultic space and enters into the outside world.80 Like Roberts, Pleins recognizes that God's kingship in the Psalms is linked with creation, and he maintains that in the Psalms God's reign is made effective through the functioning of God's justice and creative power in tandem with one another.81 Pleins expresses some openness to Mowinckel's thesis that the enthronement psalms are properly situated in the autumn festival within the ancient Israelite cult, particularly if one allows that such a setting functions to advance the notion that God's reign is continually enacted (and not merely affirmed) through the liturgy.82 He has less patience with the debate over the proper translation of YHWH malak, arguing that such a discussion fails to take into account the timeless nature of liturgical acts. In the liturgy, he claims, past, present and future are intended simultaneously, so that God's reign from the beginning is affirmed, God's reign in the present is enacted, and God's ultimate reign in the eschatological future is anticipated.83

Pleins, Psalms, 129-30. He calls attention to the fact that the association of deities with justice is a common feature of ancient Near Eastern law codes (131).
80

79

Pleins, Psalms, 132. Pleins, Psalms, 134. Pleins, Psalms, 136. Pleins, Psalms, 136-37. 45

81

82

83

Mays Another approach to the theology of God's reign in the Psalms is that of James Mays. He argues that the sentence YHWH malak is the "organizing center for the theology of the psalms."84 In his view, the phrase refers to "an active dominion as well as an office, a royal activity that has a past and present as well as a constant reality."85 In the enthronement psalms, Yahweh's reign encompasses the spheres of the realm of the gods, nature, the nations of the world, and Zion in particular.86 For Mays, the theme "YHWH malak" provides "the aetiology of the psalmic situation," in that it is the assumption that lies behind the psalms in all of their various genres.87 The portrayals of Yahweh in the psalms in the roles of warrior, lawgiver, judge, and various others all stem from this basic metaphor of kingship.88

James L. Mays, "The Centre of the Psalms," in Language, Theology, and the Bible: Essays in Honour of James Barr (eds. Samuel E. Balentine and John Barton; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994), 232. See also Mays, "The Language of the Reign of God," Int 47 (1993): 117-26; Mays, Psalms (IBC; Louisville: John Knox Press, 1994), 30-31; and Mays, The Lord Reigns: A Theological Handbook to the Psalms (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994), 22, for other instances in which he advances this thesis. Writing in the mid-twentieth century, George Gunn recognizes the singular importance of this theme in the Psalms when he writes, "What the Psalter most wanted to say was that Israel had only one God, her King and Shield, who had made them His own people. The most important part of the King-idea is the saving power of God, and this is the pervading spirit of the Psalms now to be considered" (George S. Gunn, God in the Psalms [Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 1956], 72).
85

84

Mays, "Centre of the Psalms," 232. On this point, he is in agreement with

Pleins.
86

Mays, "Centre of the Psalms," 234. Mays, "Centre of the Psalms," 238. Mays, "Centre of the Psalms," 239. 46

87

88

Tucker Dennis Tucker's work further establishes the implications of Yahweh's kingship for the poor in a detailed fashion. His dissertation includes an analysis of four psalms in which the royal metaphor appears alongside language related to poverty (Pss 910, 68, 82, and 146). I will address three of them in the fourth chapter of this study. With regard to Psalm 910, Tucker calls attention to the explicit statement of Yahweh's kingship in Ps 10:16 as well as to the wealth of royal imagery in the psalm, including references to Yahweh's enthronement (b#y) and Yahweh's throne ()sk).89 He further notes that the psalm is replete with language that falls within the poverty wordfield (Kd, yn(, Nwyb), hklx, Mywn(, and Mwty).90 Tucker argues that the psalm portrays the poor and oppressed as "victimized and powerless," completely dependent upon Yahweh, and having their only hope in Yahweh's dispensation of justice in the role of the enthroned judge.91 In his analysis of Psalm 68, Tucker notes that the royal metaphor is expressed through the imagery of the Divine Warrior and the Enthroned King.92 He further observes that the psalm portrays Yahweh the father of orphans (Mwty), the protector of

W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor in the Final Shape of the Psalter," (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1997), 154-55.
90

89

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 153. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 157. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 159. 47

91

92

widows (hnml)), and the provider for the poor (yn().93 He notes that the psalm is constructed in such a way that it communicates the idea that the only hope that these groups have for a positive change in their situation rests in the benevolent reign of Yahweh.94 Tucker argues that the setting of the divine council in Psalm 82 "vividly portrays the responsibility of the gods for the protection of the poor and oppressed."95 He also points out the presence of five of the ten terms in the poverty wordfield in the psalm.96 He shows how the royal imagery of the Enthroned Judge is operative within the psalm and functions to demonstrate to the poor and oppressed that, as king, Yahweh is able to overcome the "cosmic threats of chaos and social disorder."97 In his analysis of Psalm 146, Tucker focuses on its structure. He notes the royal imagery at the beginning and end of the psalm and observes that "lodged in between these confessions are statements that indicate that Yahweh is indeed the guarantor of the welfare of the poor."98 Tucker's analysis of these psalms makes explicit the nature of the relationship between Yahweh's kingship and poverty in the Psalter.

93

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 160-61. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 162. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 163. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 166. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 169. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor, 172-73. 48

94

95

96

97

98

Summary Many of the insights from theological analyses of the theme of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms are of significance for this study. Kraus, Ficker, Anderson, Roberts, and Pleins all acknowledge that the portrayal of Yahweh as king in the Psalms entails the recognition of Yahweh's dominion not only over ancient Israel but over foreign nations and their kings as well. The work of James Mays is of particular significance in this study, because he argues so strongly for the central and overriding importance of the royal metaphor as the dominant theme of the Psalter. Certain aspects of Yahweh's reign as Mays presents it are particularly relevant to the present study. First, although it is universal in scope, Yahweh's reign entails a particular focus on ancient Israel. As Mays puts it, for Yahweh Israel is "a special possession and portion among the nations" so that "he is shepherd of Israel and they are his flock."99 To the extent that the earthly, historical reign of Yahweh is coterminous with "Yahweh's way with Israel," the opposition to it comes from foreign nations who, along with their rulers, are the "principal antagonists" in Psalms such as Pss 47, 68, 98, and 114.100 Mays also observes that the defense of the weak against the strong is an inherent aspect of Yahweh's reign. He notes, "Those who pray present themselves as the lowly

99

Mays, The Lord Reigns, 18.

Mays, "The Language of the Reign of God," 119-20. He further writes, "In the sphere of history, the Lord is lord of nations, the power that opposes governments in their politics of force and self-assertion and draws peoples toward a dominion of justice" (121).

100

49

('ani or 'aniyyim), who are helpless before powerful, arrogant enemies."101 This aspect of Yahweh's reign highlights the particular function of the divine king in the royal role of judge.102 Tucker's comments on Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms also figure prominently in this study, because they emphasize that it is as impossible to think of Yahweh's kingship apart from a just social order in which the poor are not oppressed as it is to think of Yahweh's kingship apart from Yahweh's dominion over all nations. In a very specific and detailed manner, Tucker builds a convincing case for viewing justice for the poor as a primary attribute of Yahweh's reign.

Canonical Approaches In recent Psalms scholarship, the topic of the canonical shape of the Psalter and the editorial process that led to its final canonical form has gained a great deal of traction. This approach shares in common with the aforementioned theological approaches an interest in the topic of Yahwehs kingship as it appears throughout the Psalter, although they emphasize the editorial process whereby the Psalter received its final canonical shape and focus less on issues such as tradition history. Scholars whose work fits into this category include Gerald Wilson and J. Clinton McCann. The royal metaphor is a topic of primary concern in their work.

101

Mays, The Lord Reigns, 21. Mays, The Lord Reigns, 21. 50

102

Wilson Of those who approach this topic in terms of the canonical shape of the Psalter, Gerald Wilson is perhaps the most notable. Wilson argues strongly for the centrality of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalter on the basis of its significance in the editorial arrangement of the Psalter's final form. He argues that the Psalter's first three books, particularly in light of the royal psalms placed at the "seams" between them, emphasize the Davidic Covenant in terms of its establishment (Psalm 2), security (Psalm 41), succession (Psalm 72) and ultimate failure (Psalm 89).103 The fourth book addresses the crisis of that covenant's failure by asserting Yahweh's kingship, emphasizing Yahweh's provision of refuge for Israel before the monarchy was established, assuring Yahweh's continued provision of refuge in the present, and pronouncing blessing on those who trust in the divine king.104 In the fifth book, David models an appropriate attitude of trust in Yahweh manifested in obedience to Torah that the exiles are encouraged to emulate.105 He concludes: In the final analysis, the shape of the Psalter preserves a tense dialogue (or a dialogue in tension) between the royal covenantal hopes associated with the first two-thirds of the Psalter and the wisdom counsel to trust YHWH alone associated with the final third. . . . As a result of its final form, the Psalter counters continuing concern for the restoration of the Davidic dynasty and kingdom with the wise counsel to seek refuge in a kingdom 'not of this world'the eternal kingdom in which YHWH alone is king.106 Gerald Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter (SBLDS 76; Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985), 211, 213.
104 103

Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 215. Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 227.

105

Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter: A Consideration of Editorial Linkage in the Book of Psalms," in The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter (JSOTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton McCann, Jr.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 81. 51

106

Thus, in the canonical shaping of the Psalter, the tension between human and divine kingship is resolved in favor of the latter. It should be noted that Wilson's thesis is not without its critics. While Anderson calls it "attractive" and "tempting," he offers the counterexample of Ps 132, a psalm that affirms the theology of the Davidic covenant even though it is placed after the enthronement psalms in the latter third of the Psalter.107 More substantially, in Reading the Psalms as a Book, Norman Whybrary sets out to refute the claim that one can detect a theological motive that lies behind the editing of the Psalter.108 He claims, "There is no evidence of the thorough and systematic changes that would have been necessary if the Psalter were to become the expression of a single theology."109 He adds that the editorial history of the Psalter remains largely unknowable.110 Anderson's counterexample is insufficient to refute Wilson's thesis. One might expect a more pristine product if Wilson were describing the Psalter as a single, unified composition, but since we are dealing with an editorial process, such an anomaly is not entirely surprising. For the same reason, the bar that Whybray sets for demonstrating the validity of Wilson's thesis is also unreasonably high. The Psalter's editors could have had any number of reasons for applying a relatively light editorial touch, and to observe that

107

Anderson, Contours of Old Testament Theology, 210.

See especially his discussion of Wilson's work in Norman Whybray, Reading the Psalms as a Book (JSOTSup 222; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996), 20-23, and his claim that one can detect "no systematic redaction" of royal psalms (99).
109

108

Whybray, Reading the Psalms as a Book, 124. Whybray, Reading the Psalms as a Book, 124. 52

110

they did so does not provide sufficient reason to dismiss the pattern that Wilson identifies. Apart from the criticisms raised by Anderson and Whybray, two other scholars question Wilson's emphasis on the exclusivity of Yahweh's kingship as an alternative to David's in the course of constructing their own descriptions of the Psalter's final canonical shape. Jamie Grant maintains that the reigns of Yahweh and David are not mutually exclusive: Therefore, it would appear that the intent of the editors of the final form of the Psalms was not that readers should reject the Davidic king and the centrality of Zion, in favour of commitment to the rule of Yahweh and hope in his eschatological kingdom. Rather, they were pointing the reader towards the reinterp-retation [sic] of the concepts of kingship and Zion in the light of a future real-isation [sic] of Yahweh's rule and plan in the figure of a restored Davidic leader.111 For Grant, the juxtaposition of royal and Torah psalms in Pss 1-2, 18-21, and 118-119 suggests that, in its final form, the Psalter anticipates a future Davidic king who will exhibit perfect compliance with the Law of the King in Deut 17:14-20 as a member of and model for the community at large.112 Grant's proposal rightly raises the question of through whom the Psalter's editors envisioned Yahweh's kingship being mediated, and the further attention that it calls to the centrality of Torah in the canonical Psalter suggests a potentially fruitful direction in which to pursue that question. The weakness of this approach is that it does not adequately account for the implications of the two major stages of the Psalter's canonical

Jamie A. Grant, The King as Exemplar: The Function of Deuteronomy's Kingship Law in the Shaping of the Book of Psalms (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2004), 36.
112

111

Grant, The King as Exemplar, 292-94. 53

development. Grant admits that a synchronic approach cannot account for the implications of the independent existence of Books I-III, offering only the observation that Book V reprises some themes in Books I-III and that the addition of Books IV-V need not be seen as an alteration of the earlier document's theological program.113 This view does not adequately account for the shift in emphasis that results from positioning the enthronement psalms at the canonical Psalter's editorial (and theological) center. David Mitchell also offers an approach to reading the Psalter's final canonical form, and he questions Wilson's emphasis on Yahweh's kingship, noting that Davidic kingship appears to make a comeback in Book V, particularly in light of the portrayals of a Davidic king in Pss 110, 132, and 144.114 He further notes that Wilson does not identify a historical setting in which a Davidic restoration would have been out of favor.115 In place of Wilson's "historically oriented redactional agenda," he proposes "an eschatological agenda."116 He envisions an eschatological drama analogous to that of Zech 9-14 unfolding in the Psalms as follows: in Psalm 45 the Bridegroom-king approaches Daughter Zion, in Psalm 50 a scattered Israel is gathered to Jerusalem, a temporary messianic kingdom is portrayed in Psalm 72, Pss 73-83 portray the gathering of hostile foreign nations against Jerusalem, the king is cut off in Psalm 89, Book IV portrays Israel's eschatological exile in the wilderness and ultimate return to Zion, a rescue by a messianic king occurs in Psalm 110, a celebration of victory and a welcoming
113

Grant, The King as Exemplar, 249-50.

David C. Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter: An Eschatological Programme in the Book of Psalms (JSOTSup 252; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997), 79.
115 116

114

Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter, 80-81. Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter, 88. 54

of the hero take place in Pss 111-118, and the Psalms of Ascents (Pss 120-134) portray the ascent of Israel and the nations to Zion for Sukkoth in the messianic kingdom.117 Mitchell's proposal is helpful in that it highlights the hostility of foreign nations to ancient Israel in the Psalter.118 A clear weakness of Mitchell's view, however, is that it does not adequately account for the high profile of the theme of Torah in the Psalter's final shape. Most notably, he fails to account for the towering presence of Psalm 119 in Book V. He does discuss the placement of Psalm 1 at the beginning of the Psalter, and he writes: The combined effects of Psalms 1 and 2 together may be that Psalm 1 foretells the triumph of the righteous divine king who meditates on Yhwh's Torah, and Psalm 2 shows him going forth to battle with its predicted outcome. Or Psalm 1 delineates the person who will share in the king's triumph, possibly as a warrior, and Psalm 2 pronounces that one's blessedness. The two psalms together announce that the ensuing collection is a handbook for the eschatological wars of the Lord, describing the coming events and the Yhwh-allegiance required of those who would triumph.119 This treatment of the Psalter's introduction is problematic on two levels. First, it is overly tentative. Understanding the function of Pss 1 and 2 is crucial for understanding the argument of the whole Psalter, yet Mitchell offers two options for reading the Psalter's introduction without developing them and without discussing their relative merits. Second, his discussion of Pss 1 and 2 assumes the priority of Psalm 2that is, the key information is in Psalm 2, and Psalm 1 plays a supporting role. This view does not adequately account for the two-stage development of the Psalter in which the collection

117

Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter, 297-98.

See especially his chapter on the "Wilderness of the Nations" in Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter, 272-96.
119

118

Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter, 87. 55

begins with Psalm 1 rather than Psalm 2. More to the point, Mitchell ignores the function of Psalm 1 to introduce the Psalter as a book of instruction,120 and the influence of the wisdom tradition on the Psalter's final shape is inconsistent with the apocalyptic agenda that Mitchell describes.

McCann J. Clinton McCann has offered some observations that support the general thrust of Wilson's argument. He argues that the failure of the Davidic covenant in light of the exile appears already in Books I-III.121 In his view, Book III reflects that experience of exile in that it juxtaposes psalms that reflect a traditional Davidic/Zion theology with communal laments, thus signaling a rejection of that theology.122 At the beginning of Book II, a royal psalm (Ps. 45), two Zion psalms (Pss. 46 and 48) and an enthronement psalm (Ps. 47) come after the laments of Pss. 42-44. These laments provide a context for reading the psalms that follow themthey must be read in light of the reality of the community's life after the exile.123 In Book I, Pss 1 and 2 affirm God's roles as "judge of the wicked" and "ruler of the nations," respectively. They set a context for reading the

For a discussion of this function of Psalm 1 in relation to Psalm 2, see W. H. Bellinger, Jr., "Reading from the Beginning (Again): The Shape of Book I of the Psalter," in Diachronic and Synchronic: Reading the Psalms in Real Time: Proceedings of the Baylor Symposium on the Book of Psalms (LHBOTS 488; eds. Joel S. Burnett, W. H. Bellinger, Jr., and W. Dennis Tucker, Jr.; New York: T. & T. Clark, , 2007), 119. J. Clinton McCann, "Books I-III and the Editorial Purpose of the Hebrew Psalter," in The Shape and Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter, 95.
122 121

120

McCann, "Books I-III and the Editorial Purpose of the Hebrew Psalter," 98-99. McCann, "Books I-III and the Editorial Purpose of the Hebrew Psalter," 102-

123

103. 56

notable concentrations of individual laments in Book I as expressions of the communal crisis of foreign domination.124

Assessment The arguments of canonical critics of the Psalter have shed considerable light on our understanding of the Psalter's plot, and they inform this study to a significant degree. Wilson's demonstration of the significance of Yahweh's kingship in the editorial process that yielded the Psalter's final form is convincing, and yet one aspect of his analysis is problematic and must be addressed here. Wilson portrays the tension between lingering hope for the Davidic Covenant and the counsel to trust in Yahweh's kingship instead in terms of the triumph of a "final wisdom frame" (Pss. 1, 73, 90, 107, and 145) over an earlier "royal covenantal frame" (Pss. 2, 72, 89, and 144).125 In light of the wisdom frame, he argues that there was an "apparent shift of function away from public performance to private meditation and appropriation"126 in terms of the Psalter's function. Wilson's point that the Psalter in its final form is intended to be read as a whole rather than performed in a piecemeal fashion is astute, but the notion that its intended audience thus becomes the individual reader in the privacy of his or her own life and ceases to be the community is problematic for several reasons. First, the royal metaphor is inherently political. As Mays acknowledges, the portrayal of Yahweh as a king

McCann, "Books I-III and the Editorial Purpose of the Hebrew Psalter," 104. See also his discussion in McCann, A Theological Introduction to the Book of Psalms: The Psalms as Torah (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993), 41-45, for a similar view.
125

124

Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter," 80-81.

Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter," 81. See also Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 206, for similar remarks. 57

126

necessarily entails a relationship to ancient Israel as a nation. The Psalter may well be a book that is intended to be read, but the centrality of the royal metaphor suggests that it be read in the context of a community. Second, it is not at all clear that the editorial activity that Wilson describes removes the Psalter from the sphere of the cult (or from corporate worship more broadly). Significantly, Aaron is mentioned only once (77:21) in the Psalter's first three books, but he appears eight times (99:6, 105:26, 106:16, 115:10, 115:12, 118:3, 133:2, and 135:19) in the fourth and fifth books. Thus, at the same point at which the Psalter begins to emphasize Yahweh's kingship, the profile of the priesthood begins to rise as well. Finally, the Psalter's polemic against foreign nations, which I discuss in the next chapter, fits best in the context of a corporate audience. When it became a purposefully edited literary whole, the Psalter did not cease to be a politically charged document addressed to a community. The final form of the Psalter certainly may have functioned as a book for private, individual study, but it did not cease to function as a book for corporate worship and communal engagement. Thus, I am in agreement with the insights of canonical critics pertaining to the role of Yahweh's kingship as the central organizing motif in the Psalter's final form. I disagree with Wilson, however, on the rhetorical function of the Psalter's organization, and I prefer to read the Psalter in its final form as a political document intended primarily for public consumption rather than as a book intended only for private study.

Yahweh's Kingship and the Refuge Metaphor Wilson's identification of Yahweh's provision of refuge as an important theme in Book IV raises the issue of the relationship between the royal metaphor and the refuge

58

metaphor.127 For Jerome Creach, they are inextricably linked. He argues that encouraging readers to seek refuge in Yahweh is a major editorial concern in the Psalter, which he understands to be synonymous with encouragement "to choose the eternal king as a source of protection and sustenance vis--vis human power."128 He calls particular attention to psalms in which the royal and refuge metaphors appear together. Specifically, he notes that in Psalm 5 the psalmist addresses Yahweh as "my king," requests that those who seek refuge in Yahweh might rejoice, and uses images of protection such as a "screen" and a "shield."129 He further notes that Psalm 9 portrays Yahweh in the royal role of judge and also as a "stronghold" for the "oppressed."130 The latter example is of particular significance in that it illustrates that the refuge that Yahweh provides as king is exercised specifically for the benefit of the oppressed. One might also consider the example of Psalm 146. In Ps 146:3 the psalmist encourages readers not to "trust" (x+b) in great people or in mortals who cannot "save"

Wilson makes the connection between these two metaphors explicit when he identifies the propositions that YHWH is king, He [Yahweh] has been our refuge in the past, long before the monarchy existed, and He will continue to be our refuge now that the monarchy is gone as three of the four parts of the response in Book IV to the problem of the failure of the Davidic covenant posed in Psalm 89 (Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 215). Jerome F. D. Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter (JSOTSup 217; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996), 18. Creach's methodology involves analysis of the semantic field surrounding the root hsx. He argues that the related terminology collectively connotes the idea of dependence on Yahweh (48).
129 128

127

Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 54. Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 54. 59

130

((#y).131 Rather, the reader is counseled to seek the help of the God of Jacob (Ps 146:5). The psalm ends with an affirmation of Yahweh's kingship: Mlw( hwhy Klmy "Yahweh will reign forever" (Ps 146:10). Furthermore, Yahweh's actions benefit the oppressed (Myqw#() in Ps 146:7 and the orphan (Mwty) and the widow (hnml)) in Ps 146:9.132 Psalm 146 is another case in which the provision of refuge is emphasized as an aspect of Yahweh's kingship and in which it is clear that the refuge provided is specifically for the poor and oppressed. Significantly, terminology within the semantic field of refuge appears in five of the ten psalms that I analyze in the fourth chapter (Pss 9, 22, 44, 74, and 94).133 Creach's arguments are supported by the work of William Brown, who affirms the centrality of the royal metaphor in the Psalter and that it "has its home in refuge, monumentalized by Zion and extended cosmically."134 He adds, "'King' and 'refuge' stand on common ground: both connote protection and security for Israel's sake, including the impoverished (e.g., 14:6; 68:5-6; 72:12-14)."135 For Brown, the refuge metaphor is a "foundational metaphor" in the Psalter, and it highlights how, as king, God

Both terms are included in Creach's definition of the semantic field of hsx (Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 133). All of these terms are included in Tucker's definition of the semantic field of poverty. See Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 33. See Creach's table outlining the distribution of terminology in the semantic field of refuge in Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 12733. William P. Brown, Seeing the Psalms: A Theology of Metaphor (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 29.
135 134 133 132

131

Brown, Seeing the Psalms, 29. 60

protects those who are distressed.136 Like Creach, Brown calls attention to the way in which the aspect of Yahweh's kingship that entails providing refuge highlights Yahweh's activity on behalf of the poor.

Conclusion In summary, this discussion of the royal metaphor as it is applied to Yahweh in the Psalms demonstrates three major points. First, theological and canonical approaches to the topic both show that Yahweh's kingship lies at the heart of the Psalter's message. It seems clear that Wilson and Mays make a convincing case that the primary image associated with the character of Yahweh in the Psalter is that of kingship. Mays shows how the metaphor lies at the theological center of the book, while Wilson demonstrates its place at the editorial center of the Psalms. Second, it is evident that the concept of Yahweh's kingship is infused with geopolitical significance. Scholars who approach the enthronement psalms from a variety of different angles agree that these psalms advance a vision of a world in which Yahweh's reign extends to ancient Israel's powerful foreign neighbors. Theological approaches to the theme of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalter as a whole yield the same conclusion. Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms has important ramifications for understanding the Psalter's view of the relationships between Yahweh, foreign nations, and ancient Israel. Finally, the royal metaphor also has inherent implications for the poor. The contributions of Creach and Brown that establish the significance of the refuge metaphor in the Psalms bolster the case made by Wilson and Mays, in that they show how this
136

Brown, Seeing the Psalms, 30. 61

metaphor is inherent in the idea of Yahweh's kingship. That observation sheds light on the relationship between the royal metaphor and the poor in the Psalter, in that the poor and oppressed appear as the beneficiaries of the refuge provided by the divine king. The data that Tucker analyzes in his dissertation solidifies the case that the maintenance of the social order by providing justice for the poor and oppressed is an essential aspect of Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms.

62

CHAPTER THREE The Portrayal of Ancient Israel and Foreign Nations in the Psalms

Introduction Having discussed the significance of the portrayal of God as king in the Psalms, it remains in this chapter to explore the Psalter's portrayal of ancient Israel and foreign nations. In the course of this discussion, I am advancing three major points. First, the Psalter generally portrays ancient Israel as a nation that is oppressed by powerful foes and entirely dependent upon Yahweh for its survival. Second, the individual speaker in the Psalms (whether royal or not) generally identifies with the nation of ancient Israel in its poverty and oppression. Third, the Psalter's portrayal of foreign nations is overwhelmingly unsympathetic. I proceed with a discussion of the portrayal of ancient Israel before concluding with a treatment of the Psalter's portrayal of foreign nations.

The Psalter's Portrayal of Ancient Israel The Psalter generally portrays ancient Israel in a manner that portrays the nation as a victim of oppression. As a character in the Psalms, ancient Israel appears as nation under mortal threat from the powerful empires that surround it. This view is present in the communal psalms of lament as well as the communal psalms of thanksgiving. Moreover, even when the speaker in the Psalms is an individual, the individual tends to identify with the nation of ancient Israel and with the poverty and oppression that are inherent to the Psalter's portrayal of that nation.

63

Ancient Israel as an Oppressed Nation

Communal laments. The communal laments are the most natural place to begin a discussion of ancient Israel's self-characterization as an oppressed nation.1 J. David Pleins notes that the "dire consequences of empire building" are central to this genre.2 He points to "national injustice," "foreign invasion," and "suffering in exile" as concrete situations that lie behind the communal laments.3 The discussion that follows will not be exhaustive, but it will be sufficient to demonstrate a clear trend in the portrayal of the nation in these psalms. I begin with Psalm 60. McCann describes the psalm as "the prayer of suffering and oppressed persons" and "the desperate plea of those who turn to God as the only possible hope in an apparently hopeless situation."4 Moreover, Zenger comments, "The psalm reflects the drama through which Israel, in the midst of the nations surrounding it, learned that YHWH had chosen it as 'his people' (cf. v. 5) and promised his special protection, even, and especially, against the neighboring peoples."5 The psalmist begins

Recognizing that there are differing opinions regarding the genres of many of the psalms, for the purposes of this study I adopt Bellinger's designation of Pss 12, 14, 44, 53, 58, 60, 74, 79, 80, 83, 85, 90, 106, 108, 123, 126, and 137 as communal laments. See the list in William H. Bellinger, Jr., Psalms: Reading and Studying the Book of Praises (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1990), 45. J. David Pleins, The Psalms: Songs of Tragedy, Hope, and Justice (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1993), 42.
3 2

Pleins, Psalms, 43.

J. Clinton McCann, Jr., "The Book of Psalms," in The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994), 4:917-918. Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Psalms 2: A Commentary on Psalms 51-100 (trans. Linda M. Maloney; Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005), 94. 64
5

by asserting that God has rejected the people in anger (60:3), an experience that is compared to an earthquake and forced intoxication (60:4-5). Kraus observes that the references to locations in the northern kingdom in 60:8-9 reflect a situation in which "Northern Israel is full of foreign powers."6 Also, Mays notes that, despite the cosmic imagery, the psalm reflects a situation in which Israel has suffered a military defeat.7 Indeed, in 60:12 the psalmist complains that God does not go forth with the nation's armies and proceeds to request God's help against the enemy, in which case victory will be certain (60:12). Zenger observes, "Only when YHWH intervenes and breaks the power of the enemies is there 'rescue' for his people."8 The psalm portrays ancient Israel as a nation that, with God's help, could triumph in battle but is no match for the armies of other nations when God's support is withheld.9 The complaint in Psalm 79 begins with a rather straightforward indictment of the nations (Mywg) who have desecrated the temple and destroyed Jerusalem. Craig Broyles observes, "The psalm centers its appeal to God not by challenging the validity of his judgment but by reporting human atrocities."10 McCann notes that the psalm is generally

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 60-150 (trans. Hilton C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 1989), 5. James L. Mays, Psalms (IBC; Louisville: John Knox Press, 1994), 213. Saumuel Terrien similarly comments that the psalm "describes only humiliating defeats" (Samuel Terrien, The Psalms: Strophic Structure and Theological Commentary [Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003], 448).
8 7

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 103.

Terrien thus calls attention to "the nationalism of the poet's faith" in his discussion of the psalm (Terrien, The Psalms, 581). Craig C. Broyles, Psalms (NIBCOT; Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1999), 327. 65
10

thought to reflect the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, although it could fit the temple's desecration under Antiochus IV Epiphanes as well.11 In any case, the nation is portrayed as having been overrun by a foreign army, with the result that it has become an object of taunting for its neighbors (79:4).12 Nevertheless, the psalmist pleads for vengeance (79:10) to which the nation, as God's people and flock, would respond by praising and glorifying God (79:13). Psalm 80 begins with a general appeal for the help of the enthroned deity (80:2). The psalmist identifies God as having caused the nations' dispute with its neighbors, so that their enemies ridicule them (80:7). The remainder of the psalm is an appeal to God to deliver and establish the nation in a fashion that is similar to the exodus from Egypt and conquest of Canaan.13 Psalm 80 serves as another example of a communal lament in which Israel is portrayed as being in conflict with and mocked by its neighbors and appealing to God, here portrayed as a royal figure, for help.14 In Psalm 83, the nation's enemies are simultaneously portrayed as God's enemies (83:3).15 They conspire against God's people (83:4), and they are clearly foreign because

11

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 994.

Kraus notes that the psalm is the expression of a "suffering and oppressed people" (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 136). See Adrian Curtis's observation that the "traditions of Exodus, conquest and settlement are depicted as the bringing in, planting and spread of a vine" in Adrian Curtis, Psalms (Epworth Commentaries; Werrington: Epworth Press, 2004), 170. Zenger notes that Pss 79 and 80 are connected by this common motif of "neighboring peoples who taunt Israel" (Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 317). Terrien notes that the psalm reflects "a military crisis of mortal proportions" and observes that in the psalm "Israel's enemies are the enemies of Yahweh" (Terrien, The Psalms, 594). Zenger characterizes the psalm as "a lament and protest addressed to a 66
15 14 13

12

their goal is to destroy Israel as a nation (83:5) and because they are explicitly named (83:7-9).16 Mays notes that the list does not clearly point to a particular moment in the nation's history. Rather, "To speak of a typical and recurring crisis that belongs to Israel's history, the danger of being overrun and wiped out by other peoples, is poetic rhetoric."17 The psalmist calls for a reversal of the situation in which God will bring shame upon the nations that plot against Israel so that they must seek Yahweh's name and recognize Yahweh's global supremacy (83:17-18).18 Again, Israel is under threat from external enemies, and God is identified as the source of hope for deliverance. Commentators regularly observe the similarity that Psalm 106 bears to Psalm 105 in terms of its recitation of ancient Israel's history while also pointing out that Psalm 106

God who, unmoved, untouched, or perhaps powerless, observes the attacks of the world of nations directed at him and his people" (Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 339). Broyles notes that the explicit naming of the enemies distinguishes this psalm from other communal laments (Broyles, Psalms, 339). Commenting on the list, Geoffrey Grogan observes, "The alliance is multinational, virtually surrounding Israel" (Geoffrey W. Grogan, Psalms [Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008], 148).
17 16

Mays, Psalms, 272.

This example gives support to the theory that the motif of the pilgrimage to Zion and the call for the nations to acknowledge Yahweh's kingship in the Psalms has more to do with subjugation than persuasion. See Robert C. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh Psalms," in Reading Communities and Reading Scripture: Essays in Honor of Daniel Patte (ed. Gary A. Phillips and Nicole Wilkinson Duran; Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002), 267-68, for a discussion of this view. The association of the nations' shame with their recognition of God's reign also tends to undermine Lohfink's argument that a psalm such as Psalm 25 that ends with a prayer for Israel's redemption can be read as the freely offered prayer of someone from the nations on Israel's behalf (Norbert Lohfink and Erich Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations: Studies in Isaiah and the Psalms [Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 2000], 76-80). 67

18

is by far the more pessimistic of the two in that it focuses on the nation's disobedience.19 Its literary genre is something of an open question, although the designation of it as a communal lament is well within the mainstream of scholarly opinion.20 The psalm recalls the paradigmatic example of oppression by a foreign enemy in its narration of the nation's experience in Egypt (106:7-11). It raises the topic of God's threat to scatter the wilderness generation's offspring among the nations (106:27). The psalmist further notes how God gave the nation over to its enemies because of their failure to exterminate the Canaanites (106:34-42).21 The reader learns in 106:47 that the nation has been scattered among the nations as the psalmist calls on God to gather them so that God might be the recipient of their praise.22 Thus, whereas Psalm 83 contains a litany of nations that seek to do harm to ancient Israel, Psalm 106 contains a litany of disobedience that results in the nation's subjugation to foreign powers. Again, ancient Israel is left only to call upon God for help. Psalm 137 is perhaps the textbook example of a psalm in which ancient Israel is depicted as crying out to God under the weight of foreign oppression.23 A. A. Anderson

See, for example, McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 1109; Curtis, Psalms, 210; and Broyles, Psalms, 405, for discussions of this comparison. See the discussions of issues related to the psalm's genre in Leslie C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC 21; Waco: Word Books, 1983), 49-51, and McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 1110.
21 20

19

Curtis notes the psalm's affinity with Deuteronomic theology (Curtis, Psalms,

212-13). Seybold observes that the psalm is the expression of the Diaspora community in exile (Klaus Seybold, Die Psalmen [HAT I/15; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1996], 424). Bellinger calls it "the passionate cry of powerless victims," and notes, "it is clear from the first verses that the psalm relates to the Babylonian Exile of the sixth 68
23 22

classifies the psalm as "a Communal Lament culminating in an imprecation upon the enemies."24 It can easily be dated to the period of the Babylonian exile or after, in that it clearly reflects the Babylonian conquest of Judah and resettlement of many of its citizens in Babylon.25 The psalmist writes of how the Babylonians held them captive and taunted them (137:3). The Edomites are portrayed as having cheered the Babylonians on in their destruction of Jerusalem, and the psalmist appeals to God for vengeance (137:7).26 Four communal laments (Pss 14, 53, 85, and 126) portray ancient Israel as an oppressed nation specifically through the use of the idiom restore the fortunes. Variations on the phrase twb# bw# appear in each of them, and I discuss all four together because they share in common a set of interpretive issues that surrounds the phrase. David Howard argues for the consensus view is that twb# is derived from bw# (turn, return) and that the idiom means "restore the fortunes."27 Further, in his discussion

century BCE," though he states that the date and setting of the psalm are unclear (William H. Bellinger, Jr., "Psalm 137: Memory and Poetry," HBT 27 [2005]: 19, 9). A. A. Anderson, The Book of Psalms (NCB; London: Oliphants, 1972), 897. Richard Clifford also identifies it as a communal lament. See Richard J. Clifford, Psalms 73-150 (AOTC; Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003), 272. See the discussion along these lines in Broyles, Psalms, 479. Kraus states that the psalm is unique in its ability to be associated with a particular moment in history (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 501). Zenger writes, "Psalm 137 is a political psalm: It deals with the end of Babylon's reign of terror" (Erich Zenger, A God of Vengeance?: Understanding the Psalms of Divine Wrath [trans. Linda M. Maloney; Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994], 50). David M. Howard, Jr., "hb#," NIDOTTE 4:18-19. For support of this view, see Dahood's identification of an Aramaic cognate from the mid-eighth century B.C.E. Sefre Inscription which he argues "shows that the noun is a cognate accusative" and thus is derived from bw# rather than hb# (Mitchell Dahood, Psalms III: 101-150 [AB 17A; 69
27 26 25 24

of its use in Pss 85 and 126, Bellinger argues that it refers "to the restoration of the fortunes of Israel or of her well-being."28 Even though the idiom does not explicitly denote a return from foreign captivity, in specific contexts it can refer to the return from exile in Babylon. Kraus, McCann, and Mays all take this view. Kraus expresses ambivalence on the issue of how to translate the idiom, giving slight preference to the consensus view, but he nevertheless asserts that "In Ps 126:4, twb# bw# refers to the great turn-around in the history which took place in the return from exile."29 With reference to the idiom's use in Psalm 85, Mays notes that it is possible "to locate the psalm in the postexilic period when the community could look back on their amazing deliverance as a real 'restoration of fortune.'"30 Similarly, with reference to the idiom's use in Psalm 14, McCann writes the following: Many scholars consider v. 7 to be a post-exilic addition to the psalm in order to make it especially applicable to a situation in which Israel was dominated by other nations. This is certainly possible and may find support in the appearance of the phrase "restore the fortunes," which often specifically indicates return from exile and always suggests restoration from a major setback, such as the exile and its aftermath.31

Garden City: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1970], 218). According to a minority view, twb# is derived from the root hb# (take captive), and the phrase means "return the captives." Gary Cohen writes that the idiom is used "to speak of a captivity, which is or will be terminated" (Gary Cohen, "hb#," in TWOT 2:894-96). Similarly, Terrien writes, "The expression 'return of the remnant' literally means return from captivity (from Babylonia), or the Diaspora in the larger sense" (Terrien, The Psalms, 417). Bellinger, Psalmody and Prophecy (JSOTSup 27; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1984), 66. Along similar lines, see Erhard Baumann, "twb# bw# Eine exegetische Untersuchung," ZAW 47 (1929): 20-22.
29 28

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 175. Mays, Psalms, 276. McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 730. 70

30

31

In light of these observations, it seems overwhelmingly likely that the use of this idiom in Pss 14, 85 and 126 should be read as a reference to ancient Israel's subjugation under foreign powers. Psalm 53 and Psalm 14 are alternate versions of the same poem,32 and prayers for salvation for Israel to come from Zion and for God to "restore the fortunes" of "his people" (wm() in 53:7 as well as in 14:7. The case for reading the idiom as a reference to foreign domination is even stronger in Psalm 53 than in Psalm 14 in light of reference in 53:6 to those who encamped against the psalmist's community. Marvin Tate argues, "Ps 14 may be read as referring to evildoers in Israel (though v 7 certainly encourages one to think of Israel in a hostile world) and of God's judgment of them. In Ps 53 the situation is that of Israel having been recently under siege and of the powerful intervention of God against foreigners who try to devour his people."33 Significantly, this language in 53:6 replaces language about the evildoers who act against the "poor" (yn() for whom God is a "refuge" (whsxm) in 14:6. If one reads the two parallel psalms together, the association of the besieged nation with the poor is striking. This idiom also appears in 85:2. Terrien interprets this instance of it as a reference to foreign oppression of ancient Israel, characterized as "appalled by a continuous state of poverty, famine, and oppression apparently due to administrators of the Persian Empire."34 Kraus refers to Pss 85 and 126 as parallel texts with a common

Mays, Psalms, 205. The similarity between them is noted by virtually all commentators.
33

32

Marvin E. Tate, Psalms 51-100 (WBC 20; Dallas: Word Books, 1990), 41. Terrien, The Psalms, 607. 71

34

setting and argues that they refer specifically to "the liberation from exile" as one of the "great salvific deeds of Yahweh."35 The idiom is used twice in Psalm 126 (126:1 and 126:4). Terrien writes "The traditional translations of vv. 1 and 4 are probably correct. The psalmist rejoices profusely over the complete return from Mesopotamia."36 There is strong evidence, then, for interpreting the use of the idiom twb# bw# in Pss 14, 53, 85, and 126 as references to the captivity of the Judahites in Babylon, even though the concept of restoration from exile is not inherent in the words themselves. These psalms portray ancient Israel as a nation oppressed by foreign enemies, and they envisage the restoration from exile as an instance of divine saving action on the nation's behalf. Clearly, the communal laments are relatively consistent in their portrayal of ancient Israel as a nation oppressed by its enemies and dependent upon God for deliverance. Tucker examines this phenomenon through the lens of the social dynamics of shame. He argues that language related to shame is so ubiquitous in psalms of lament that "the shaming of others or the averting of shame by the psalmists represented a primary concern that warranted a plea for divine assistance."37 He further argues that the communal laments presuppose a patron-client relationship between Yahweh and ancient Israel in which Yahweh's failure to act in accordance with the reciprocal covenant relationship jeopardizes the solidarity between the two parties and brings shame upon

35

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 174. Terrien, The Psalms, 827.

36

W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., "Is Shame a Matter of Patronage in the Communal Laments?" JSOT 31 (2007): 468.

37

72

both of them.38 This view sheds significant light on the motifs of the enemy's taunt against ancient Israel and the offering of praise in response to Yahweh's deliverance of the nations that have been noted in the examples mentioned above.

Communal psalms of thanksgiving. The weakness of ancient Israel in the face of its enemies and the nation's dependence on Yahweh for survival are not concepts that are peculiar to the communal laments, however. Some communal psalms of thanksgiving also portray ancient Israel in this manner.39 Specifically, such a portrayal of the nation appears in Pss 124, 129, and 136. One might think of them as examples of the nation's making good on promises to praise Yahweh for delivering the nation that are made in the communal laments. Psalm 124 certainly fits this description. Curtis classifies the psalm as a "Communal Prayer of Thanksgiving."40 The psalmist calls upon the nation to confess that apart from Yahweh's favor Israel would have been destroyed by its enemies (124:13). The assailants are identified only as Md) "human beings" (124:2). Nevertheless, they are clearly foreign, as they are set in opposition to "Israel." Mays notes that the people of ancient Israel "have learned and here confess that the people of God cannot live merely as 'man,' because the human powers around them will engulf them in the history

38

Tucker, "Is Shame a Matter of Patronage in the Communal Laments?" 479.

I follow Bellinger in regarding Pss 67, 75, 107, 124, 129, and 136 as communal psalms of thanksgiving. See the list in Bellinger, Psalms: Reading and Studying the Book of Praises, 75.
40

39

Curtis, Psalms, 236. 73

that 'man' makes."41 Even in the midst of thanksgiving, the psalmist acknowledges the nation's defenselessness against foreign oppression apart from Yahweh's protection.42 Similarly, Psalm 129 calls upon ancient Israel to declare that it has been assailed from its youth (129:1-2).43 Anderson interprets the expression as a reference to the traditions of the exodus and wilderness wanderings and observes that "the people of God have outlived all their oppressorsthe successive dynasties of the Egyptians, the Philistines and the Arameans, the Assyrians and the Babylonians."44 In any case, the assailants are portrayed as haters of Zion in 129:5. The psalmist credits Yahweh with having thwarted them (129:4). Terrien observes, "The Lord does not prevent the cruelty of the recurrent persecutions. He prevents only the elect people from being wiped out."45 The psalm clearly portrays ancient Israel as a nation under foreign threat, dependent upon Yahweh for survival. Psalm 136 also highlights God's deliverance of ancient Israel from hostile foreign enemies. The exodus narrative is recounted in 136:10-15.46 After mentioning the defeat

41

Mays, Psalms, 397.

Seybold observes that the psalm represents the view that Israel owes its existence exclusively to Yahweh's intervention (Seybold, Die Psalmen, 483). On the classification of the psalm as a communal psalm of thanksgiving, see Hermann Gunkel, An Introduction to the Psalms: The Genres of the Religious Lyric of Israel (trans. James D. Nogalski; Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1998), 240.
44 43

42

Anderson, The Book of Psalms, 872. Terrien, The Psalms, 837.

45

Terrien notes, "The recital of Heilsceschichte at times short-circuits the theology of grace in times of distress as in times of peace" (Terrien, The Psalms, 863). Konrad Schaefer observes this dissonance as well, and explains it in terms of ancient Israel's status as an oppressed nation: "it demonstrates esed for an oppressed Israelite" 74

46

of Pharaoh and his army in 136:15, the psalmist states in 136:17-18 that God struck "great kings" (Myldg Myklm) and killed "mighty kings" (Myryd) Myklm), specifically Sihon of the Amorites and Og of Bashan (136:19-20).47 Israel's dependence upon God is highlighted in 136:23-24, when the psalmist highlights the nation's "lowliness" (wnlp#b#) and states that God rescued them from their enemies.48

Summary. It seems clear, in light of this evidence, that when the nation of ancient Israel speaks as a character in the Psalms, it tends to represent itself as a nation under overwhelming pressure from external forces that can only be overcome with Yahweh's help. This self-portrayal of ancient Israel is characteristic of both the communal laments as well as the communal psalms of thanksgiving. The picture of ancient Israel that emerges from the Psalter is one of an oppressed nation.

The Israelite Identity of the Individual Psalmist

The king as speaker. These observations have implications beyond the communal psalms of lament and thanksgiving because of the high frequency with which individual speakers in the Psalms identify with the nation. John Eaton argues forcefully that the

(Konrad Schaefer, Psalms [Berit Olam; Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 2001], 320). Gersteberger notes that these kings are "exemplary prototypes of enemies" and that the psalm's original audience would have connected them with the Babylonians and Persians from their own experience (Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations [FOTL 15; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Pubslishing Company, 2001], 387). Gerstenberger writes, "Contemporary debasement and lowliness, as well as contemporary salvation experiences of the Yahweh community, are intended in vv. 2324" (Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations, 387). 75
48 47

actual number of royal psalms in the Psalter is larger than most scholars have appreciated. 49 He offers a number of arguments in support of this thesis. He notes the following items in support of his argument: the frequency with which the Davidic superscription appears, the tradition of the monarchy's patronage of liturgical music, the fact that the royal court is the only situation that has been proven to lie behind any individual psalm, the high degree of literary similarity that exists throughout the Psalms, the historical reality of a high degree of royal involvement in matters of religion, the similarity between the portrayal of enemies in royal psalms and that in other individual psalms, the plausibility of a royal speaker in psalms in which the psalmist speaks in both the singular and the plural, and the presence of royal motifs in other psalms of the individual. Croft would also expand the number of psalms that are identified as royal psalms, although he is critical of Eaton. Specifically, he argues that Eaton has only dealt with one way of viewing the individual speaker in the Psalms, which weakens his overall argument.50 He also notes that Eaton's argument tends toward circularity because he

John H. Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (SBT 32; Naperville, IL: Alec R. Allenson, Inc., 1975), 20-23. In his published dissertation, Bellinger undertakes to refute Eaton's arguments (see Bellinger, Psalmody and Prophecy, 28-31). He notes, for example, that the Davidic superscription more broadly indicates that a psalm is part of a royally approved liturgical collection, that Eaton's extrapolation from known contexts of psalms to identify context in more ambiguous cases is an example of the fallacy of "patternism," that the alternation between an individual and corporate speaker in some psalms is equally well explained as a case of "fluid corporate personality," and that, given the relatively late date for the final form of the Psalter, any royal psalms that are present were probably included because of the messianic interpretation of them. Steven J. L. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms (JSOTSup 44; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1987), 74. 76
50

49

confuses general arguments that many psalms are royal psalms with more specific arguments that individual psalms are royal psalms.51 He further notes that Eaton ignores the task of articulating a setting for the psalms he regards as royal but not as having been used in the annual ritual.52 Croft offers his own reconstruction of the autumn festival and proceeds to identify psalms that correspond to each stage of it.53 He ultimately concludes that 41 of the 96 individual psalms are royal psalms, of which he associates 21 with the autumn festival.54 He thus agrees with Eaton (and Birkeland) "that the psalter [sic] is to a considerable degree a royal book."55 The number and precise contents of the set of royal psalms in the Psalter is certainly open for debate, but in cases in which the speaker in a psalm can be reasonably identified as the ancient Israelite king, it necessarily follows that the speaker represents an ancient Israelite perspective. Those who advance this position are vulnerable to the critiques that they claim more than the evidence supports and that they do not adequately demonstrate the superiority of their explanation of the phenomena they identify over others. Nevertheless, their arguments at least demonstrate that the reader of the Psalter may plausibly hypothesize that the "I" is a royal figure in the psalms that their arguments

51

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 44. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 75.

52

See his reconstruction of the festival in Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 81-84, and the ensuing discussion in the remainder of his third chapter in which he articulates a setting for the various psalms that he considers to be royal psalms.
54

53

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 131-32. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 132. 77

55

address. Indeed, there are cues in the text that seem to prompt the reader in this direction. In his discussion of the Psalter's editorial structure, Wilson identifies a royal covenantal frame that is subordinate only to the final wisdom frame.56 He also acknowledges that Davidic superscriptions suggest to the reader the persona of David when he argues that such psalms in Book V present David as an example of one who trusts in Yahweh's kingship.57 Moreover, after encountering the royal concerns in Psalm 2 at the beginning of the Psalter, the reader encounters the narrative superscription in Ps 3:1 that associates the psalm with David's retreat before Absalom. The overwhelmingly Davidic collection in the remainder of Book I follows, with extended narrative superscriptions in Pss 7, 18, 30, and 34. The issues of authorship and literary form aside, an informed reader could naturally fall into the habit of supposing that the individual speaker in the Psalms is the voice of David or that of a Davidic king, especially in psalms with Davidic superscriptions.

Gerald Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter," in The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter (JSOTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton McCann, Jr.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 78-81. Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter (SBLDS 76; Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985), 220-22. In his analysis of the narrative superscriptions that relate psalms to events in the narrative of Davids life (primarily as narrated in Samuel), James D. Nogalski also argues that the superscriptions represent a hermeneutical interest in emphasizing Davids piety, and he notes that psalms with these narrative superscriptions highlight the need for utter dependence of [sic] YHWH in times of distress (James D. Nogalski, Reading David in the Psalter: A Study in Liturgical Hermeneutics, HBT 23 [2001]: 190-91). He notes, for example, that, when read alongside 1 Sam 23:15-29 and 1 Sam 26:1, Psalm 5 causes David to appear more devout and pious than he does in the narrative alone and that the psalm emphasizes Gods power to change threat to deliverance, even in dire situations (183). He differs from Wilson in that he maintains that these superscriptions do not appear to represent a redactional shaping of the Psalter, arguing instead that these psalms augment the portrayal of David in the related narratives when the two texts are read alongside one another (190). 78
57

56

Explicit identification with the nation. The case for ascribing Israelite identity to the speaker in the Psalms does not depend entirely upon the plausibility that any given psalm is a royal psalm, however. Ample evidence exists that the speaker in the Psalms assumes a distinctly Israelite identity. One should first consider the frequency with which the psalmist refers directly to the nation or refers indirectly to it by mentioning its capital city. I will follow that discussion with an analysis of several individual psalms that are not traditionally regarded as royal psalms in which the psalmist expresses concern for the nation. The following table contains a list of psalms that contain references to Israel, Jacob, Judah, Zion, or Jerusalem. This analysis shows that Israel is mentioned a total of

Table 1: References to Ancient Israel in the Psalms

Term of reference:

Psalms in which term appears:

Israel

14, 22, 25, 41, 50, 53, 59, 68, 69, 71, 72, 73, 76, 78, 78, 80, 81, 83, 89, 98, 103, 105, 106, 114, 115,118, 121, 122, 124, 125, 128, 129, 130, 131, 135, 136, 147, 148, 149 14, 20, 22, 24, 44, 46, 47, 53, 59, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 81, 84, 85, 87, 94, 99, 105, 114, 132, 135, 146, 147 48, 60, 63, 68, 69, 76, 78, 97, 108, 114 2, 9, 14, 20, 48, 50, 51, 53, 65, 69, 74, 76, 78, 84, 87, 97, 99, 102, 110, 125, 126, 128, 129, 132, 133,134, 135, 137, 146, 147, 149 51, 68, 79, 102, 116, 122, 125, 128, 135, 137, 147

Jacob

Judah Zion

Jerusalem

79

62 times in 39 psalms. The psalmist refers to Jacob 34 times in 26 psalms. Judah appears once in each of ten psalms. References to Zion appear 38 times in 31 psalms, and Jerusalem is mentioned seventeen times in eleven psalms. Altogether, 70 psalms contain one or more of these references.58 They are scattered throughout the entire book. Thus, a focus on the plight of the nation of ancient Israel permeates the Psalter. Moving from the general to the particular, it is helpful at this point to examine some examples of psalms in which the individual speaker is not generally thought to be the king and yet explicitly identifies with the nation of ancient Israel. Psalm 25 is an individual lament that ends with a plea for God to redeem Israel from its distress (25:22). Mays observes, "The psalm is among those in which first person singular style has a corporate dimension. The prayer is the voice of the individual whose troubles and hopes are those of the whole people."59 While it is the prayer of an individual in distress, that individual is mindful of the nation in the midst of that distress. Curtis notes the possibility that the plea on the nation's behalf "reflects a later adaptation of the psalm for congregational use."60 If that be the case, it is evidence of an editorial concern for associating the individual's distress with that of the nation. Psalm 51 is similar to Psalm 25 in that it is an individual lament that ends with an expression of concern for the well-being of the nation. The psalmist expresses the

This analysis is based on data taken from James Strong, The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995), 702, 711-12, 724, 751,1580, and John R. Kohlenberger III and James A. Swanson, The Hebrew-English Concordance to the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1998), 627, 717, 741, 760, 1367-68.
59

58

Mays, Psalms, 125. Curtis, Psalms, 57. 80

60

sentiment that God desires spiritual sacrifices rather than literal ones (51:18-19) and then proceeds to pray that God will give prosperity to Zion and rebuild Jerusalem's walls, after which God will again desire literal sacrifices (51:20-21). Broyles notes that the ending of this psalm may also be a later addition, and he writes, "verses 1-17 may have functioned originally as a prayer for an individual and then later as a prayer for the people of God personified as an individual."61 Here again, the prayer of an individual terminates in a plea for the nation, and the psalm may be yet another example of an editorial effort to blur the lines between individual and national concerns. The blending of personal and national concerns is far more integral to the unfolding of Psalm 59. In this psalm, the psalmist is the target of enemies who are portrayed as evildoers (59:2-3). In response, the psalmist appeals to God as the "God of Israel" for help (59:6). The psalmist calls upon God to humiliate the enemies (59:12-13) in order that the whole world may know that "God is the one who rules over Jacob" (59:14). The psalmist appeals to God's unique relationship with ancient Israel in the midst of seeking God's judgment on personal enemies. Indeed, Broyles notes the complexity in the psalm with regard to the identity of the opponentsit oscillates between the enemies of the individual, proponents of civil unrest, and foreign nations.62 Mays observes that "the psalm contains recurring features that indicate that the 'I' who prays is, or represents, the community."63 Psalm 59 is yet another example of a psalm in

61

Broyles, Psalms, 230. Broyles, Psalms, 249. Mays, Psalms, 213. 81

62

63

which the individual speaker's identity and interests are intermingled with those of the nation. Psalm 69 is also a psalm in which the Israelite aspect of the psalmist's identity is made explicit. The psalmist complains of drowning in a sea of enemies (69:2-5). The psalmist then appeals to Yahweh as the "God of Israel" (69:7) and is thus explicitly identified as part of the nation whose God is Yahweh. The conclusion of the psalm artfully merges the situation of the psalmist with that of the nation. In 69:30, the psalmist claims to be "poor" (yn() and identifies God's "salvation" (Kt(w#y) as a source of safety. In the following verse, the psalmist expresses an intention to praise God, which will cause the "poor" (Mywn() to rejoice when they see it (69:33). Then, in 69:34, the psalmist states that God hears the "needy" (Mynwyb)). Finally, in 69:36, the psalmist expresses confidence that God will "save" ((y#wy) Zion and build Judah's cities. Kraus notes, "the rescue of the individual plays a subordinate role. For the singer and petitioner the future of the people of God is important above all."64 Thus, in the final verses of this psalm, the psalmist's individual poverty is mentioned alongside that of the poor and needy in general. At the same time, God's salvation is experienced by both the psalmist and Zion. It would seem, then, that the reader is to conclude that the inhabitants of Judah are among the poor and needy, and the psalmist expresses solidarity with them. In the case of Psalm 77, one encounters a composition with two distinct parts. In 77:2-11, the psalmist cries out to God in the midst of personal distress and expresses fear at the prospect of experiencing God's abandonment. In the remainder of the psalm, the

64

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 64. 82

psalmist finds hope and confidence in God's great acts on behalf of ancient Israel.65 In this prayer, specifically in 77:16, the nation is identified as God's "people" (Km(), who are also called "the descendants of Jacob and Joseph" in the same verse. The juxtaposition of the psalmist's distress with the recounting of God's acts on the nation's behalf is striking. Curtis notes, "It is not clear whether the distress of the psalmist was purely personal or whether the distress of the whole nation is envisaged."66 He surmises that either "the psalmist is expressing the distress of the nation," or that "he feels very much part of what has happened to the whole nation."67 This ambiguity illustrates the degree to which the individual psalmist's personal story is only intelligible in the context of the nation's story.68 One can cite numerous other examples of cases in which the individual psalmist speaks from an explicitly Israelite perspective. In Ps 118:2-3, the individual speaker calls upon Israel and the House of Aaron to declare that God's steadfast love is eternal.69 In Ps 103:7, an individual calls attention to the revelation of God's ways to Moses and the children of Israel. The individual psalmist in Psalm 121 refers to God as "the one who guards Israel" (121:4). The individual voice that the reader encounters in the Psalms,

McCann notes the psalm's strong allusions to the exodus traditions. See McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 984.
66

65

Curtis, Psalms, 161. Curtis, Psalms, 161.

67

Kraus comments, "The meaning of Psalm 77 is, first, that here a petitioner suffers with his whole life from the rejection of the people under God's judgment. All his thoughts and senses center on Israel. The community of God is the supporting basis and the focal point of his existence" (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 117).
69

68

Note the similar formulation in Ps 135:19. 83

whether it be the voice of the king or not, is the voice of someone who identifies with the nation of ancient Israel.

Summary This discussion has demonstrated that, in the Hebrew Psalter, the nation of ancient Israel is portrayed as a nation that lives under oppression or the threat of oppression at the hand of powerful foreign enemies. To the extent that the nation is able to stand against them, they are only able to do so with the help of Yahweh. When the ancient Israelite people speak in chorus in the Psalms, they speak from a position of weakness relative to the great empires beyond their borders. It is the nation of ancient Israel portrayed in this manner with which the individual speakers in the Psalms so closely identify. Explicit references to the nation are so ubiquitous throughout the book that one can safely conclude that Israelite identity is inherent in the persona of the individual psalmist. Individual psalmists do not merely identify themselves as ancient Israelites and speak from an ancient Israelite perspective, however. Beyond that, they tend with some frequency to view their own experiences of distress, poverty and oppression through the lens of the oppression that is being inflicted upon the nation in such a way that it is often difficult to separate the two. The psalmists' identification with the nation of ancient Israel is not a passive trait that they possess. It is a fact that actively shapes their understanding of themselves.

The Psalter's Portrayal of Foreign Nations It is my contention that foreign nations are generally portrayed in a negative light in the Hebrew Psalter. As my discussion of the Psalter's portrayal of ancient Israel has

84

shown, the nations are quite often identified as the source of the nation's troubles. In the discussion that follows, I begin with a discussion of previous scholarship on the role of foreign nations in the Psalms before proceeding with my own discussion of their characteristic role as ancient Israel's oppressors in the Psalter.

Previous Scholarship Much of the scholarly discussion on the role of foreign nations in the Psalms focuses upon the degree to which the nations are to be equated with the enemy in the Psalter. Harris Birkeland makes the most fully-developed case for viewing the relationship between the nations and the enemies as one of identity. In a more moderate view, Kraus and Croft see the nations as one of many enemies portrayed in the Psalms. In sharp contrast with Birkeland, Erich Zenger and Norbert Lohfink advance a more sympathetic reading of the role of the nations in the Psalms.

The nations as the enemies in the Psalms. A classic study on the role of foreign nations in the Psalms is Harris Birkeland's The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, in which he notes that in more than half of the individual laments that mention enemies it is either explicit or obvious that those enemies are foreign.70 Further, he notes that in those individual laments in which the enemies are not explicitly identified as foreign the enemies are described in the same manner as in those psalms that explicitly refer to Harris Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, (Oslo: I. Kommisjon Hos Jacob Dybwad, 1955), 15. Specifically, he notes the designation of the enemies as Mywg, Myrz, or Mym( in Pss 910, 42-43, 54, 56, and 59 (12). Further, he regards Pss 18, 20, 21, 28, 61, 63, 89, and 144 as royal psalms in which the enemies of the king are foreign (14). Finally, he identifies Pss 36, 66, 75, 77, 94, 118, 123, 130, and 131 as psalms in which the individual speaker represents the community as a whole, arguing that the community's enemies are foreign and noting the use of Mywg to describe them in 118:10, and 66:7 (14). 85
70

foreign enemies.71 Enemies, whether explicitly foreign or not, are characterized according to a common pattern.72 Thus, he concludes that all of the enemies in the individual laments are foreign.73 Expanding his discussion to the Psalter as a whole, including royal psalms, hymns, and psalms of thanksgiving, Birkeland concludes that the religion that the Psalms reflect is characterized by "the extreme, frequently fanatical, nationalistic line."74 It is a social religion in which ancient Israel is characterized as righteous and pious in contrast with other nations, all of whom are evildoers and are, in fact, the only evildoers referred to in the Psalms.75 Birkeland overreaches in his assertion that all of the enemies mentioned in the Psalter are foreign. His identification of many instances in the Psalter in which the enemies are transparently foreign is helpful, however. Further, he is also correct in identifying a nationalistic perspective in the Psalter that favors ancient Israel over its neighbors. A more recent study that more or less supports Birkeland's view can be found in the work of T. R. Hobbs and P. K. Jackson. They argue that "the psalmist's enemy image

71

Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 15. Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 17. Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 31. Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 57.

72

73

74

Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 60. Along similar lines, Erhard Gerstenberger notes that the polemic against the enemies in individual laments is similar to that in communal laments, and that victory and royal psalms such as Pss 2, 45, 68, 72, and 110 bear some similarity to the communal laments as well (Erhard Gerstenberger, "Enemies and Evildoers in the Psalms: A Challenge to Christian Preaching," HBT 4 [1983]: 64-66). 86

75

comes out of a context of conflict between groups and nations."76 They criticize Kraus and others who dismiss Birkeland, claiming that accusations of his having overstated his case have not been adequately demonstrated.77 They identify four categories under the rubric of the "enemy beyond the border" in the Psalms: the alien, the aggressor, the desecrator, and the subhuman enemy, citing several examples of each.78

The nations as an enemy in the Psalms. Another approach is to accept that the nations are generally hostile figures in the Psalms while arguing that not all enemies mentioned in the Psalter are foreign. Kraus and Croft take this position. For Kraus, the Psalms do portray foreign nations as enemies, but they are not the only enemies mentioned in the Psalter. Calling attention to the royal psalms, Kraus observes that the enemies of the king are the nation's enemies as well, and they are portrayed as those who "wage war against God's people."79 These psalms set Yahweh in opposition to these foreign powers, and the king acts as Yahweh's agent in defeating them.80 In the case of communal psalms the king is no longer the central figure, but much of the vocabulary remains the same. In the face of the nations' ambition, Yahweh

T. R. Hobbs and P. K. Jackson, "The Enemy in the Psalms," BTB 21 (1991): 22.
77

76

Hobbs and Jackson, "The Enemy in the Psalms," 23. Hobbs and Jackson, "The Enemy in the Psalms," 24-26.

78

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms (trans. Keith Crim; Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986), 126.
80

79

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 126-27.

87

becomes their enemy, and Yahweh stifles their effort to invade his land.81 This conflict takes on a cosmic significance as it escapes the bounds of history and shakes the earth's foundations.82 Separately, Kraus discusses the enemies of the individual. He describes them as actual human beings who seek to come between God and those who are poor and weak and to defile creation,83 but he does not insist that they are necessarily foreign. In addition to the individual's enemies, Kraus observes that there are mythical powers primeval forces of chaosthat appear as enemies in the Psalms as well.84 Thus, foreign nations account for only one of three classes of enemies that Kraus identifies. Steven Croft is similarly skeptical of the scope of Birkeland's thesis. He outlines three objections to it: 1) one can point to psalms that function as counterexamples, 2) the "theology of strident nationalism" that Birkeland sees in the Psalms is inconsistent with the overall theology of the Old Testament, and 3) his view of language is insufficiently flexible.85 Still, Croft does recognize that many psalms explicitly identify foreign nations

81

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 127. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 128. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 132-33. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 134.

82

83

84

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 17-18. Croft is sympathetic to the general tendency of Birkelands work to view a larger number of psalms in which the speaker is either a royal figure or the nation of ancient Israel personified, although he views Birkelands arguments as being overly rigid and extreme. I am largely in agreement with Crofts assessment of both the value and weaknesses of Birkelands work. The existence of several counterexamples does not refute such a moderated thesis, and while a theology of strident nationalism may be out of place in the broader context of Old Testament theology, the portrayal of ancient Israel in the Psalter is strikingly more sympathetic than its portrayal of foreign nations. Birkelands strict equation of foreign 88

85

as enemies. Specifically, he identifies Pss 140, 125, and 129 as psalms in which the wicked (My(#r) are "foreign military enemies."86 Additionally, he identifies the following psalms as "war psalms" in which the enemies (Myby)) are foreign nations: Pss 8, 18, 21, 27, 4243, 44, 45, 56, 59, 61, 66, 69, 72, 74, 78, 80, 81, 83, 89, 102, 110, 132, 138, 143.87 He also allows that the enemies in Psalm 106 are foreign.88 Thus, the reality is more complex than Birkeland would allow, but two-thirds of the psalms that mention enemies have foreign enemies in view.89

Sympathetic treatments of the enemy in the Psalms. In contrast with these studies that to one degree or another identify foreign nations with the enemies of the psalmists, Norbert Lohfink and Erich Zenger seek to enhance Jewish-Christian dialogue through a theological analysis of the concepts of Torah, covenant, and the pilgrimage of the nations

nations with the psalmists enemies is overly rigid, but it is also the case that explicit portrayals of foreign nations in the Psalter overwhelmingly tend to be negative rather than positive.
86

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 32. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 34-40.

87

Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 43. Croft has come under criticism from Gerald Sheppard for being overly strident in his articulation of semantic rules governing the terms My#(r and Myby) (Gerald T. Sheppard, "'Enemies' and the Politics of Prayer in the Book of Psalms," in The Bible and the Politics of Exegesis: Essays in Honor of Norman K. Gottwald on His Sixty-Fifth Birthday [ed. David Jobling, Peggy L. Day, and Gerald T. Sheppard; Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 1991] ,65). Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 48. George Anderson makes a similar point when he writes, "in considering the problem or complex of problems relating to the enemies in the Psalter, it is safe to assume that there is no single key which will unlock all doors," (George W. Anderson, "Enemies and Evildoers in the Book of Psalms," Journal of the John Rylands Library 48 [1965]: 28). 89
89

88

to Zion in Isaiah and the Psalms.90 Lohfink argues that, with regard to the pilgrimage motif, references to Zion do not necessarily entail exclusive references to ancient Israel.91 He proposes reading Psalm 25 as the prayer of someone from a foreign nation portrayed as praying for the well-being of Israel in Ps 25:22.92 With regard to Psalm 87, Zenger notes how its image of the nations gathered to Zion in celebration contrasts sharply with God's judgment against the nations in Psalm 83.93 For him, the psalm envisions a kind of "world family" governed by Yahweh from Zion.94 He goes on to read Book IV of the Psalter as an invitation to the nations to make a voluntary pilgrimage to Yahweh's global capital in Zion and to enjoy peaceful coexistence with Israel.95 Thus, Lohfink and Zenger argue that the Psalms, at least those they have selected for exegesis, express a hope for an amicable union between Israel and the nations that respond to the call for a pilgrimage to Zion where they can become a part of one covenant between God and the world. The goal of their work is admirable, but Zenger and Lohfink seem to focus on exceptions while ignoring the broader rule. Hostility between ancient Israel and foreign nations is transparently present in the Psalms, and their study does not adequately address it. As noted above, Birkeland, Kraus, and Croft all identify a significant number of

90

Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations, 34-36. Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations, 38-39. Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations, 80. Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations,, 148. Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations, 160. Lohfink and Zenger, The God of Israel and the Nations, 190. 90

91

92

93

94

95

psalms in which the enemies are explicitly foreign. Lohfink's identification of a foreign speaker in Psalm 25 might be plausible when the psalm is read in isolation. When read in the context of the Psalter as a whole, however, the overwhelming tendency of the text is to lead the reader away from such a conclusion. Furthermore, it is debatable whether the motif of the pilgrimage to Zion is benign in nature, as Culley's discussion of subjugation and assimilation as aspects of Yahweh's universal reign shows.96 The reader may legitimately ask under what circumstances the nations undertake such a pilgrimage.

The Psalter's Unsympathetic Portrayal of the Nations One might perhaps hear echoes of Harris Birkeland's thesis in my claim that the Psalter portrays foreign nations in an unsympathetic manner. I do agree with Birkeland that "the Book of Psalms is the book of Israel as a nation and a religious community."97 I do think, however, that he overstates his case in his claim that in the Psalms "all gentiles are evildoers and these evildoers seem to be the only relevant evildoers in the Book of Psalms."98 In this sense, I agree with Croft that there are both foreign and domestic enemies mentioned in the Psalter.99 Still, I share with Birkeland the sense that a tendency toward nationalism runs through the Psalter, and so I am skeptical of the arguments of Lohfink and Zenger that a conciliatory stance toward the nations is evident in it. Gerald Sheppard argues convincingly that some enemies in the Psalms are not regarded by the psalmist as the "other." He claims, "prayers are assumed to be overheard
96

Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh in the Psalms," 268. Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 68. Birkeland, The Evildoers in the Book of Psalms, 65. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms, 48. 91

97

98

99

or, later, heard about by friends and enemies alike; and, furthermore, 'enemies' mentioned in these prayers, as often as not, belong to the very same social setting in which one prays."100 In these contexts, Sheppard states, the psalmist mentions the enemies who overhear for the sake of exposing them and seeking protection from them, indicting or threatening them, or commanding or instructing them.101 Sheppard convincingly argues with supporting examples that enemies addressed in this way must be closer to the psalmist than a foreign enemy could be. My purpose in the present discussion is far more modest than Birkeland's, and it is not in conflict with the views of Croft, Kraus, or Sheppard. I do not propose to draw conclusions or generalizations about the identity of enemies and evildoers in the Psalms, and I certainly do not want to argue that they are always foreign. Rather, I approach the issue from a different angle. Specifically, I maintain that, when the psalmists explicitly refer to foreign nations, they exhibit an overwhelming tendency to portray them in a hostile manner. I will focus upon instances in which a psalmist refers to "nations" (Mywg), "peoples," (Mym( or Mym)l) or uses the proper name of a specific nation. I concede that such an approach will yield a discussion that overlooks psalms in which the description of an enemy would lead the reader to a reasonable conclusion that the enemy is foreign, but this approach has the advantage of avoiding any speculation about whether the characters being discussed actually are non-Israelites.

100

Sheppard, "'Enemies' and the Politics of Prayer in the Book of Psalms," 72. Sheppard, "'Enemies' and the Politics of Prayer in the Book of Psalms," 73. 92

101

The portrayal of the nations in Pss 2 and 149. In the Psalms, the nations first appear in Psalm 2. The nations (Mywg) are portrayed as restless, and the peoples (Mym)l) make vain plans against Yahweh and the Davidic king (2:1-2). God, portrayed as an enthroned royal figure, laughs at them, mocks them, and speaks wrathfully to them (2:45). God promises that the nations will be the inheritance of the Davidic king, who will prevail over them in a violent manner (2:8-9). The kings of these nations are then encouraged to fear and serve Yahweh (2:10-12). McCann argues that Psalms 1 and 2 are meant to be read together as the introduction to the Psalter, and on the basis of that observation he concludes that the foreign nations mentioned in Psalm 2 are one and the same with the wicked in Psalm 1.102 Further, Mays observes, "The nations appear as opponents, the guise they frequently wear in the psalms."103 Taken together, their observations illustrate that the Psalter's introduction establishes from the outset a negative view of foreign nations that will be carried forward into the remainder of the book. This portrayal of foreign nations at the beginning of the Psalter raises the issue of the literary phenomenon known as the primacy effect. Bellinger describes the phenomenon as follows: Beginnings, which create the first impression of the framed text, focus readers' attention on what is about to happen. First impressions are influential in shaping readers' view of texts. This phenomenon has been called the primacy effect. Impressions created by the beginning of a text will last as long as the text allows, that is, until the data in the text require a change of view. Despite such revisions,

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 688-89. See also McCann, A Theological Introduction to the Book of Psalms: The Psalms as Torah (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993), 41-43, for another articulation of this point.
103

102

Mays, Psalms, 48. 93

known as the recency effect, readers tend to interpret texts in light of beginnings. Even views rejected in a text may continue to exert influence on readers.104 He goes on to discuss Psalms 1 and 2 in light of this phenomenon.105 Viewed through the lens of the primacy effect, the portrayal of the nations in Psalm 2 takes on special significance. Its prominence in the Psalter's introduction creates for the reader a strong negative disposition toward foreign nations at the very outset of her experience of reading the text. To begin with, when Psalms 1 and 2 are read together, the nations in Psalm 2 function as a concrete example of the "wicked" in Psalm 1. Moreover, in 2:2 they appear as conspirators against ancient Israel's kings (both the human one and the divine one), and in 2:4-5 and 2:8-9 they are portrayed as the deserving recipients of divine wrath. These propositions are the hypotheses about the nations that the reader will test along the journey through the text. Bellinger notes that the primacy effect functions in tandem with the recency effect. Menakhem Perry highlights the importance of the latter phenomenon when he writes: The literary text, then, exploits the "powers" of the primacy effect, but it ordinarily sets up a mechanism to oppose them, giving rise, rather, to a recency

W. H. Bellinger, Jr., "Reading from the Beginning (Again): The Shape of Book I of the Psalter," in Diachronic and Synchronic: Reading the Psalms in Real Time: Proceedings of the Baylor Symposium on the Book of Psalms (LHBOTS 488; ed. Joel S. Burnett, W. H. Bellinger, Jr., and W. Dennis Tucker, Jr.; New York: T. & T. Clark, 2007), 114-15. Bellinger, Reading from the Beginning (Again), 119. On the subject of Psalms 1 and 2 as an introduction to the Psalter, see also Nancy deClaiss-Walford, Reading From the Beginning: The Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1997), 37-48.
105

104

94

effect. Its terminal point, the point at which all the words which have hitherto remained "open" are sealed, is the decisive one.106 Perry's emphasis on the recency effect suggests that one should look to the end of the Psalter for the final word on its portrayal of the nations. The portrayal of the nations in Psalm 149 thus takes on special significance as well. Psalm 149 contains the Psalter's last word on foreign nations. In it, God's "faithful ones" (Mydysx, in 149:5 and 149:9) are portrayed as grasping swords and carrying out jugdment against the nations (Mywg, in 149:7) by binding their kings and other elites (149:7-8). Broyles eschews a literal interpretation of the latter part of the psalm, preferring to interpret the "sword" in a figurative manner. He argues that as the faithful ones have swords in their hands, in the same verse they have God's praise in their mouths, so the retribution envisaged in the psalm is carried out through worship.107 Roland Murphy, however, is suspicious of any attempt to read the text figuratively. He writes, "To define it as an eschatological vision seems merely to postpone the discovery of its meaning by hiding it in a mist of allegory."108 In any case, it is clear that the nations are deserving of having this vengeance done upon them, as it is portrayed as the carrying out of a "written judgment" (bwtk +p#m) against them. In his discussion of Psalm 149, Mays correctly observes, "In the rhetoric and theology of the Psalms, nations and their rulers are typically the opposition to the reign of Menakhem Perry, "Literary Dynamics: How the Order of a Text Creates its Meanings," Poetics Today 1 (1979): 57. Broyles, Psalms, 517-18. See also the argument for such a figurative reading in Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 317. Roland Murphy, The Gift of the Psalms (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2000), 173. 95
108 107 106

the LORD."109 This view is expressed at the beginning of the Psalter as well as at the end. The relationship between Psalms 2 and 149 has received a fair amount of scholarly attention. McCann views this relationship through the lens of the democratization of kingship, whereby the vengeance against nations that is the work of the Davidic king in Psalm 2 has become the work of the nation in Psalm 149, which in the Psalter comes after the crisis of Psalm 89 and its resolution in Book IV.110 There is, then, strong evidence that the relative placement of Psalms 2 and 149 as the second and penultimate psalms in the Psalter is editorially significant. When that relationship is considered in terms of the primacy and recency effects, it becomes clear that the negative evaluation of the nations that is hypothesized in Psalm 2 is ultimately confirmed in Psalm 149. The reader realizes that she was right about them all along. Of course, by the time the reader reaches Psalm 149 he has encountered a great deal of evidence confirming that hypothesis in the intervening psalms. An analysis of the portrayal of foreign nations throughout the Psalter is now in order. The discussion that follows will demonstrate that references to foreign nations in the Psalms fall into three broad categories: 1) portrayals of the nations as subordinate to God's power and/or subject to God's wrath, 2) portrayals of the nations as oppressors or as being openly hostile toward ancient Israel, and 3) calls for the nations to praise God and acknowledge

109

Mays, Psalms, 447.

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 1274. See also Mays, Psalms, 448, and Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 314-15 for similar perspectives. On the democratization of kingship in the Psalms as it relates to the poor, see Dennis Tucker, "Democratization and the Language of the Poor in Psalms 2-89," HBT 25 (2003): 161-78. He writes, "This democratizing effect creates a new hermeneutical horizon for Pss 2-89 with the chief aim of (1) transferring the promises of David to the poor; (2) calling for the removal of an unjust order; and (3) proclaiming the universal kingship of Yahweh" (164). 96

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God's sovereignty. All three categories are present in Psalm 2. God's laughter, mocking, angry words, and inspiration of terror are directed at the nations in 2:4-5. The nations' conspiracy against Yahweh and the Davidic king in 2:1-2 certainly constitutes hostility toward Israel. The psalmist's counsel that foreign kings should acquiesce and serve Yahweh in 2:10-12 is an example of a call for the nations to acknowledge God's sovereignty. I will examine several additional examples of each case.

The Nations as Subordinate to God. Portrayals of the nations as being subordinate to God's power and/or subject to God's wrath occur frequently in the Psalms. In Psalm 7, the psalmist appeals to God's anger (7:7) in the process of seeking justice against his enemies. He calls for the assembly of the peoples (Mym)l) to be gathered around the enthroned deity, whom he identifies as one who judges the peoples (Mym() (7:8-9). Broyles calls this reference to the nations "surprising" in the psalm in which the speaker is an individual who stands falsely accused, but he goes on to note that the phenomenon is consistent with a broader pattern in the Psalter of viewing the individual's experience in the context of the national story.111 In this psalm, the peoples are portrayed as being subordinate to God's royal power as judge. Psalmists portray God as the judge of the nations or peoples with some frequency. Other examples include 9:20, 67:5, 82:8, 96:10, 98:9, and 110:6. In several other contexts, God is said to rule the nations in a more general fashion rather than in a particularly judicial sense. Examples of this sentiment are present in 2:29, 46:11, and 47:9. Also, in Ps 59:6, the psalmist asks God to bring the nations to

111

Broyles, Psalms, 68. 97

account. Further, Ps 94:10 depicts God in the act of chastening (rsy) the nations (Mywg). These examples show that the Psalter is replete with imagery that portrays the nations as entities that are subordinate to God's power. Given the Psalter's emphasis on Yahweh's identity as the particular god of ancient Israel, this language is loaded with political significance. Ancient Israel's unique relationship with Yahweh is especially evident in psalms in which Yahweh acts against the nations, sometimes in anger, on Israel's behalf. In Psalm 18, God exalts the psalmist above the nations and causes them to serve him, so that foreign peoples are filled with fear and trembling when they hear of the psalmist (18:4445), here explicitly identified as the Davidic king (18:51). Mays observes, "Psalm 18 is a sequel to Psalm 2, where the LORD ordains the anointed king as regent representative of the reign of God and promises him dominion over the nations."112 Certainly, this psalm is an example of one in which God acts against the nations for ancient Israel's benefit.

The nations as objects of God's wrath. One can identify several other Psalms in which God takes direct action against foreign nations. In Ps 9:6, God rebukes (r(g) the nations. Yahweh destroys their plans and thwarts their intentions in Ps 33:10. God subjects the peoples to ancient Israel in Ps 47:4. In Ps 59:9, God laughs at and taunts the nations. Ps 111:6 refers to God's gift of the nations' inheritance to ancient Israel. Also, in Ps 147:20, the nations are denied the gifts of God's statutes and judgments that ancient Israel has received.

112

Mays, Psalms, 90. 98

The nations as oppressors of ancient Israel. In addition to these examples, several psalms refer directly to God's actions against foreign nations on ancient Israel's behalf in the particular context of the exodus from Egypt and the conquest of Canaan. One can find such language in 44:3, 78:55, 80:9, 83:10-11, 105:44, 135:8-12, 136:10, and 136:17-22. For Wilson, references to this period in ancient Israel's history are significant because they evoke a setting in which God's rule over ancient Israel is not mediated through human kings.113 The hostility of foreign nations toward ancient Israel is also well-attested in the Psalter. I have already alluded to several examples of this mode of portraying foreign nations in my discussion of the Psalter's portrayal of ancient Israel as an oppressed nation.114 I will mention some additional cases of this phenomenon here. In Psalm 46, which emphasizes God's defense of Zion, the psalmist notes that the nations make uproar (hmh) (46:7). In Psalm 48, the kings gather together and advance against Zion (48:5). In Ps 105:13-14, God prevents the nations from oppressing the Israelites as they wander among them. In Ps 106:41-42, God gives Israel into the hands of the nations, and the nations, in turn, oppress the Israelites. In Psalm 115, the psalmist clearly views the nations as being hostile toward Israel in expressing concern that they may taunt the Israelites (115:2). In Ps 118:10-12, the psalmist is surrounded by "all the nations." Also, in 144:11, the psalmist asks to be delivered from the hand of foreign peoples. Of course, this aspect of the Psalter's negative portrayal of foreign nations is most evident in the portrayal of the Babylonians and Edomites in Psalm 137.

113

Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter," 75-76. See, for example, 79:1, 83:6-9, 106:47, 137:3, and 137:7-8. 99

114

The nations as God's servants and worshippers. A somewhat more benign aspect of the Psalter's portrayal of the nations appears in psalms in which the nations are called upon to serve or praise Yahweh. Perhaps the most vivid example of this phenomenon is Psalm 87. The psalm refers to Zion as the figurative birthplace of all the peoples (87:6). Rahab,115 Babylon, Philistia, Tyre, and Cush are listed as nations that claim it as their hometown. Mays notes, "The theme is a theological metaphor that means that those who acknowledge the LORD have birthright status in Zion, no matter where they live."116 The psalmist indeed seems to have a rather charitable disposition toward the nations. Even so, McCann calls attention to the fact that in 87:4, Egypt and Babylon are said to "know" ((dy) God, which "means to recognize God's sovereignty and to live under God's rule."117 This observation leads one to wonder whether the imagery in this psalm is more consistent with the portrayal of foreign nations as being subordinate to God's power that is so common throughout the Psalter. It is at least worth asking what events have transpired that cause the nations to behave as they do in Psalm 87. The call for the nations to praise or serve Yahweh is present in several other psalms. In Ps 47:2, the peoples are called upon to clap their hands and shout for joy to

Broyles notes that "Rahab" is a reference to Egypt (Broyles, Psalms, 350). Curtis notes that "Rahab" is the name given to a chaos monster, as in Ps 89:10, and suggests that the poetic usage of the name to represent Egypt in this context may be a way of comparing Yahweh's defeat of Egypt with Yahweh's defeat of the primeval forces of chaos (Curtis, Psalms, 181). If so, the portrayal of Egypt, and perhaps the other nations, in this psalm may not be as benign as it appears to be at first glance.
116

115

Mays, Psalms, 281. McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 1024.

117

100

God, because God is king over the whole earth (47:3).118 In Ps 67:4 and 67:6, the psalmist proclaims that all of the people will praise God. Still, the motive for their praise is God's just rule over the earth, and over its peoples in particular (67:5). In Ps 86:9, the psalmist anticipates that all of the nations that God has made will prostrate themselves before God. The psalmist in Ps 102:23 anticipates a time in which peoples and kingdoms will gather together to serve Yahweh. Still, the same psalmist anticipates that the nations will fear God's name in 102:16. Psalm 117 includes a call for nations and peoples to praise Yahweh (117:1), and yet the motive for their praise is Yahweh's eternal faithfulness toward Israel (117:2). It is clear that the psalmists' disposition toward foreign nations is more benevolent than is the case in the other two categories of references to them. Even so, there is a clear tendency to associate these portrayals of the nations with other images of subordination to God's power or references to God's unique favor of Israel. Perhaps Culley's analysis of the enthronement psalms can shed some helpful light on this language. His distinction between a perspective of subjugation (as in Psalm 47) and one of assimilation (as in Psalm 96)119 opens up the possibility of viewing portrayals of the nations that fall into the first of the three categories outlined here through the lens of subjugation. At the very least, language associated with the third category discussed here reflects a perspective of assimilation, which Culley rightly observes could be a most unwelcome proposition from the point of view of non-Israelites who are expected to

118

Interestingly, however, God subordinates the same peoples to Israel in 47:4. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh Psalms," 267-68. 101

119

assimilate.120 Still, as we have seen, imagery related to the perspective of subjugation quite often accompanies these portrayals of the nations. Regardless, the balance of the evidence demonstrates that the psalmists are not positively disposed toward foreign nations and generally portray them in an unfavorable light.

Conclusion In this chapter I have shown, with numerous examples, how the psalmists consistently portray ancient Israel as a nation that is experiencing oppression at the hand of external forces whose continued existence is contingent upon Yahweh's protection. My discussion of this issue also included an argument that the individual psalmists identify with the nation of ancient Israel as the Psalter portrays it, and that they tend to interpret their own experiences within a broader national context and identify personally with the nation's poverty and oppression. Also, I have demonstrated that foreign nations are generally portrayed in a negative light in the Psalms. They are portrayed as being subjugated to God and, only through God's intervention, to Israel, as oppressors who are hostile to Israel, and as entities that are called to serve and praise Yahweh, which may also entail their subjugation (and at the very least their assimilation) to ancient Israel. The negative portrayal of the nations in Pss 2 and 149 is especially significant in that it shapes the reader's perception of the nations when they are referenced throughout the Psalter. On the basis of this general discussion, I proceed next with an analysis of the interplay between God, ancient Israel, and foreign nations in ten selected psalms.

120

Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh Psalms," 263. 102

CHAPTER FOUR The Juxtaposition of Divine Kingship, Foreign Nations, and Poverty in the Hebrew Psalter

Introduction Having examined the portrayal of God, ancient Israel, and foreign nations in the Psalter in general, I now turn to the specific analysis of psalms in which the psalmist juxtaposes the royal metaphor with reference to God, language related to poverty, and references to foreign nations. This analysis focuses upon the rhetoric of these psalms, specifically in terms of the way in which they lead the reader toward the conclusion that foreign nations are oppressors against whom God defends the people of ancient Israel who are associated with the poor and oppressed. My approach in this part of the study is similar to the portion of Bellinger's rhetorical analysis of Psalm 61, in which he seeks to "construct the symbolic world or story behind the psalm" by describing the relationships between the psalm's characters.1 Bellinger places God at the center of this constellation of characters, noting, "Each of the other characters has a direct relationship with God."2 He describes a reciprocal relationship between God and the speaker in which God protects the speaker and the speaker praises God; the community relates to God in terms of its fear of God's name; the king is "enthroned before God" and is the beneficiary of the speaker's prayer; and God is

W. H. Bellinger, Jr., A Hermeneutic of Curiosity and Readings of Psalm 61 (SOTI 1; Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1995), 85.
2

Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 86. 103

set in opposition to the enemy.3 Based on the protective nature of God's relationship with the speaker, Bellinger infers a "contrast" between the speaker and the enemy and between the enemy and the community, which he refers to as a process of "filling the gap."4 In summary, Bellinger concludes, "In the psalm's symbolic world, God is the central actor, moving to protect king, community, and speaker against the enemy," noting, "It is a metaphorical world, one created by the text, not a world of historical reference but of a new way of looking at things."5 Similarly, I will describe the symbolic worlds of Pss 910, 22, 44, 68, 74, 82, 94, 102, 113, and 149 in terms of how language related to poverty functions in the construction of those worlds. I will show how this language prompts readers to fill certain gaps in the text, specifically in terms of the relationships between these psalms' characters.

Scope of Terminology to be Analyzed Before proceeding with an exegesis of these selected psalms, it is necessary to clarify specifically what terminology I am identifying as directly relevant to this analysis. A discussion of specifically what language constitutes a royal metaphor, what language connotes poverty, and exactly what constitutes a reference to foreign nations must precede any effort to select psalms to analyze on the basis of the criterion that they contain all three of these elements.

Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 86. Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 86. Bellinger, Hermeneutic of Curiosity, 87. 104

The Royal Metaphor Dennis Tucker argues that "the concept of Divine King is multifarious in the metaphors employed."6 His definition includes the two categories of the "warring deity" (including the motifs of the chaos battle, the exodus battle, and the protector of Zion and the temple) and the "enthroned deity" (including royal trappings, the image of the enthroned judge, the portrayal of God as the provider of the poor, and the appellation tw)bc hwhy).7 Without denying the breadth of the root metaphor, for the purposes of this study, I prefer to define the royal metaphor more narrowly and limit my discussion to terminology directly related to the core concept of royal governance. This terminology tends to fall under the broader category of the "enthroned deity" and also tends to be more exclusively royal in connotation than imagery associated with the "warring deity."8 At the very least, the royal metaphor can be said to be present when God is referenced using terminology derived from one of the following Hebrew roots: Klm, l#m, +p#, or b#y. The royal connotation of Klm is obvious. Philip Nel includes "be king," "rule," and "become king," in his list of definitions for Klm in the Qal stem, and the nominal W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor in the Final Shape of the Psalter," (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1997), 127.
7 6

See Fig. 3 in Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor,"

124. In making this claim, I do not wish to assert that warrior imagery does not contribute to the portrayal of God as king in the Psalms. Rather, I am merely observing that warrior imagery can apply more easily to other social roles than can language that denotes ruling, reigning, judging, or sitting on a throne. My purpose in limiting my discussion of the metaphor in this way is to discuss those aspects of the royal metaphor that most explicitly portray God as king in the Psalms. 105
8

forms that he associates with the root include hkwlm (kingship), Klm (king), twklm (royal power), hklmm (kingdom), and twklmm (dominion).9 He specifically notes the term's use as a reference to God's kingship in ways similar to Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Syrian notions of the kingship of divine beings.10 Robert Culver similarly observes, "The meaning of the Qal (over two hundred times) is always 'to reign,' i.e. to be and exercise functions of a monarch."11 Clearly, then, terminology derived from this root contributes to the Psalter's portrayal of Yahweh as king. One can make similar observations concerning the root l#m. Nel lists "rule," "govern," and "have dominance over," as meanings of the root's Qal stem, and he observes that the root "is semantically closely related to mlk and occurs in adjacent verses with mlk."12 He further notes that it refers to "the political dominion of a ruler over other kingdoms."13 Nel lists l#mm (sovereign), hl#mm (dominion), and l#m (moshel, "ruler") as nominal forms related to the root.14 While the root's meaning is not exclusively limited to royal contexts, its basic meaning of possessing authority and its semantic relationship with the root Klm suggest it ought to be included in an analysis of terms used to refer to God's royal governance of the cosmos, including the nations.
9

Philip J. Nel, "Klm," in NIDOTTE 2:956-65. Nel, "Klm," 2:956. Robert Culver, "Klm," in TWOT 1:507-10. Nel, "l#m," 2:1136-37. Nel, "l#m," 2:1137. Nel, "l#m," 2:1137. 106

10

11

12

13

14

The root +p# is also an integral part of the Psalter's portrayal of Yahweh as a royal figure. Richard Schultz lists "judge," "execute judgment," and "govern," as verbal meanings of the root.15 He goes on to state that linguistic data from the ancient Near East make it clear that the root "can be used to describe the authority or activities of a ruler/governor," noting the term's use in Israel's request for a king to "lead (govern) us" in 1 Sam 8:6.16 In a similar manner, Culver lists "to act as ruler" as one meaning of the term, and he notes, "God alone can exercise the true ultimate rulership for, he is 'the one judging all the earth' (Gen 18:25)."17 Of particular import for the significance of the term for the royal portrayal of Yahweh in the Psalms are the observations of Kraus. He writes: As the Lord of Israel Yahweh is also the Lord of the peoples and of all the world. For the theology of the Psalms this is a basic premise which colors the borrowed epithets Nwyl( ('Elyon) and Klm ("king"), and includes above all the designation of Yahweh as judge. Concerning Yahweh as +p# ("judge") we should note particularly the statements and declarations that God is Judge of the nations (Ps. 7:8; 9:8, 19; 58:11; 82:8; 94:2; 96:10, 13; 98:9).18 Kraus thus places +p# in a category with Klm as a term that connotes Yahweh's governance of the world. Kraus also associates the concept of +p# with kingship in his discussion of Israel's human king in the Psalms when he writes, "As the one who

15

Richard Schultz, "+p#," NIDOTTE 4:213-20.

Schultz, "+p#," NIDOTTE 4:215-16. John Gray also notes that the root has the meaning of "to rule" in the Ras Shamra texts, which he notes "is of great moment in extending the category of enthronement psalms and relevant passages in the Prophets to much nearer the proportions for which Mowinckel contends." See John Gray, "The Kingship of God in the Prophets and Psalms," VT 11 (1961): 3.
17

16

Culver, "+p#," in TWOT 2:947-49.

Hans Joachim Kraus, Theology of the Psalms (trans. Keith Crim; Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986), 30-31. 107

18

defended the divine will for justice against men of violence, the king was to carry out the office of judge."19 There is ample evidence, then, that both from a comparative linguistic perspective and in light of the term's usage in the Psalms, that the root +p# is a central component of the Psalter's royal portrayal of Yahweh. The root b#y, meaning to sit or dwell, often has clear royal connotations, particularly when used with reference to God. Walter Kaiser observes, "In places where the Lord is said to dwell in heaven or in Zion, the thought is that he is enthroned."20 He further notes that, even when used with human subjects, the term frequently describes judges seated in judgment or kings seated on thrones.21 This root figures prominently in Kraus's discussion of the Psalter's portrayal of God as king. He writes, "If we ask what is the situation in which Yahweh is king, the place where he is enthroned, we can derive three points from the formula w#dq )sk-l( b#y (he sits on the throne of his glory; Ps. 47:8),"22 specifically, that God is enthroned upon the heavenly ocean, upon the cherubim, and in Zion.23 He adds, "it is strikingly evident that the God-king is seated on his throne

19

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 119.

Walter C. Kaiser, "b#y," TWOT 1:411-13. See also Gerald Wilson's discussion of the term's usage in describing Yahweh's "sitting enthroned" or dwelling in heaven, citing the examples of Pss 2:4, 29:10, and 113:5. He further notes the term's usage in describing Yahweh as being enthroned "between the cherubim" (Gerald Wilson, "b#y," NIDOTTE 2:550-52.
21

20

Kaiser, "b#y," 1:412. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 26. Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 26. 108

22

23

in the heavenly world as well as in the sanctuary in Jerusalem."24 The root b#y, then, plays a critical role in the Psalter's portrayal of God as king. Certainly terminology derived from roots other than the four discussed here contribute to the Psalter's portrayal of Yahweh as a royal figure. Nevertheless, it appears that these roots constitute the core of that portrayal in that they capture the essence of the concept of royal governance, which is the proper role of the king in particular. These terms are the least ambiguous of the expressions used in the Psalms to portray God as a royal figure.

Poverty Various terms that evoke the concept of poverty are present in the Psalms. Dennis Tucker has articulated a list of terms that constitute the poverty wordfield, and for the purpose of this study I adopt his list as the criterion for determining whether a particular psalm contains language related to poverty. Tucker identifies yn(, wn(, Nwyb), and ld as "first level symbols" with overlapping meanings that generally denote poverty or affliction.25 Similarly, James McPolin refers to this set of terms as "the predominant language for the poor in the Psalms."26 Tucker identifies Mwty, Kd, #r, hklx, Myqw#(, and hnml) as second level symbols that "represent individuals who are prone to poverty through social

24

Kraus, Theology of the Psalms, 26. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 31-32.

25

James McPolin, "Psalms as Prayers of the Poor," in Back to the Sources: Biblical and Near Eastern Studies (ed. Kevin J. Cathcart and John F. Healey; Glendale: Glendale Press Ltd., 1989), 82. 109

26

injustice and oppression."27 McPolin also identifies these terms as belonging to the "language of the poor" in the Psalms.28 In my discussion of language related to poverty in the Psalms, I will focus upon psalms that contain one or more of these ten terms that Tucker identifies as being a part of the poverty wordfield.

Foreign Nations The criteria for identifying psalms that refer to foreign nations in the discussion in this chapter are essentially the same as those I applied in the discussion of the Psalter's portrayal of foreign nations in the previous chapter. The most obvious examples of references to foreign nations are instances in which the psalmist refers to a particular foreign nation by its proper name. When, for example, the psalmist mentions Myrcm (Egypt) in Ps 105:38, it is clear that a foreign nation is being referenced. Psalmists also use a handful of terms to reference foreign nations in general. Specifically, psalmists often mention the Mywg (nations). Gerard van Groningen notes that this plural form in particular "usually refers to nations, especially the surrounding pagan nations."29 Another term used to refer to the nations is M(, most often in the plural form Mym( (peoples, nations). Daniel Block observes that the term connotes an "ethnic

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 32-33. Tucker's discussion of the poverty wordfield can also be found in Tucker, "A Polysemiotic Approach to the Poor in the Psalms," PRSt 31 (2004): 425-27.
28

27

McPolin, "Psalms as Prayers of the Poor," 81, 83.

Gerard van Groningen, "hwg," TWOT 1:153-54. He goes on to note, "Once the descendants of Abraham had become a distinct, recognized, political, and ethnic group of people who were in a specific covenant relationship with Yahweh, the term goy and goyim increasingly takes the meaning of 'gentiles' or 'heathen,' in reference to the noncovenant, non-believing people considered as national groups" (1:154). 110

29

community based on blood relationship."30 Van Groningen notes that the term Mw)l (nation, people) is often used as a poetic synonym of both Mywg and Mym(.31 Block also observes that this term has a limited and exclusively poetic usage and almost always appears in combination with one of those other two terms.32 He further notes that the term hm) ('ummah) means "nation" in Ps 117:1.33 I will treat psalms that contain any of these terms as psalms in which reference is made to foreign nations. Thus far, I have explained what sort of language I take to constitute a royal metaphor for God, language related to poverty, and references to foreign nations. I turn now to the exegesis of the ten psalms that contain all three of these elements.

Analysis of Selected Psalms It is possible to observe some common rhetorical patterns in the psalms that contain the royal metaphor with reference to Yahweh, references to foreign nations, and language associated with poverty. In the discussion that follows, I demonstrate that the psalmist is often associated both with the nation of ancient Israel and with the poor. I also show that the psalmist often associates foreign nations with the wicked or the enemy. In light of those associations, Yahweh's proper role as king to defend the poor against their wicked oppressors is portrayed as being analogous to Yahweh's defense of ancient Israel against its powerful foreign neighbors. This rhetoric is certainly stronger in some

30

Daniel I. Block, "Nations/Nationality," NIDOTTE 4:966-72. Van Groningen, "hwg," 1:153. Block, "Nations/Nationality," 4:966. Block, "Nations/Nationality," 4:967. 111

31

32

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of these psalms than it is in others, and yet on some level each of them invites the reader to infer such associations in the process of reflecting on the meaning of God's kingship.

Part 1: Books I-III

Psalm 910. Although Pss 9 and 10 comprise two separate psalms in the final form of the Psalter, many commentators read them together as a literary unit. 34 The evidence commonly cited in favor of this view includes the fact that they appear as a single psalm in the LXX and Vulgate, that Psalm 10 lacks a superscription (which is highly unusual in Book I), and that together they constitute an (admittedly broken) alphabetic acrostic, and that the two psalms share common vocabulary and motifs. I find these arguments, particularly the apparent use of the alphabetic acrostic device, to be convincing, and so I will proceed to interpret the text as a single psalm. It has been noted that this psalm contains a wide variety and high concentration of terminology related to poverty.35 The psalmist clearly identifies with the poor, and this identification is made explicit in 9:14 with a reference to the psalmist's "affliction" (yyn(). Concerning this psalm, Walter Brueggemann notes, "There can hardly be any doubt whose voice sounds in this psalm. It is the voice of the oppressed, the afflicted, the

Peter C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC 19; Waco: Word Books, 1983), 116. Other interpreters who hold this view include Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Die Psalmen I: Psalm 1-50 (Stuttgart: Echter Verlag, 1993), 81; Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 1-59 (trans. Hilton C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1988), 191; and Konrad Schaefer, Psalms (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2001), 26-27. Tucker notes that the following terminology is present: "Kd (9:9; 10:18), yn( (9:12; 10:2, 9, 12), Nwyb) (9:18), hklx (10:8, 10, 14), Mywn( (9:18; 10:17) and Mwty (10:14, 18)" (Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 153). 112
35

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suffering, the needy, the poor, who are endlessly pursued until they cease to exist."36 Moreover, the psalmist appeals to God not to forget the poor (Mywn() in 10:12. In addition to identifying with the poor, the psalmist also identifies with the nation of ancient Israel. This fact is evident in the reference in 9:12 to "Zion" as the place where Yahweh is enthroned, and to Zion's gates as the location at which the psalmist seeks to praise Yahweh in 9:15. Furthermore, in 9:7, the reader learns that the psalmist's enemy has cities, indicating the psalmist's identification with Israel over against a foreign enemy. Robert Gordis views the psalmist's clear Israelite identity through the lens of the concept of "fluid personality." He writes: In view of the concept of fluid personality so richly documented in the Bible, it is not strange that the psalmist identifies his own enemies as those of his group, and, seeing his group of the 'humble' and the 'poor' as the authentic Israel, identifies these foes with the enemies of the nation.37 A similar view is that of Samuel Terrien, who notes that the psalmist's "fluctuation between collectivity and individuality" is something "typical of the Hebraic mentality."38 He further notes, "The musician-poet identifies with the oppressed nation," and he suggests that the speaker may be the king.39

Walter Brueggemann, "Psalms 910: A Counter to Conventional Social Reality," in The Bible and the Politics of Exegesis: Essays in Honor of Norman K. Gottwald on His Sixty-Fifth Birthday (ed. David Jobling, Peggy L. Day, and Gerald T. Sheppard; Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 1991), 11.
37

36

Robert Gordis, "Psalm 910: A Textual and Exegetical Study," JQR 48 (1957):

107. Samuel Terrien, The Psalms: Strophic Structure and Theological Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003), 138. Terrien, The Psalms, 141. Patrick Miller argues that the speaker in the psalm is the king because of its Davidic superscription and because of the prominence of the nations as foes of the psalmist. See Patrick D. Miller, "The Ruler in Zion and the Hope 113
39 38

Moses Buttenwieser goes even further, arguing that the speaker is "the nation personified."40 Similarly, Mays argues that "the composer has personified the congregation as an individual and given them the role of the 'lowly.'"41 While I do not agree that the persona of the individual psalmist has been completely dissolved into the identity of the nation in this psalm, it does seem clear that the psalmist does not have an identity that is separate from the national identity. The psalmist's experiences are interpreted in light of the experience of the nation, and so the line between the individual and the community has been artfully blurred. Mays is correct that the psalmist has fused and internalized the condition of poverty along with the experience of ancient Israel. Just as in the persona of the psalmist, the concepts of poverty and ancient Israelite identity are conflated, so too are the activities of the enemy/wicked and the nations in Psalm 910. Buttenwieser explicitly identifies the wicked in the psalm as "the foreign enemies ruling the country" and denies that they could be "godless" Israelites.42 Artur Weiser equates the enemies in this psalm with "the wicked foreign nations."43 Brueggemann also seems to view the nations as the enemy in the psalm when he refers to of the Poor: Psalms 910 in the Context of the Psalter," in David and Zion: Biblical Studies in Honor of J. J. M. Roberts (ed. Bernard F. Batto and Kathryn L. Roberts; Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2004), 190-91.
40

Moses Buttenwieser, The Psalms (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1938),

436.
41

James Luther Mays, Psalms (IBC; Louisville: John Knox Press, 1994), 71.

Buttenwieser, The Psalms, 431. For the view that the "peoples" referenced as enemies in the psalm are individuals within the Jewish community of the Second Temple era, see Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Psalms: Part 1 (FOTL 14; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988), 75. Artur Weiser, The Psalms (OTL; trans. Herbert Hartwell; Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1962), 150. 114
43

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the "speaker's counterpart" as being "variously identified" as enemy, wicked (singular and plural), and the nations.44 Similarly, Craig Broyles understands the psalmist's reference to "my enemies" in 9:4 as pointing to those who "opposed the people of Zion, not to a particular group personally attacking the speaker."45 The view that the nations are the enemies and the wicked in this psalm is not a consensus position, however. Many interpreters argue that Psalm 9 focuses on the threat from the nations while Psalm 10 has in view the personal enemies of the individual psalmist.46 Mays rejects this view on the grounds that the nations reappear in 10:16 as a subject of concern.47 A more nuanced view is that of Gerald Wilson, who argues that the "interplay" between the nations and the wicked allows for "flexibility" in viewing the enemy as the wicked who are in opposition to the psalmists or the nations who are in opposition to the community.48 An analysis of the reader's journey through the psalm will show that the nations and the wicked are not distinct entities in this text.49 Early in the psalm, the reader
44

Brueggemann, "Psalms 910: A Counter to Conventional Social Reality," 4.

Craig Broyles, Psalms (NIBCOT 11; Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1999), 75. For examples of this view, see J. Clinton McCann, Jr., "The Book of Psalms," in The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994), 4:719; W. O. E. Oesterley, The Psalms (London: S. P. C. K., 1962), 144-45; and Martin S. Rozenberg and Bernard M. Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms (Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson Inc., 1999), 49.
47 46

45

Mays, Psalms, 72. Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002), 230.

48

John Goldingay comments that in this psalm the nations "continue to be characterized by faithlessness," specifically in that they are "faithless in their relationship with the rest of humanity, specifically with the weak, whom they take advantage of" and 115

49

encounters the language in 9:6, in which the terms "nations" (Mywg) and "wicked" ((#r) are set in parallel construction with one another. In Hossfeld's comment on this verse, he notes that the wicked "merge" (verschmelzen) with the nations.50 Moreover, these parallel references to the nations and the wicked are bracketed by explicit mention of the "enemy" (byw)) in 9:4 and 9:7. The terms "nations" and "wicked" appear in parallel construction again in 9:18, in which the psalmist prays that the "wicked" (My(#r) may be in Sheol and proceeds to define the wicked as "all nations (Mywg) that forget God." Further still, the "wicked" emphasized in Psalm 10 are shown to be the "nations" emphasized in Psalm 9 in that both of them are associated with the notion of being caught in their own traps (9:16, cf. 10:2).51 The terminology of the "wicked" is dominant for the majority of Psalm 10, but then the nations return to the scene in 10:16 as the psalmist expresses confidence that they will perish from Yahweh's land.52 Oesterley comments that this "sudden mention"

that they "work by combining fraud and oppression, using legal but underhanded means to achieve oppressive ends, bringing death to the vulnerable" (John Goldingay, Psalms: Volume 1, Psalms 1-41 [Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006], 185). Hossfeld and Zenger, Die Psalmen I, 86. Similarly, Mays observes, "suddenly the enemies are the wicked nations, and the account of their judgment recalls the LORD's action in the past against the nations who threatened Israel and have passed from history" (Mays, Psalms, 71), and he notes, "The nations/peoples are cast as the wicked and play the role given the enemy in the individual prayers for help (74). This motif that Pss 9 and 10 share in common is noted by both Craigie (Craigie, Psalms 1-50, 124) and Broyles (Broyles, Psalms, 77). Geoffrey Grogan comments, "The psalmist apparently has in view some national emergency, so the wicked person here will be a personification representative of the aggressive invading nations" (Geoffrey W. Grogan, Psalms [Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008], 56). 116
52 51 50

of them "is quite out of harmony with what has preceded and with what follows."53 The shift in focus is indeed somewhat jarring to the reader until she reads 9:17 in which Yahweh is said to listen to the "afflicted" (Mywn(), who are the very people that the wicked are said to oppress in 10:2, 9, and 12. She is thus led to affirm that the nations are in fact one and the same with the wicked, just as they were said to be in 9:6 and 9:18.54 The hypothesis set forth at the beginning of Psalm 910 is confirmed at the end. In Psalm 910, the enemies, portrayed as wicked nations, are characteristically oppressive of the poor. As noted above, the psalmist associates the nations with the wicked in 9:18. Immediately following in 9:19 the psalmist affirms that the "needy" (Nwyb)) and "afflicted" (Myyn() can be hopeful that they will not be forgotten, and then the psalmist calls on God to judge the nations in 9:20. Justice for the poor is associated with God's judgment of the nations. In 10:2 the wicked one is the pursuer of the poor, and in 10:9 the wicked one seizes the "poor" (yn(). In 10:14, God is identified as the one in whom the "helpless" (hlkx) can trust and as one who helps "orphans" (Mwty), whereupon God is called upon to break the wicked one's power in 10:15. Finally, in 10:18, the psalmist expresses confidence that God will give justice to the orphan and the "oppressed" (Kd), which will result in the cessation of the ability of the "mortal one from

53

Oesterley, The Psalms, 146.

According to Iser, "whenever the flow is interrupted and we are led off in unexpected directions, the opportunity is given to us to bring into play our own faculty for establishing connectionsfor filling in the gaps left by the text itself" (Wolfgang Iser, The Implied Reader: Patterns of Communication in Prose Fiction from Bunyan to Beckett [Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1974], 280). Here, the reader fills in the gap created by the abrupt mention of the nations in a manner that is consistent with the identification of them as the wicked earlier in the psalm. 117

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the earth" (Cr)h-Nm #wn)) to cause terror. Hossfeld recognizes the use of the term #wn) as a reference back to the previous use of the term in 9:21.55 The reference is specifically to the nations, who in 9:21 are informed that they are #wn).56 Thus, it is the nations who will no longer be able to terrify the poor as they have been doing. It is clear, then, that in this psalm the wicked nations are the oppressors of the poor.57 It remains to discuss the role of God in this psalm, particularly to the extent that the psalmist portrays God as a royal figure.58 There is, in fact, a great deal of royal imagery that describes God in this text, and the emphasis is clearly on the exercise of God's kingship as judge.59 As early as 9:5 the reader learns that God is "enthroned" ()skl tb#y) as a "righteous judge" (qdc +pw#). Terminology derived from the root +p# is also used to describe God in 9:9, 20, and 10:18. Furthermore, God is described
55

Hossfeld and Zenger, Die Psalmen I, 88.

Notker Fligster understands the Cr)h-Nm #wn) in 10:18 and the nations in Psalm 910 in general to be the non-Israelite people who inhabited Judah who are portrayed as having opposed the efforts of the returnees from Babylon in Ezra and Nehemiah. See Notker Fligster, "'Die Hoffnung der Armen is nicht fr immer verloren': Psalm 9/10 und die sozio-religise Situation der nachexilischen Gemeinde," in Biblische Theologie und gesellschaftlicher Wandel (ed. Georg Braulik, et al; Freiburg: Herder, 1993), 116-17. J. David Pleins observes, "This psalm forcefully expresses the view that when unjust governments topple and the needy are not ignored, this is an occasion for joy" (J. David Pleins, The Psalms: Songs of Tragedy, Hope, and Justice [Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1993], 66). An analysis of the portrayal of God as king in this psalm, including terminology that is beyond the scope of analysis in the present study, can be found in Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor in the Final Shape of the Psalter," 15457. Mays notes this emphasis when he writes, "The feature of the LORD's rule emphasized here is the role of acting as judge of the nations" (Mays, Psalms, 73). 118
59 58 57

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as being "enthroned" (b#y) in 9:8 and 9:12 in addition to 9:5. Finally, God is explicitly identified as "king" (Klm) in 10:16. In this psalm, God's kingship tends to be associated with God's judgment against the nations. Thus, the statement that God is enthroned as judge in 9:5 is followed by a description of God's action against the nations/wicked in 9:6. In 9:9, God is described as the judge of the world and the "peoples" (Mym)l). In 9:20, God's judgment of the nations is associated with denial of power to them, and that verse is followed by an appeal for God to make the nations afraid and to show them that they are mere mortals in 9:21. Finally, in 9:16, an expression of confidence that the nations will perish from Yahweh's land accompanies the declaration that Yahweh is "king." It is clear from these examples that God's kingship is associated with God's opposition to the nations in this psalm. At the same time, the psalmist also associates God's kingship with the defense of the poor against their oppressors. Thus, the psalmist pairs God's role as judge in 9:9 with God's role as a source of refuge for the "oppressed" (Kd) in 9:10.60 Similarly, the psalmist brings together the concept of God's enthronement in Zion in 9:12 (which is to be declared among the "peoples" [Mym(]) with the affirmation that God does not forget the cry of those who are "afflicted" (Mywn() in 9:13. A virtually identical pairing of concepts occurs in 9:19-20, in which God's judgment of the nations in 9:20 follows the

Concerning this pairing, Craigie notes, "The metaphor now changes from that of God as Judge to that of God as 'refuge,' a word meaning literally 'stronghold, place with high fortifications' (cf. Isa 25:12). Yet the two metaphors are intimately related, for the same God who appears as awesome Judge to the wicked, offers refuge to the oppressed in their times of trouble" (Craige, Psalms 1-50, 119). 119

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statement that the "needy" (Nwyb)) will not be forgotten in 9:19.61 Finally, the identification of God as "king" in 10:16 precedes statements that God will listen to the "afflicted" (Mywn() in 10:17 and that God will give justice to the "orphan" (Mwty) and the "oppressed" (Kd) in 10:18.62 Even as God's kingship is associated with God's opposition to the nations in this psalm, it is equally associated with God's support for the poor who are being oppressed by the nations. To summarize, in this psalm the role of the poor and that of the nation of ancient Israel are combined within the persona of the psalmist. The psalmist, in a condition of poverty, speaks as a representative of an oppressed nation. Likewise, the wicked and the nations are blended together into the persona of the psalmist's enemy. God, as king, defends the poor (including the Israelite psalmist) against their wicked oppressors, who are here identified as the nations. God's opposition to the wicked in defense of the poor is thus shown to be analogous to God's opposition to the nations in defense of ancient Israel.

Psalm 22. Psalm 22 is the second psalm in Book I in which one can analyze the interplay between poverty, foreign nations, and the royal portrayal of God. As was the The rhetoric of forgetting (in particular, the use of the root xk#) contributes significantly to the construction of the symbolic relationships between characters in this psalm. The nations forget God (9:18), and they believe that God has forgotten the poor (9:11). God, however, does not forget the poor (9:13, 19). On the contrary, although the root xk# is not used, it is clear that God causes the nations to be forgotten in 9:6. Concerning the wordplay surrounding the concept of forgetting in this psalm, see Richard J. Clifford, Psalms 1-72 (AOTC; Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2002), 72; Brueggemann, "Psalms 910: A Counter to Conventional Social Reality," 6; and Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1, 231.
61

Wilson notes that in this capacity, God is fulfilling "the role of the Near Eastern monarch as protector of the oppressed" (Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1, 234). 120

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case in Psalm 910, the reader here encounters an individual psalmist who identifies with both the nation of ancient Israel and the poor. The psalmist's Israelite identity is evident as early as 22:4-6, in which God is said to be "enthroned (b#wy) on the praises of Israel," whereupon the psalmist refers to God as the one in whom "our ancestors" trusted and who brought them to safety. The psalmist identifies with the nation of Israel upon whose praises God is enthroned and whose ancestors are claimed as the psalmist's own. Gerstenberger views this language as a reference to the "salvation history of Israel,"63 and Hossfeld surmises that in these verses the psalmist "speaks for the community (spricht fr die Gemeinde)."64 The psalmist's Israelite identity is on display later in the psalm as well when in 22:23 he promises to proclaim God's salvation of him to "my brothers" (yx)) and then proceeds to do so by addressing the "offspring of Jacob" and the "offspring of Israel," in 22:24. It should be noted that there are interpreters who go beyond this view that the psalmist is deliberately speaking in the context of the Israelite community to argue that the speaker in Psalm 22 is the nation of Israel personified. Such is the traditional Jewish

Erhard Gerstenberger, Psalms: Part I with an Introduction to Cultic Poetry (FOTL 14; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988), 110. Hossfeld and Zenger, Die Psalmen I, 149. Additionally, Mays states, "It is important for the identity of this figure that the kingdom of God and the corporate context are so quickly established" (Mays, Psalms, 109). This view that in Psalm 22 the reader encounters an individual psalmist's experience that is being interpreted and performed in a communal context is shared by Craigie (Craigie, Psalms 1-50, 197-98). Weiser, however, cautions that "The psalm contains a number of entirely individual features which refute any attempt to interpret it in a collective sense," even though he acknowledges that "the psalm has its place in the cult of the community" (Weiser, The Psalms, 220). 121
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interpretation, as Clifford and Rozenberg and Zlotowitz observe.65 This view is that of Samson Hirsch, who writes, "This psalm gives expression to the thoughts and emotions that come to Israel in the midst of the dark night of its exile."66 Such a view seems to go beyond what is warranted by the text, especially given the disjunction between God's past deeds on behalf of the nation in 22:5-6 and the psalmist's immediate experience in 22:7ff67 and the fact that the psalmist directly addresses the community beginning in 22:24. At the very least, however, those who make this argument illustrate the degree to which the identity of the psalmist in Psalm 22 cannot be separated from that of the nation. This psalmist also identifies with the poor. The statement in 22:25 that God did not detest the suffering of the "poor" (yn() is self-referential. In his comment on this verse, Kraus observes, "The sufferer thinks of himself as among the 'poor.'"68 This verse is part of the psalmist's fulfillment of the vow to praise in 22:23. Further, in 22:27 the psalmist calls upon those who suffer similar affliction (the Mywn() to eat and be filled. Interestingly, the psalmist also connects his identity as yn( to the community with the statement in 22:25 that the yn( cried out to God. Although a different Hebrew root is used, this statement would seem to be an allusion back to the cry of the ancestors in 22:6. Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 123; Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 121. In particular, Rozenberg and Zlotowitz mention one strand of interpretation that views the speaker in the psalm as the "personification of the Jewish people who have suffered so much from Haman, who wanted to annihilate the Jews" (120). For a cogent discussion of this interpretation set forth in Midrash Tehillim, see Esther M. Menn, "No Ordinary Lament: Relecture and the Identity of the Distressed in Psalm 22," HTR 93 (2000): 317-27.
66 65

Samson Hirsch, The Psalms (New York: Philipp Feldheim, Inc., 1960), 1:159. Concerning this contrast, see Broyles, Psalms, 116. Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 299. 122

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The characteristics of ancient Israelite identity and poverty are brought together in the persona of this psalmist. Having analyzed the identity of the psalmist, it is necessary at this point to deal with the royal portrayal of God in this psalm. The royal metaphor appears both near the beginning and near the end of Psalm 22. In 22:4, God is portrayed as being "enthroned" (b#wy), and in 22:29 it is said that "kinsghip" (hkwlmh) belongs to Yahweh and that Yahweh "rules the nations" (Mywgb l#mw). Concerning this language, Clifford observes, "The reference to the nations is unexpected in a private thanksgiving."69 He is correct that the reference to the nations is abrupt, and its function here is to lead the reader into a comparison between the individual experience of the psalmist and the history of the community. The psalm begins with a contrast between the psalmist's sense of abandonment and the nation's experience of deliverance. This sudden return to the international frame of reference prompts the reader to consider that the psalmist has ultimately experienced God's salvation as well. It is instructive that in both cases the royal metaphor appears in the context of God's power over foreign nations. This observation is self-evident in the case of the language in 22:29. The imagery here is not that of a benign invitation of the nations to join in an ever-widening chorus of praise, as is often suggested.70 Rather, the text portrays the nations in a subservient role in relation to Yahweh.71 Prior to the language
69

Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 123.

See, for example, Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 128-29; Broyles, Psalms, 119; and Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1, 421. Bernhard Duhm recognizes that the language of the reign of God is often associated with the "reign of the Jews over the whole world (der Herrschaft der Juden 123
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concerning God's reign over the nations in 22:29, the psalmist calls upon "all the clans of the nations" (Mywg twxp#m-lk) to prostrate themselves before Yahweh. The psalmist calls upon other groups to prostrate themselves and genuflect in 22:30, but only in the case of the nations is God's dominion emphasized through the yk clause in 22:29. The function of 22:29 in the psalm is to emphasize the subjugation of the nations to Yahweh.72 The royal imagery in 22:4 is also associated with the demonstration of God's power over the nations. The rescue of the ancestors portrayed in 22:5-6 makes the most sense when viewed as deliverance from ancient Israel's foreign enemies. Specifically, the ancestors' "cry" (wq(z) in 22:6 is reminiscent of the "cry" (wq(zyw) of the Israelite slaves in Egypt (Exod 2:23) or the cry of the Israelites under foreign oppression that prompts Yahweh to raise up a judge in the cycles in Judges (wq(zyw in Judg 3:15, for example). It seems clear, then, that in Psalm 22 Yahweh's kingship is associated with Yahweh's dominion over foreign nations, including those from whom the psalmist's Israelite ancestors needed to be rescued. In summary, the reader of Psalm 22 encounters a psalmist who simultaneously identifies with the nation of ancient Israel and with the poor. Both traits are inherent in the persona of the psalmist. Moreover, the psalmist directly associates himself and the ber die ganze Welt)," although he seems to take this verse to be a case of a more ideal rather than real sense of the concept (Bernhard Duhm, Die Psalmen [Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1922], 97-98). Robert Culley's observation that subjugation, and even assimilation, would be an unpleasant prospect from the perspective of the nations is again instructive in this case (Robert C. Culley, "The Kingship of Yahweh Psalms," in Reading Communities and Reading Scripture: Essays in Honor of Daniel Patte [ed. Gary A. Phillips and Nicole Wilkinson Duran; Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002], 263). 124
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poor with the nation of Israel, in that they share in common having experienced Yahweh's salvation in response to their cries. God has acted on behalf of both, and in so doing, God has acted in the role of king. In this psalm, that role is particularly associated with God's dominion over the nations. God's defense of the yn( who speaks in this psalm is shown to be analogous to God's defense of the nation of ancient Israel against those nations that oppressed the speaker's ancestors. Psalm 44. There is general agreement that Psalm 44 is a communal lament,73 and hence that the voice the reader encounters in the psalm is that of the ancient Israelite community. The identity of the nation as the "we" in the psalm is essentially obvious in light of 44:5, in which God, who is identified as the speaker's king, is called upon to provide salvation for "Jacob." Furthermore, scholars generally regard the narrative of what God did on behalf of "our ancestors" in 44:2-4 as a reference to Israel's conquest of Canaan.74 An individual voice does appear in verses 5, 7, and 16, but Grogan aptly notes, "A Levitical worship leader here takes the people's burden on his heart, speaking to God occasionally as an individual but more often as representing the whole people."75 The individual speaker in this psalm is inseparable from the ancient Israelite community.

See, for example, Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 218; Adrian Curtis, Psalms (Werrington: Epworth Press, 2004) 97; and numerous others for articulations of this view. See Mays, Psalms, 177; Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 219; Robert Alter, The Book of Psalms (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2007), 154; and others for examples of this perspective. Grogan, Psalms, 98. Similarly, Goldingay comments, "the alternating of 'I' and 'we' might indicate that the speaker is a leader or that the psalm was a liturgy involving leader and congregation alternately, but vv. 4 and 6 could equally be used on behalf of 125
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Not only is it clear that the speaker in the psalm is the nation of ancient Israel, but it is also clear that Israel's description of itself includes being in a state of poverty. In 44:25, the speaker asks God, "Why do you hide your face, forgetting our poverty (wnyn() and our oppression (wncxl)?" In a rhetorical analysis of Psalm 44, Loren Crow identifies 44:24-27 as the section in which the psalmist seeks to persuade God to be roused from inaction and act on behalf of the community rather than acting against it, as God is portrayed as doing in 44:10-17.76 Crow especially notes the appeal to God's covenant faithfulness (dsx) at the end of the psalm. Israel's claim to be in a state of poverty is an integral part of the rhetorical appeal in this section of the psalm.77 The claim to be in a state of poverty is particularly apt given that God is portrayed as king in the psalm. God is addressed as "my king" (yklm) in 44:5. Tucker has shown that, in the Psalms, God's kingship entails a commitment to provide for the poor within the context of a just social order.78 If that be the case, the nation's claim to be in a state of poverty in 44:25 is of great rhetorical significance given that God is here addressed as king. In this psalm, as elsewhere in the Psalter, God's kingship is associated with the demonstration of God's power over the nations on Israel's behalf. As noted above, the royal metaphor in the first half of 44:5 is connected with the request for saving acts that

the community as a whole, individualizing their commitment" (John Goldingay, Psalms: Volume 2, Psalms 42-89 [Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007], 37).
76

Loren D. Crow, "The Rhetoric of Psalm 44," ZAW 104 (1992): 399. Crow, "The Rhetoric of Psalm 44," 400. Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 217. 126

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benefit Jacob in the second half of the verse. Mays argues, "Behind this confession is probably the ancient theology that the LORD assumed the role of king over Israel through the victories by which the land was gained."79 Clifford adds, "'King' connotes sovereignty demonstrated in an act, in this case God's wondrous conquest of Canaan."80 That conquest is described here in terms of God's driving out "nations" (Mywg) and bringing calamity on the "peoples" (Mym)l) in 44:3.81 It is also evident that the nations are the enemies in this psalm. Commentators generally agree that the setting for this psalm is that of a military defeat that ancient Israel has suffered.82 Even beyond the obvious military context, the connection between the enemies and the nations is made explicit in 44:11-12, in which the speaker's being turned back before the "adversary" (rc) and plundered by the "enemies" (wny)n#mw) in 44:11 is

79

Mays, Psalms, 177.

Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 220. Concerning this verse, McCann also writes, "God's control of the nations and God's reign are explicitly associated" (J. Clinton McCann, Jr., "The Book of Psalms," in The New Interpreter's Bible [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994], 4:857). Terrien points out that the rehearsal of God's saving acts on behalf of the nation in this psalm focuses exclusively on this action that God takes against the Canaanites while omitting the Exodus and Sinai wanderings entirely (Terrien, The Psalms, 360). See as examples the comments of Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 265; and Marti J. Steussy, Psalms (St. Louis: Chalice Press, 2004), 122. Nancy deClaiss-Walford observes, "a number of times of oppression in the life of ancient Israel would fit the message of Ps 44: the Assyrian attack on Jerusalem in 701 BCE, the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians in 587, the subsequent exile of the Israelites that lasted unti 538 BCE" (Nancy deClaiss-Walford, "Psalm 44: O God, Why do You Hide Your Face?" in My Words are Lovely: Studies in the Rhetoric of the Psalms [LHBOTS 467; eds. Robert L. Foster and David M. Howard, Jr.; New York: T. & T. Clark, 2008], 130). 127
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associated with the speaker's being scattered "among the nations" (Mywgbw) in 44:12. Furthermore, the nations and peoples taunt Israel in 44:15. In light of these observations, it is possible to describe the semantic map of characters in the psalm. God as king remains the central figure, as was the case with Pss 910 and 22. As king, God has acted (and is implored to act again) by demonstrating dominion over the nations on Israel's behalf. Although the community is not presently experiencing such activity of God in the midst of praying the psalm, the psalmist appeals to God's royal responsibility to act on behalf of the poor to defend them from their oppressors. An analogy is thus drawn between God's defense of the poor against their oppressors and God's defense of Israel against its powerful foreign neighbors.

Psalm 68. The question of how to interpret Psalm 68 has vexed many an exegete, and Kraus famously states, "There is hardly another song in the Psalter which in its corrupt text and its lack of coherence precipitates such serious problems for the interpreter as Psalm 68."83 The disputed issues of the psalm's structure and genre do not directly impact my own particular analysis of the psalm. Thus, for the purposes of the present study, I follow the lead of Tucker, who proceeds by "approaching the psalm as a literary unit."84

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 60-150: A Commentary (trans. Hilton C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1989), 47. The difficulty of interpreting the psalm arises from a number of factors, including hapax legomena, an apparent complex history of development, esoteric expressions, and unusual syntax. For a helpful summary of these issues, see Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Psalms 2 (trans. Linda M. Maloney; Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005), 160-61.
84

83

Tucker, "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor," 159. 128

I begin with a demonstration of the Israelite identity of the psalmist. It seems clear that the psalm is spoken from an Israelite perspective in that the speaker addresses God as the "God of Israel" in 68:9 and 68:36. Further, Konrad Schaefer regards 68:7-18 as "an impressionistic portrayal of the Exodus up to the housing of God on Mount Zion."85 In 68:27, the speaker calls upon "Israel" to bless God, and proceeds to list four Israelite tribes in 68:28.86 It is also the case that the psalmist ascribes a state of poverty to the nation, despite the generally triumphant tone of the psalm. The first half of 68:11 reads "your community87 dwells in it," with the antecedent of "it" being the land that is God's hereditary possession (Ktlxn) mentioned in the previous verse. The second half of the verse reads, "You establish the poor (yn(l) with your goodness, O God." The poor are mentioned here in parallel construction with God's tribethat is, the tribe of the "God of Israel" (cf. 68:9). Kraus comments, "And into the rain-drenched, fertile land Israel

Konrad Schaefer, Psalms (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2001), 163. Kraus agrees that the exodus and wilderness traditions are referenced here (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 51-52). Rozenberg and Zlotowitz understand the mention of the four tribes to be symbolic of the nation as a whole (Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 410). For the translation of Ktyx as "your community," see Marvin Tate's argument that cognate terminology justifies such translations as "'tribe,' 'family,' 'household,' or 'community'" (Marvin E. Tate, Psalms 50-100 [WBC 20; Dallas: Word Books, 1990], 164). For further discussion of the cognate terminology behind such a translation, see Mitchell Dahood, Psalms II: 51-100 (AB; Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1968), 141. He bases his reading on the Ugaritic cognate wt meaning "house, dynasty, or realm" and on a comparison of the expression Myt#lp tyxw in 2 Sam 23:13 with the parallel expression Myt#lp hnxmw in 1 Chr 11:15. Given that it appears in Psalm 68 in the context of language describing the sustenance that the "God of Israel" (68:9) provides within God's own territory (68:10), it is clearly a reference to ancient Israel as God's own people. 129
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marched and settled (v. 10). Here Yahweh refreshed the yn( (here, very likely, Israel)."88 Hossfeld expresses a similar view when he writes, "the people Israel is regarded under specific aspects. It understands itself as a creature, which is characteristic of a piety of the poor with a creation-theological accent. And it sees itself as poor."89 In this psalm, the reader encounters an Israelite speaker who attributes to the nation a state of poverty. God's care for the poor is also evident in God's special relationship with "orphans" (Mymwty) and "widows" (twnml)) in 68:6. The psalmist explicitly portrays God as a royal figure by referring to God as "my king" (yklm) in 68:25.90 Indeed, Hossfeld identifies "the royal reign of YHWH" as "the theme of the psalm."91 Moreover, the reader again finds that God's kingship is here associated with God's actions against foreign nations on behalf of Israel. The verses immediately prior to 68:25 describe God's warfare against Israel's enemies. In 68:21 the speaker proclaims, "God is our God of deliverance," and in 68:22 God "will smite the head of his enemies (wyby))." In the enigmatic verses that follow, God promises to retrieve the enemies so that "the tongue of your dogs may have some of the enemies" (68:24). Wilson understands this imagery to refer to a parade of captives through
88

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 52.

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 165. He renders Ktyx as "your creatures," which is a more traditional translation of the term, and yet he arrives at the same conclusion that the verse refers to the nation of Israel that understands itself to be yn(. Yet another similar view is that of Tate, who writes, "The 'poor' (humble, dispossessed, without sufficient property for living, those with diminished powers, strength and worth) refers in 68:11 to the people of Israel (cf. Ps 149:4; Isa 49:13; Ps 72:2), who do not really own the land which has been given them" (Tate, Psalms 50-100, 177). 90 LXX and Symmachus omit the suffix, but in either case the text refers to God as a royal figure (BHS, 1148).
91

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Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 164. 130

Jerusalem. He writes, "Yahweh, the king, intends to bring his conquered enemies to Jerusalem so that the people there can see and even share in the defeat of their opponents."92 In this portion of the psalm, God's kingship is associated with God's defeat of Israel's foreign enemies. The interplay between God's kingship and the subjugation of the nations is again evident in 68:29-32, in which the nations and their kings are portrayed as bringing tribute to God. The psalmist calls God to take action against the "peoples" (Mym(), with the result that they "trample themselves down" (sprtm) as they bring silver (68:31). The psalmist then calls on God to scatter the "peoples" (Mym() who delight in battle (68:31) and goes on to say that Egypt and Cush will bring tribute (68:32). Roland Murphy comments, "God's power is invoked against enemies, primarily Egypt, and tribute from the nations will be exacted."93 Wilson adds, "The victory of Yahweh brings submission by the nations of the earth to his rule."94 The nations are cast in the role of the enemy whom God, as Israel's king, defeats.

Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1, 940. He goes on to note that "Bashan" in 68:23 was a stronghold of the king Og, whom the Israelites defeated prior to the conquest of Canaan. Roland Murphy, The Gift of the Psalms (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2000), 109. Wilson, Psalms: Volume 1, 942. Similarly, Weiser comments, "the cult community now turn their thoughts to the future and pray that God may summon his 'might', made manifest before them in the divine service by the tradition of the Heilsgeschichte, and may use it against the nations who, lusting after war, threaten the people of God; they pray that in the days to come, too, the subjugation of the nations and their homage, which had just been the theme of the liturgical celebration, may be repeated" (Weiser, The Psalms, 489-90). 131
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Hossfeld's statement of the significance of Psalm 68 aptly summarizes the major claims that I have advanced about this psalm: The significance of Psalm 68 lies in its tradition- and redaction-critical depth. It develops traditions from the Northern Kingdom and Jerusalem cult theology, is shaped by the theology of the poor, and interprets an eschatological direction toward the universal final judgment. The center, which links these different aspects and holds them together, is the kingdom of God in the divine wealth of facets as creator, caring father of the poor, guide of Israel's history, king in the Jerusalem Temple, and world-encompassing judge.95 Within the cast of characters in the psalm, God (acting in the role of king) lies at the center of a network of relationships. The speaker identifies with the Israelite community, and regards the nation of Israel to have the characteristic of poverty. The nations are portrayed as the enemies of both God and the nation of Israel. The affirmation in the psalm that God defends the poor against their oppressors serves as a model that corresponds to God's defense of ancient Israel against foreign nations. In many ways, God does in Psalm 68 what the psalmist pleads with God to do in Psalm 44.

Psalm 74. Psalm 74 is a communal lament that mourns the destruction of Yahweh's temple in Jerusalem.96 The psalmist uses various terms to denote the enemy who carries out this sacrilege, including "enemy" (byw); 74:3, 74:10, 74:18), "adversary" (rc/rrc; 74:4, 74:10, 74:23), "fool" (lbn; 74:18, 74:22), and "up-riser" (Mq; 74:23). It

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 168. See also the similar comments in A. A. Anderson, The Book of Psalms (NCB; London: Oliphants, 1972), 537. A dissenting view is that of Folker Willesen, who argues that no historical event lies behind the psalm but that it is entirely cultic in nature and bears strong resemblance to Akkadian temple laments. See Folker Willesen, "The Cultic Situation of Psalm LXXIV," VT 2 (1952): 296-97. The weakness of Willesen's position lies in its exclusive appeal to a cultic Sitz im Leben while ignoring the psalm's place in the final canonical form of the Psalter in which the crisis of exile is a central concern.
96

95

Pleins, The Psalms, 35. 132

is virtually certain that the enemy portrayed in the psalm is a foreign nation, and Croft thus regards the psalm as one of the "war psalms" and writes, "The enemy are clearly the foreign army who have carried out the sacrilege."97 Given this context and the rather transparent nature of the psalm's subject matter, Curtis appears to be correct in reading the expression lbn M(w in 74:18 as "foolish nation."98 In his comments on the verse, Seybold writes, "The 'foolish people' of the Babylonians is meant" (Gemeint is das 'trichte Volk' der Babylonier).99 Clifford concurs, writing, "the 'impious people' (v. 18) are therefore the Babylonians who destroyed the Temple in 587 BCE."100 In a similar manner, Zenger argues that the "fool" is one who does not recognize the order that God has placed in creation and thereby

Steven J. L. Croft, The Identity of the Individual in the Psalms (JSOTSup 44; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1987), 34. The question of which foreign enemy the psalmist has in mind is the subject of some debate. For Duhm, the proper setting of the psalm is the Maccabean era, and the enemy is the Seleucid regime under Antiochus IV Epiphanes (Duhm, Die Psalmen, 285-86). Buttenwieser ties the psalm to the military exploits of Holofernes in 344 B.C.E. that are reflected in the book of Judith (Buttenwieser, The Psalms, 609-12). Michael Goulder identifies the events narrated in the psalm with the Assyrian desecration of the shrine at Bethel in the 720's B.C.E. (Michael D. Goulder, The Psalms of Asaph and the Pentateuch: Studies in the Psalter, III [JSOTSup 233; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996], 65). Others associate the psalm with the Babylonian conquest of Judah in 587 B.C.E.see Broyles, Psalms, 306; Derek Kidner, Psalms 73-150 (TOTC 16; Nottingham: Inter-Varsity Press, 1975), 293; Klaus Seybold, Die Psalmen (HAT I/15; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1996), 287; and Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 243, for examples of this view.
98

97

Curtis, Psalms, 157. Seybold, Die Psalmen, 290. Clifford, Psalms 73-150 (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003), 21.

99

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becomes an "agent of chaos," and surmises that by destroying the temple, the Babylonians have shown themselves to be agents of chaos.101 Equally as clear as the foreign nature of the enemy in Psalm 74 is the Israelite identity of the psalmist. The voice that the reader hears in this communal lament is that of the nation of ancient Israel. A number of expressions near the beginning of the psalm establish this point. First, the psalmist calls upon God to remember God's "community" (Ktd() in 74:2. Anderson notes that the term hd( "is often used to denote the nation of Israel, and it is a characteristic expression of the Priestly source in the Pentateuch."102 In the same verse, the psalmist prays, "You redeemed the tribe of your possession" (tl)g +b# Ktlxn). Concerning this reference to God's "tribe," Kidner comments, "the emphasis here is on belonging to God as his own folk."103 Immediately following this line, and in apposition to it, is the third and final line of the verse: "This is Mount Zion, on which you dwell" (wb tnk# hz Nwyc-rh). Clifford observes: The mention of Mount Zion in the third clause of verse 2 makes the verse into a tricolon, a three-line verse, the only such in the poem. Its extra length highlights the name "Mount Zion." The sacred mountain can be seen as an integral part of Israel's origins.104 Similarly, Rozenberg and Zlotowitz comment, "The fact that God chose Zion in the land of Israel as His dwelling further bespeaks His special love for His people."105 Thus, the

101

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 249. Anderson, Psalms, 539. Kidner, Psalms 73-150, 294. Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 23. Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 451. 134

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third line of the verse particularly emphasizes God's dwelling place at the center of the ancient Israelite nation. The psalmist also attributes a state of poverty to the nation. In 74:19, the psalmist implores God not to ignore "your poor ones" (Kyyn(), and proceeds in the very next line to direct God's attention to the covenant (tyrbl +bh) (74:20). The following verse is filled with language from the poverty wordfield. The psalmist desires that the "oppressed" (Kd) not turn away in shame in order that the "poor" (yn() and "needy" (Nwyb)) might praise God's name. Kraus notes the identification of the nation with the poor, and he writes: The community in its entirety puts itself in the place of the yn( and the Nwyb) (v. 21b). In a petitionary effort to move Yahweh to intervene, an appealwith reference to Deuteronomic theologyis made to the covenant (tyrb, v. 20). Yahweh is called "judge" and is summoned to intervene.106 God's covenant people are thus shown to be in a state of poverty. Kraus alludes to the important point that the association of the nation with poverty is connected to the psalmist's portrayal of God as a royal figure. In 74:12, God is addressed as "my king" (yklm). Mays explains the connection between these ideas: In the petitions the congregation admits and recognizes that they are truly and only the lowly, the downtrodden, the poor and needy. They find themselves as a group in the place of those who have a special claim on the justice and help of the king. . . . So they appeal to "the covenant" under whose terms the poor and needy are to be protected from violence.107

106

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 100-101. Mays, Psalms, 246-47. 135

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The combination of the description of the nation as being in a state of poverty and the portrayal of God as king has the rhetorical force of highlighting God's covenantal obligation to fulfill the proper role of a king by taking action on behalf of the poor nation. God's action on behalf of Israel is, of course, simultaneously action against another nation. The psalmist's reference to God as "my king" in 74:12 is followed by a list of God's actions whereby God displayed the divine kingship. McCann takes the observation of God's power over the sea in 74:13a and other details in 74:13-17 as allusions to the exodus.108 He also recognizes that references to the chaos myth are also present, so that there is in this passage a "merging of exodus and creation imagery."109 In this view, the language in 74:13-17 evokes God's acts against Egypt and the nations that the Israelites encountered in the wilderness. For Broyles, the psalmist is drawing "an implicit parallel" between the enemies that God conquers in this passage and the "temple invaders," writing, "as God brought salvation in the past, so he must do the same in the turmoil of the present."110 In the rehearsal of these divine acts, the psalmist calls for divine action against the foreign destroyers of the temple. Once again, we have a psalm in which Israel is portrayed as being poor, foreign nations are portrayed as the enemy, and God is portrayed as king. As in all of the previous examples, God is called to defend ancient Israel by acting against the nation's foreign enemies, and the appeal is made on the basis of God's responsibility as king to defend the poor against their oppressors.
108

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:973-74. McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:974.

109

Broyles, Psalms, 308. See also Robert L. Cole, The Shape and Message of Book III (Psalms 73-89) (JSOTSup 307; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000), 36. 136

110

Psalm 82. Psalm 82 has drawn a great deal of scholarly attention pertaining to its mythological aspects, particularly its use of the divine council motif.111 The psalmist portrays God as presiding over an assembly of deities (l)-td(b) (82:1). God's role is explicitly a royal one in that God is portrayed as acting as judge (+p#y) in 82:1 and is called upon to "judge" (h+p#) the earth in 82:8. In a speech contained in 82:2-7, God chastises the deities in the assembly for failing to live up to their responsibilities. Specifically, they have favored the "wicked" (My(#r) (82:2) and have not afforded justice to the "helpless" (ld), the "orphan" (Mwty), the "poor" (yn(), and the "destitute" (#r), with the result that these groups are in need of deliverance from the wicked (82:3). Because of their failure to establish and maintain social justice, God condemns the deities to mortality (82:6). In 82:8, the voice of the psalmist returns and calls upon God to judge the earth on the grounds that "all the nations" (Mywg-lkb) are God's possession. In turning to the specific question of the symbolic world of the psalm in which its characters are related to one another in particular ways, it is clear that the poor are oppressed by the wicked and that God, acting in the royal role of judge, is determined that the poor will be defended against their wicked oppressors. The role of Israel in relation to foreign nations is less clear, at least on the surface. A factor that contributes to this issue is the relative obscurity of the psalmist's persona. Patrick Miller writes, "There is no 'I' or 'we' uncovering the anguish of a troubled heart or lifting exultant praise to the

A lengthy and thorough discussion of this aspect of the psalm can be found in Julian Morgenstern, "The Mythological Background of Psalm 82," HUCA 14 (1939): 29126. 137

111

glory of God."112 Thus, it is difficult in this psalm to detect the kind of fusion between Israelite identity and poverty within the psalmist's persona as has been the case with the psalms discussed above. In light of such challenges, the geopolitical aspect of the psalm's symbolic world must be pursued by exploring the international ramifications of the divine assembly motif. On the basis of parallel imagery in Deut 32:8-9, several interpreters point out that in this mythology each deity is allotted and given responsibility for a nation.113 The nations, then, are implicitly represented in the psalm by their patron deities. One must then ask what state of affairs would prompt an indictment of the nations' patron deities on charges of failing to uphold social justice. It can only be that the governments of these nations are favoring the wicked over the poor. Indeed, scholars commonly remark that the power of these deities is mediated through the kings, judges, and other officials who govern the nations over which they are given charge. Tate writes: The gods as patrons of the various nations were responsible for the type of kings, judges, and officials they appointed and empowered; however, the gods, not even Yahweh, do not act directly. Their will is administered by human agents, who are extensions of the divine presence in earthly affairs. Thus, the judgment of the gods is at the same time a judgment of their human agents.114

Patrick D. Miller, Jr., "When the Gods Meet: Psalm 82 and the Issue of Justice" Journal for Preachers 9 (1986): 2. J. W. Rogerson and J. W. McKay, Psalms 51-100 (CBC; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977), 164; Matitiahu Tsevat, "God and the Gods in Assembly: An Interpretation of Psalm 82," HUCA 40-41 (1969-1970): 132-33; Mays, Psalms, 269; and Alter, The Book of Psalms, 293; and James S. Ackerman, "An Exegetical Study of Psalm 82," (Ph.D. diss., Harvard University, 1966), 301-302. Tate, Psalms 51-100, 341. See also Schaefer, Psalms, 203; Steussy, Psalms, 156; Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 516; Ackerman, "An Exegetical Study of Psalm 82," 302-305, for other observations that the actions of the human agents of the divine beings are indirectly addressed here. 138
114 113

112

Therefore, it is not merely a question of the failure of certain deities to ensure justice for the poor against the wicked. The failure of the leaders of the nations to do so is simultaneously intended. The nations, then, are culpable in the oppression of the poor. Thus, as Ackerman states, in 82:8 the psalmist calls on God to "assume the rule which has been vacated by the deposed gods."115 Given God's particular relationship with ancient Israel within the mythology of the divine assembly, it seems likely some form of Israelite hegemony is intended as well. Indeed, the role of ancient Israel in the psalm's symbolic world remains to be discussed. This question can be approached through consideration of ancient Israel's historical experience with foreign nations. Such an approach is particularly appropriate, given the degree to which the crisis and ongoing ramifications of exile have shaped the final form of the Psalter, and this crisis is particularly acute in Book III. A number of scholars have taken this approach in commenting on the psalm. Kraus writes: Psalm 82 can be understood only when we recall the harsh contests which Israel had to endure against the pretenses of power of the heathen gods. These gods were realitiesrealities of a wicked judicial system that favored the My(#r and turned down the defenseless. Israel saw the whole created world saturated with powers of evil (v. 5b). The pantheon of demonic powers ruled the nations.116 Gerstenberger has a similar view, and he writes, "The defeat of outward oppressive powers, both religious and political, especially during exilic and postexilic times was a necessity for the communities of Yahweh dispersed in the Babylonian and Persian

Ackerman, "An Exegetical Study of Psalm 82," 433. See also the version of this view in Terrien, The Psalms, 591.
116

115

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 158. 139

empires."117 Further, Zenger notes, "The confrontation with the powerful neighbors and their gods posed in massive fashion the question of the religio-cultural and historical place of the God YHWH among the powerful religious systems of the surrounding world."118 These observations show that, to the extent that the nations were responsible for unfair treatment of the poor, ancient Israel as a nation experienced such injustice through the actions of its more powerful neighbors. That experience of international injustice is therefore implicit in the psalm's symbolic world and supplies the motive for the psalmist's demand that Yahweh take over the governance of the nations.

Part 2: Books IV-V

Psalm 94. Psalm 94 stands out as the only psalm that interrupts the otherwise unbroken series of enthronement psalms in Book IV of the Psalter.119 Despite the fact that it does not meet the form critical description of an enthronement psalm, it nevertheless portrays God as a royal figure in that 94:2 describes God as the "judge of the earth" (Cr)h +p#). For Broyles, this metaphor is the theme around which the psalm is organized.120 Clifford emphasizes that, as judge, God is "a ruler responsible for ensuring

Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations (FOTL 15; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001), 115.
118

117

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 335.

See David M. Howard, Jr., "Psalm 94 among the Kingship-of-Yhwh Psalms," CBQ 61 (1999): 667, where he refers to the psalm as an "anomaly." Broyles, Psalms, 370. Similarly, Mays writes, "The purpose of the psalm is to encourage the people of God to trust in God's righteous judgment and to give them a prayer to appeal to God to vindicate God's rule (Mays, Psalms, 302). 140
120

119

divine order."121 Thus, from the outset of the psalm, the psalmist describes God as a royal figure, and this portrayal sets the tone for the lines that follow.122 The speaker's Israelite identity seems quite well-attested in the psalm as well. In addition to using the royal metaphor of "judge" to describe God, the psalmist also refers to God as the "God of Jacob" (bq(y yhl)) in 94:7.123 The speaker's identity with the community is also evident in the use of the first person plural suffix (wnyhl)) in 94:23.124 Furthermore, the psalmist exhibits concern for the Israelite community, identified as the people of God (Km( in 94:5 and wm( in 94:14) and also as God's possession (Ktlxnw in 94:5 and wtlxnw in 94:14). Clifford observes, "The psalmist's hope is specifically Israelite: the Lord's unconditional commitment to Israel," noting the emphasis achieved by the repetition of the terms in both verses. 125 There is also ample evidence that the psalmist associates the community with the concept of poverty. In 94:5, the evildoers "oppress" God's people (w)kdy, from the root )kd, from which Kd is derived), and they "humiliate" God's possession (wn(y, from the root hn(, from which yn( is derived). Furthermore, in 94:6 they are said to kill the
121

Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 113.

Grogan comments, "as supreme judge, putting things right, Yahweh is demonstrating his kingship" (Grogan, Psalms, 163). Hossfeld notes that the epithet is a hallmark of both the Korahite and (especially) the Asaphite psalms (Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 454). Schaefer notes that the use of the first person plural here "supposes a communal setting" (Schaefer, Psalms, 234). Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 114. Howard similarly notes that there is an emphasis on the particular relationship of God to Israel in this psalm (Howard, "Psalm 94 among the Kingship-of-Yhwh Psalms," 676). 141
125 124 123

122

"widow" (hnml)) and murder "orphans" (Mymwty). Clifford notes that these victims are groups "within Israel," stating, "The entire people is diminished whenever one part is attacked."126 In these two verses, a variety of language from the poverty wordfield is applied to the ancient Israelite community. The psalmist's opponents are variously described as the "haughty" (My)g, 94:2), the "wicked," (My(#r, 94:3), "evildoers" (Nw) yl(p, 94:4, 94:16), "stupid ones," (Myr(b, 94:8), fools (Mylysk, 94:8), "evil ones," (My(rm, 94:16), and "the throne of ruin" (twwh )sk, 94:20). It is clear from 94:6 that they are the oppressors of the poor and from 94:5 that they are also the oppressors of the ancient Israelite people. It is less clear whether the psalmist's opponents are foreign enemies or a corrupt element within the ancient Israelite community, although I find the former view more likely to be the correct one. The majority position on this issue appears to be that the psalmist's opponents are corrupt Israelite leaders.127 There is, however, scholarly precedent for viewing them as foreign entities. For Mowinckel, the speaker in this psalm is the king, so it naturally follows that the speaker's enemies are foreign.128 Approaching the psalm from a slightly different direction, John Phillips dates the psalm to the Persian era, and he associates the
126

Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 112.

This position is defended by Murphy (Murphy, The Gift of the Psalms, 132), Anderson (Anderson, Psalms, 670), Kraus, (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 240-41), Curtis (Curtis, Psalms, 193), Clifford, (Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 112), Gerstenberger (Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations, 178), Alter (Alter, The Book of Psalms, 332), and Rogerson and McKay (Rogerson and McKay, Psalms 51-100, 213). Sigmund Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship (trans. D. R. APThomas, 2 vols.; Nashville: Abingdon, 1979), 1:227. 142
128

127

psalmist's lament with the hardships that the returnees suffered under foreign authorities.129 Another view is that the identity of the psalmist's opponents is ambiguous. In his comments on 94:3-6, Hossfeld writes: Both this traditional root [)kd] and the words used to describe the oppressors (wicked, evildoers) make us think of an Israelite upper class. However, this does not correspond to the concept of the people used here, which seems rather to refer to all Israel. Thus, it remains uncertain whether the oppressors are a group within Israel or a foreign nation.130 He goes on to point out the fact that orphans, widows, and strangers are those being oppressed. He suggests that the oppressors are to be located within the community. The appellation "God of Jacob," however, "suggests an external perspective."131 Finally, with regard to 94:8, he points out that the Myr(b "appear to be a subgroup within the larger whole, the people," but that "in terms of the thought progression of the psalm they must be identical with the wicked/evildoers of the lament."132 A variation on the ambiguity argument is Terrien's view that the psalm has both foreign and domestic enemies in view.133

John Phillips, Exploring the Psalms: Psalms 89-150 (Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers, 1988), 53. See also Kidner, Psalms 73-150, 373; Steussy, Psalms, 166; and Tate, Psalms 51-100, 488, 491. For Tate, there is some ambiguity about the national identity of the psalmist's enemies, but the evidence in support of viewing them as Israelites is more persuasive (Tate, Psalms 51-100, 488, 491).
130

129

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 453-54. Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 454. Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 454. Terrien, The Psalms, 664. 143

131

132

133

I concede that the identity of the psalmist's enemies in this psalm is somewhat ambiguous. Certain aspects of the text, however, direct the reader toward the view that they are not Israelites. First, I would note the visual and phonetic similarity between My)g "haughty ones" in 94:2 and Mywg "nations" in 94:10. I would argue that the poet is using wordplay in this instance to create in the reader's mind an association between the nations, whom God is said to discipline in 94:10, and the haughty people upon whom God turns reprisal in 94:2. Granted, this wordplay applies to only one appellation of the enemies in Psalm 94, but it nevertheless points the reader in the direction of regarding at least some of the oppressors as foreign. Second, Hossfeld is correct that the term M( in 94:5 references the ancient Israelite community as a whole. Indeed, Howard notes that Pss 94 and 95 are the only psalms in Book IV to use the term to refer to Israel rather than to foreign nations, so the unique relationship between God and Israel receives emphasis in this psalm.134 With regard to his counterpoint that the designation of particular oppressed groups suggests an oppressor within the community, I respond that we have already seen numerous examples of these groups being oppressed by foreign entities in the Psalms. Third, the psalm ends on a note that creates the impression of a strong disjunction between "us" and "them." In 94:23, the psalmist writes, "Yahweh our God will silence them" (wnyhl) hwhy Mtymcy). There is a clear insider/outsider motif in play here. In order to determine where the line between insiders and outsiders is to be drawn, one needs to take into consideration the universal scope associated with the psalmist's portrayal of God's reign. God is called the "judge of the earth" (Cr)h +p#) in 94:2 and
134

Howard, "Psalm 94 among the Kingship-of-Yhwh Psalms," 676. 144

also "the one who disciplines nations" (Mywg rsyh) in 94:10. In commenting on the logic of the verse, Kraus writes, "Should the judge of the nations not also judge his own people?"135 It seems more likely, however, that the reader is being led to ask, "Should the judge of the nations not judge this particular oppressive nation?" The psalmist applies explicit references to God's judicial action to universal contexts, so it would seem to be more in line with the grain of the text to think of the God who disciplines the nations to be passing judgment on a particular nation than to think of that same God as passing judgment on a sub-group of the Israelite nation.136 While the national identity of the psalmist's enemies is not entirely clear, the text leads the reader in the direction of thinking of them as foreign, and nothing in the text precludes this view. Psalm 94 is yet another psalm in which the royal activity of God in defending the poor against their wicked oppressors is connected with and shown to be analogous to God's defense of the Israelite people against the nations that intend them harm. Kraus summarizes the psalm's portrayal of Yahweh as follows: He is the judge of the earth, who chastises nations and instructs people; who has created them all, has planted their ear, formed their eye; who knows the thoughts of the human beings; he is the help of the oppressed.137 To that description it must be added that God is the fierce defender of Israel, whom the psalmist describes with language from the poverty wordfield. Further,
135

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 241.

David Mitchell argues this point forcefully when he writes, "the Psalmist's statement that God disciplines nations implies that the evildoers referred to are not faithless Israelites, but hostile foreigners (vv. 7-10). Moreover, the situation described is not one of foreign invasion, but exile among foreigners" (David C. Mitchell, The Message of the Psalter: An Eschatological Programme in the Book of Psalms [JOSTSup 252; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997], 286).
137

136

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 243. 145

there is evidence in the text on the basis of which one may conclude that the oppressors of the poor whom God opposes are not Israelites. There is thus an analogy between God's defense of the poor and God's defense of Israel.

Psalm 102. In the superscription of Psalm 102, the reader learns that the speaker is a poor person (yn(l in 102:1). Thereby, the connection between the psalmist and poverty is established from the outset, and a large portion of the psalm focuses on the speaker's own individual situation. A more communal and universal perspective comes to the fore in 102:13-23, however, and a great deal of the scholarly conversation about the psalm focuses on the question of how to relate the psalm's two seemingly disparate parts. Franz Sedlmeier argues that the psalm is a composite work and that 102:13-23 constitutes an independent unit of text that can stand on its own.138 Nevertheless, he views the final form of the psalm as a "redactional unity (redaktionelle Einheit)" in which the fate of the individual speaker is tied to the fate of Zion.139 This issue is almost universally noted by interpreters of the psalm, and most scholars who attempt to interpret the psalm in its final form point out that that it portrays some sort of analogical relationship between the individual psalmist and the nation. Thus, Mays states, "Clearly the afflicted one of strand one corresponds in some way to

138

Franz Sedlmeier, "Psalm 102,13-23: Aufbau und Funktion," BZ 40 (1996):

229. Sedlmeier, "Psalm 102,13-23: Aufbau und Funktion," 234-35. Similarly, Bellinger writes, "Ps 102 intertwines individual and community," and "will not allow any privatization of genuine faith" (Bellinger, "Psalm 102: Lament and Theology in an Exilic Setting," in My Words are Lovely: Studies in the Rhetoric of the Psalms [LHBOTS 467; eds. Robert L. Foster and David M. Howard, Jr.; New York: T. & T. Clark, 2008], 154). 146
139

the destitute population of Zion of strand two."140 Similarly, McCann comments that the term yn( in the superscription applies both to the individual speaker in the psalm as well as to Zion.141 A range of views exists with regard the degree of overlap between the individual psalmist and the community. For Broyles, the prayer for the community is a rhetorical strategy whereby the psalmist claims God's promise to "respond to the prayer of the destitute" as grounds for divine action to address the psalmist's own personal suffering.142 For Kraus, the individual speaker is personally afflicted (probably with sickness and certainly by enemies), and yet "he turns way from his affliction and from the expectation of help personally prayed for. In the fate of Israel the future of the individual is taken care of."143 Thus, the individual is personally afflicted, but the individual's ultimate hope lies in sharing in the benefits of God's action on the nation's behalf. In Schaefer's view, the psalmist is a spokesperson for the community in such a way that "the individual's sufferings are symptomatic of the ills of the contemporary age. The cure of the whole people will have resounding effects in the individuals' lives."144 For Buttenwieser, the

140

Mays, Psalms, 324. McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1086.

141

Broyles, Psalms, 390. See also Broyles, The Conflict of Faith and Experience in the Psalms (JSOTSup 52; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1989), 211.
143

142

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 284. Schaefer, Psalms, 253.

144

147

speaker is the "nation personified," so that the subject of the complaint "is not personal affliction but the common misery."145 Each of these views has its merits, and they share in common a realization that the speaker's identity and condition is organically connected with the condition and fate of the nation. I prefer to associate myself with the view of Robert Culley, who argues that the exact nature of the relationships between the individual, national, and cosmic levels within the psalm are left open for the reader to ponder. He writes: This complex and multidimensional vision presented by the text invites readers to explore its possibilities, engage with the interplay of similarities and differences, and consider how one may fill in relationships among the various elements inside and outside the text.146 My approach to this psalm, and to the other nine psalms under consideration here, is precisely to engage in an exploration of these relationships. The role of the reader is essential in working out the precise nature of these relationships within the boundaries that the text establishes. With regard to the particular question of the relationship between the individual and the nation of ancient Israel in this psalm, the text's boundaries prevent the reader from denying that the psalmist's individual identity is inseparable from the psalmist's national identity,147 so McCann is quite correct that the term yn( applies both to the individual as well as to the community.

145

Buttenwieser, Psalms, 386.

Robert C. Culley, "Psalm 102: A Complaint with a Difference," Semeia 62 (1993): 33. Bellinger also argues in support of this view. See Bellinger, "Psalm 102," 151. So long as one takes the final form of the psalm to be the object of study, the presence of 102:13-23 in the psalm makes clear the individual's deep concern for the fate of Zion.
147

146

148

Ancient Israel, of course, is not the only nation with which the psalm is concerned. In 102:16, the psalmist looks forward to a time when "the nations will fear Yahweh's name" (hwhy M#-t) Mywg w)ryyw). Furthermore, the psalmist anticipates in 102:23 that the "peoples" (Mym() will assemble and the "kingdoms" (twklmmw) will serve Yahweh. This imagery clearly implies the subjugation of the nations, as McCann aptly notes that the positioning of the kingdoms as the subject of a form of the verb db( "suggests more literally to 'serve' a superior."148 The scholarly consensus seems to be that the psalm's imagery suggests a setting no earlier than the exile, given that Zion lies in ruins (102:15) and its people are imprisoned (102:21).149 The psalm's portrayal of a devastated Zion thus suggests to the reader a situation in which ancient Israel is living under foreign domination.150 The imagery of the nations fearing Yahweh's name and gathering together in Jerusalem to serve Yahweh suggests a radical reversal of the geopolitical status quo in the psalm. God is the one upon whom the psalmist calls to accomplish the dramatic changes that would result in such a reversal. Significantly, at the very outset of the psalm's communal section in 102:13, the psalmist portrays God as king. God is said to be

148

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1088.

See, for example, McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1087; Odil Hannes Steck, "Zu Eigenart und Herkunft von Ps 102," ZAW 102 (1990): 366; Murphy, The Gift of the Psalms, 139; Anderson, Psalms, 704, 709; Leslie C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC 21; Waco: Word Books, 1983), 13; Broyles, The Conflict of Faith and Experience in the Psalms, 210; Buttenwieser, The Psalms, 388; and Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations, 215. On this point, McCann notes the appropriateness of the psalm's placement in Book IV, which is concerned with responding to the "crisis of exile and its aftermath" (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1086). 149
150

149

"enthroned forever" (b#t Mlw(l). The imagery of the enthroned deity is explicitly royal in this context.151 Mays adeptly captures the significance of this imagery for the present study when he writes that 102:13-23 "praises the LORD as the everlasting king (v. 12) who will rebuild Zion as a revelation of his rule to all the nations and as an answer to the prayer of the destitute (vv. 13-17)."152 As king, God characteristically acts on behalf of the yn(, and, as Mays points out, God's action on behalf of Zion in particular is associated with God's role as the king over the Israelite nation whose chosen capital is Zion.153 To summarize, in Psalm 102, the speaker is described as yn( and possesses an identity that is indistinct from the speaker's social location within the nation of ancient Israel, which the psalm also portrays as being in a state of affliction. The psalmist clearly has enemies (102:9), and the enemies of the nation are brought before the reader through the image of the ruins of Zion. God, here portrayed as a king, is called upon to act on behalf of the destitute by restoring Zion, instilling fear in the nations, and bringing the nations together in Zion under God's service. The reader thus recognizes a connection between God's action on behalf of the yn( and God's reversal of the geopolitical fortunes of ancient Israel.

Psalm 113. In Psalm 113, all of the elements under consideration in the present study appear in relatively close proximity to one another. The "nations" (Mywg) appear in See Seybold, Die Psalmen, 399, and Allen, Psalms 101-150, 14-15, both of whom affirm that this language references Yahweh's kingship.
152 151

Mays, Psalms, 323. Mays, Psalms, 325. 150

153

113:4. The psalmist references the poor by mentioning the "helpless" (ld) and the "needy" (Nwyb)) in 113:7. Between these two features, the psalmist portrays God as king in 113:5 by stating that God is "enthroned" (tb#l). For Buttenwieser, the psalmist portrays God as "the Sovereign of the world who controls the affairs of men below from his throne on high."154 James Boice similarly recognizes this language as royal imagery, and he notes the verbal interplay between God's kingship and God's action on behalf of the poor. He writes, "God is enthroned on high, so he raises the poor to sit with princes."155 Indeed, even as God is enthroned, God seats (yby#whl) the ld and the Nwyb) with the great ones (113:8). God's royal activity is exercised on behalf of the poor. The psalmist who portrays God as king speaks from an ancient Israelite perspective, which is evident when the speaker asks, "Who is like our God Yahweh?" (wnyhl) hwhyk ym) in 113:5. The use of the first person plural suffix in referring to "our" God indicates that the speaker is either the nation of Israel as a whole or an individual who identifies with the nation whose God is Yahweh. Concerning this point, Kraus notes, "The rhetorical question in v. 5a effectively praises the incomparability of the God of Israel. wnyhl) recalls the covenant promise. The Lord of the world is the God of Israel."156 An important and related question is the degree to which the nation of ancient Israel is identified with the poor in this psalm. Mays addresses this issue by noting the
154

Buttenwieser, The Psalms, 348.

James Montgomery Boice, Psalms (3 vols.; Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1998): 3:925.
156

155

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 368. 151

canonical placement of Psalm 113 at the beginning of a discrete group of psalms known as the Egyptian Hallel (Pss 113-118) that are known to have played a prominent role in the Passover celebration commemorating the events of the exodus from Egypt. He writes, "In that context, it is Israel who are [sic] poor and weak and prompted by the prophets; they can think of Zion as the barren woman who needs the help of the LORD (Isa. 54:1)."157 In this view, the relationship between Israel and the poor in this psalm is one of identity. This conclusion is similar to the view of Goulder, who writes, "Poor man and barren woman are symbols for exiled, now returned, Israel: the symbols are carefully pan-Israelite, which does not reduce them to descriptions of ordinary beggars and childless wives."158 He also refers to the location of the psalm in the Egyptian Hallel, noting that such use of it "goes back centuries into the BCE period," and he concludes that the psalm is a "hymn of praise for the Restoration."159 Thus, the canonical placement of Psalm 113 strongly suggests a direct relationship between the nation of ancient Israel and the poor ones whom the psalm mentions. The canonical placement of Psalm 113 also has implications for how one views the role of the nations in it. In 113:4, the text states that "Yahweh is high above all nations" (hwhy Mywg-lk-l( Mr). At the very least, then, the psalm portrays the nations as being subordinate to Israel's God. Beyond that, in light of the psalm's canonical placement, Zenger argues, "The composition 113-18 [sic] is dominated by the theology
157

Mays, Psalms, 362.

Goulder, The Psalms of the Return (Book V, Psalms 107-150) (JSOTSup 258; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), 162.
159

158

Goulder, The Psalms of the Return, 162-63. 152

of Exodus."160 To the extent to which Zenger is correct, the psalm in its final canonical position calls to the reader's mind God's deliverance of ancient Israel from powerful foreign oppressors. Indeed, Allen comments, "Israel may proudly affirm that their covenant God is greater than all else which stands for power. Imperial nations, imposing and often menacing to little Israel, are nothing compared with the great Lord of history."161 Further, John T. Willis notes that the psalm bears striking similarity to the Song of Hannah in 1 Sam 2, concluding that both are victory songs.162 He further notes that, while the psalm lacks an "explicit combat motif," one is "strongly implied" in 113:48.163 Thus, the psalm portrays the nations in a subordinate position relative to Yahweh, and its formal elements and canonical context evoke the motif of conflict between ancient Israel and its foreign enemies. Psalm 113, then, is a psalm in which Yahweh, as king, acts on behalf of the poor who, given the canonical placement of the psalm, are associated with ancient Israel. At the same time the psalm's canonical context evokes the theology of the Exodus and summons to the reader's mind God's rescue of ancient Israel from foreign oppressors. The reader is thus again led to contemplate the similarity between God's royal role as a refuge for the poor from their oppressors in tandem with God's royal role as the protector of ancient Israel from hostile nations. Erich Zenger, "The Composition and Theology of the Fifth Book of Psalms, Psalms 107-145," JSOT 80 (1998): 91-92. Allen, Psalms 101-150, 101. Likewise, Steussy reads the psalm as affirming "God's power even over the empires that control occupied Judah" (Steussy, Psalms, 180), and Terrien includes in his remarks about the psalm the statement that "The Lord is to be praised for his triumph over Israel's enemies" (Terrien, The Psalms, 764-65).
162 161 160

John T. Willis, "The Song of Hannah and Psalm 113," CBQ 35 (1973): 152. Willis, "The Song of Hannah and Psalm 113," 152. 153

163

Psalm 149. In Psalm 149, the psalmist leaves little work for the reader to do in describing the relationships between God, ancient Israel, the poor, and foreign nations. It is clear that God is a royal figure in the psalm from 149:2: "Let Israel rejoice because of his maker! (wy#(b l)r#y xm#y) Let the children of Zion shout with joy because of their king! (Mklmb wlygy Nwyc-ynb)." The expression "because of their king" (Mklmb) certainly refers to God and not to a human king, given that it is set in parallel construction with "because of his maker" (wy#(b), which is nonsensical if taken in reference to a human being. Buttenwieser is thus correct to note this parallel language and state, "It should be emphasized that by 'their King' of verse 2 God is meant and not, as some have taken it, an earthly king."164 Further, Mays notes, "The hymn praises the LORD as king (v. 2)," and he goes on to observe its similarities with several of the enthronement psalms.165 The identification of the nation of ancient Israel with the poor is equally clear in this psalm. Consider 149:4: "For Yahweh is pleased with his people; he exalts those who are afflicted with victory" (h(w#yb Mywn( r)py wm(b hwhy hcwr-yk). In this verse, the expression "his people" (wm(b) is set in parallel construction with "those who are afflicted" (Mywn(). Thus, Israel (the people whose God is Yahweh) and the "afflicted" are one and the same group in this psalm. Gerstenberger notes, "That the community is Buttenwieser, The Psalms, 690. For other affirmations that this royal imagery refers to God, see McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1274; Phillips, Exploring the Psalms: Psalms 89-150, 691; Clifford, Psalms 73-150, 315; Anthony R. Ceresko, "Psalm 149: Poetry, Themes (Exodus and Conquest), and social function," Bib 67 (1988): 192; and Raymond Jacques Tournay, "Le Psaume 149 et la 'vengeance' des pauvres de YHWH," RB 92 (1985): 349.
165 164

Mays, Psalms, 446. 154

calling itself 'the poor/oppressed ones' (v. 4b) probably points to chronic deficiencies in material and political well-being."166 Alter adds, "The 'lowly' in this poem does not refer to an abject social class," but rather to "the people of Israel, once brought low by its powerful enemies but now granted victory through God's favor."167 The psalmist is quite explicit in this portrayal of the nation. Even more explicit, however, is the psalmist's identification of foreign nations as the enemy in the psalm. The "faithful" (Mydysx, 149:5) are called upon in 149:7 to exact vengeance from the nations (Mywgb) and to bring recompense upon the peoples (Mym)). Willem Prinsloo notes that the binding of the kings of the nations in 149:8 "signifies the totality of the nations' defeat."168 The imagery of the psalm unambiguously suggests an armed conflict between ancient Israel and foreign nations. The fact that this point is largely assumed by most interpreters is evident in the fact that most of the discussion surrounding the relationship between Israel and foreign nations in this psalm has focused either on the appropriateness of the imagery or the exact nature of the action that Israel's faithful are depicted as undertaking. Broyles argues that a literal military conflict cannot be intended in light of Judah's historical circumstances

166

Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations, 456.

Alter, The Book of Psalms, 512. See the similar comments in Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 937. Willem S. Prinsloo, "Psalm 149: Praise Yahweh with Tambourine and twoedged Sword," Bib 76 (1995): 404. Concerning the psalm's treatment of the nations, see also Bernard Gosse, "Le Psaume cxlix et la rinterprtation post-exilique de la tradition prophtique," VT 44 (1994): 259-62, where he compares the psalm's theme of vengeance against the nations with similar language in the prophetic texts of Isaiah and Hosea. Likewise, Ceresko identifies allusions in the psalm to the traditions of the exodus and conquest of Canaan (Ceresko, "Psalm 149," 180). 155
168

167

under Persian rule. He thus argues that the sword mentioned in 149:6b is a metaphor for the praise solicited in 149:6a.169 Murphy expresses his disapproval of avoiding a literal reading of the violence described in the psalm, and he writes, "To define it as an eschatological vision seems merely to postpone the discovery of its meaning by hiding it in a mist of allegory."170 Others find justification for the violence that the psalm calls for by attending to the specific circumstances surrounding it. In Prinsloos analysis of 149:6, he argues that the praise in 149:6a and the sword in 149:6b are "two sides of the same coin," since "this is not an arbitrary personal revenge, but just punishment by Yahweh."171 Vengeance is thus justified as an act of worship. Another view is that the oppressed status of ancient Israel justifies the violence described. Gerstenberger writes, "The battle for survival justifies (within limits; cf. liberation theologies) propagation of violence and calling on God to help in this struggle, as long as the suppliants are really powerless."172 Goulder adds that the psalmist is merely being human by wishing for revenge against the nations that had oppressed ancient Israel.173 In this view, Israel is entitled to respond with violence against the

169

Broyles, Psalms, 517-18. Clifford shares this view (Clifford, Psalms 73-150,

315). Murphy, The Gift of the Psalms, 173. Grogan adds, "We might have expected such a spiritualization of warfare to be more clearly and fully expressed (Grogan, Psalms, 229).
171 170

Prinsloo, "Psalm 149," 406.

Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations, 457. A similar explanation can be found in Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms, 938.
173

172

Goulder, The Psalms of the Return, 300. 156

overwhelmingly powerful nations that are oppressing it. In any case, the hostility of the ancient Israelite psalmist toward the foreign nations is palpable in this psalm. Psalm 149, then, portrays God as the king who reigns in Zion. As king, God will avenge the crimes of the nations against God's people. Interestingly, in this psalm God chooses to do so through the Israelites, whom the psalm portrays as being in a condition of poverty. McCann reads the psalm in tandem with Psalm 2, noting the contrast between the human king's responsibility for taking action against the nations on Yahweh's behalf in Psalm 2 to the people's function in that role in Psalm 149. This psalm thus "completes the movement of transferring the Davidic theology to the whole people."174 Prinsloo further notes the irony that the Mywn( are the ones who execute Yahweh's judgment against powerful foreign kings.175 Israel's action against the nations in Psalm 149 is presented as an example of the poor exacting vengeance from their oppressors. This activity takes place at the behest of the divine king.

Conclusion Having examined these ten psalms in detail, it is now possible to make some general statements about the Psalter's use of language related to poverty in connection with each of the characters under consideration. One significant aspect of this analysis that bears mentioning at this point is that exactly two psalms that meet the criteria established at the beginning of this chapter appear in each of the Psalter's five books. Pss 910 and 22 appear in Book I, Pss 44 and 68 appear in Book II, Pss 74 and 82 appear in Book III, Pss 94 and 102 appear in Book IV, and Pss 113 and 149 appear in Book V. In
174

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:1274. Prinsloo, "Psalm 149," 406-407. 157

175

making this observation, I do not wish to claim that this phenomenon is the result of editorial intent. This observation does make clear, however, that the set of concerns that these ten psalms address is not confined to any one particular portion of the Psalter. These concerns permeate the entire work. As a result, the reader of the Psalter cannot progress very far without encountering anew the concerns addressed in these psalms placed in tandem with one another. Furthermore, the rhetoric that I have identified in each of these psalms is most explicit in Pss 910 and 149, with the result that the collective impact of the primacy and recency effects is maximized. The diagram below illustrates the symbolic world that the psalms analyzed in this chapter share in common. The characters on the left side of the diagram constitute the moral sphere of discourse in these psalms. God is portrayed as king of the cosmos, and

Figure 1: The Symbolic World of Selected Psalms

158

as king, God must maintain order through establishing a just social order. Thus, God defends the poor by opposing their enemies or the wicked, who characteristically are the oppressors of the poor. The characters on the right side of the diagram constitute the political sphere of discourse in these psalms. In this sphere, God is portrayed as the true king of ancient Israela concept that lies at the editorial heart of the Psalter in its final canonical form. As Israel's king, God acts as the defender of Israel by opposing the foreign nations who are characteristically Israel's oppressors. The rhetoric of these psalms functions to entice the reader into drawing an analogy between the moral and political spheres of discourse. The reader is invited to associate ancient Israel with the poor and to associate foreign nations with the wicked and the enemies. These associations are suggested through such means as synonymous parallelism,176 similar verbal descriptions,177 simultaneous existence as character traits of the psalmist,178 and canonical context.179 The reader is led toward a favorable evaluation of ancient Israel and the poor and toward an unfavorable evaluation of the foreign nations and the wicked/enemies, largely because such opinions are explicitly or implicitly attributed to God. Because God sides with the poor against their oppressors, the reader concludes that God sides with ancient Israel against foreign nations, and for the same
176

See, for example, 9:6, 9:18, 68:11, 74:18, and 149:4. See, for example, 9:16 and 10:2, 44:11 and 44:12, and 94:5 and 94:6.

177

See, for example, 9:12 and 9:14, 22:23-24 and 22:25-26, 74:2 and 74:19, and 102:1 and 102:14, 22. See, for example, the ancestors' "cry" in 22:6 in relation to the nations cry in Exod 2:23 and Judg 3:15 and the interplay between divine assembly imagery in Psalm 82 and Deut 32:8-9, and the placement of Psalm 113 within the Egyptian Hallel. 159
179

178

reason. In the next chapter, I will show how the presence of royal metaphors applied to God, language from the poverty wordfield, and how references to foreign nations in the psalms placed immediately before and after the ten psalms analyzed in this chapter enhance these ten psalms' rhetorical force.

160

CHAPTER FIVE Microcanonical Analysis of Selected Psalms

Introduction The rise of canonical approaches to interpreting the Psalter has produced studies such as Wilson's that address the overall theme and structure of the book as a whole. It has also given rise to studies that describe the relationships among psalms in one or more of the Psalter's five books and among even smaller groups of consecutive psalms. A pioneer in this latter area of research is David M. Howard, Jr., who in his essay on the relationships among the first five psalms in Book IV describes his methodology in the following way: Attention is paid primarily to lexical repetitions between psalms. The study is not exhaustive, in that it does not consider every lexical repetition among every psalm in this group, but it considers the significant links between adjacent psalms, as well as other links among non-adjacent psalms.1 Essentially, Howard seeks to describe relationships among neighboring psalms through analysis of the lexemes that they share in common. Howard's approach is similar to other studies that analyze the inner dynamics of the Psalter's books. Robert L. Cole applies this methodology in his analysis of Book III. He writes: It has become clear in recent years that the phenomenon of parallelism and repetition in the Psalter must be extended beyond that of individual poems to the surrounding psalms and finally the entire collection. The ordering and shaping of

David M. Howard, Jr., "A Contextual Reading of Psalms 90-94," in The Shape and Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter (JSOTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton McCann, Jr.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 108-109. 161

the collection casts the individual psalms in a new light, even beyond that discerned through rhetorical criticism.2 Cole argues that the psalms in Book III systematically address such issues as how long it will take for the promises to the Davidic dynasty in Psalm 72 to be fulfilled, to whom those promises are to be fulfilled, and why God's anger persists.3 Erich Zenger's study of Book V also falls into this category. He argues that the book is "post-cultic" in nature and was intended to be read as a "spiritual pilgrimage" to Zion where Yahweh reigns and dispenses Torah.4 Along similar lines, McCann applies a variation of this approach to the interpretation of Books I-III. 5 He notes that Books II and III both end with a royal psalm and begin with an individual lament that conveys a sense of alienation that is followed by a communal lament that evokes the crisis of exile. McCann also observes a high concentration of lament psalms in Book III. He concludes that Books I-III anticipate the pessimism about Davidic kingship that is the key to understanding the program of Books IV-V. These studies show that there is much to be gained from interpreting individual psalms in light of the content of the psalms that surround them.

Robert L. Cole, The Shape and Message of Book III (JSOTSup 307; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000), 10.
3

Cole, The Shape and Message of Book III, 231-34.

Erich Zenger, "The Composition and Theology of the Fifth Book of Psalms: Psalms 107-145," JSOT 80 (1998): 100. J. Clinton McCann, Jr., "The Book of Psalms," in The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996), 4:660-61. See also McCann, Books I-III and the Editorial Purpose of the Psalter, in The Shape and Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter (JSOTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton McCann, Jr.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 93-107. 162
5

The Literary Context of Selected Psalms The aforementioned microcanonical approaches to interpreting the Psalter inform my methodological approach in this chapter. My methodology in this chapter can also be described as contextual analysis, as I am analyzing connections between both adjacent and non-adjacent psalms and the psalms discussed in the previous chapter. I will revisit each of the ten psalms that I analyzed in the previous chapter, and I will describe the way in which the content of series of psalms that precede and follow them also meet one or more of the criteria by which those ten psalms were selected: use of the royal metaphor with reference to God, references to foreign nations, and use of language associated with poverty. This analysis will show that lexical repetition between the ten psalms discussed in the previous chapter and the psalms that surround them amplifies the rhetorical impact of those ten psalms.

Psalm 910 The reader of the Psalter encounters Psalm 910 after having been introduced to some of its major themes in Psalm 7. The two psalms are clearly related in light of the highly similar lines "and I will sing a hymn to the name of Yahweh the Most High" (Nwyl( hwhy-M# hrmz)w) in 7:18 and "I will sing a hymn to your name, O Most High (Nwyl( Km# hrmz)) in 9:3. The two psalms also share in common language that references foreign nations and Yahwehs kingship. In 7:8, the psalmist desires that the assembly of "peoples" (Mym)l) surround Yahweh, who is portrayed in a royal manner as

163

being "enthroned" (hbw#).6 In the following verse, the psalmist declares that Yahweh brings justice to the "peoples" (Mym() and asks for Yahweh to help him get justice (yn+p#). Schaefer notes the similarity between this language and the imagery associated with God's royal role as judge of the nations in the final verses of Psalm 9.7 The reader comes to associate God's kingship with hegemony over the nations in the course of reading Psalm 7, having first encountered the image of God as king (yklm) in Ps 5:3. She is thus prepared to contemplate the nexus between this relationship and God's concern for the poor in Psalm 910. The reader is invited to continue to reflect on these themes in the psalms that follow Psalm 910. Although Psalm 11 does not contain terminology from one of the four roots to which I have confined my discussion of the royal metaphor, it does contain a reference to God's throne (w)sk, 11:4), and Mays notes the parallel imagery in 7:6-8 and 9:7-8.8 Moreover, the theme of God's defense of the poor, which the reader had not encountered prior to reading Psalm 910, is repeated in Pss 12 and 14.9 In Ps 12:6, God promises to rise up in response to the groan of the "poor" (Myyn() and "needy"

Kraus writes, "the petitioner of Psalm 7 addresses his appeal to Yahweh, the enthroned ruler of the peoples and the hero in war, whose presence above the ark in Jerusalem is a reality" (Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 1-59 [trans. Hilton C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993], 171). McCann also comments that the use of hbw# in this verse is a reference to God's enthronement and recalls the same image in 2:4 (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 708).
7

Konrad Schaefer, Psalms (Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 2001), 21. James Mays, Psalms (Int; Louisville, John Knox Press, 1994), 76.

McCann observes that Pss 12 and 14 share in common a "prophetic character" (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:729). 164

(Mynwyb)).10 The psalmist calls Yahweh the refuge of the "poor" (yn() in 14:6,11 and this statement immediately precedes a request for God's salvation of Israel in 14:7. McCann observes that this psalm, along with Pss 12 and 910 share the common perspective that "God will act on behalf of the poor."12 The rather robust association of divine kingship, geopolitics, and poverty in Psalm 910 does not exist in a vacuum. Psalm 5 introduces the reader to the metaphorical portrayal of God as king. Psalm 7 advances the discourse on God's kingship by associating it with God's dominion over the nations. The association between God's kingship and geopolitics in Psalm 7 leads naturally into a discussion of the implications of God's reign over foreign nations for the poor in Psalm 910. Once the poor are introduced into the reader's consciousness in Psalm 910, they remain the subject of attention in Pss 12 and 14, in which God's commitment to act on their behalf is reaffirmed and associated with God's salvation of Israel. All three of these themes that converge in Psalm 910 resonate with parallel language in the psalms that surround it.

Psalm 22 References to Yahwehs kingship, foreign nations, and poverty are also present in the series of psalms that precede Psalm 22. In Ps 18:28, the psalmist states that God saves the "poor" (yn(). The speaker in the psalm is generally assumed to be the Davidic Kraus calls attention to the prophetic character of the utterance in 12:6, and he comments, "The statement of Yahweh transmitted by the cultic prophet brings salvation to the oppressed and the weak" (Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 209). McCann argues that those designated "my people" in 14:4, the "righteous" in 14:5, and the "poor" in 14:6 are all one and the same group (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:730).
12 11 10

McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:730. 165

king, especially in 18:32-51.13 A series of references to foreign nations near the end of the psalm celebrates God's provision of victory to the king. The king claims that God has set him at the head of "nations" (Mywg) and that "people" (M() unknown to him now serve him in 18:44.14 He repeats in 18:48 that God has subjugated "peoples" (Mym() to him, and so he promises to praise God among the "nations" (Mywgb) in 18:50. This language foreshadows the nations' obeisance before Yahweh in 22:28. In Ps 20:10, the reader encounters a reference to God's kingship.15 The psalmist expresses a hope that God, as "the king" (Klmh), will answer the community's call. There is some ambiguity with regard to whether the title refers to God or the Davidic king, especially given the clear reference to the Davidic king as God's "anointed" in 20:7. The ambiguity should be resolved in favor of understanding the term "king" in 20:10 as a royal metaphor applied to God, particularly in light of the explicit plea for salvation from Yahweh (h(y#wh hwhy) in the first half of the verse. Seybold understands Ps 20:10 to Mays, Psalms, 94; Schaefer, Psalms, 41; Klaus Seybold, Die Psalmen (HAT I/15; Tbingen, J. C. B. Mohr, 1996), 80; McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:748. Weiser comments, "At the mere rumour of his victories foreign nations, whom he had not known so far, had made haste to call on him, trembling with fear, to demonstrate their subservience to his sovereign authority through the sending of flattering envoys and the paying of tribute" (Artur Weiser, The Psalms [OTL; trans. Herbert Hartwell; Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1962], 196). Clifford notes the difference between the MT and LXX readings of this verse: "The Masoretic Text can be read as implying that Yahweh is king ('let the King answer us when we call"), whereas the Septuagint and most Christian translations understand the king to be the human king" (Richard J. Clifford, Psalms 1-72 [AOTC; Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2002], 118). In the latter reading, Klmh is grouped syntactically with the first half of the verse, thus the translation "Yahweh save the king." Weiser criticizes those who follow the LXX, writing that they are "hardly justified in doing so, as this reading obliterates the original connection between the 'grace of kingship' and the feast of Yahweh the King and probably originated at a time when the feast was no longer celebrated" (Weiser, The Psalms, 210). I follow the MT reading in my discussion here. 166
15 14 13

be a late addition to the poem, and he notes that in the period after the exile when ancient Israel lacked a human king, the title was commonly applied to Yahweh.16 Mays, who also takes this view, comments, "This reading emphasizes that the LORD is the true king. It may represent a democratizing understanding of the right and privileges of the anointed for the people."17 With this reference to God as king, the reader is prepared to encounter Psalm 22 having recently contemplated God's kingship, God's salvation of the poor, and God's ability to make foreign enemies subordinate to ancient Israel. The intersection of all of these themes in Psalm 22 aides the reader in organizing these subjects of contemplation in relation to one another. Two of these themes also have resonance in the psalms that follow Psalm 22. In Psalm 24, the epithet "king of glory" is used to refer to Yahweh five separate times (24:7, 24:8, 24:9, and twice in 24:10).18 Mays simply comments, "The subject of Psalm 24 is the kingship of the LORD."19 The force with which the psalmist affirms God's kingship is quite strong, and it resonates with the full-throated reference to Yahweh's kingship in 22:29. The very explicit declaration of Yahweh's kingship at the end of Psalm 24 surely remains in the reader's consciousness as she encounters language from the poverty wordfield in Psalm 25. In 25:9, the psalmist portrays God as the teacher of the "afflicted"
16

Seybold, Die Psalmen, 89, 91. Mays, Psalms, 102.

17

McCann observes that, although the epithet "king of glory" appears only in Psalm 24, God's glory is also associated with God's reign in Pss 29, 93, 96, and 99 (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:772). Mays, Psalms, 119. Likewise, Seybold identifies the Kingdom of God as the theological center of the psalm (Seybold, Die Psalmen, 104). 167
19

18

(Mywn(). Furthermore, the psalmist's own poverty (yyn() is referenced in 25:18. 20 These terms are also used to reference poverty in Psalm 22 (yn( in 22:25 and Mywn( in 22:27). The use of this terminology in psalms that closely precede and follow Psalm 22 resonates with that psalm and enhances the effectiveness of its rhetoric by forcing the reader to mentally retain and rehearse its key concepts for an extended period of time.

Psalm 44 Much as was the case with Psalm 22, the topics of Yahwehs kingship, foreign nations, and poverty are all present in the psalms that immediately precede Psalm 44. The series of relevant psalms spans the divide between Books I and II. At the end of Psalm 40, the psalmist describes himself as "poor and needy" (Nyb)w yn() in 40:18 as part of a request for God's help.21 Psalm 41 then begins with what Mays calls "an extended beatitude describing the LORD's approval of and help for those who are concerned about the weak."22 The psalmist's term for the "weak" in 41:2 is ld. The reader thus encounters a cluster of references to poverty at the end of Book I. The psalmist calls upon God to act as judge by giving him justice (yn+p#) in Ps 43:1. In the same verse, God is called upon to uphold the psalmist's case against an Kraus notes, "the petitioner takes shelter under the old legal privilege of 'the poor'" (Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 322). Concerning the rhetorical strategy involved in the use of this phrase, Mays observes that a king is obligated to protect the weak from the strong, and he writes, "those who present themselves as helpless before the threat of strong enemies lay claim on that royal responsibility when they say, 'I am poor and needy'" (Mays, Psalms, 35). McCann adds, "the sight of the poor and needy motivates God to action" (McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 4:844).
22 21 20

Mays, Psalms, 171. 168

unfaithful "nation" (ywg). Curtis notes that the identity of the "nation," whether it be Israel or a foreign nation, is ambiguous.23 Rozenberg and Zlotowitz, however, note, "'faithless' would mean a non-believer or heathen. Such a faithless nation holds itself unaccountable to God and can be expected to engage in harsh behavior."24 Given the proximity of this verse to Psalm 44, in which the Mywg are clearly foreign (44:3, 12), it seems likely that the text in this verse connotes a foreign nation and that the use of the term in Psalm 44 and this instance of it resonate with one another. The references to foreign nations in the series of psalms that follow Psalm 44 are far less ambiguous than the language in 43:1. In Psalm 45, the kings' bride is identified in 45:13 a "daughter of Tyre" (rc-tbw) who is encouraged in 45:11 to forget her people (Km( yxk#w). Terrien notes that she is expected to do so despite the fact that "she may well be a lady of the notorious and wealthy Phoenician principality of Tyre."25 The rhetoric is not particularly strong, but the motif of renouncing foreign identity in favor of ancient Israelite identity is certainly present.26

23

Adrian Curtis, Psalms (Werrington: Epworth, 2004), 97.

Martin S. Rozenberg and Bernard M. Zlotowitz, The Book of Psalms (Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, Inc., 1999), 263. Samuel Terrien, The Psalms: Strophic Structure and Theological Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003), 366. Kraus calls attention to the political significance of this statement when he writes, "The king is now ynd), master, of the foreign daughter of a king. By means of obeisant prostration (hwxt#h) this incorporation and subordination is strikingly expressed" (Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 456). Weiser asserts that the psalmist has in mind the narratives that describe the "foreign influence" that results from the influence of Solomon's wives and Jezebel (Weiser, The Psalms, 364). 169
26 25

24

In Ps 46:7, the psalmist says that "nations" (Mywg) groan and "kingdoms" (twklmm) reel, in contrast with Zion, of which it is said in 46:6 that it will not be toppled (+wmt-lb, from the root +wm, which also describes the nations "reeling" in 46:7).27 In 46:11, God claims to be exalted above the "nations" (Mywgb). Mays observes, "The danger with which the psalmist is really concerned comes from the nations," and he goes on to note that they "produce a historical chaos more dangerous than the cosmic one."28 In the face of that threat, the psalmist is confident that God is able to tame the nations and protect God's people. The rhetoric in Psalm 47 is even more pointed. The psalmist identifies God as "king" over the whole earth in 47:3, which is immediately followed in 47:4 with God's subordination of "peoples" (Mym( in 47:4a and Mym)lw in 47:4b) to ancient Israel.29 God is again called "king" (Klm) in 47:7 and 47:8, and the psalmist states that "God reigns over the nations" (Mywg-l( Myhl) Klm) in 47:9. Leo Purdue explains the psalm's association of Yahweh's kingship with the subjugation of the nations as follows:
27

According to Clifford, the verse depicts "a world at war against the Lord" (Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 229).
28

Mays, Psalms, 184.

Weiser comments, however, that "This tremendous religious conception has not arisen out of any desire for the establishment of Israel's dominion over the world, a desire prompted by the pursuance of power politics. On the contrary, the root of the belief in God's dominion over the world is to be found exclusively in the religious sphere, since it is the ultimate consequence of the Old Testament idea of God" (Weiser, The Psalms, 376). It should be noted that Weiser interprets the Psalms through the lens of their cultic function (see his discussion of "The Cultic Foundations of Psalmody" in Weiser, The Psalms, 23-35). No doubt this focus influences his preference for a purely religious interpretation of this rhetoric, but his interpretation ignores the inherently political nature of the royal metaphor, which itself is the theme of the psalm. 170

29

"Yahweh's defeat of the other nations, implying the defeat of their gods as well, demonstrates the legitimacy of his claim to the titles of 'Most High' and 'King.'"30 The second half of that verse conveys the image of God enthroned (b#y). The nobles of the "peoples" (Mym() are assembled in 47:10. According to Mays, "The conquest of Palestine's peoples becomes the basis for the LORD's kingship, and in turn the LORD's kingship becomes the basis for his claim on all nations and peoples of the earth."31 In Psalm 44, God's kingship is invoked in a plea for deliverance from foreign domination. Psalm 47 extends that hope into a confident anticipation of a radical geopolitical reversal. The theme of God's action against hostile nations continues in Psalm 48. The psalmist calls Zion "the city of the great king" (br Klm tyrq) in 48:3, meaning that God reigns there.32 An alliance of foreign kings, including a fleet from Tarshish that is destroyed in an east wind (48:8) advances against Zion to no avail in 48:6-8. The psalmist clearly associates God's reign in Zion with God's defense of Israel against foreign attack.33 Then, in Psalm 49, "all of the peoples" (Mym(h-lk) (49:2) both rich and "needy" (Nwyb)w) are called to listen to the psalmist's teaching about the folly of arrogance and trusting in wealth, perhaps with the kings whom Yahweh thwarted in the Leo G. Purdue, "'Yahweh Is King over All the Earth': An Exegesis of Psalm 47," ResQ 17 (1974): 94.
31 30

Mays, Psalms, 187.

See McCann, "The Book of Psalms," 872; and Seybold, Die Psalmen, 196, both of whom highlight the significance of Jerusalem as the locus of God's reign in this psalm. Along these lines, Kraus writes, "In the city of God the king of the entire world rules. . . . But it is not the city of God as such, with its this-worldly might, that possesses the radiance of transcendent inaccessibility. Yahweh is the one that here proves to be the protection" (Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 474-75). 171
33

32

previous psalm in mind.34 Finally, in 50:6, the reader is reminded that Yahweh is a judge (+p#), in this case sitting in judgment of Israel. The psalms that follow Psalm 44 extend its discourse beyond its own contents, emphasizing especially God's kingship as a bulwark against foreign aggression. The conclusion of this series of psalms with a reference to poverty and the portrayal of God as a judge, however, reminds the reader that the moral sphere remains on the opposite side of the coin from the political sphere.

Psalm 68 The psalms that precede Psalm 68 emphasize God's dominion over the nations. In 65:8, the psalmist claims that God silences the uproar of the "peoples" (Mym)l).35 The following psalm contains a passage in 66:6-7 in which the psalmist weaves together God's kingship with God's dominion over the nations. Hossfeld comments, "As royal

Gerstenberger argues that the psalm best fits "the exilic or postexilic age," noting that "In Psalm 49 the human race is divided into rich and poor people, those who dominate others and those who are dependent on others (v. 3)a bitter experience for a defeated and dispersed people" (Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Psalms Part I with an Introduction to Cultic Poetry [FOTL 14; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988], 204). Though the particular language at the beginning of this psalm is universal in nature, Gerstenberger's observation shows that, especially in light of the portrayal of the nations in the psalms that precede it, Psalm 49 reminds the reader of ancient Israel's poverty in comparison with its strong and wealthy neighbors. Tate notes that the verse compares this act of God with God's calming of the sea and thus with God's triumph over chaos. He writes, "the roaring turmoil among the nations is controlled by God (Yahweh) along with the raging powers of the natural world" (Marvin E. Tate, Psalms 51-100 [WBC 20; Dallas: Word Books, 1990], 142). Hossfeld points out the parallel instances in 2:1 and 74:23 in which this "historicization of the battle against chaos" also appears (Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Psalms 2: A Commentary on Psalms 51-100 [trans. Linda M. Maloney; Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005], 140). This comparison is another example of the polemic against foreign nations in the Psalms.
35

34

172

judge, God keeps watch over the nations."36 God's mighty acts in allowing Israel to cross bodies of water on dry land in the exodus and conquest are the subject of 66:6. According to Mays, the psalmist is using the archetypal narrative of God's salvation of Israel to proclaim that God is the ruler of the nations.37 The psalmist continues in 66:7 by stating that God "rules" (l#m) forever and that God's eyes watch the "nations" (Mywgb). The association of God's kingship with God's power over the nations continues in Psalm 67. The psalmist asks for God's blessing on the community so that God's salvation will be known "among all nations" (Mywg-lkb) (67:3). It is said twice in 67:4 that the "peoples" (Mym() will praise God, and in 67:5 it is said that the "peoples" (Mym)l) will shout for joy because God "rules the peoples equitably" (rw#ym Mym( +p#t).38 In his comments on the psalm, Goulder writes, "This linked complex of ideas comes frequently in the Old Testament: when Israel is obedient, or forgiven (65:3), then God will bless the land, and defeat her enemies, who will then offer tribute, and join in Yahweh's worship."39 His observations are an accurate summary of the way in which the themes of God's kingship and God's dominion over the nations are combined in the psalms that lead up to Psalm 68.
36

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 145. Mays, Psalms, 222.

37

Zenger notes that this formulation "judge in righteousness" parallels the Akkadian characterization of the role of the sun god Shamash, specifically, that of "model and protector." He comments, "Our psalm claims this role for the God of Israel; indeed, he is to accept this role by giving tiny, weak Israel blessing and salvation in the midst of the world of the nationsso is he to reveal himself as the 'righteous' protector of the world order" (Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 156). Michael Goulder, The Prayers of David (Psalms 51-72): Studies in the Psalter, II (JSOTSup 102; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1990), 187. 173
39

38

While the nations and God's kingship dominate the psalms that precede Psalm 68, the psalms that follow strongly emphasize the theme of poverty. In Ps 69:30, the psalmist claims to be "poor" (yn(), and thus dependent on God's help for safety as well. The psalmist promises to praise God in 69:31, which it is said the "afflicted" (Mywn() will see and rejoice (69:33), because Yahweh hears the "needy" (Mynwyb)) (69:34).40 In Ps 70:6, the psalmist claims to be "poor and needy" (Nwyb)w yn(), making the same rhetorical claim on Yahweh's royal deliverance as does the psalmist in 40:18. The reader approaches Psalm 68 mindful of the divine king's dominion over the nations. In the course of reading Psalm 68, the reader begins to associate that activity of God with God's provision for the poor. The psalms that follow Psalm 68 extend the duration of the reader's reflection on God's response to poverty that began in Psalm 68.

Psalm 74 Due to the close proximity of Psalm 74 to Psalm 68, the psalms that follow Psalm 68 also lead the reader toward her encounter with Psalm 74. The series of references to poverty in those psalms (69:30-31, 33-34; 70:6) remain fresh in the reader's mind upon arrival at Psalm 74. After a brief interlude in Psalm 71, the chain of psalms that contain references to poverty continues in Psalm 72. The psalmist prays in 72:2 that God will enable the Davidic king to deal justly with God's "poor ones" (Kyyn(w). The psalmist further prays that the king will provide

Clifford notes that this verse broadens the significance of the individual speaker's poverty. He writes, "The last verses (34-36) broaden the perspective of the poem to include the entire universe and the fortunes of Israel. God's saving this needy person is only an instance of a larger saving purpose (Clifford, Psalms 1-72, 324). 174

40

justice to the people who are "poor" (M(-yyn(), save the "needy" (Nwyb)), and crush the "oppressor" (q#w() in 72:4. Further, the speaker in 72:10 desires that the kings of Tarshish, Sheba, Seba, and the islands offer the Davidic king tribute. In 72:11, the psalmist asks that all kings will prostrate themselves before the king and that "all nations" (Mywg-lk) will serve him. The psalmist expresses the rationale for this request in terms of the king's treatment of the poor (nwyb) in 72:12 and twice in 72:13, yn( in 72:12, and ld in 72:13). In 72:17, the psalmist expresses the hope that "all nations" (Mywg-lk) will consider the king to be happy. Terrien thus notes, "Alternation in the depiction of royal attributes calls for the reaffirmation of social justice . . . Like God, the king is invited to redeem and save the destitute, even to the extent of fighting on their behalf."41 Essentially, the psalmist desires that the aspects of God's reign will be enacted vicariously through the Davidic king.42 The presence of this psalm at this location in the Psalter ensures that the issue of poverty remains in the reader's mind continuously between Psalm 68 and Psalm 74. The psalms that follow Psalm 74 contain a mixture of all of the themes examined in this study. In Ps 75:3, God promises to "rule" (+p#)) equitably,43 and it is clear from

41

Samuel Terrien, The Psalms, 520.

Schaefer ascribes messianic significance to Psalm 72. He writes, "This psalm has a special place among the psalms which speak of a messiah who is to save the downtrodden and establish God's reign of peace and justice on the earth" (Konrad Schaefer, Psalms, 174). He also states that "dominion over all the known lands" is presented in the psalm as a characteristic aspect of God's reign (174). Hossfeld notes that the "motif of the saving and judging God" is "part of the description of YHWH's kingship and has its fixed place in the older pleas of the petitioner in legal trouble" (Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 255). 175
43

42

the reference to all of the earth's inhabitants in the following verse that God's reign is international in scope. Further, in 76:10, God rises to save all of the earth's "afflicted ones" (Cr)-ywn(-lk). Cole observes that this language directly parallels the references to the poor in 74:19-21.44 Yet again, the discourse in Psalm 74 is seen not to be an isolated phenomenon but rather the focal point at which the consideration of these themes in a rather lengthy series of psalms converges.

Psalm 82 In the previous chapter, I noted that the Israelite identity of the psalmist is less obvious in Psalm 82 than it is in many of the other psalms addressed there. This issue is addressed by the immediate literary context of the psalm, as it is clear that Psalm 82 has been placed in a series of psalms that have a heavy emphasis upon ancient Israel's hostile foreign enemies. Psalm 78 contains a narrative of ancient Israel's origins, and it includes several references to Egypt (vv. 12, 43, 51) and to the "nations" (Mywg) that God expelled from Canaan during the conquest (78:55). In Psalm 79, the "nations" (Mywg) have invaded and defiled the temple and leveled Jerusalem (79:1). The psalmist desires that the "nations" (Mywgh) not have occasion to inquire about the location of Israel's God and asks that it be known among the "nations" (Mywgb) that God avenges the blood of God's servants (79:10).45 Psalm 80 portrays the
44

Cole, The Shape and Message of Book III, 49.

Although I am discussing Psalm 79 as a prelude to Psalm 82, Goulder is quite correct when he notes, "The similarity of Psalm 79 to Psalm 74 is obvious. Both psalms lament the recent desecration of God's sanctuary, and they are the only psalms in the Psalter to do this" (Michael D. Goulder, The Psalms of Asaph and the Pentateuch: Studies in the Psalter, III [JSOTSup 233; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996], 176

45

divine king as being "enthroned" (b#y) in 80:2 and goes on to reference the exodus from Egypt and the expulsion of the Canaanite "nations" (Mywg) in 80:9. Psalm 81 also contains exodus imagery, with references to Egypt in 81:6 and 81:11. The significance of this lengthy series of psalms that contain exodus and conquest motifs is that the reader must approach Psalm 82 with ancient Israel's hostile foreign enemies in mind. She is thus led to interpret the mythological scene depicted in Psalm 82 in that context. In Psalm 83, the reader has the sense that the threat from ancient Israel's foreign enemies is vast and multi-faceted. The psalm contains a litany of nations that are conspiring to destroy Israel in 83:6-9, even as it recalls a series of defeated enemies from the past in 83:10-12. Zenger aptly observes that the psalm has been purposefully located in this position at the end of the Asaphite collection, given that it "intensifies the threat from the 'Gentile nations' that is lamented in several Asaph psalms into a positively universal danger."46 Psalm 82, then, must be read in light of this particular concern that permeates the Asaphite collection. Other themes that converge in Psalm 82 are also repeated in the psalms that follow it. The royal metaphor is present in Psalm 84, as the psalmist addresses God as "my king" (yklm) in 84:4.47 Once again, in Ps 86:1, the psalmist appeals to the royal

132). As was the case with the psalms between Psalm 68 and Psalm 74, Psalm 74 is quite proximate to Psalm 82, so the psalms between them form a relatively continuous bridge from one to the other. Psalm 79 looks backward to Psalm 74 and also forward to Psalm 82.
46

Hossfeld and Zenger, Psalms 2, 345.

Gerstenberger states that "personal confession to 'God the King' is more or less standardized, apparently being an important element of communal hymn singing" (Erhard 177

47

obligations of the divine king by claiming to be "poor and needy" (Nwyb)w yn(). The psalmist in Psalm 86 goes on to note God's incomparability and declare that all of the "nations" (Mywg) that God has made will come and prostrate themselves in worship (86:9).48 Pss 84 and 86 thus contain a reprise of all three thematic elements that converge in Psalm 82.

Psalm 94 The placement of Psalm 94 is noteworthy in that it interrupts an otherwise unbroken series of enthronement psalms.49 As such, the psalms that surround it primarily emphasize God's kingship, and they contain a secondary emphasis on the implications of God's kingship for foreign nations. The initial verses of Pss 93, 97, and 99 begin with the characteristic phrase "Yahweh reigns" (Klm hwhy). The phrase is set in parallel construction with a statement of Yahweh's enthronement (b#y) in 99:1. It also appears in 96:10 as the content of a declaration to the "nations" (Mywgb). God is also called "king" (Klm) in 95:3, 98:6, and 99:4. Significantly, the royal epithet "judge" (+p#) that describes God in Psalm 94 is repeated both in 96:13 as well as in 98:9 in the formulaic phrase, "for he is coming to rule the earth; he will rule the world with righteousness" (qdcb lbt-+p#y Cr)h +p#l )b yk). Kraus comments, "the hymn sees the king

S. Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, and Lamentations [FOTL 15; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001], 123). Terrien astutely asks, "does the expression conceal political imperialism as well as religious universalism?" (Terrien, The Psalms, 614). See the similar observation and subsequent discussion in Howard, "A Contextual Reading of Psalms 90-94," 114. 178
49 48

of the world enthroned above all nations as the judge of the world," and he notes the similarity of this language in Pss 96 and 98 to the epithet "judge of the world" in Ps 94:2.50 Foreign nations also play an important role in the enthronement psalms. The line that follows the formula declaring God's rule as judge in 96:13 and 98:9 clarifies that the "peoples" (Mym() are subjected to God's reign, and the same idea is expressed in 96:10. Also, the enthronement psalms frequently call upon the "nations" and "peoples" to see, hear, or declare God's glory or mighty acts (Mym( in 96:3, 96:7, and 97:6; and Mywg in 96:3 and 98:2). The gods of the "peoples" (Mym() are called idols in 96:5. In Psalm 99, the "peoples" (Mym() tremble at God's kingship in 99:1, and the psalmist states that God is exalted above them in 99:2. Clearly, the nations play an important role in the enthronement psalms, and the implications seem to be that their gods are inferior to Yahweh and that they are subject to Yahweh's rule. This emphasis on foreign nations more than compensates for the potential ambiguity as to the national identity of the M(b Myr(b in 94:8. The presence of Psalm 94 in the midst of this collection is indeed significant. Howard effectively demonstrates that the psalm belongs in its current place in the Psalter in light of a number of lexical and thematic connections with surrounding psalms.51 He argues:

Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 60-150: A Commentary (trans. Hilton C. Oswald; Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1989), 254, 264.
51

50

Howard, "Psalm 94 among the Kingship-of-Yhwh Psalms," CBQ 61 (1999):

667-85. 179

Thus, a complex bracketing and interconnection of psalms is in place early in book 4. Psalms 92 and 94 bracket the first kingship-of-Yhwh psalm, and Psalm 94 itself is bracketed by two kingship-of-Yhwh psalms which have several connections to it. Both of these facts serve to "anchor" it firmly in its present position.52 For the purposes of this study, the placement of Psalm 94 is significant in that it infuses the moral discourse associated with the theology of the poor into the very collection of psalms that lie at the theological heart of the Psalter. It ensures that God's kingship and international dominion will not be affirmed and celebrated apart from an awareness of God's particular concern for the poor that is proper to that royal position.

Psalm 102 The enthronement psalms also constitute a prelude to Psalm 102, as only the two relatively short Pss 100 and 101 come between them. The reader thus arrives at Psalm 102 with the recent memory of the discussion of the status of foreign nations relative to the divine king. The psalms that follow Psalm 102 contain a mix of all three of the themes that are under consideration here. Psalm 103:6 states that Yahweh acts on behalf of the "oppressed" (Myqw#(). Ps 103:19 contains an emphatic affirmation of Yahweh's kingship: "his dominion reigns over all" (hl#m lkb wtwklmw).53 The nations become an important topic in Pss 105 and 106. In Ps 105:1, the psalmist asks his audience to inform the "peoples" (Mym(b) of God's deeds. The psalm

52

Howard, "Psalm 94 among the Kingship-of-Yhwh Psalms," 684.

Kraus captures the interplay between poverty and God's kingship in the psalm when he writes, "The need for help that lies deep in the human being's nature is surrounded by the sovereign forgiveness and mercy of the heavenly King, to whom the powers of the other world and all the works of creation render homage" (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 294). 180

53

references the narrative of the wanderings of ancient Israel's patriarchs "from nation to nation" (ywg-l) ywgm) in 105:13-14, during which God prevented others from "oppressing them" (Mq#(l).54 It is telling that the psalmist makes the assumption that the nations have the intent to oppress ancient Israel. The topic then turns to the exodus from "Egypt" (105:23 and 105:38), referring to the Egyptian Pharaoh as the "ruler of peoples" (Mym( l#m) in 105:20. The topic of the conquest of Canaan comes to the fore at the end of the psalm, and the psalmist recalls that God gave ancient Israel the lands of "nations" (Mywg) and the products of the works of "peoples" (Mym)l) in 105:44. Kraus concludes that the psalm's rehearsal of God's great acts in history implies God's sovereignty over the nations.55 The contents of Psalm 106 are similar to those of Psalm 105. Egypt is mentioned in 106:7 and 106:21, and there is a direct reference to Canaan in 106:38. Ancient Israel is faulted for not destroying the "peoples" (Mym(h) of Canaan in 106:34 and for intermingling with the "nations" (Mywgb) in 106:35. As a result, the psalmist recounts how God placed ancient Israel "under the power of nations" (Mywg-dyb) in 106:40.56 Finally, the community asks to be gathered from the "nations" (Mywg) in 106:47. Kraus comments, "Yahweh demonstrated his covenant faithfulness at that time by the fact that, as Lord of the nations and world judge (cf. v. 7), he did not permit alien rulers to touch his chosen ones" (Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 311).
55 54

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 312.

Gerstenberger comments on the shift at this point in the psalm from specific references to foreign nations to general ones. He writes, "The first subunit (vv. 40-42) accounts for the disaster of foreign domination presumably experienced after the Babylonians captured Judah, leading only to the Persian yoke thereafter. No names are mentioned any more; the situation must have been understood by hearers of the psalm or participants in the assemblies" (Gerstenberger, Psalms, Part 2, 242). 181

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Significantly, the request to be gathered from the nations (Mywgh-Nm wncbqw) recalls the anticipation of the future gathering of the nations (Mym( Cbqhb) to serve Yahweh in 102:23, given that the root Cbq is used in both cases. The psalmist's stance toward the nations is clearly hostile. Ancient Israel is oppressed by the nations because it was disobedient in failing to take the opportunity to destroy them. The wariness of the psalmist toward the nations in Psalm 106, the psalmist's portrayal of the nations as oppressive in Psalm 105, and the association of God's kingship with the defense of the oppressed in Psalm 103 work together to extend the discourse of Psalm 102 and, more specifically, to encourage reflection on its lessons in light of concrete examples in ancient Israel's history.

Psalm 113 The immediate literary context of Psalm 113 functions in a similar manner to that of Pss 82 and 94. Specifically, it is a psalm in which the polemic against the nations is somewhat muted, yet it is surrounded by psalms in which the nations are clearly adversaries. In Ps 110:6, the psalmist states that God brings judgment on the "nations" (Mywg), and the immediate context of the verse involves the portrayal of God as a warrior. Mays observes: Kings and nations are considered foes, not because of some specific quarrel or conflict with Israel, but for the very fundamental reason that their rulers were not appointed by the LORD, owe fealty to other gods, and institutionalize in their government an exception to the LORD's worldwide dominion.57

57

Mays, Psalms, 352. 182

The copious references to the exodus in the Psalter and the significance of the exile in its editorial arrangement open the door to reading the psalm in light of any number of specific offenses against ancient Israel that the nations have committed, however. A pair of alphabetic acrostic psalms follows Psalm 110. In Ps 111:6, the psalmist references God's gift to God's people of the inheritance of the "nations" (Mywg).58 Psalm 112:9 asserts that a virtuous person gives to the "needy" (Mynwyb)l). It seems reasonable to argue that the juxtaposition of the two psalms leads the reader to associate ancient Israel in Psalm 111 with the needy in Psalm 112, both of whom are portrayed as recipients of gifts.59 As previously noted, Pss 113-118 form a unit within Book V that had a particular liturgical function in early Judaism. Zenger argues, "They make clear how and from where the universal kingdom of YHWH begins. This is the universal kingdom of the God of Israelthe God of the exodus who rescues."60 The position of Psalm 113 as the first psalm of the Egyptian Hallel indicates that Pss 114-118 are of particular importance when interpreting Psalm 113 in light of its literary context.61 Their cumulative effect is to sharpen the reader's focus on the hostility of foreign nations to ancient Israel.
58

Anderson identifies this statement as a reference to the conquest of Canaan (A. A. Anderson, The Book of Psalms [NCB; London: Oliphants, 1972], 774). Such a reading is particularly justified in light of Mays's claim that "the dependence of Psalm 112 on Psalm 111 is a literary signal that the second is meant to be read, interpreted, and used in relation to the first" (Mays, Psalms, 360). The case for reading them in tandem with one another goes beyond their mere juxtaposition. Zenger, "The Composition and Theology of the Fifth Book of Psalms,"99. For Zenger, Pss 113-118 maintain a theological emphasis on the exodus. The term Egyptian Hallel refers to a collection of psalms consisting of Pss 113-118. Mays notes that this group of psalms was sung at all the joyous festivals 183
61 60 59

Psalm 114 directly recalls the exodus and begins by referencing Israel's departure from "Egypt" (114:1). According to Mays, the position of Psalm 114 as the second of the psalms in this group is significant in that "Psalm 114 had a crucial role to play in connecting place and people with meaning and hope."62 Psalm 114 makes concrete what remained abstract in Psalm 113. Then, in Psalm 115, the "nations" (Mywgh) taunt ancient Israel in 115:2 by inquiring about God's apparent absence. Anderson observes that the mention of the nations in this verse "refers to the foreign peoples who may be responsible for the affliction suffered by the people of God," noting that the taunt indicates a context in which ancient Israel is in a serious crisis.63 Psalm 117 essentially reverses the taunt in Psalm 115. "Nations" (Mywg) and "peoples" (Mym)h) are commanded to praise Yahweh because of Yahweh's faithfulness to ancient Israel. Kraus notes that the psalm's universalism has its basis in "the cultic tradition of 'God Most High,' to whom all of the world is subjected."64 The nations who once taunted God's people by suggesting God's abandonment of them must now praise God because of God's faithfulness to ancient Israel.

celebrated by early Judaism, and that they found a special place in the liturgy of Passover (Mays, Psalms, 362).
62

Mays, Psalms, 365. Anderson, Psalms, 786.

63

Kraus, Psalms 60-150, 391. Alternatively, Schaefer offers a more benign interpretation and writes, "The poet envisages an eschatological horizon when nationality and race distinctions are eclipsed by the unanimous praise of God" (Schaefer, Psalms, 287). Given the exodus theme of the Egyptian Hallel, however, Kraus's model of subjugation seems more appropriate. 184

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Finally, in Psalm 118, the psalmist claims in 118:10 to be surrounded by "all nations" (Mywg-lk), comparing them to bees in 118:12, yet he remains confident of victory with God's help. Schaefer observes, "What may have been a victory against national enemies the poet has converted into a cosmic fray, all the nations against God's people."65 The psalm projects a situation in which the nations are set in opposition to God and God's people. Taken together, the psalms of the Egyptian Hallel that follow Psalm 113 confirm for the reader of Psalm 113 that foreign nations do, in fact, represent a concrete threat to the oppressed nation of ancient Israel.

Psalm 149 All three themes that converge in Psalm 149 are present in the series of psalms that precede it. Psalm 145 emphasizes God's kingship. In 145:1, the psalmist refers to God as "my God the king" (Klmh yhwl)). Additionally, the psalm contains four references to God's "kingship" (twklm in 145:11, 145:12, and twice in 145:13a)66 and one reference to God's "dominion" (Ktl#mmw in 145:13b). Goulder comments, "God is going to be the king henceforth, in place of the wicked who will be destroyed, and his kingdom will be different in kind."67 For the reader, the dense repetition of the royal metaphor in Psalm 145 is sufficient to impress its significance on the mind for the remainder of her reading of the Psalter.

65

Schaefer, Psalms, 289. Kraus calls this term "the principal term in Psalm 145" (Kraus, Psalms 60-150,

66

549).
67

Goulder, The Psalms of the Return, 281. 185

In Psalm 146, the psalmist associates God's kingship with God's defense of the poor. The reader encounters several terms from the poverty wordfield. It is said in 146:7 that God deals justly with the "oppressed" (Myqw#(l). In 146:9, the psalmist states that God encourages the "orphan and widow" (hnml)w Mwty). The final verse of the psalm (146:10) features a declaration of Yahweh's eternal reign: "Yahweh will reign forever!" (Mlw(l hwhy Klmy). Mays astutely expresses the connection that the psalm makes between God's kingship and God's defense of the poor when he writes, "Not only does the LORD rule forever but in his rule he keeps the faith forever. Then verses 7-9 render the LORD's character by reciting the characteristic activities by which the LORD keeps the faith."68 Again, God exemplifies a king's proper response to poverty. Psalm 147 contains references to the poor and to the nations. The psalmist observes that Yahweh encourages the "afflicted" (Mywn() in 147:6, using the same root dd( as in 146:9. Ps 147:20 features the observation that "every nation" (ywg-lkl) has been excluded from Yahweh's revelation of Torah. Mays comments, "The psalmist views the law as the gift of God that distinguishes his people from all others. What marks the people of God is the gift of the word."69 God's support of the "afflicted" in 147:6a is contrasted with God's treatment of the wicked in 147:6b, and that contrast is analogous to Yahweh's gift of the law to ancient Israel in contrast with the denial of that gift to the nations. Finally, the kings of the earth and "all peoples" (Mym)l-lkw) are called upon to praise Yahweh in 148:11.

68

Mays, Psalms, 441. Mays, Psalms, 443. 186

69

The rhetoric that leads the reader to associate God's defense of the poor against the wicked with God's defense of ancient Israel against foreign nations is not at all subtle in Psalm 149. It is sufficiently strong to stand on its own regardless of the literary context. The presence of all three themes under analysis in this study in the psalms that immediately precede Psalm 149 thus functions to amplify that psalm's rhetoric into an emphatic exclamation at the close of the Psalter. It is thus ensured that the association between God's concern for the poor and God's concern for ancient Israel that the reader began to form in reading Psalm 910 is confirmed and made memorable by this impressive cluster of terminology in the Psalter's final doxology.

Conclusion This analysis of the literary contexts of the psalms that contain references to God's kingship, poverty, and foreign nations has demonstrated that those psalms do not exist in a vacuum. Rather, they appear among other psalms that share one or more of those features in common with them. The result of this juxtaposition of psalms that have similar themes is that the convergence of these key features in one psalm explodes outward into an extended discourse over a lengthy series of psalms. In most cases, the interplay between neighboring psalms simply amplifies the rhetorical effect of the convergence of all three features in a single psalm. The literary contexts of Pss 910, 22, 44, 68, 74, 102, and 149 function in this manner. In Pss 82, 94 and 113, a heavy emphasis on the hostility of foreign nations in their literary contexts compensates for a comparatively muted expression of this feature in the psalm that contains all three features. Additionally, the presence of Psalm 94 among the enthronement psalms adds the theme of God's defense of the poor to that collection's

187

discourse on the implication of God's reign for the nations. In all cases, the repetition of these features in psalms that surround the ten psalms that share all of them in common enables the reader to reflect in a more sustained manner on the analogy between God's moral alliance with the poor and God's political alliance with ancient Israel.

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CHAPTER SIX Implications of the Study and Conclusion

Implications of the Study The implications of this study fall into two broad categories. On the one hand, it has ramifications for future scholarship related to the Hebrew Psalter. In particular, this dissertation puts forward a vision of the Psalter as a political document, and that insight raises a host of questions about the social setting of its final canonical form and whose interests are being served by its rhetoric. On the other hand, this study has implications for contemporary readers of the Psalter who operate within communities for whom it functions as sacred scripture. These implications are particularly poignant for readers who take a sympathetic stance toward the implied authors of the Psalms and yet find little or nothing in their own experience on the basis of which to empathize with the poverty and oppression of the psalmists and their community. It remains to discuss these and other implications of this dissertation in greater detail.

Implications for Future Scholarship The claims advanced in this study add to the growing body of evidence that the Psalter ought to be a major primary source for understanding the Hebrew Bible's theology of poverty. I have noted that the majority of scholarship that has approached this issue deals with the question of whether poverty in the Psalter is spiritual or material in nature or addresses the question of the distinction or lack thereof between yn( and wn(. Theological discussions of poverty in the Psalms have for the most part been limited to

189

articles and essays that explore the issue in individual psalms or to individual chapters within monographs (as in Croft's study). The major exception to these observations, however is Tucker's work.1 His dissertation and subsequent articles invite those engaged in scholarship on the Psalter to consider the theology of the poor with regard to the Psalter as a whole, particularly as it pertains to the theological motives that informed the process of editing the Psalter's final canonical form. My study is essentially an acceptance of that invitation in that it explores the rhetorical and political implications of his conclusions. Perhaps the addition of this work to the body of scholarship on the Psalter's theology of the poor will serve as a catalyst for others to take up the exploration of this topic. Surely the time for a fullthroated academic discussion of it has come. An exploration of the role of the refuge metaphor in relation to the poverty wordfield would be an appropriate next step.2

I should note, however, that themes of injustice, oppression, and foreign invasion figure prominently throughout the monograph of J. David Pleins on the Psalms (see J. David Pleins, The Psalms: Songs of Tragedy, Hope, and Justice [Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1993], the entire work), although the particular focus on poverty in the Psalter is not as sharp and focused as in Tucker's work. In his discussion on the nexus of Yahweh's kingship and the refuge metaphor in the Psalter, Creach gestures in this direction. He writes, "Like Psalm 5, Ps. 9.8-9 portrays Yahweh as judge, one role of the ancient oriental king. This description is followed by the claim that the deity is a 'stronghold' (migab) for the 'oppressed' (dak). The delineation of Yahweh as the defender of the disfranchised continues through Psalm 10. Such a description of the divine king is consistent with the ancient Near Eastern royal ideal (i.e. Ps. 72.2, 4, 12-14) and here the security provided by the heavenly monarch is described in terms related to s/maseh" (Jerome F. D. Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter [JSOTSup 217; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996], 18). Based on the data in the table in Creach, Yahweh as Refuge and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter, 127-33, and Tucker's notes on the distribution of terminology from the poverty wordfield in the Psalter in W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., "The Reign of Yahweh and the Theology of the Poor in the Final Shape of the Psalter," (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1997), 42-61, the following psalms contain references to both poverty and refuge: 910, 18, 22, 25, 31, 34, 37, 40, 44, 49, 69, 70, 74, 190
2

It is also the case that I have taken a minimalist approach to defining what counts as royal imagery for the purposes of this study. While I maintain that the terminology I have selected is essential to the Psalter's royal portrayal of Yahweh, I make no claim that it is exhaustive of that portrayal. There would thus appear to be fertile ground for extending this investigation by examining the political significance of the broader field of royal imagery with which psalmists portray Yahweh in relation to language from the poverty wordfield and references to foreign nations. Finally, the major contribution of this dissertation to the academic study of the Hebrew Psalter is its claim that the Psalter is a political document. The selection of "king" as the primary image with which to describe God is an inherently political choice. In his discussion of the function of Psalm 2 at the beginning of the Psalter, Patrick Miller recognizes, "the larger realm of politics, the affairs of rulers and nations, are seen to be the concern of God's rule and the focus of God's attention."3 He proceeds in the remainder of the essay to elaborate on this statement in terms of the unfolding of God's reign, and yet this study has shown that the Psalter also has a great deal to say about the nations and their kings and how they relate to ancient Israel and its divine king. One of the questions that this political character of the Psalter's rhetoric raises is that of whose interests are being served through the advancement of Yahweh's kingship. Practically speaking, Yahweh's kingship has to be mediated through some human agent.

78, 86, 88, 94, 119, 140, 146, and 147. There is thus a strong foundation upon which to base a study of the degree to which the Psalter presents Yahweh as a source of refuge specifically for the poor. Patrick D. Miller, "The Psalter as a Book of Theology," in Psalms in Community (ed. Harold W. Attridge and Margot E. Fassler; SBLSymS 25; Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2003), 91. 191
3

Even as Book IV proclaims Yahweh's reign, it idealizes the era of Mosaic leadership over the community.4 It is abundantly clear that the Psalter reached its final form after the demise of the ancient Israelite monarchy, a model which the Psalter in any case rejects, and so the ideal of God's kingship implies a mediating role for the religious and/or civic leadership of the surviving community.5 The final editors of the Psalter likely were members of groups that would have expected to implement Yahweh's reign under ideal circumstances. Further research into their specific identity and motives has the potential to shed some important light on the Psalter's political rhetoric.6
4

Nancy deClaiss-Walford, "Reading from the Beginning: The Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter," (Ph.D. diss., Baylor University, 1995), 147-50. I make this statement in light of my assessment that Wilson has made a successful and convincing case that the Psalter in its final form is organized around the concept that Yahweh's direct rule is the ideal model of leadership for the ancient Israelite community in light of the apparent failure of the Davidic covenant. I am thinking, for example, of his claim that "As a result of its final form, the Psalter counters continuing concern for the restoration of the Davidic dynasty and kingdom with the wise counsel to seek refuge in a kingdom 'not of this world'the eternal kingdom in which YHWH alone is king" in Gerald H. Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter: A Consideration of Editorial Linkage in the Book of Psalms," in The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter (JOSTSup 159; ed. J. Clinton MCCann, Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993), 81. Rainer Albertz offers some observations that shed some light on this topic. He notes the overlapping of individual and collective genres of psalms during the Persian era, and he associates that development with the families that participated in local selfgovernment under Persian rule, citing a feeling of communal responsibility on their part so that "in their private cultic ceremonies they showed more signs of solidarity with Israel" (Rainer Albertz: A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period [trans. John Bowden; 2 vols.; Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994], 509). He further describes a divergence of social classes in this period in which "theologized wisdom" developed in the upper class and the "piety of the poor" developed in the lower class (511). He envisions their communal worship as having taken place in homes or synagogues rather than in the temple, and in psalms such as Pss 9 and 82 a phenomenon of "universalization" whereby "for the lower-class circles the political dependence of Judah on the Persians and their exploitation by the upper-class collaborators were closely connected" (521). He identifies "Torah piety" as "an intermediate position in relation to the earlier class-specific types of piety" (560), and he identifies its social location within the middle-class scribal profession (561). Interestingly, wisdom, poverty, and torah all 192
6 5

A related question raised by the identification of the Psalter as a political document is that of against whom its polemic against the nations is directed. Nations such as Egypt, Babylon, the various Canaanite peoples, and other neighbors of ancient Israel during the period of the monarchy are explicitly mentioned, and yet it seems best to consider which nation or nations the Psalter's editors would have regarded as their community's external enemies. Following Wilson,7 Nancy deClaiss-Walford writes, "I suggest that after 70 C.E., the wisdom world view, rather than a particular wisdom group, gained a prominent foothold within the Jewish community of faith and thereby influenced the final shape of the Psalter."8 I am also persuaded by arguments in favor of assigning such a late date to the Psalter's final form, especially in light of Wilson's observation that Books IV and V in Qumran manuscripts dated prior to 50 CE exhibit variance from the final canonical arrangement while manuscripts compiled after this date do not.9

figure prominently as editorially significant topics in the final form of the Psalter. Nancy deClaiss-Walford suggests the meeting of Pharasaic rabbis at Yavneh in 70 CE as a plausible setting for the finalization of the canonical Psalter (Nanncy deClaiss-Walford, Reading from the Beginning: The Shaping of the Hebrew Psalter [Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1997], 114-16. I am reluctant to assign the canonization of the Psalter to that specific event, but I agree with her that late first century CE rabbinic circles constitute a plausible social location for this process, and I maintain that further inquiry into the potential impact of the Psalter's political rhetoric upon these groups is warranted. See Gerald Wilson, "A First Century CE Date for the Closing of the Book of Psalms?" JBQ 28 (2000): 102-110, in which he argues that the final canonical form of the Psalter did not stabilize until the second half of the first century CE.
8 7

deClaiss-Walford, "Reading from the Beginning," 206.

Wilson, "Shaping the Psalter," 73. In his analysis of the Qumran materials, Wilson notes that, in terms of canonical arrangement of psalms, 4QPsa (mid 2nd c. BCE) 4QPsf (ca. 50 BCE), 4QPsd (mid 1st c. BCE), 4QPsb (2nd half of 1st c. BCE), 4QPse (1st half of 1st c. CE), 11QPsa (30-50 CE), 11QPsb (1st half of 1st c. CE), and 4QPsq (mid 1st c. ce) all contradict the canonical order in the MT, while MasPs 1039-160 (1st half of 1st c. CE), 4QPss (50 CE), 4QPsc (50-68 CE), and 5/6 HevPs (2nd half of 1st c. CE) match 193

If this view is correct, then I suggest that it might be fruitful to investigate the hypothesis that the Psalter's polemic against foreign nations may be anti-Roman. The strongest datum supporting such a hypothesis is the historical reality that Rome was the occupying power in Jewish territory at the time of the Psalter's stabilization. This period was a time of significant tension between the Jewish community and the Roman occupiers. Wilson writes, "I would like to suggest that events surrounding the first Jewish war with Rome in 66-70 C.E., as well as the activities of Johanan ben Zakkai and the great Academy of Yavneh following the war, may well have influenced the distinctive characteristics of the final form of the Psalms."10 He notes that these sages who were gaining authority within the Jewish community in this period "enjoyed the approval of the Roman authorities" because they advocated a pacifist position over

the canonical order in the MT for all psalms that are attested in them (Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter [SBLDS 76; Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985], 121-22). In his study of 11QPsb, Peter Flint concludes that 11QPsa provides evidence of a twostage process of the Psalter's canonization; he writes, "11QPsb preserves material from earlier sections of the 11QPsa-Psalter, that is, Ps 77:18-78:1. This supports the view that 11QPsa indeed contains the latter part of a larger Psalter that was being stabilized in two stages: first Pss 1-89 and then Pss 90 onwards (or 93 onwards, the precise cut-off point not being clear)" (Peter W. Flint, "11Qpsb and the 11QPsa-Psalter," in Diachronic and Synchronic: Reading the Psalms in Real Time: Proceedings of the Baylor Symposium on the Book of Psalms [LHBOTS 488; eds. Joel S. Burnett, W. H. Bellinger, Jr., and W. Dennis Tucker, Jr.; New York: T. & T. Clark, 2007], 166). Flint's work The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Book of Psalms is an invaluable resource for the study of the Psalter at Qumran, and in it he also notes the two-stage stabilization of the Psalter at Qumran, noting, "The (Hebrew) Book of Psalms was only to reach finalization in a universally accepted form towards the end of the first century CE, when all other editions were eclipsed and the proto-Masoretic Psalter survived" (Flint, The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Book of Psalms, [STDJ 17; Leiden: Brill, 1997], 149).
10

Wilson, "A First Century C.E. Date for the Closing of the Book of Psalms?"

106.

194

against the "militant messianism" of their day.11 The strength of the Psalter's antiimperial political rhetoric suggests a more complex relationship in which their pacifism may not have been tantamount to compliance and collaboration, however. If one concludes that the Psalter's political rhetoric is directed against Rome, its references to foreign nations could function in a manner similar to the references to Babylon in Revelation.12 Conceiving of the Psalter as a covertly anti-Roman document has the potential to open up a myriad of new interpretive possibilities. The possibilities of reading psalms that mourn the destruction of Jerusalem such as Pss 74, 79, and 137 through the lens of the Roman destruction of the city spring to mind as the obvious places to begin such an inquiry.13

11

Wilson, "A First Century C.E. Date for the Closing of the Book of Psalms?"

106-107. Concerning this phenomenon, see Adela Yarbro Collins, "Revelation, Book of" in Anchor Bible Dictionary, 5:708, where she argues that the selection of "Babylon" as a cipher for Rome is not merely a random choice, but rather serves to highlight Rome as the destroyer of the temple like the Babylonians before them. If Wilson and deClaissWalford are correct that the wisdom worldview had the final say in the canonical form of the Psalter, perhaps we can look to the Wisdom of Solomon for an example of a parallel phenomenon. In commenting on the document's polemic against Egypt, David Winston writes, "Most commentators have assumed an Egyptian provenance for Wisd, and in this they are undoubtedly correct. The intensity of the author's hatred of the Egyptians can only reflect the persecution of the Jewish community in Alexandria at the hands of the Greeks aided and abetted by the native Egyptians" (David Winston, The Wisdom of Solomon [AB 43; Garden City: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1979], 25). Further, referring to the author, he states, "His accusing finger is especially pointed, however, at the pagan kings (i.e. the Roman rulers) who have abandoned the principles of divine justice and who will therefore suffer the consequences of their lawlessness" (Winston, The Wisdom of Solomon, 63). This example is imperfect in that actual Egyptians are involved, but it still is a case in which an archetypal enemy of ancient Israel, in this case Egypt, stands in the text as a covert symbol for a contemporary occupying powerhere, as perhaps in the Psalter, Rome. McCann gestures in this direction when, in his comment on Psalm 74, he writes, "In fact, the post-exilic community lived under constant threat and domination, as 195
13 12

Reading the Psalter as a political document also raises the question of how to conceive of the social setting of the audience that first received it in its final form. It is important to ask for what sort of audience such a document was intended. Wilson's insight that the wisdom perspective had the final say in shaping the Psalter leads him to the conclusion that it is a document intended for private meditation.14 A political document, however, requires a corporate audience. Perhaps one can think of the Psalter as providing the Jewish community with an alternative to the slogan "We have no king but Caesar!" (John 19:15), specifically, "We have no king but Yahweh!" The political and corporate nature of the Psalter's message precludes the possibility that it was intended exclusively for private study, although it is certainly possible that such a purpose was also a consideration for its editors.15 Its social setting, at least in its communal aspect, may lie in corporate synagogue worship or perhaps in some form of communal study and meditation. The editorial activity that shaped the Psalter in this way may have been directed at the community as a whole, or perhaps it was intended for a subset of the

do the people of God in every age, and Psalm 74 has the ability to speak in a variety of times and places" (J. Clinton McCann, Jr., "The Book of Psalms," in The New Interpreter's Bible [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994], 4:973). Concerning Psalm 137, Terrien acknowledges the general agreement that, historically, it references the Babylonian exile, and yet he writes, "For the modern exegete, these presuppositions are in need of an eschatological interpretation, when Babylon becomes a symbol of multiple and unending warfare (Rev 17:5) (Samuel Terrien, The Psalms: Strophic Structure and Theological Commentary [Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003], 867). Wilson, The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter (SBLDS 76; Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985), 206. I am thus in agreement with deClaiss-Walford when she articulates a "dual function for the Psalter" (deClaiss-Walford, Reading from the Beginning, 120). 196
15 14

community. Further pursuit of these questions is needed in light of the Psalter's political rhetoric.

Implications for Contemporary Readers This study also has implications for contemporary readers who view the Psalter through the lens of faith. I suggested above the need for the scholarly community to acknowledge the centrality of the Psalter's theology of the poor and to proceed with further inquiry in light of that reality. A similar shift in focus is needed in the kerygma of the communities that revere the Psalter as scripture. It is appropriate to recall McPolin's observation that "the Psalms do not seem to rank high on the list of Scripture writings most commonly chosen by Christian writers today for their reflections on poverty and justice."16 His claim is correct despite the fact that, as Bellinger states, "The Psalter is Israel's sung creed, a confession representative of the theology of the faith community."17 If the Psalter is, in fact, a microcosm of Old Testament theology, and if, as I have argued, the theology of the poor is central to understanding the Psalter and that this theology is charged with geopolitical significance, then the Psalter deserves a central place alongside the prophetic literature and the Pentateuch in the proclamation of faith communities on the subject of social justice. Unfortunately, seminal works in the area of liberation theology devote relatively little attention to the Psalter in comparison with other parts of the canon. In A Theology of Liberation, Gustavo Gutirrez engages in a James McPolin, "Psalms as Prayers of the Poor," in Back to the Sources: Biblical and Near Eastern Studies (ed. Kevin J. Cathcart and John F. Healey; Glendale: Glendale Press Ltd., 1989), 80. William H. Bellinger, Jr., "The Psalms as a Place to Begin for Old Testament Theology," in Psalms and Practice: Worship, Virtue, and Authority (ed. Stephen Breck Reid; Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2001), 33. 197
17 16

discussion of the "biblical meaning of poverty," and he describes the biblical portrayal of poverty in terms of the two categories of "scandalous condition" and "spiritual childhood," essentially distinguishing between material and spiritual types of poverty in the biblical text.18 His discussion of poverty as a "scandalous condition" draws heavily on material in the Pentateuch, prophetic texts, and Job.19 His discussion of psalm texts falls under the rubric of "spiritual childhood," and he devotes only the following three sentences to it: The Psalms can help us to understand more precisely this religious attitude. To know Yahweh is to seek him (9:11; 34:11), to abandon and entrust oneself to him (10:14; 34:9; 37:40), to hope in him (25:3-5, 21; 37:9), to fear the Lord (25:12, 14; 34:8, 10), to observe his commandments (25:10); the poor are the just ones, the whole ones (34:20, 22; 37:17-18), the faithful ones (37:28; 149:1). The opposite of the poor are the proud, who are the enemy of Yahweh and the helpless (10:2; 18:28; 37:10; 86:14).20 Gutirrez cites several psalms, but his discussion of them lacks the length and depth with which he discusses prophetic and gospel texts in his description of poverty as "spiritual childhood."21 He thus misses an opportunity to utilize the Psalter's portrayal of ancient Israel's relationship with foreign nations in a discussion of the situation of Latin America in relation to contemporary global powers. Another example of this phenomenon in the work of a liberation theologian can be found in James H. Cone's God of the Oppressed, in which Cone devotes an entire chapter to the topic of "biblical revelation and social existence" and a smaller section to
18

Gustavo Gutirrez, A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics and Salvation (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1973), 291.
19 20

Gutirrez, A Theology of Liberation, 291-95. Gutirrez, A Theology of Liberation, 296-97. Gutirrez, A Theology of Liberation, 296-99. 198

21

"suffering in the Bible."22 His discussion of the Hebrew Bible's treatment of poverty and oppression contains copious references to the narrative in Exodus and various prophetic texts, and he refers three times to Proverbs.23 His discussion of the Psalter is confined to a single reference each to Pss 2 and 72 as psalms that describe the responsibility of ancient Israel's king to defend the poor and a reference to Psalm 137 as an illustration of the consequences of ancient Israel's failure to treat the poor justly.24 He also offers a messianic interpretation of Ps 2:7 in his section on the New Testament, and yet in this section he places greater emphasis on the association between Jesus and the Servant of Yahweh in Isaiah.25 In his discussion of "suffering in the Bible," Cone refers briefly to Pss 37, 41, 94, 95, and 147, primarily to illustrate the biblical portrayal of God as the defender of the poor.26 Still, these references are dwarfed by his more lengthy discussions of the topic of suffering in Ecclesiastes, Job, and Isaiah.27 The treatment of poverty and oppression in the Psalter, particularly in the laments, clearly warrants a fuller discussion in such a work. Other writers who cite biblical texts in the process of constructing theological arguments about poverty display a similar tendency to place a lesser emphasis on the perspective represented in the Psalter. In his book Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger,

James H. Cone, God of the Oppressed (New York: The Seabury Press, 1975), 62-83, 164-77.
23

22

Cone, God of the Oppressed, 62-72. Cone, God of the Oppressed, 69, 71. Cone, God of the Oppressed, 74-76. Cone, God of the Oppressed, 164, 167. Cone, God of the Oppressed, 168-75. 199

24

25 26 27

Ronald Sider devotes a series of chapters to the development of a biblical theology of poverty toward the end of persuading his largely evangelical Christian audience of the moral importance of addressing poverty in the developing world. His work contains numerous references to prophetic, legal, and New Testament texts in the process of constructing his argument and yet only refers rather briefly to three psalms, Pss 10, 72, and 146.28 In his monograph Option for the Poor: The Basic Principle of Liberation Theology in the Light of the Bible, Norbert Lohfink makes two brief references to the Psalms while devoting entire chapters to the theme in the Pentateuch and in prophetic literature.29 Similarly, Conrad Boerma, in his monograph Rich Man, Poor Manand the Bible, makes only two substantial references to the Psalms (in addition to a handful of other passing references).30 In his brief essay "God Protects and Liberates the Poor O.T.," Juan Alfaro refers briefly to the plague lists in Pss 78 and 105 as part of an Ronald J. Sider, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger: Moving from Affluence to Generosity (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005), 47-48, 53, 56. He writes, "The ideal image of the just king is sketched in Psalm 72, and here again his righteousness consists primarily in concern for the poor," (Norbert F. Lohfink, Option for the Poor: The Basic Principle of Liberation Theology in the Light of the Bible [trans. Linda M. Maloney; Berkeley: BIBAL Press, 1987], 22), and he devotes two paragraphs to a discussion of the tendency in the Psalms to ascribe a state of poverty to the nation of ancient Israel as a whole (Lohfink, Option for the Poor, 72-72), but his discussion of poverty in the Pentateuch and prophetic materials encompasses pages 3270. He writes, "In the pre-exilic royal psalms (Ps. 72; 132), the king champions them in God's name. The poor man (always in the singular) is contrasted with those who work unrighteousness (always in the plural)" (Conrad Boerma, Rich Man, Poor Man and the Bible [trans. John Bowden; London: SCM Press Ltd., 1979], 25) and "The socalled individual and corporate psalms of lament, like Psalms 3, 5, 6, etc. (laments of the individual) and Psalms 44, 74, 79, 83, etc. (laments of the people) are all set in the sanctuary. The poor man turns to God. All these psalms of lament follow a characteristic, stereotyped pattern. They form a kind of liturgy: invocation of God, petitions and desires, and then a plea to God and an expression of trust in him. God is the poor man's guarantor, his refuge and his helper" (Boerma, Rich Man, Poor Man, 78). 200
30 29 28

extended discussion of the exodus motif,31 ignoring the broader universe of psalm texts in which the exodus motif is associated with poverty. Also, Samuel Rayan refers parenthetically to Pss 82 and 115 in the process of constructing his argument that "the god of capitalism is not the Yahweh of Exodus."32 This dissertation demonstrates that a wealth of material on the theology of the poor is available in the Psalter to those who wish to engage in practical theology, and those who undertake such a task on the subject of poverty could substantially enrich their arguments by attending more thoroughly to that material. This study also shows, however, that practical theology of this sort must take into account the role of governments in perpetuating inequities of resources and power among nations. The Psalter does not limit its discourse on poverty to economic transactions between individuals. It addresses poverty to a large extent as the condition of a community and oppression as an act that one nation commits against another. Poverty is no more a distinctly individual phenomenon in the Psalter than the Psalter itself is exclusively a book for private study. It requires contemporary readers who ascribe authority to it to contemplate poverty as a moral issue of political import and to oppose the economic and political exploitations to which stronger nations too often subject weaker nations.33

Juan Alfaro, "God Protects and Liberates the PoorO. T.," in Option for the Poor: Challenge to the Rich Countries (eds. Leonardo Boff and Virgil Elizondo; Edinurgh: T. & T. Clark Ltd., 1986), 30. Samuel Rayan, "Irruption of the Poor: Challenges to Theology," in Option for the Poor: Challenge to the Rich Countries, 109-10. Pleins comments rather generally, "The sixteen community psalms of lament broaden the vision of the previous chapter by giving collective worship a way to 201
33 32

31

In addition to these implications for contemporary practical theologians, this study also illustrates the potentially transformative effect of the political rhetoric related to the theology of poverty on the self-understanding of individual readers. Mary G. de Jong, in an article on the role of nineteenth century hymn texts in construction of gender roles among evangelical Protestants during the Victorian era, writes the following: The hymnal . . . was regarded as an anthology of poems inspired by God's word and Christian experience, so evangelicals tended to accept as definitive the models proposed and views espoused in hymns. Because Christ's human perfection was taken for granted, and hymnists frequently presented him as exemplary, singers were encouraged to identify with and model themselves on Christ-figures in hymn texts and to internalize hymnists' statements about the appropriate responses to Christ and Christ-like beings. While performing a hymn, singers can imaginatively enact the roles it offers, especially when it has a firstperson narrator, tells a story, or depicts characters. They profess the views enunciated in the text as their ownmomentarily, at least, defining themselves in its terms.34 It is my contention that the phenomena that De Jong identifies among evangelical singers of hymns are also operative among readers of the Psalter as sacred scripture. The model that views the Psalter as the hymnal of the Second Temple era is inadequate, but there is an analogy. The Psalter contains examples of liturgical song. Psalms are overwhelmingly narrated in the first person. They depict characters, such as

articulate the fear, grief, and anger of an oppressed and defeated nation" (Pleins, The Psalms, 31). It is the task of those who revere the Psalms as scripture to apply this general observation in the process of bringing the Psalter's perspective on the geopolitical ramifications of poverty to bear in addressing modern instances of oppression that is international in scope. Julio de Santa Ana identifies manipulation of markets, slavery, substandard treatment of labor, colonization for the purpose of extracting natural resources, inequitable trade agreements, and the burden of international debt as possible topics of discussion of this subject in the modern context (Julio de Santa Ana, "How the Rich Nations Came to be Rich," in Option for the Poor: Challenge to the Rich Countries, 3-15). Mary G. de Jong, "'I Want to Be Like Jesus': The Self-Defining Power of Evangelical Hymnody," JAAR 54 (1986): 462-63. 202
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Yahweh, foreign nations, foreign kings, the wicked, the fool, and many others. They thus offer readers the opportunity to identify with the roles that they present. In the Psalter, the reader encounters in the first person the voice of a speaker who lives as the citizen of a poor and oppressed nation. The reader has an opportunity in the process of reading (or especially praying) the psalm to identify with the speaker and enact in herself the speaker's role.35 For many present day readers of the Psalter, the psalmist's poverty and oppression is literally foreign to their experience. Nevertheless, within the literary world of the Psalter, a space is created within which they can empathize with the sufferings of the psalmists.36 This phenomenon is what Paul Ricoeur calls the text's "universal power of world disclosure."37 For Ricoeur, the reader's compliance with the

In his book Experiencing the Psalms, Stephen McCutchan includes a chapter on "Studies of Prayer in the Face of the World's Pain," in which he writes, "Placing the prayer in both the context of battle against a national enemy and that of a contest with misinformed neighbors helps us to expand our understanding of the concept of enemy. In most cases, our contention arises out of feeling betrayed by those within our community. At the same time it would be quite possible for Christians in Central America to feel that they are pitted against a colossus in the North who constantly defies and shames them" (Stephen P. McCutchan, Experiencing the Psalms: Weaving the Psalms into Your Ministry and Faith [Macon, GA: Smith & Helwys, 2000], 150). In this way, the Psalter can function as a vehicle for empathizing with those who experience poverty in contexts that are foreign to that of the reader. In the course of his argument that Psalm 910 gives voice to the poor while silencing their oppressors, Brueggemann writes, "It is the psalm as a voice of inexplicable hope, surely rooted in an unquenchable sense of Yahweh as a third party in social relations, that in its utterance creates a new social possibility that did not exist before or outside this utterance" (Walter Brueggemann, "Psalms 910: A Counter to Conventional Social Reality," in The Bible and the Politics of Exegesis: Essays in Honor of Norman K. Gottwald on His Sixty-Fifth Birthday [ed. David Jobling, Peggy L. Day, and Gerald T. Sheppard; Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 1991], 12). In light of the observations of this study, it would seem that Brueggemann's claim about Psalm 910 can be applied equally well to the Psalter as a whole. Paul Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory: Discourse and the Surplus of Meaning (Ft. Worth: The Texas Christian University Press, 1976), 95. 203
37 36

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direction in which the text leads her allows for "a new self-understanding."38 Within the Psalter, consenting readers experience a kind of solidarity with the poor and oppressed that may otherwise be irreconcilable with their concrete experiences. At the same time, readers whose experiences are congruent with those of the psalmists can find in the Psalter words that give voice to the depths of their own pain.39 In addition to having the opportunity to experience solidarity with the peoples of poor and oppressed nations in the Psalter's literary world, readers can also enact the role presented to them in the Psalter of a subject in God's kingdom and an agent of God's universal rule. The reader may identify with the psalmist in proclaiming to kings and nations the global scope of God's reign, which chiefly entails the provision of justice for the poor and oppressed. The Psalter thus has the potential to transform its readers into advocates on behalf of the poor and their communities.

Conclusion This study has been an investigation into the geopolitical significance of language connoting poverty and oppression in the Hebrew Psalter. It rests, to a large degree, upon the work of W. Dennis Tucker, Jr., Gerald Wilson, and James Mays. Wilson and Mays

38

Ricoeur, Interpretation Theory, 94.

Along these lines, Brueggemann comments, "The Psalms, with a few exceptions, are not the voice of God addressing us. They are rather the voice of our own common humanitygathered over a long period of time, but a voice that continues to have amazing authenticity and contemporaneity. It speaks about life the way it really is, for in those deeply human dimensions the same issues and possibilities persist. And so when we turn to the Psalms it means we enter into the middle of that voice of humanity and decide to take our stand with that voice. We are prepared to speak among them and with them and for them, to express our solidarity in this anguished, joyous human pilgrimage (Walter Brueggemann, Praying the Psalms [Winona, MN: Saint Mary's Press, 1982], 15-16). 204

39

make convincing cases in support of the thesis that Yahweh's kingship is the central concept that defines the Psalter's message. For Wilson, it is the Psalter's editorial center, and for Mays, it is the Psalter's theological center. Tucker's chief contribution is his demonstration that maintaining a just social order in which the poor are not oppressed is inherent in Yahweh's role as king. In light of Mays's argument that Yahweh's kingship also implies a special relationship with ancient Israel, and in light of the obviously political nature of the royal metaphor, the question of the relationship between the Psalter's theology of the poor and the Psalter's view of ancient Israel's status relative to the foreign nations (who are also under Yahweh's reign) presents itself. The pursuit of that question in this study has yielded the conclusion that, in the Hebrew Psalter, language related to poverty and oppression functions to portray ancient Israel as an oppressed nation, foreign nations as its oppressors, and Yahweh as a king who maintains a just social order on a geopolitical scale. Specifically, Yahweh defends ancient Israel, a nation that psalmists regularly portray as poor, against neighboring empires that seek to do it harm. Rhetorically, the Hebrew Psalter is structured in a manner that leads the reader toward the conclusion that God's defense of the poor against wicked oppressors in the abstract is analogous to the concrete case of God's defense of a relatively weak ancient Israel against powerful foreign nations that plot its demise. This rhetoric is observable in the Psalter as a whole by examining the stock characteristics that psalmists habitually ascribe to Yahweh, ancient Israel, and foreign nations. While the Psalter is not pristinely uniform in its portrayal of these entities, it is possible to identify meaningful patterns that shed light on psalmists' general assumptions about and dispositions toward them.

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That the Psalms overwhelmingly view Yahweh as a royal figure can no longer be seriously questioned in light of the work of Wilson and Mays. The symbiotic relationship between the royal metaphor and the refuge metaphor in the Psalter is also evident in light of the work of William Brown and Jerome Creach, and it highlights the aspect of Yahweh's kingship, which Tucker emphasizes, that entails being a source of refuge for the poor and oppressed through the maintenance of a just social order. The oppressed status that psalmists ascribe to ancient Israel is manifested in various ways. The communal laments regularly portray the nation as being under threat from its powerful neighbors and dependent upon Yahweh's intervention in international affairs for its very survival. Many psalms refer to the nation's narratives of bondage in Egypt and exile in Babylon as concrete examples of this phenomenon. One can even detect an acknowledgement of this reality in some communal psalms of thanksgiving. Even in the individual laments, it is common for speakers to interpret their own distress in light of the distress of the nation. Psalmists also tend to portray foreign nations in a negative light. Specifically, the nations appear in the Psalter as entities that are subordinate to God's power and/or subject to God's wrath, as enemies or oppressors of ancient Israel, and as entities that are commanded to praise God and acknowledge God's sovereignty. The presence of particularly negative portrayals of foreign nations in Pss 2 and 149 reinforces the reader's general impression that foreign nations are a negative force in the literary world of the Psalter. This rhetoric can best be observed, however, within individual psalms. Ten psalms (Pss 910, 22, 44, 68, 74, 82, 94, 102, 113, and 149) contain explicit examples of

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the royal metaphor applied to God, explicit references to foreign nations, and language that connotes poverty. The strength of the rhetoric and the emphasis given to each aspect of it is uneven across this group of psalms. Taken together, however, they exhibit a general tendency to invite the reader to think analogically of God's defense of ancient Israel against foreign oppressors as a concrete case of God's fundamental commitment to defend the poor against the wicked who are oppressing them. These psalms exhibit a tendency to associate ancient Israel with poverty and foreign nations with oppression. Such rhetoric is not confined to these ten psalms, however. An analysis of their literary contexts shows that the topics that converge in them are repeated in the psalms that surround them. The result of this repetition within a series of psalms often functions to amplify the rhetoric of the psalms that address all three topics and extend it outward into their literary contexts. The emphasis of one of the three topics in the literary context of a psalm that deals with all three of them can also compensate for that psalm's relatively muted or ambiguous treatment of the topic. In light of these arguments, language related to poverty in the Psalter serves the rhetorical function of advancing a particular view about the relationships between God, ancient Israel, and foreign nations. It maximizes the reader's sympathy with ancient Israel while simultaneously maximizing the reader's suspicion of foreign nations. The reader comes to think of God's domination of foreign nations and God's support for ancient Israel as natural expressions of God's royal responsibility to provide justice for the poor.

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