Collective Reinterpretation in the Psalms: A Study of the Redaction History of the Psalter (Forschungen Zum Alten Testament 2.Reihe) 3161488385, 9783161578465, 9783161488382

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Forschungen zum Alten Testament 2. Reihe Herausgegeben von Bernd Janowski (Tübingen) • Mark S. Smith (New York) Hermann Spieckermann (Göttingen)

13

ARTI BUS

Marko Marttila

Collective Reinterpretation in the Psalms A Study of the Redaction History of the Psalter

Mohr Siebeck

MARKO MARTTILA, born 1974; Studies of Theology and Semitic Languages at the University of Helsinki; 2004 Ph.D.; Lecturer in Old Testament Exegesis at the University of Helsinki.

ISBN 3-16-148838-5 978-3-16-157846-5 Unveränderte eBook-Ausgabe 2019 ISBN-13 978-3-16-148838-2 ISSN 1611-4914 (Forschungen zum Alten Testament, 2. Reihe) Die Deutsche Bibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliographie; detailed bibliographic data is available in the Internet at http://dnb.ddb.de. © 2006 by Mohr Siebeck Tübingen, Germany. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form (beyond that permitted by copyright law) without the publisher's written permission. This applies particularly to reproductions, translations, microfilms and storage and processing in electronic systems. The book was printed by Guide-Druck in Tübingen on non-aging paper and bound by Buchbinderei Held in Rottenburg. Printed in Germany.

Preface This book is a revised form of my doctoral dissertation that was publicly defended and accepted at the University of Helsinki in December 2004. Three kinds of support have been vital for the completion of this study. Firstly, I express my gratitude for the scholarly support. The most important supervisor in all stages of my work was definitely Prof. Dr. Timo Veijola (t) from the University of Helsinki. He initially introduced me to the critical research of the Psalms when I was still doing my master's degree several years ago. And it was Prof. Veijola who gave me the idea of studying the collective passages of the Psalter. Having finished my licentiate thesis (2002) on the topic of the collective reinterpretation of the Psalms, I began to elaborate the material to the full-scale dissertation. Discussions with Prof. Veijola, his vast knowledge of the Deuteronomic / Deuteronomistic literature, his useful bibliographical hints and many critical remarks on my manuscript were invaluable. Prof. Veijola's premature death is an enormous loss to international Old Testament research. It is sad that he did not see the final form of the present book the book whose writing he had patiently guided. At our Department of Biblical Studies in the University of Helsinki there are many scholars whom I would like to thank in this connection: Prof. Dr. Martti Nissinen has intensively read and commented on my drafts, and he also took part in the preliminary examination of my doctoral thesis. Prof. Nissinen's suggestions and corrections have certainly improved my text. Prof. Dr. Raija Sollamo has also shown a keen interest in my topic ever since I started my doctoral studies. Her knowledge in Qumran and Septuagint studies has been of importance for my theme too. Docent Juha Pakkala has been an inspiring discussion partner especially at the later stage of my work. Discussions with colleagues in the postgraduate seminar for Old Testament studies during the past few years have certainly influenced the final form of my study. Outside the biblical department Prof. Dr. Tapani Harviainen (University of Helsinki) has kindly guided me in the sphere of the Semitic languages and cultures. I express my gratitude to him for all those instructive meetings when he taught me the basics of such languages as Syriac and Ugaritic. The knowledge of these ancient languages has been essential in this psalm study. I have also had an opportunity to share my views with some distinguished German scholars. First of all, I address my deep gratitude to Prof. Dr. Christoph Levin (University of Munich), whose sharp-eyed criticism led me more than once to rethink some of my

VI

Preface

conclusions. I admire the energy and dedication of Prof. Levin; he has really read my text with a microscopical accuracy. I am proud and happy that he was the official examiner of my thesis. Furthermore, I thank Prof. Levin for the chance to visit the local "Doktorandenkolloquium" in Munich and present there a short essay. For helpful conversations and critical feedback I also thank Prof. Dr. Bernd Janowski (University of Tübingen), Prof. Dr. Hermann Spieckermann (University of Göttingen) and Dr. Martin Rösel (University of Rostock). Michael Cox, M.A., Lie. Theol., has carefully corrected and revised my English. Therefore I wish to thank him warmly. I am also grateful to Annika Ranta-Kielenniva, M.A., who revised the language after the preliminary examination. Secondly, it is necessary to mention the financial support without which the completion of this study would have been impossible, or at least it would have been significantly delayed. I am grateful to the Finnish Cultural Foundation (The Fund of Leo and Regina Wainstein, in particular) that it granted me a full-time scholarship for one year. Further, I wish to thank the Finnish Graduate School of Theology and its head, Prof. Dr. Eila Helander (University of Helsinki). Within the programme of the Graduate School I was able to concentrate on my study for a period of two years. Membership in the Graduate School made possible my sojourn in Munich and Tübingen in May 2003. In 2002 I became a member of the Research Unit for the Formation of Early Jewish and Christian Ideology which was nominated a "Centre of Excellence" by the Academy of Finland for the period 2000-2005. The unit is headed by Prof. Dr. Heikki Räisänen (University of Helsinki), and membership in this unit has meant both scholarly and financial support to my research. More specifically, my study was a part of the project called "Israelite Historiography" led by Prof. Veijola in the research unit. Thirdly, I wish to offer thanks for the important mental support that my friends and relatives have addressed to me during the years of research. Above all, I would like to thank my dear wife Ritva-Liisa who has been my spouse almost since the origins of this study. Hence she knows best what kind of anguish the process of writing occasionally caused me. But she has also shared those numerous pleasant moments I have had with my study. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to the helpful staff at the publishing house Mohr Siebeck (Dr. Henning Ziebritzki and Jana Trispel, in particular) and to the editors of the series Forschungen zum Alten Testament, Prof. Janowski and Prof. Spieckermann, for accepting this work for publication. Kouvola, 28 th November 2005

Marko Maritila

Contents Preface Contents

V VII

Introduction

1

1. A Historical Survey of Research 2. Attempts to Understand the Transitions between the Individual and the Collective in Previous Research

1

2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6

H. W. Robinson's Concept of "Corporate Personality" Sigmund Mowinckel's Concept of "Great Ego" "Polysemie" by Hans-Peter Müller "Rollendichtung" by Jürgen van Oorschot "Multiperspektivität" by Bernd Janowski Evaluation of the Different Models and the Oriental Background

10 10 16 17 18 20 21

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation of Methods

25

I. Collective Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic Texts

37

1. The Composition of Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 40-55)

37

1.1 The Origin of the Servant Songs 1.2 The Identity of the Servant

2. The Origin and 'Sitz im Leben' of Lamentations 2.1 Combination of Individual and Collective Features in Lamentations

3. The Composition of the Deuteronomistic History 3.1 National Emphases in the Theology of DtrN

38 41

49 53

55 61

4. Conclusion

65

II. The Genre and 'Sitz im Leben' of the Psalms

67

1. The Canonical Approach 2. The Genres of the Psalms and Their Characteristic Features 3. Salvation Oracles in Individual Complaints 4. Traditional Prayer 5. The Altered 'Sitz im Leben' of the Psalms: Messianic, Theocratic and Collective Interpretations 6. Excursus: The Communal Laments of the Psalter 7. Conclusion

67 69 71 75 78 81 83

VIII

Contents

III. Collective Reinterpretation in the Psalms

85

1. Psalm 22 1.1 Translation of Ps 22 and Textual Criticism 1.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 22 1.3 Lexical Connections with Other Psalms and Other Old Testament Texts 1.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 22 2. Psalm 69 2.1 Translation of Ps 69 and Textual Criticism 2.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 102 2.3 Lexical Connections with Other Psalms and Other Old Testament Texts 2.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 69 3. Psalm 102 3.1 Translation of Ps 102 and Textual Criticism 3.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 102 3.3 Lexical Connections with Other Psalms and Other Old Testament Texts 3.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 102 4. Psalm 89 4.1 The Composition of Ps 89 4.2 Collective Features in Ps 89 5. Collective Passages in Various Psalms 5.1 Ps 3:9 5.2 Ps 14:7 (Ps 53:7) 5.3 Ps 25:22 5.4 Ps 28:8-9 5.5 Ps 29:10-11 5.6 Ps 30:5-6 5.7 Ps 34:23 5.8 Ps 51:20-21 5.9 Ps 73:1 5.10 Ps 148:14 6. Collective Features in the Songs of Ascents 6.1 Concluding Doxology in Ps 125 6.2 "Let Israel Say" (^tOfc1 Sr-lUR1) in Ps 129 6.3 Ps 130:7-8 and Ps 131:3 6.4 The Redaction History of Ps 132 7. The Collective Use of the Term rPZJ'U in Post-Exilic Theology 7.1 Ps 2 7.2 Ps 84:10 7.3 The Psalm of Habakkuk (Particularly Hab 3:13a) 8. Conclusion

85 85 95 97 99 105 105 Ill 112 114 118 118 124 125 126 135 135 142 144 144 146 147 149 150 154 157 158 159 165 167 168 169 171 173 177 178 187 190 192

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective Redaction

195

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

195 195 197 199 202

Introduction to the Formation of the Psalter The Problem of the Elohistic Psalter (Pss 42-83) The Growth Process of the Psalter The Fivefold Book Division of the Psalter Attempts to Date the Final Form of the Psalter

Contents

IX

6. Beyond the Redactions of the Psalter

205

7. Collective Terminology in the Collectivizingly Reworked Psalms

210

8. The Significance of 1 lQPs" for Redaction Theories of the Psalter 8.1 Background 8.2 The Textual Form and Content of 1 lQPs a 8.3 Editorial Principles of HQPs a 8.4 1 lQPs a Compared with Other Psalms Scrolls Found at Qumran 8.5 Is 1 lQPs a Qumranic or Pre-Qumranic? 8.6 1 lQPs a and the Collective Redaction of the Psalter 9. Conclusion

217 217 221 223 228 229 231 233

Summary

235

Bibliography

241

S o u r c e Index

259

Author Index Subject Index

271 275

Introduction 1. A Historical Survey o f Research The early Jewish commentary on the Psalms, Midrash Tehillim, offers an interesting explanation of the origin of the book of Psalms. According to this Midrash, "Moses gave to Israel five books of law, and David gave five books of psalms."1 This statement reveals an analogy between the Pentateuch and the Psalms. Furthermore, it stresses the role of King David as the composer of the Psalms. This utterance is in line with one of the Qumran Psalm scrolls (llQPs a ), which includes the following sentence: "And he (David) wrote 3,600 psalms."2 Later, Davidic authorship was at least occasionally discussed by the rabbis. The textual material of Psalms is remarkably varied and a basic distinction can be made between individual and communal psalms. Could both of these genres have derived from David himself? This topic occurs in the Babylonian Talmud as a dialogue between a few eminent rabbis, as the following example elucidates.3 tr'ynn naoa i n -ibkb nraaim niTB

l i a s m i s - u r new rain 1

pan un

-pas IBSB -UE -IOW i n r 1 »

1

MidrTeh 1 : 1 . 1 have used A. WÜNSCHE's edition and translation of Midrash Tehillim. WÜNSCHE, Midrasch, 2. 2 The translation of this passage is by J. A. SANDERS; it can be found in P. W. FLINT'S study The Dead Sea Psalms Scrolls and the Book of Psalms. In this study FLINT also comments on this chapter of the scroll which may be called 'David's Compositions' (HQPs a , col XXVII); see FLINT, Scrolls, 224, 250. In this connection it is worth quoting lines 2-11 of David's Compositions: "(2) And David, the son of Jesse, was wise, and a light like the light of the sun, and literate, (3) and discerning and perfect in all his ways before God and men. And the Lord gave (4) him a discerning and enlightened spirit. And he wrote (5) 3.600 psalms; and songs to sing before the altar over the whole-burnt (6) perpetual offering every day, for all the days of the year, 364; (7) and for the offering of the Sabbaths, 52 songs; and for the offering of the New (8) Moons and for all the Solemn Assemblies and for the Day of Atonement, 30 songs. (9) And all the songs that he spoke were 446, and songs (10) for making music over the stricken, four. And the total was 4.050. (11) All these he composed through prophecy which was given him before the Most High." 3

bPes 117a. This quotation is also mentioned by MILLARD, Komposition, 231.

Introduction

2

lasy nan p a

- u r s 1233 71a 0 1 a n e w •iBDm

nrx -ije m i iw'ja nrnasn iasr -ijd t t t it®1» nnnasn Translation:

The rabbis taught: (The following is valid for) all the songs and praises that David announced in the Book of Psalms: Rabbi Eliezer says: He said them of himself. Rabbi Joshua says: He said them of community. And the wise say: Some of them he said of community, some others of himself. Those which he formulated in the singular, he said of himself; those which he formulated in the plural, he said of community.

All the examples quoted above show that the question of the origin of the Psalms and the question of David's role in this process has been an important topic not only among Christian exegetes, but also in the Jewish tradition of Bible interpretation. In the light of the Psalm superscriptions the rabbis accepted the uncritical view that David composed most of the psalms, at least those which bear his name in the heading. Among Christian scholars Davidic authorship has faced increasing criticism since the Enlightenment.4 The first commentary on the Psalms which used the new historical-critical methods was undoubtedly the work of Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (1780-1849). 5 The first edition of his commentary was published in 1811. In this commentary de Wette unambiguously rejected the traditional view of the Davidic authorship of the Psalms.6

4 It is justified to assert that the historical-critical study of the Bible began because of the impact of the Enlightenment. KRAUS, Geschichte, 80. 5 In fact, DE WETTE placed the Psalms into different categories, as did H. GUNKEL a century later. According to DE WETTE, there are six main categories: 1) hymns, 2) psalms that describe the history of Israel, 3) Zion and temple psalms, 4) royal psalms, 5) complaint psalms, and 6) religious and moral psalms. DE WETTE, Psalmen, 3-4. The sixth group of DE WETTE's categorization is nowadays usually called the genre of wisdom psalms. ROGERSON (de Wette, 75) advises caution when dealing with the categorization made by DE WETTE, because DE WETTE was not consistent. Occasionally, DE WETTE, commenting on a single psalm text, refers to a completely different genre than in the introduction of his commentary. 6 Long before the Enlightenment and the critical era doubts about the Davidic origin of the Psalter had been expressed. In this connection I should like to mention a famous exegete from the early church, Theodores of Mopsuestia. He was of the opinion that 17 psalms depict historical events of the Maccabean period, not phases of the Davidic monarchy. This was quite a radical view under the circumstances in which he lived. However, Theodores mitigated his argument by stating that though it was Maccabean history that was in question, David could have foreseen the events. Therefore Davidic authorship was not seriously threatened. On the exegetical work of Theodores, see BAETHGEN, Psalmen, XIII; SMEND, Entstehung, 192.

I. A Historical Survey of Research

3

The quotation from the Babylonian Talmud above raises the subject of my own research: How significant is the role of the community or the people in psalm poetry; and to what extent is it justified to speak of probable collective reinterpretation within the Psalms? The solution discovered by the rabbis is an ambivalent one: The Psalms relate either exclusively to the person of David, or David composed them for the community.7 Here we may notice a continuity with the theological emphasis of the Deuteronomistic History, interpreting divine promises once given to David and his descendants from the national point of view and transferring these promises to the collective possession of the people of Israel. The collective interpretation of the Psalms has throughout the centuries found several supporters among Jewish rabbis and scholars. This kind of interpretation has also had a strong foothold in the works of historicalcritical scholars. W.M.L. de Wette, in his commentary on the Psalms, occasionally interprets psalms with a clearly individual character as 7 GILLIS GERLEMAN states in an interesting article published in 1982 ("Einzelne", 33-49) that the psalms which bear the name 'David' ("in4?) in their superscriptions include such vocabulary and such life situations as fit well with the phases of David's life as narrated in the Books of Samuel. GERLEMAN mentions the following examples: persecution, wild beasts, warriors, rescue from great trouble, praise, David's poetic and musical skills. As a critical scholar GERLEMAN naturally rejected the Davidic authorship of the Psalms, such a view was still represented by FRANZ DELITZSCH (Commentar, 397). But GERLEMAN was a little disappointed that GUNKEL, in his strict historicism, did not pay attention to the theory that the David of the superscriptions should be understood as a kind of 'representative person' (dramatis persona). In other words, these Davidic psalms would originally have been composed to recall the life of David. "Psalmen, die sich auf David beziehen, brauchen nicht David zum Autor zu haben, ebensowenig wie die 'Testamente der zwölf Patriarchen' von den Söhnen Jakobs herrühren. Die Möglichkeit besteht ja, daß die Psalmen im Namen Davids gedichtet und ihm in den Mund gelegt wurden. Gleichviel wer sie geschrieben hat, können sie von Anfang an darauf angelegt sein, von David zu handeln." GERLEMAN, "Einzelne", 36. GERLEMAN's view represents a kind of middle path between the conservative i auctoris interpretation and the interpretation which emphasizes that "in1? psalms are only dedicated to David without any actual connection with David's life. In fact, RENDTORFF (Theologie, 299-301) has recently introduced a similar view as GERLEMAN's for scholarly debate. In his article GERLEMAN also mentions that the Suffering Servant of Deutero-Isaiah should be considered to be David. David is an exemplary figure, whose salvation is a precedent for the whole of Israel. GERLEMAN, "Einzelne", 48^19; see also HAAG, Gottesknecht, 165. Of course, it is to be admitted that the superscriptions of the psalms were not created ex nihilo, though they are secondary. Certain reasons have led to a number of psalms bearing David's name in their headings. Perhaps a later redactor really saw in these psalms passages compatible with the life and deeds of David. This is highly probable. But it does not mean that the Davidic psalms were originally composed as a reminiscence of David's life, as GERLEMAN supposes.

4

Introduction

collective prayers of a larger community. This is how de Wette explains, for instance, Psalms 6 and 38. 8 In Psalm commentaries by the successors of de Wette the collective interpretation became more and more common. As instructive examples I could mention Justus Olshausen's commentary (1853), Thomas Kelly Cheyne's two-volume commentary (1888) 9 and Friedrich Baethgen's commentary (1892). According to Cheyne, it is characteristic of Hebrew thinking to maintain a strong feeling of solidarity between an individual and a community. Thus the Psalmists were able to write collective prayers using individual language. Cheyne admits that it is difficult for Western people to understand this phenomenon, and this is an important reason why the collective interpretation has been so widely neglected among Western exegetes. 10 In 1888 Rudolf Smend Senior's article Über das Ich der Psalmen was published. Besides the aforementioned commentaries this article proved to be a remarkable turning point in the scholarly debate. Smend interprets the "I" of the Psalms as throughout representing the people of Israel. Smend points out that the "I" of the Psalms was understood as the people of Israel in the Targum on certain psalms, in medieval Jewish exegesis (Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Qimhi) and in the texts of some Church Fathers, though they usually replaced the term 'Israel' by the term 'church'. Nevertheless, all these features are signs of a wide spread collective understanding. 11 Friedrich Baethgen develops these thoughts further in his commentary completed a few years later. 12 The collective interpretation was not confined solely to Europe, but also spread to America. An indisputable example of this development is the commentary on the Psalms by the Americans Charles and Emilie Briggs. This commentary was published for the first time in 1907. In several passages the "I" is given a collective interpretation. 13

8

DE WETTE, Psalmen 117, 299. I have used the second edition of CHEYNE's commentary, published in 1904. The same is true concerning the commentary of BAETHGEN. Its second edition was also published in 1904. 10 CHEYNE, Psalms, 230. 11 SMEND Senior, Das Ich, 56. As entirely collective texts SMEND mentions psalms such as Ps 22, 25, 28, 51, 69, 89, 102, 130 and 131. SMEND's estimation for Ps 131 reflects well his overall view: "Man wird also in v. 1.2 die Gemeinde als das redende Subjekt betrachten müssen, v. 3 wird sie ermahnt." SMEND Senior, Das Ich, 138. 12 BAETHGEN, Psalmen, XXIII-XXIV. 13 For instance, there is an interesting detail in the BRIGGS's interpretation of Psalm 51. The word trutfs is interpreted as if it referred to the Israelites who remain in their sins after the other Israelites have been completely purified. Therefore the 'true Israel' has a mission to teach deluded Israelites the way and the will of Yahweh (cross m u ^ s nitf 1 i ^ k D'Kiam - p n ; Ps 51:15). BRIGGS, Psalms, 9. 9

1. A Historical Survey of

Research

5

A radical change, however, was evident after the study Das "Ich" der Psalmen by the German Emil Balla was published in 1912. The title itself reveals that the whole book was designed as a critical counterpart to Smend's earlier article. Of course, during the last decades of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century there were some scholars who did not approve of the dominant collective view. Certainly the most famous scholar among them was Bernhard Duhm, who also wrote a commentary on the Psalms. But scholars like Duhm were a clear minority at that time. 14 In fact, Balla was the first to systematically analyze the "I" passages in the Psalms and the examples quoted by Smend. Balla stated emphatically that in ancient Israel there existed individual psalm poetry, and in such poetry the "I" is either the pious poet himself or some other individual.15 Balla supported his argument by presenting many poetic texts outside the Psalter which are clearly the prayers of an individual (Jer 11:18-23; 15:15-21; 17:12-18; 18:18-23; Job 3:3-26; 10:2-22; the thanksgiving of Hannah in 1 Sam 2:1-10; the prayer of Jonah in Jon 2 : 3 10; the prayer of Hezekiah in Isa 38:9-20; Ben Sira 51:1-12). As a further argument Balla mentioned that even in ancient Babylonia individual poetry was known.16 Occasionally Balla had to admit, however, that in some texts the grammatically individual "I" refers to a larger group, especially the people of Israel. 17 Balla mentioned the following examples: Isa 12:1-2; Mic 7 : 7 10; Lam 1:9, 11-16, 18-22; Ps 129. But Balla hastened to assert that such collective texts are very marginal in the Hebrew Bible. In most cases the "I" of the Psalms means an individual person.18 Only in Psalm 129 do we encounter personified Israel C7$nSP KriUK'" - Ps 129:1). In this verse the "I" refers unambiguously to a collective entity. According to Balla, this 1 4 Probably one reason for the insipid reception of DUHM's views by scholars was his radical exegesis. DUHM preferred rather late datings for the Psalms. Like Theodores of Mopsuestia, DUHM also noticed in numerous psalms connections with the Maccabean era, but his arguments differed greatly from the ideas of this early Christian thinker. The individual interpretation adopted by DUHM is entirely in line with his commentary on Isaiah (1892), which was published a few years before the commentary on the Psalms. Commenting on the book of Isaiah, DUHM separates the Servant Songs from the rest of the material and interprets these songs as referring to an individual. 1 5 "Es hat in Israel eine individuelle Psalmendichtung gegeben, in der das Ich der fromme Dichter selber oder irgend ein anderer Einzelner ist." B A L L A , Das Ich, 3. 1 6 B A L L A , Das Ich, 4. 1 7 "Ebenso sicher ist, daß es eine Personifikation Israels und auch Lieder gegeben hat, deren Ich nicht ein Einzelner, sondern das Volk ist." B A L L A , Das Ich, 4. 1 8 "Die Ich-Psalmen im Psalter und in den übrigen Büchern des Alten Testaments sind sämtlich individuell zu verstehen, ausgenommen diejenigen, in denen durch ausdrückliche Angaben im Text ein anderes Verständnis des Ichs notwendig ist." B A L L A , Das Ich, 5.

6

Introduction

passage is the only case in the whole Psalter where the individual and collective features are intertwined. 19 In the apocryphal Psalms of Solomon the community speaks of itself as an individual: ev tco Eu0riur|oai ps xai TroAAqv yevEoBai ev tekvois (PsSol 1:3b). This is remarkable, of course, but Balla was reluctant to deduce anything on the basis of this evidence with reference to the Psalter, because the Psalms of Solomon are such a late literary product. 20 On the other hand, Balla was inclined to regard the patriotic final verses of Psalms 25, 34 and 51 as later additions. 21 Here we may justifiably ask whether these additions attempt to give a collective slant to the whole preceding text? If the answer is in the affirmative, Balla should have considered the existence or non-existence of collective interpretation in the Psalter more thoroughly. This issue is a rather complex one. Balla simply supposed that the patriotic additions refer to a cultic background. Hermann Gunkel, the "father" of modern Psalm research, accepted Balla's basic arguments and developed them further. Due to the detailed and sophisticated analyses by Balla and Gunkel the collective interpretation, that had once enjoyed almost a monopoly, began to vanish from Psalm research. This development took place quite quickly. Gunkel's famous commentary on the Psalms was published for the first time in 1926. The discussion proceeded in 1933, when the monumental introduction to the form-critical method, Einleitung in die Psalmen, saw the daylight. This work was commenced by Gunkel, but after his death it was finished by his pupil Joachim Begrich. 22 Balla and Gunkel were undoubtedly right to reject Smend Senior's immoderate statement that the "I" of the Psalms always means the people of Israel. But trends in scholarship moved perhaps too rapidly from one extreme to another. The collective interpretation disappeared almost completely from scholarly debate. As early as the 1930s Henry Wheeler Robinson criticized Balla for his too rigorous individual interpretation. Wheeler Robinson did not accept Balla's exegesis of Ps 44. 23 Wheeler Robinson was of the opinion that a kind of collective understanding might explain many difficult passages in the Psalms better than Balla's view. The solution proposed by Wheeler Robinson was the concept of "corporate personality", which we may examine more closely in the next chapter. 19 BALLA, Das Ich, 114. I shall investigate Ps 129 more profoundly later, in chapter III.6.2 below. 2 ° BALLA, Das Ich, 119-122. 21 BALLA, Das Ich, 129. 22 KRAUS, Geschichte, 355. 23 ROBINSON, Personality, 37-39. ROBINSON supported the collective Israel interpretation when he explored the identity of the mysterious Servant of Yahweh in Deutero-Isaiah, see ROBINSON, Personality, 40-42.

1. A Historical

Survey of Research

1

To some degree the Norwegian scholar Sigmund Mowinckel also expressed sympathy with the collective understanding of the Psalms. In his theory, however, collectivism served the wider cultic and mythological view, which was typical of all the works of Mowinckel. It is worth mentioning in this connection that Mowinckel created an interesting concept of "great ego", referring to collective understanding. I shall deal with this concept in more detail in the next chapter. Nevertheless, it deserves attention at this point that Mowinckel made a list of such psalm passages which in his opinion contained secondary national elements. 24 Unfortunately, Mowinckel did not go deeper into this curious issue. Most of the commentaries on the Psalms published after World War II do not contain any insight as regards the collective interpretation of the Psalms. Hans-Joachim Kraus put this attitude into words when he stated that "the 'I' of the Psalms is in almost all cases the 'I' of the individual singer". 25 Scholarly discussion hardened for a long time into unfruitful black and white polarization. The belief in the individual interpretation as the only meaningful and legitimate principle of interpretation was so strong that all other attempts seemed very weak by comparison. Nevertheless, since the 1960s Joachim Becker has done pioneer work in shedding new light on this old problem of the "I" of the Psalms. He reintroduced this issue into scholarly discussion, although it was once probably thought that it was already concluded. In several stimulating studies 26 Becker attempted to arouse new interest among scholars in the collective interpretation, its extent and its meaningfulness. According to a basic thesis of Becker's, there were various reinterpretation of the older traditions in ancient Israel. 27 Collective reinterpretation is actually only one form of this, but it is a quite remarkable phenomenon. The Psalms were a living reality, and when the religious and social circumstances changed these texts faced reinterpretation in order that they might better correspond to the prevailing situation. Collective reinterpretation means in 24 MOWINCKEL, Psalmenstudien I, 160-167. Corresponding lists concerning collective passages were framed also by some of MOWINCKEL's contemporaries; see BAUMGARTNER (Klagegedichte, 82) and GUNKEL (Psalmen, 14-15). 25 "Das Ich der Psalmen ist in fast allen Fällen das Ich des einzelnen Sängers." KRAUS, Psalmen, 1045. There are some exceptions to this rule, as KRAUS admits. The grammatically individual texts which should be understood collectively are on the whole the same texts as those already mentioned by BALLA. 26 In this connection I should like to mention especially BECKER'S monographs Israel deutet seine Psalmen. Urform und Neuinterpretation in den Psalmen (1966), Wege der Psalmenexegese (1975) and Messiaserwartung im Alten Testament (1977). 27 BECKER, Israel, 32. In fact, BECKER was not the first one who got the idea of the collective reinterpretation. As early as 1889 J. Z. SCHUURMANS STEKHOVEN had suggested that some psalms contain traces of a secondary collective interpretation ("kollektivierende Nachinterpretation"); see STEKHOVEN, Das Ich, 131-135.

8

Introduction

practice one way of pursuing an actualizing exegesis (or hermeneutics). For instance, national emphasis was an ingenious answer to the fervent questions of the Israelites who had to live without their own monarchy after the exile. A few years after Becker's first monograph, Israel deutet seine Psalmen, had been published, the British scholar Peter Ackroyd took a positive attitude towards Becker's conclusions. Ackroyd wrote that it is fascinating to observe how an earlier psalm text can be adjusted to a new situation by means of redactional activity. 28 Unfortunately, we may conclude that the discussion of the new arguments for the collective interpretation has been rather modest. The many discerning insights made by Becker have not received as much attention as they deserve. During the past fifteen years the situation has improved due to numerous studies by Erich Zenger and Frank-Lothar Hossfeld. They are convinced about the extensive redactional work included in the book of Psalms. Collective reinterpretation is one of these redactional layers beyond the final form of the text. Furthermore, Timo Veijola's contribution is remarkable and epoch-making for discovering the influential character of the collective theology in the exilic and post-exilic period. On the basis of Veijola's studies it is evident that collective emphases have had an extensive aftermath to several biblical books and passages. 29 In my own opinion, the time is at last ripe for a far-reaching new estimate of collective psalm interpretation. It must be asked without any preconceptions what was correct in the collective interpretation which was 28

"Such attempts are of interest in that they recognize the probability that older psalms have not only continued to be used, but have been understood and in some measure modified in a new situation." ACKROYD, Exile, 226. BECKER'S model of reinterpretation is also accepted by A. DEIßLER ("Mein Gott", 101), who adapted it when analysing Psalm 22. STEVEN J. L. CROFT has analysed the identity of the individual in the psalms. His classification contains three groups: the 'I' of the psalms may refer to king, to whomever private person or to the person who is responsible for the cult. CROFT, Identity, 13. CROFT himself, however, absorbs the model according to which nearly all the psalms were originally composed for cultic purposes. Furthermore, CROFT argues that the king had an important role in the ancient Israelite cult. Consequently, CROFT sees references to king even in many such psalms, in which the majority of scholars do not perceive any royal features (e.g. Pss 5, 7, 17, 26 and 139); see CROFT, Identity, 9 0 - 9 6 . Thus CROFT's research can be regarded as one-sided and tendentious. CROFT's arguments partly base on an earlier work by JOHN H. EATON. In the introduction to his commentary on the Psalms EATON (Psalms, 20) plainly writes: "The following Commentary tends to the view that the majority of the psalms of 'the Individual' concern the community's leader, often the Davidic king, in various situations." 29

See, for instance, VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 143-173.

1. A Historical

Survey of

Research

9

once so widespread among scholars. The purpose of my study is to evaluate the extent, nature and origin of collective interpretation. In fact, I prefer the term reinterpretation, because it seems to me that the redactors built upon preceding traditions that were already interpreted from different points of view. Unless the tradition is reinterpreted, it gradually loses its vitality. The importance of reinterpreting sacred texts reminds me of the stimulating hermeneutical model created by Heikki Raisanen. He has developed this pattern on the basis of textual evidence in the New Testament, but it is certainly an instructive construction for Old Testament studies as well. Raisanen's model is based on a dialectic between tradition, experience and interpretation. 30 For the first Christians the tradition consisted mainly of the Jewish heritage: the Old Testament, other writings from the Second Temple era, including several apocryphal and pseudepigraphical works. This was their religious background. They also had religious experiences which were difficult to explain (for instance Paul's vision leading to his conversion). Finally, they gave an interpretation to their experiences in an altered situation. Interpretation was based on the earlier tradition (for instance, the resurrection was already a fixed category which enabled the first disciples to interpret their experiences). 31 But the result always meant a reinterpretation of the earlier tradition. If we transfer this model of interpretation to the texts of the Old Testament, it is easy to notice that experiences of deep crisis were very often important points in the history of Israel that led to reinterpretation of older material. Undoubtedly the most important crisis situation that caused new theological thinking was the period of the Babylonian exile. It was an indispensable watershed in biblical history, though nowadays some scholars either belittle its significance or try even to dispute its historicity. It is true that the extra-biblical sources do not tell as much about the Babylonian exile as we may suppose. 32 However, the exile is not the only period that produced literal, theological and actualizing activity. Later the foreign influences of Hellenism led occasionally to severe conflicts even within Judaism itself. In all these incidents a reinterpretation of older tradition and sacred texts was necessary.

30 RAISANEN, Theology, 122-136. Experiences can be classified either as positive experiences (like the episode depicted in Acts 10:1-11:18) or as experiences of crisis (like the delay of the parousia in 2 Peter 3). 31 RAISANEN (Theology, 127) puts this clearly as follows: "It would be correct to say that the disciples experienced something which they interpreted with the help of categories of resurrection belief (which are already known). Had they lacked the conceptual framework supplied by apocalyptic Jewish eschatology, they would have been bound to search for a different explanation of what they had seen." 32 ALBERTZ, Ernstfall, 26.

10

Introduction

Collective orientation was one alternative for the Israelites who lived more than two thousand years ago. It was a meaningful manner of constructing a personal world-view and understanding the Holy Scriptures. The collective interpretation suggested by critical scholars approximately one hundred years ago was obviously too one-sided. It is unjustified to suppose that the individual "I" always refers to the whole community. But the main stream of research since Balla and Gunkel represented one-sided though opposite view. It is essential to try to find a 'golden middle path' between these two extremes.

2. Attempts to Understand the Transitions between the Individual and the Collective in Previous Research 2.1 H. W. Robinson's

Concept of "Corporate

Personality"

A scholar who concentrates on the tension and interaction between the individual "I" and the collective "I" can hardly ignore the technical term "corporate personality". This concept is deeply rooted in Psalm research. It is not only a historical concept, because allusions to this theory are still heard in critical scholarship.33 Usually, even in Psalm studies in German, the English term is used. Originally, this concept was introduced to Old Testament studies by Henry Wheeler Robinson, who in the 1930s wrote two concise articles concerning the Hebrew way of thinking.34 Though they were not very long, they exercised an immense influence on later studies. Because Robinson's works are still quoted in modern Psalm research, it is necessary in this connection to introduce the basic arguments of his theory, as well as the most important criticism that his writings have faced. Robinson states that the feeling of solidarity in ancient Israel was largely based on an old tradition of a common ancestor or even on a fictitious blood-tie between the members of a group. According to Robinson, the group in Hebrew thinking included not only its present 33

Thus, for instance, EMMENDORFFER, Gott, 115, when he deals with Ps 44. See also EMMENDORFFER, Gott, 238. 34 ROBINSON's earlier article bears the title The Hebrew Conception of Corporate Personality, and was published in 1936 in the German series BZAW (vol. 66). The second article is called The Group and the Individual in Israel. It derives from the year 1937 and was published for the first time in the composition The Individual in East and West edited by E. R. HUGHES. When referring to these two aforementioned articles by ROBINSON, I have used the new edition of 1981 by C. RODD. This edition bears the title Corporate Personality in Ancient Israel. In this edition both of ROBINSON's epoch-making articles are published with consecutive page numbers.

2. Transitions

between the Individual and the Collective

in Previous Research

\1

members but also the past and future (yet unborn) members. Thus a certain group consisted of a remarkably long chain of generations. Robinson elucidates the collective emphasis referring to the ancient burial practices of the Israelites. The Patriarch Jacob, for instance, requested that he should be buried with his fathers and his people (',!2ir'7K and '•rfaijr^K; Gen 49:29). Furthermore, both Samuel and Joab were buried in their home districts (1 Sam 25:1 and 1 Kgs 2:34 respectively).35 The future of a group was heavily dependent upon male descendants, because they were a guarantee that a man's name would be preserved in the community. Death as such was understood in the ancient Orient as a natural phase that belongs to life, but violent or premature death was a serious matter. It was a cause for sorrow if a person died without having children. When the normal way of thinking emphasized the primacy of the group, it was indispensable to secure the continuity of the group with plentiful offspring. 36 Preserving the name was essential, though this may be difficult for a modern man to understand. Nevertheless, the Levirate marriage aimed at providing a descendant for a man who was already dead with the help of a brother of the deceased. This legislation can be found in the book of Deuteronomy (Deut 25:5-10), and within this corpus concern is twice expressed with respect to the preservation of a man's name in Israel (Deut 25:6-7). Robinson bases many of his arguments on anthropological studies by L. Levy-Bruhl and E. Durkheim. These anthropologists investigated especially primitive cultures (for instance among Australian Aborigines). Robinson found an equivalent phenomenon to the concept of "corporate personality" in the totemic culture of primitive tribes.37 Robinson presented an interesting example of the flexibility between individual and community when he refers to an incident that took place in ancient Egypt. In an early stage of Egyptian religion the divine king himself represented the whole nation before the god Osiris at the last judgement. Since the last

35

ROBINSON, Personality, 25-28. ROBINSON, Personality, 28. 37 ROBINSON, Personality, 31-32. In another article ROBINSON alludes to C. M. DOUGHTY's work Arabia Deserta, which describes the life of Beduins in the 19th century. ROBINSON thought that even such late practices might be useful for his theory of primitive thought in ancient Orient. In fact, he reconstructed ancient Hebrew thinking with the help of Beduin life. ROBINSON defended himself against his critics by stating that nomadism has preserved its way of thinking and behaviour relatively unchanged throughout the centuries. That the Israelites were nomads is evident, according to ROBINSON (Personality, 47), on the basis of Deut 26:5. Furthermore, he supposed that the strong blood-ties between family members date back to the era of nomadism. Here ROBINSON (Personality, 48) referred to Gen 4:23-24. 36

12

Introduction

centuries of the Middle Kingdom (1700-1600 B.C.E.) the position of an individual became more central - even before Osiris.38 Regarding Psalm research Robinson is of the opinion that both Emil Balla and Hermann Gunkel too abruptly rejected Rudolf Smend Senior's view of the collective "I". Robinson criticized Balla's too strict individual interpretation and mentioned Psalm 44, which contains as many as six examples of curious changes of person from the singular to the plural and vice versa (the first person plural dominates in verses 2, 6, 8-15, 18-27, but a surprising first person singular occurs in verses 5, 7, 16-17). With the aid of the concept "corporate personality" all these changes would be easy to explain, in Robinson's view. It was, in his opinion, possible that both an individual and a community could identify with each other so closely that in a discourse transitions from the singular to the plural and from the plural to the singular took place smoothly.39 Instead Balla had to create a rather hypothetical idea that in Ps 44 the leader of a group sometimes contemplates himself and his own actions.40 Robinson emphasized the covenant between God and the collective person of Israel as the basic event of the Old Testament. As text examples Robinson mentions the Song of Deborah (Judg 5) and the enigmatic Servant Songs of Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 4 2 : 1 ^ ; 49:1-6; 50:4-9 and 52:1353:12). Robinson stated that in both of these examples "there is the unitary conception of the corporate personality of Israel".41 Robinson has had some very sharp critics, perhaps the most prominent of them being J. R. Porter and John W. Rogerson. Porter's article was published in 1965; he concentrated on correcting a few misleading interpretations that Robinson had taken for granted. Porter's main point seems to be that he does not accept the practicability of the concept of "corporate personality" when the legal texts of the Old Testament are concerned. Robinson had mentioned the offence of Achan (Josh 7) as an example of corporate guilt, but according to Porter stretching the punishment to Achan's family does not indicate collective responsibility. 38

ROBINSON, Personality, 32. During the Middle Kingdom in the widespread cult of Osiris worshippers began to think that not only the king but every person had an immortal soul (in Egyptian "Ba") that continued its existence even after his or her death. ASSMANN, Ägypten, 216-217. 39 ROBINSON, Personality, 37-39. At the same time as ROBINSON criticized both BALLA and GUNKEL he showed sympathy for the Norwegian scholar MOWINCKEL. ROBINSON was of the opinion that MOWINCKEL s observation about the community as a kind of "super ego" is a fruitful concept. I shall return in more detail to MOWINCKEL s theory later. 40 BALLA, Das Ich, 108-109. BALLA tried to find support for his view in the prayers of Ezra and Nehemiah. 41 ROBINSON, Personality, 51.

2. Transitions between the Individual and the Collective in Previous Research

13

Porter himself favoured the following explanation: The punishment is connected with taboos. In other words, Achan committed a sacral crime when he penetrated into a holy circuit and stole something that belonged to Yahweh alone. Consequently, his relatives were affected by the holiness, because Achan kept the holy vessels in his tent (even the tent was taken outside the camp when the punishment was put into effect; Josh 7:24).42 Porter agrees with Robinson on the subject of Levirate marriage. This decree aimed at the continuity of family and name. Porter thought that originally this phenomenon was based on the ties of kinship and property. Porter did not see any need for the concept of "corporate personality" in this connection. Porter's criticism is rather mild and cautious, but John W. Rogerson has attacked Robinson's theory more vehemently. Rogerson accuses Robinson in particular of the obscure use of corporate personality. Another point for criticism is Robinson's dependence on obsolete anthropological models. It is problematic to compare Australian aborigines and ancient Israelites with each other. Above all, Rogerson hopes for an exact definition for the concept "corporate personality", since only then could it be useful in critical research. Rogerson has noted that the term has a kind of ambivalent meaning in the studies of Robinson. Corporate personality refers to either collective responsibility or collective representation.43 In his study Anthropology and the Old Testament (1978) Rogerson sharply criticizes Old Testament scholars because they have too often neglected

42 PORTER, Legal Aspects, 369-370. According to LEVIN (Verheißung, 44 n. 34), the collective character in Achan's punishment is secondary: the execution of Achan's sons and daughters is a later addition to the original text. VEIJOLA (Klagegebet, 302303) argues that the whole Achan episode is a late insert created by the nomistic dtr redactor. On the other hand, PORTER (Legal Aspects, 379) admitted the possibility that ROBINSON's concept of 'corporate personality' may be useful and valid elsewhere, but not in legal texts of the Old Testament. The mass penalties caused by sacral crimes are, according to PORTER, very exceptional in the extensive textual material of the Old Testament. Usually the following principle is valid: He who commits a crime, also bears the responsibility. As an example, PORTER mentions in particular the episode that took place at the battle of Michmash (I Sam 14), when Jonathan, unaware of his father's oath, committed a kind of sacral crime. The people suffered from Jonathan's misdeed, but it was without doubt Jonathan himself who was guilty, and thus he deserved the capital punishment which was actually not put into effect. A corresponding incident is related in 2 Sam 24, where David carries out the census and consequently commits an offence in the eyes of Yahweh. But in this case, too, the heaviest price falls upon the innocent people. Nevertheless, PORTER (Legal Aspects, 370-379) estimated that the penalty even indirectly hurt David himself, because the destruction of a substantial number of people weakened David's own honour, strength and influence. 43 ROGERSON, Anthropology, 55.

14

Introduction

the anthropological approach when analysing Hebrew texts.44 Rogerson incorporates man's social system, behaviour, folklore and beliefs into anthropology.45 Anthropological theories represented by the French sociologist L. LevyBruhl were an important theoretical background for Robinson's studies, as we noted above. In Rogerson's opinion, this is problematic because LevyBruhl heavily emphasized the nearly irreconcilable contrast between primitive and civilized cultures. This attitude no longer corresponds to prevailing scholarly opinion.46 In any case, even Rogerson admits that occasionally the "I" of the Psalms seems to be a collective person or a representative of the people of Israel. But even nowadays a boundary between individual and community may become obscure under cultic conditions. This is evident, for instance, in religious devotions and services; Rogerson himself mentions as an example the singing of hymns in a church service. There are constant transitions from singular to plural and vice versa. According to Rogerson, this corresponds to past events, too. In the cult the ancient Israelites may have felt something similar. Therefore there is no specific need for a theoretical construction called "corporate personality".47 Joachim Becker admits, on the one hand, the usefulness of the concept "corporate personality", but, on the other hand, he is aware of its inadequacy. In his opinion, the activity of redactors was a more important factor for collective features in the Psalms than an obscure reconstruction of the ancient Hebrew way of thinking.48 Rainer Albertz also criticizes Robinson's theory. According to Albertz, the ordinary Israelite was able to represent at most his own family. Larger groups or the whole people were represented only by political or religious leaders. Principally the king was relevant as a representative of the nation. Thus Albertz resolutely rejects Robinson's view that an individual could be identical with the group that he represents. Albertz does not believe that with the aid of corporate personality the relationship between individual and community could satisfactorily be explained in Old Testament studies.49 44 Theology, philosophy, archaeology, Semitic and classical linguistics, egyptology and general linguistics are well represented in Old Testament scholarship, both in commentaries and in smaller monographs, but anthropology has not received as much attention. ROGERSON, Anthropology, 1-2. 45 ROGERSON, Anthropology, 9. ROGERSON gives many examples from the history of research and he usually criticizes all of them for too narrow an anthropological view. 46 ROGERSON, Anthropology, 55. 47 ROGERSON, Anthropology, 56-59. 48 BECKER, Wege, 89. 49 ALBERTZ, Frömmigkeit, 12-13.

2. Transitions between the Individual and the Collective in Previous Research

15

The discussion of the identity of the "I" in the Psalms and the relevance of "corporate personality" is closely akin to the debate on the true nature and essence of Yahwistic religion. This topic was popular at the end of the nineteenth century. There were two different schools: According to one opinion it was possible to reconstruct a kind of evolution in the religion of Israel. This meant in practice development from a primitive origin to a higher level. In this model the collective practice of religion represented the primitive origin. Individual religious belief was reached on the very threshold of the exile or during the exile, as is evident in the works of the two great prophets, Jeremiah and Ezekiel (Jer 31; Ezek 18). This model was especially supported by Bernhard Duhm and the so-called school of Wellhausen. Rudolf Smend Senior was among the proponents of this interpretation, which is no wonder, because he was such an important figure in promoting the collective interpretation in Psalm research as well. Another model is characteristically a defence of individual religion. The most eminent representative of this model, Ernst Sellin, published in 1893 a study in which he tried to demonstrate exegetically that even prior to the exile an individual could have a personal relationship with God.50 Albertz himself is of the opinion that the whole debate was too exaggerated and the basic question was wrongly framed. It would be much more fruitful to distinguish between personal (folk) piety and the official religion of the realm.51 This distinction is crucial for Albertz's own research.

50

ALBERTZ, Frömmigkeit, 5. In modern research J. SCHARBERT (Das "Wir", 311-324) also ponders the possibility that a kind of evolution might have taken place in the religion of Israel. SCHARBERT refers to the fact that prayers in the 'we' form are rather rare in the literature of the Ancient Orient. SCHARBERT analyses a large number of Egyptian, Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite and Canaanite examples. SCHARBERT concludes that probably an individual prayer was an earlier form of prayer even in ancient Israel, but especially due to national crises collective 'we' prayers also came into existence. EMMENDÖRFFER (Gott, 290), too, states that national laments from preexilic times have not been preserved. Furthermore, VORLÄNDER (Mein Gott, 293-294) has noted that in post-exilic writings the people are often described as an individual: "Insbesondere in nachexilischen Texten wird das Volk häufig wie eine Einzelperson apostrophiert, die Jahwe als 'mein Gott' anredet." Such a custom is rather unique in comparison with other Oriental texts. The people are like a single person when they talk to God (Isa 40:27) and God refers to the people in the second person singular (Isa 41:10, 13; 43:3; 48:17 etc.). 51 ALBERTZ, Frömmigkeit, 10-12. ACKROYD (Chronicler, 364), too, aptly remarks that religion is always a diverse phenomenon. The Old Testament in its present form is a consequence of exceedingly thorough editorial work. It represents mainly - or almost solely - the theology of official religion. The more popular religion can be better detected in inscriptions or in the theophoric elements in proper names. For further guidance, see ACKROYD, Chronicler, 372-373 and PAKKALA, Monolatry, 188-190.

16

Introduction

2.2 Sigmund Mowinckel's Concept of "Great Ego " Sigmund Mowinckel differed from the other influential Psalms scholar, Hermann Gunkel, in many respects. It is a well-known fact that Mowinckel emphasized the cultic background of the Psalms much more than Gunkel had done. The cultic understanding was also the reason why Mowinckel did not fully accept the otherwise rather dominant individual Psalm interpretation of his time. Mowinckel connected all the Psalms with the cult. The individual was remarkable in the cult only as a member of the community. On the other hand, the individual was able to act in the cult as a representative of the whole people. Mowinckel considered only the king to be significant enough for such a demanding task. Therefore in his studies Mowinckel concentrated heavily on the royal psalms. Nevertheless he saw royal features in several other psalms, too. Of course, the influence of other Oriental nations was an important background for Mowinckel's theory. We only have to mention ancient Egypt, where the king (Pharaoh) played a central role in the cult. But the Pharaoh cannot be straightforwardly compared with the king of Israel, because the Pharaoh was considered to be a god, the incarnate god Horus, while the king of Israel was not regarded as a divine figure.52 Mowinckel paid attention to patriotic passages at the end of several psalms. He regards such features as secondary. Mowinckel also noticed that the collective reinterpretation is much more common in laments than in psalms of thanksgiving. He considered this phenomenon natural, because the people of Israel so often faced suffering and oppression.53 When Mowinckel analysed the Songs of Ascents (Pss 120-134) he pointed out that the forms of individual poetry are in these psalms transferred to the genre of community psalms. This flexibility is possible because the ancient Israelites understood a community as a kind of personified "great ego". This transformation took place especially in the cult, where the communio sanctorum emerged like one body and one soul. Mowinckel regarded the concept of "great ego" as genuinely Semitic and furthermore genuinely primitive.54 Mowinckel's view is attractive, but it shares the 52 MOWINCKEL, Han som kommer, 2 4 - 6 9 . On the Egyptian practice, see also GÖRG, Gott-König-Reden, 103-104, 270; ASSMANN, Ägypten, 148. In the religion of Israel the king was a kind of intermediary figure: He announced the will of Yahweh and mediated divine blessings to the land of Israel and its people. MOWINCKEL, Han som kommer, 55. 53 MOWINCKEL, Psalmenstudien I, 164. 54 MOWINCKEL, Psalmenstudien I, 164-165. In another connection MOWINCKEL writes: "Efter almenprimitiv tankegang, som ogsä det eldste Israel selvfolgelig har delt, er lwvdingen, asttefaren, og efter dem kongen, likesom en synlig inkorporasjon av det 'storjeg' som samfunnet egentlig er. Samfunnets helhetssjel er pä en saerlig mate inkorporert i ham; aettefaren lever ganske saerlig videre i ham." MOWINCKEL, Han som

2. Transitions

between the Individual and the Collective

in Previous Research

17

same weaknesses as Wheeler Robinson's theory of "corporate personality". Both Robinson and Mowinckel referred to ancient Israelite practices and thinking as if they were primitive. Nowadays scholars are aware of the risks of employing such vocabulary. It is difficult to state objectively which practices are primitive and which are developed. Too rough simplifications may occur in colloquial speech but are not recommended in a scholarly discussion. Yet we have to admit that our present knowledge of the ancient Israelite cult and its practices is far too limited. The original 'Sitz im Leben' of most of the biblical psalms is obscure to us. It is likely that quite a number of psalms had a cultic background. Furthermore, it is possible that boundaries between the individual and the community easily became flexible in a religious rite, but such assumptions are somewhat difficult to prove. 2.3 "Polysemie" by Hans-Peter Müller Since the days of Wheeler Robinson and Mowinckel more recent attempts have been made to explain the flexibility between the individual and the collective in the Psalms. First, I should like to mention the concept "Polysemie" invented by the German scholar Hans-Peter Müller. He has dealt with this concept in various articles. It seems that Müller has utilized this concept especially when analysing mythical texts. In this connection he has observed that in mythical usage metaphors and symbols rather easily become interchanged. In other words, one and the same symbol (or metaphor) may cover an exceedingly wide semantic field, because it usually has more than one certain meaning. As an illuminating textual example Müller mentions Gen 2, where the mortality of man is depicted mythically.55 God's reply to Job (Job 38-40) also includes semantically multi-levelled expressions and is thus an indication of "Polysemie". The way to express matters in such a poetic work as the book of Job is not as precise as it might be in a prose text. "Polysemie" best fits a poetical context, and is at least partially dependent on the parallelismus membrorum.56 Usually Müller operates with "Polysemie" in rather theoretical contexts referring to philological questions. Language is an instrument of thought, but in different languages kommer, 56. Thus MOWINCKEL clearly favoured the idea that the king incorporated the whole people. In such a model transitions between the individual and the collective are easy to explain. The king's glory corresponds to the glory of the nation and the king's dishonour is also the disgrace of the people. 55 MÜLLER, Sterblichkeit, 71. 56 MÜLLER, Polysemie, 385-386; MÜLLER, Antwort, 131, 137. It is evident that parallelismus membrorum requires the wide use of synonyms and sometimes antitheses also. Therefore 'Polysemie' seems to be more a linguistic effect than a category of thought.

18

Introduction

discrepant features may be stressed (some languages are more subjectcentred, while others may be object-centred). An individual, while still a child, joins the long collective chain of generations and the tradition of using the language. A single person is not able substantially to change this tradition.57 Philologically, Müller estimates that "Polysemie", when it focuses on small lexical and grammatical units, is characteristic of archaic languages.58 In literary religions the multiformity of language is documented in such a manner that the unchanged sacred (or authoritative) text receives new dimensions by virtue of interpretation.59 New meanings also arise naturally with the aid of theological reinterpretation as the national elements in the Psalms clearly show. The previously existing text was to be re-read in altered circumstances. According to Müller, the fictitious Davidic authorship of the psalms served as an identification model for the afflicted person.60 This idea can be developed further and thus it is possible to conclude that even a nation could identify itself with an exemplary figure. This thought leads us directly to the chapter below. 2.4 "Rollendichtung " by Jürgen van Oorschot One fascinating attempt to explain the tension between the individual and the community is the theory of "Rollendichtung" (role poetry) developed by Jürgen van Oorschot. Fundamentally this theory means that a single person - for instance in his prayers - in fact represented the whole community. This statement certainly shares some similarities with Mowinckel's concept of "Great ego" discussed above, but the main difference lies in the fact that van Oorschot excludes all cultic explanations and settings. In his article van Oorschot emphatically concentrates on such poetry as no longer has anything or very little to do with the cultic context ("nachkultische Psalmen"). But despite this state of affairs we are not justified in defining such texts as anti-cultic. Post-cultic psalms and anticultic psalms are two different things. Passages such as Ps 50:7-15; Ps 51:20-21 and Ps 69:32-34 are characteristically anti-cultic, because they cast doubt on the essence of the sacrificial cult. But post-cultic psalms form another category, as van Oorschot has demonstrated. 57

MÜLLER, Wechselbeziehung, 265. "Polysemie der kleinen lexikalischen und grammatischen Einheiten scheint insbesondere ein Merkmal archaischer Sprachen zu sein." MÜLLER, Wechselbeziehung, 267. 59 MÜLLER, Antwort, 137. In another article MÜLLER (Mythos und Kerygma, 421 n. 55) writes on this theme: "Die Polysemie auch des Begriffs dient der notwendigen Flexibilität im Umgang mit den Gegenständen einer in sich widersprüchlichen, geschichtlich bewegten Umwelt." 60 MÜLLER, Psalmen, 42. 58

2. Transitions

between the Individual

and the Collective

in Previous Research

19

As textual examples van Oorschot mentions the following prayers: the prayer of Ezra (Ezra 9:6-15), the prayer of Daniel (Dan 9:4-19), the prayer of Nehemiah (Neh 9:6-37) and the prayer of Judith (Jud 9:2-14). In all these prayers quoted it is significant that a single person can become an exemplary person for the whole nation, an exemplary righteous person. Furthermore, the exemplary individual may incorporate a wider group of people. This phenomenon gains more sense when we look more closely at van Oorschot's examples and his comments on them. In the prayer of Ezra van Oorschot has correctly noted the sudden transition from the singular to the plural. The prayer begins in the "I" form but quickly turns into a collective prayer (v. 6b-10 and 13-15 represent the 'we' form; verses 1 laß—12 by contrast represent quotations from the legislation of Leviticus and Deuteronomy). It is also noteworthy that this prayer lacks some intrinsic features which are typical of its genre, like the petition for salvation and the promise to praise God. The prayer of Ezra is a confession of sin and thus comes close to the psalms of penitence. But references to cultic practices are absent from this prayer.61 Actually, the person of Ezra and the people of Israel are deeply intertwined in this prayer.62 The scribe Ezra is an exemplary and representative figure for faithful Israel. Those who identify themselves with him can be regarded as true Israelites; they repent of their sins and are willing to observe the Torah. The prayer of Daniel in Dan 9 shares many features with Ezra's prayer, though obedience to the law is not stressed as much. In this case, too, an exemplary person is depicted, this time Daniel. The story of Judith is entirely fictitious. It is probably best understood symbolically. The main character, Judith, corresponds to righteous and pious Israelites.63 It is also remarkable that Judith is introduced as a widow. The concept of 'widow' well describes the position of Israel after the exile in the midst of foreign and even hostile nations. Under such conditions it was tempting to think that Yahweh himself had abandoned Zion. But the story of Judith reminds us that obedience to God's law is the right way to survive. To put it briefly: the person of Judith incorporates the people of Israel and promises forthcoming salvation and blessing.64 Sometimes the exemplary figure of identification can be not only an individual but a larger group. As an example of this, van Oorschot refers to 61

VAN OORSCHOT, Rollendichtung, 74. 62 "Vielmehr sollen sich die Israeliten mit dem Bekenntnis Esras identifizieren." VAN OORSCHOT, Rollendichtung, 76. 63 "Die Judäerin personifiziert in beispielhafter Weise das gottesfurchtige Israel." VAN OORSCHOT, Rollendichtung, 82. 64 "Judith verkörpert ein 'Israel', dem seine Niedrigkeit nicht Hinweis auf Gottes Zorn sondern auf die zu erwartende Rettung ist." VAN OORSCHOT, Rollendichtung, 83.

20

Introduction

chapter Neh 9. In this prayer the Levites play a similar role as Ezra in Ezra 9. Also, the enigmatic Suffering Servant of Deutero-Isaiah may be interpreted with the aid of the category of "Rollendichtung". This "Rollendichtung" is especially fruitful for the interpretation of the Psalms. In the secondary superscriptions David is often indicated as the author of the Psalm. This practice is even more common in the Septuagint, which includes fifteen Davidic headings that have no counterparts in the Hebrew text. Thus David became an ideal figure for the righteous, praising and even suffering individual ("like David, like everyone").65 This statement may be a useful tool when we turn to ponder the possibility that sometimes the "I" of the Psalms might in fact denote a larger group, i.e. the people of Israel. It is interesting indeed that a singular figure can incorporate a wider entity. 2.5 "Multiperspektivitat"

by Bernd

Janowski

Bernd Janowski has in a few recent writings expressed the opinion that the Psalms are characteristically flexible and versatile texts. For this phenomenon Janowski gives the definition "Multiperspektivitat". According to Janowski, the multi-dimensional character of the language used in the Psalms is already earlier than the results of redaction or liturgical use. As an example of "Multiperspektivitat" Janowski mentions the concept 'sickness' in the individual complaint psalms. The language used is highly stereotypical and avoids precise concrete expressions. Sickness as a theme belonged to the same category of religious existence as the relationship between sin and punishment. Especially psychophysical and anthropological concepts are often receptive to the phenomenon "Multiperspektivitat".66 In poetic language there is no need to reach equivalent precision and unambiguity as in prose. It is also typical of the language used in the Psalms that it is full of different metaphors.67 The generalizing character of the language used in the Psalms offered useful models with which other afflicted people might have identified; for instance, the concept of 'enemy' may have meant different things to different people.68 The category of "Multiperspektivitat" may help us to understand collective emphases in the Psalter. In essence, it was rather easy to give new interpretations to Psalm texts because poetry is not so rigidly bound to certain points in time. It was consequential if the Psalm texts were adapted in new social and religious settings to correspond to the prevailing 65 66 67 68

VAN OORSCHOT, Rollendichtung, 70, 84; BALLHORN, "David", 16-31. JANOWSKI, "Kleine Biblia", 389-390; JANOWSKI, Konfliktgespräche, 13-21. JANOWSKI, "Kleine Biblia", 394. JANOWSKI, Konfliktgespräche, 73, 108.

2. Transitions

between the Individual and the Collective

in Previous Research

21

situation. For instance, under the Persian and Diadochian rulers Israel found in the Psalter the themes which were suitable for its own situation, the perspectives of hope and expectation being particularly important.69 Collectivization of the Psalms was one sign of "Multiperspektivitat". The interpretation of the Psalms and other Old Testament passages in the New Testament is also made possible because of "Multiperspektivitat". The Old Testament itself already includes traces of various models of interpretation. The New Testament continues this long chain of interpretations.70 Janowski's concept is undoubtedly useful in scholarly debate. The collective reinterpretation of the Psalms is easy to comprehend with the aid of this category. Traditions form the cultural background of the individual and the group. When the circumstances change, a re-evaluation of the older tradition is necessary. A culture or religion which is unable to adjust itself to altered conditions is in a great danger of ceasing to exist. In this connection another concept related to "Multiperspektivitat" is worthy of noting. Both Janowski and Jan Assmann refer to a phenomenon called "Konstellation". In practice this model means that an individual firmly belongs to the social community and the natural environment. This relationship can be defined as constellatory. The individual is always part of a larger entity. Family and friends in particular belong to the constellation of an individual.71 Assmann even aptly states that an individual exists when his name is uttered.72 In the social sense a man is a completely living creature only as part of a society. To summarize: even the concept "Konstellation" shows how deeply the individual and the community were intertwined in the ancient Orient. The sense of solidarity was predominant in Oriental thinking. 2.6 Evaluation

of the Different Models and the Oriental

Background

All the models presented above shed light on the problematic question as to how the transitions between the individual and the collective should be understood, particularly in the Psalter. Each model certainly does have its advantages, but I am inclined to favour a couple of them more than others. My starting-point is to suppose that the collective emphases in individual

69 "In dem von der Redaktion so konzipierten Psalter fand das arme und bedrängte Israel der spätpersischen und hellenistischen Zeit seine existentiellen Nöte und Ängste, aber auch seine Erwartungen und Hoffnungen ausgedrückt." JANOWSKI, "Kleine Biblia", 410. 70 JANOWSKI, „Verstehst du", 178-179. 71 JANOWSKI, Weltbild, 5 - 6 . 72 ASSMANN, Tod und Jenseits, 59. See also ASSMANN, Tod und Jenseits, 527.

22

Introduction

prayers derive from the redactor(s). Thus I follow Joachim Becker's conclusion. If the text is not uniform but instead consists of different literary layers, the transitions between the individual and the collective (or between whatever extremes) is hard to explain merely by assuming a mental process - a category of thinking - in a single mind. Redaction critical observations and the multi-levelled character of the textual material are in contrast to Wheeler Robinson's theory of "corporate personality". But there is some truth in his theory. The redactors did not notice any difficulty when they connected collective passages with individual sequences. They gave a new perspective to the earlier prayer in such a manner that individual and collective features became intertwined. And in this respect there is important parallel material to the Psalms in the Servant Songs of Deutero-Isaiah, for instance. These songs, on the whole, do not contain any remarkable redactional strata or additions, but instead the collective emphasis has been part of them since their inception. The one who suffers is - despite the individual character of the language - God's chosen people Israel. Mowinckel's theory of the cultic "great ego" incorporation can be regarded as obsolete at the moment. Certainly many biblical psalms do have a cultic background, though we do not know it very well. But in its final form the book of Psalms, as well as individual psalms, have undergone an intentional redaction. The result can no longer be considered "The Song Book of the Second Temple". Due to the work of redactors the Psalter was given new emphases. In its final form it is better orientated to meditative and educational issues.73 Therefore Mowinckel's model cannot be simply followed. Miiller's theory of "Polysemie" is definitely fruitful, but it is not always clear how to apply this theory to individual and collective phenomena in the Psalter. Most of all Miiller's theory is philological in nature, but the question of the relationship between individual and community in the Psalms is not merely philological; it is more likely that we are here facing a theological issue. However, I think that Miiller's theory of "Polysemie" is akin to Janowski's concept of "Multiperspektivitat". In my opinion, the best efforts to explain the sudden transitions are those presented by Janowski and van Oorschot. Van Oorschot's concept of "Rollendichtung" is undoubtedly useful in Psalm research, particularly 73 "In umfassender Weise gilt der Psalter heute erneut als Zeugnis der jüdischen Frömmigkeit. Nicht am zweiten Tempel, sondern in der Lehre und in der Meditation der Frommen habe die Sammlung ihren Sitz im Leben gehabt." LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 358. The same idea is shared by several other scholars, see for example: REINDL, Bearbeitung, 333-341; ZENGER, Psalmenauslegung, 397; JANOWSKI, "Verstehst du", 173.

2. Transitions

between the Individual

and the Collective

in Previous Research

23

because it explains the role of David in the superscriptions of the Psalms. It seems that the significance of exemplary figures was remarkable for the ancient Israelites. Janowski supports the view concerning different rereadings in the Psalter (collective 'relecture' is one of them). His concept of "Multiperspektivität" is flexible and thus has many applications. "Multiperspektivität" covers not only simple interchange between synonymous words (as in the case of sickness) but also refers to wider and deeper processes of actualization. Exactly this was the purpose of those redactors who read individual psalms from a national point of view. It is possible that such collectivizing and actualizing endeavours increased their popularity during the Hellenistic era, when the Israelite faith of the ancestors was seriously threatened by the foreign Hellenistic culture. Under such circumstances emphasizing the national heritage was an important way to survive. Also, the special role of being the people chosen by God was pinpointed. "Multiperspektivität" depicts well the new orientation with regard to ancient texts, and it should be borne in mind that Psalm texts have been flexible and open to various influences since the very beginning. Their originally multi-dimensional character has made new dimensions possible. This is the basis for the creative work of the redactors. It is also undoubtedly justifiable to ask how the relationship between the individual and the community was understood by Israel's neighbours. Many hymns and prayers have been preserved from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. The contents of the preserved material are rather heterogeneous and therefore these texts cannot be simply related to biblical Psalms. Religious lyrics are always a wider category than merely psalms. For instance, among the numerous religious poems in Ugaritic there are hardly any which we could classify as a psalm.74 It is not my aim to give in this connection a very detailed analysis of Egyptian and Mesopotamian texts, because that would go far beyond the scope of this study. It is probably sufficient to draw a rough overall picture. First of all, it is noteworthy that the transitions between the individual and the community (and vice versa) are rather rare in both Egyptian and Mesopotamian texts. Josef Scharbert has previously analysed this phenomenon, and having studied the text edition by Jan Assmann (Ägyptische Hymnen und Gebete) Scharbert discovered only five songs out of 242 which contained sudden transitions between "I" and "we". 75 Actually, in my opinion, only four songs in Assmann's collection are relevant to transitions between "I" and "we". Song 96 does not contain any speech in the first person singular, though Scharbert claims it does. Only in 74 75

SCHARBERT, Das "Wir", 320; LORETZ, Psalmstudien, 418. SCHARBERT, Das "Wir", 314-315.

24

Introduction

songs 147, 186, 193 and 195 are there transitions between the individual and the collective. Song 147 is particularly interesting, because it can be classified as a psalm of complaint.76 This prayer proceeds in the "I" form until line 26, where the "we" form suddenly appears: "Turn yourself again to us, O you Lord of Eternity". Perhaps the person who is praying identifies here with other afflicted Egyptians. This kind of transition between the individual and the community often occurs in the Old Testament. Assmann concludes that song 147 may depict the feelings of those Egyptians who resisted the religious reform of Achenaten.77 The first part of song 186 is in the "I" form, but from line 14 until the end of the song the first person plural dominates. This song is basically a kind of "psalm of confidence and trust" which refers to the experiences of wider groups of people. Song 193 also depicts a firm reliance on god, whose qualities are fulsomely described at the beginning of the song. On line 22 the "we" form occurs, immediately followed by the "I" form. Mankind is mentioned earlier on line 16 and thus the "we" may refer to that. Even in song 195 the "we" form occasionally has a central role (the song itself is quite long including more than 330 lines). In these collective sentences it seems likely that the poet wanted to include himself. Moreover, I should like to mention song 231. This is a song of praise to the king who has done so much for his country and people. In this song the "we" form occurs in lines 1, 14, 15 and 16.78 The king, for example, occupied Upper Egypt. In addition, the song contains a reference to future generations (educating children in line 15). Such references are also common in some biblical Psalms (cf. Ps 22:31-32; Ps 102:19, 29). Dating the Egyptian prayers is usually as arduous a task as dating the biblical Psalms. Some rough guidelines can nevertheless be drawn up. At least defining the 'Sitz im Leben' of Egyptian hymns and prayers is often easier than with regard to the biblical Psalms, because the place where texts were found usually reveals their function. For instance, the temple was the context for composing hymns.79 In Assmann's classification song 147 derives from the post-Amarna period, and songs 186, 193 and 195 also

76

ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 349. ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 596. 78 ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 479 480. 79 ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 6 - 7 . It is worth noting in this connection that the "I" uttered by the priest in the cult did not mean the priest himself but the Pharaoh, for whom the priest was reciting the prayer. Instead in grave hymns the "I" occurs more frequently than in cultic hymns. In individual prayers the boundary between praising formulae and "I" sayings is not strict. Therefore ASSMANN argues: "Dagegen wird in den Individualgebeten die Grenze zwischen Lob und Selbstbezug systematisch verwischt". ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 20. 77

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation

of Methods

25

date back to the same era. The origin of song 231 is in the Middle Kingdom.80 Transitions between the individual and the community are rather infrequent in Egyptian sources, but even more astounding is the result we obtain by analysing ancient Mesopotamian texts. The "we" form is exceptionally rare in Sumerian and Akkadian sources, as Scharbert has noted.81 Even in the laments caused by the destruction of the city (socalled BALAG laments) collective elements are absent. It is usually a deity who prays and complains as an individual "I". The "I" form also dominates Mesopotamian confessions of sin and this "I" is in most cases the king.82 "We" occasionally occurs in Babylonian love lyrics but in these cases it simply means the relationship between a man and a woman - not any collective emphases. The collective statements are also relatively uncommon in Hittite sources. Probably the "we" in these texts refers principally to the royal couple or to the king together with his predecessors rather than the whole people.83

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation of Methods The historical survey of research in the previous chapter has shown how scholars have evaluated the collective understanding of the Psalms in different decades. In this connection it is worth mentioning that there is no real consensus on the true nature of the collective interpretation. I have referred to Joachim Becker as a pioneer who has attempted to rehabilitate the collective view in a moderate manner. In my own research I shall follow the path opened by Becker. Therefore I shall concentrate on analysing a number of Psalms that may include collective features, particularly indications of collectively oriented redaction(s). Sometimes collective allusions are explicit, while in other cases collective references are not so self-evident. I shall try to reach a sound conclusion on the question whether collective reinterpretation has ever existed, and if so, 80

ASSMANN, Ägyptische Hymnen, 2 4 - 2 5 . SCHARBERT, Das "Wir", 316. On the other hand, according to EMMENDÖRFFER (Gott, 37), the transition from an individual prayer to the collective lament of the whole people is noticeable in Sumerian prayers. RUPPERT (Klagelieder, 115-118) argues that it is typical of Akkadian complaints that the person who prays introduces himself by name. The cause for complaint is in Akkadian texts often depicted in a very generalized manner (the cause can be either physical or mental). 82 "Immer spricht ein Sünder nur von seinen ganz persönlichen Verfehlungen." SCHARBERT, Das "Wir", 317. 83 SCHARBERT, Das "Wir", 317-320. 81

26

Introduction

then to what extent? This topic has unfortunately been neglected in recent Psalm research, because no monographs have been dedicated to it. An essential question at the outset relates to the selection of the Psalm material which I intend to analyse. Oriental examples from Mesopotamian and Egyptian sources do not contain remarkable parallel material shedding light on the relationship between individual and community. However, significant parallel texts for collective psalms in the Old Testament are in particular the ¡"HIT m r songs of Deutero-Isaiah, Lamentations and the nomistic redaction of the Deuteronomistic History (DtrN), which contains a strong national emphasis. I shall analyse the specific features of these extent texts in the main chapter 2. When selecting psalms for study, I have partly followed the guidelines set by Joachim Becker84 and Fredrik Lindstrom85. Their lists of collective references in the Psalms differ at some points. Both of these lists, of course, provide an important background and starting-point for my own research, though I do not entirely agree on every point. Against Lindstrom, I have to say that I am not at all convinced that a single word like DU in the middle of a sentence could be a collective addition, particularly if metrical considerations do not support such a view. We must be cautious and avoid too straightforward a manner of applying exegetical methods. Not all the collective features may derive from collective redaction. Those psalms which include collective features and traces of reworking can be divided into three main categories, as I shall demonstrate in the present study. Firstly, we can speak of a collective reinterpretation of an older psalm which is caused by editorial additions. There are several psalms in the Psalter that in their ultimate or sometimes first verses contain strong national allusions. Usually the basic text of these psalms ("the core") was an individual complaint psalm. Complaint offered an excellent opportunity and context for collective interpretations, because the people of Israel were able to find in such texts a language and terminology to depict its own state of affairs. Certainly collective additions occur in other genres, too. For instance, the royal psalms and hymns were also the object of the redactor's interest. To this category, where editorial activity is confined to a few framing verses, I assign the following Psalms: Pss 3,14, 25, 28, 29, 30, 34, 51, 73, 84, 125, 129, 130, 131 and 148. 84

BECKER, Deutung, 569-578. LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 291-292. It is also worth reminding that lists of passages containing secondary collective features had been written long time before studies of BECKER and LINDSTRÖM. Let me only refer to such 'classical' scholars as BAUMGARTNER (Klagegedichte, 82), MOWINCKEL (Psalmenstudien I, 160-167) and GUNKEL (Psalmen, 14-15). In fact, the passages which GUNKEL mentions are chiefly the same as in my study. A list of secondary collective psalm passages can also be found in SPIECKERMANN, Heilsgegenwart, 160. 85

3. The A im of This Study and Presentation

of Methods

27

Secondly, there are some psalms which contain much wider collective supplements than the psalms mentioned above. This is especially obvious when we look at Psalms 22, 69 and 102. These psalms were fundamental for Becker in his first study on the topic. Thirdly, there is a group of Psalms which do not necessarily contain collective additions but instead were composed from the very beginning from a national point of view, though the language used in the poems may be grammatically singular. In this category I count Psalms 2, 89 and 132. Here some remarks have to be made in order to avoid confusions: As I shall later indicate, neither Ps 2 nor Ps 89 is a uniform text, but as regards Ps 2 the nature of the psalm was emphatically communal and collective even before the secondary additions were attached. The oldest layer in Ps 89 consists of the hymn at the beginning of the psalm, but the work of the redactors has been so massive that they have practically created a completely new psalm which they have joined with the hymn. Therefore it is slightly inappropriate to speak of collective supplements concerning Ps 89. The main part of this psalm was composed from a national point of view. In essence, the collective (re)interpretation of Psalms deals with providing a new horizon for older traditions, as I have already stated. Among the historical books of the Old Testament such a phenomenon has been an axiom for a long time (cf. for instance, the different layers of the Deuteronomistic History, and furthermore the redactional activity that the Chronicler focused on the Deuteronomistic History; he completely rewrote the history of Israel). In a classic and monumental presentation of Old Testament theology Gerhard von Rad takes as his starting-point separate and originally independent traditions that were later joined together, thus creating an enormous theological narrative (examples: the stories of the Patriarchs, the exodus, miraculous salvation at the Reed Sea, God's manifestation at Sinai, the occupation of the land of Canaan).86 Besides the historical books, von Rad also investigated traditions and their reinterpretation in the prophetical books of the Old Testament (the second volume of his Old Testament Theology). Unfortunately, von Rad did not analyse the reworking process of the poetic books with the same profundity. For my own topic it is relevant to consider the dating of the Psalms. This is usually regarded as an extremely difficult task. In fact, it is possible to see very polarized estimates of the age of one and the same psalm by 86 "Die treibende Kraft hinter diesem Riesenwerk war der Glaube, daß alle Überlieferungen, so fern und so isoliert sie einmal gewesen sein mochten, von Israel handelten und deshalb Israel angehörten; denn dieses mit solchem Fleiß erstellte Geschichtsbild ist durchaus gesamtisraelitisch orientiert." VON RAD, Theologie I, 8 2 83.

28

Introduction

different scholars.87 Often the only thing we are able to suggest is mere guesswork. In my opinion, by analysing the vocabulary we can achieve rough accuracy with regard to the date of the Psalms. At least we should be able to estimate whether the text is pre-exilic, exilic or post-exilic. In this vocabulary analysis it is essential to choose specific words (too common expressions do not usually advance the study) and then use concordances to search for other occurrences of these words in the Old Testament. If we are able to find plenty of connections with Old Testament books that are easier to date than a single psalm, we have reached a framework for the origin of a particular psalm. For instance, Psalm 51 contains several technical terms that refer to cultic purification. Elsewhere in the Psalter such vocabulary is very rare indeed.88 By contrast to the Psalter, these expressions are commonplace in the Priestly Code, and to a certain extent in the book of Ezekiel, too. These specific terms are not encountered in pre-exilic literature, and on this basis we may confidently conclude that Ps 51 was probably composed after the exile. In some of the psalms under investigation it is possible to recognize very late linguistic features, like the striking Aramaisms in Ps 2. Such peculiarities point irresistibly to a late origin. It seems to me that the question of dating a single psalm is too often incorrectly framed, because the presupposition is wrong. A particular psalm was not composed at any precise moment, rather it is the product of a long process involving numerous reworkings. Thus it may contain material from different centuries. Anneli Aejmelaeus has concentrated on this topic in her study The Traditional Prayer in the Psalms. In this study Aejmelaeus analyses the vocabulary of the Psalms and tries to distinguish between a possible pre-exilic core and secondary material.89 The traditional methods of historical-critical exegesis (textual criticism, literary criticism, form criticism and redaction criticism) have preserved their steadfast position despite such recent trends as structuralist exegesis, psychological exegesis, semiotic exegesis and the reader-response criticism.90 My own study, too, is constructed on the basis of the 87

As an illuminating example I could mention Psalm 89, where scholarly opinions concerning the age of the psalm differ by almost one thousand years! An early date was fervently supported by G.W. AHLSTRÖM, who regarded this Psalm as a Jebusite liturgy which was later adapted by the Israelites and reworked according to their theological intentions. Another extreme was represented by B. DUHM, who favoured dating this Psalm to the reign of Alexander Jannaeus. This debate and other suggestions are evaluated by VEIJOLA (Verheißung, 14-18). 88 AEJMELAEUS, Traditional, 23. 89 AEJMELAEUS, Traditional, 14. I shall return to this subject later in chapter II.4. 90 On these new attempts, see STECK, Exegese, 21-25. Many of the recent methods have encountered rejection among the scholars who are mostly interested in historical questions. Nevertheless, at least the so-called "reader-response criticism" (in German

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation of Methods

29

traditional methodological canon. Textual criticism is useful when it reveals corrupt passages in the Hebrew text. This is particularly evident in the latter part of Ps 22. Quite recently Eugene Ulrich wrote an article where he heavily attacked the primacy that scholars still easily give to the Masoretic Text. Ulrich complains that on the basis of the MT scholars have had an impression of what the biblical text was supposed to look like and thus all the deviating forms have been accused of being vulgar manuscripts.91 Ulrich's sharp scholarship: "Rezeptionsasthetik") has gained popularity among scholars in different countries. According to the methodological presentation by J. BARTON, the readerresponse criticism aims at filling the gaps in the text and thus allows the reader to find greater coherence. This method does not attempt at reconstructing the original text as the biblical author would have had it in his mind, but it helps the present reader to understand the text. In fact, the whole approach concentrates more on the reader and his mental process and the act of understanding than on the text itself. In every written text not only in biblical texts - there are some gaps between episodes and passages. These transitions the reader has to supply with different assumptions which serve the coherence of the narrative. This process of understanding the text is always culturally determined. How to fill the gaps in the text depends on one's cultural background. The supporters of reader-response criticism admit that their approach does not represent the absolute truth but that they are aware of these limits whereas the traditional historical methods and their users are criticized: "All interpretations of texts are 'readings', not the final word on the subject. Reader-response critics at least acknowledge this, whereas traditional interpreters have deluded themselves into thinking that correct answers exist, if we could only find them. Thus reader-response interpretation provides the only sorts of readings that are really possible anyway, whereas critics seeking 'objective' interpretations have failed to grasp what criticism is capable of, let alone what specific interpretations it can deliver." BARTON, Reading, 216-217. See also KORTNER, Leser, 88-136. All these new approaches can offer tools for interpreting the text, but I do not believe that these fresh methods could ever replace traditional exegetical methods. When I accept the Psalms as texts which contain several editorial layers and additions from different periods - which is the most plausible conclusion on the basis of numerous observations in the texts themselves - I cannot build my study on the synchronic approach. Nor can I fill the gaps in the text in my single mind as a reader and leave the historical background intact. I have to choose the diachronic approach and try to go beyond the texts and discover the original core and later reworkings and try to find out who the people were who reinterpreted older traditions. It is obvious that our sources are limited and at some points the scholarly opinions vary quite a lot, but this is not an obstacle for the historicalcritical research. No one possesses the absolute truth, but with the aid of historical methods our overall picture of the life and religion of Ancient Israel sharpens all the time. Therefore I do not see any eligible alternatives for historical methods. 91

ULRICH, Focus, 3. With the aid of several textual examples ULRICH demonstrates that it is in fact the MT which in many cases provides us with a secondary reading. The more original reading is in these cases preserved either in LXX, in the Samaritan Pentateuch (SP) or in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Finally, ULRICH (Focus, 13) comes to the conclusion that "the MT was not the standard text of the biblical books or collection in the Second Temple period, but simply one of the available text forms".

30

Introduction

criticism is to some degree justified: The primacy of the MT should not be taken for granted. It is plausible that occasionally the early versions or the manuscripts from Qumran have preserved a more reliable reading. However, we should never underestimate the significance of the MT either. In most cases it is still the textual form that transmits to us the most sensible reading. When the Psalms are concerned the value of the MT is further confirmed by the fact that the Hebrew Vorlage which the Greek translator used was very close to the form that we have in the MT. This is indicated by the rather slavish (or literal) translation technique that the translator of the Psalter used. 92 When researching the collective interpretation of the Psalms, the scholar is frequently faced with the question, whether a verse or part of it, is secondary in relation to the rest of the material. Therefore literary critical analysis is required. The most typical literary-critical criteria, such as repetitions and stylistic or lexical divergences, are commonplace in Psalm research. The simplest way to recognize stylistic divergences is to observe irregularity in an acrostic poem (cf. Ps 25). Because the Psalms are poetry, it is essential to pay attention to the metre and prosody of the Psalms. Unfortunately, our knowledge of the metrical principles of ancient Hebrew poetry is rather vague. There have been some ambitious attempts to solve this problem. In past decades scholars mainly supported either the model of E. Sievers or the model of S. Mowinckel. Sievers was of the opinion that the poetic "foot" consists of both tonic and atonic syllables. The tonic syllable is, according to this model, equal to the stress on a single word. As a consequence, scholars who have used this model have reached results such as 3+3, 3+2, etc. These are rather frequent in Psalm commentaries published a few decades ago. 93 Mowinckel's model has not been as successful. He thought that Hebrew poetry was based on regular alternation of tonic and atonic syllables. The basic problem in both of these traditional attempts to define ancient Hebrew prosody is the ambiguity of the models. These models suffer in practice from remarkable subjectivity. Verses can be accentuated in several ways because none of these models is sufficiently exact. It is interesting to note that scholars who analyse the same text may draw completely different metrical conclusions, though both follow, for 92 As regards the translation technique in different biblical books, see SOLLAMO, Renderings, 280-289. In a later article SOLLAMO has returned to this subject especially concerning the translation technique of the Greek Psalter. There she, with the aid of a new view point (repetition of possessive pronouns in the Greek translation), confirms the earlier conclusion: "The Psalms translator was very slavish indeed". SOLLAMO, Repetition, 53. 93 See SEYBOLD, Poetik, 102.

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation

of Methods

31

instance, Sievers's model.94 Alonso Schokel refers briefly to some other attempts that try to shed light on metrical problems. One of the most interesting theories he mentions is the model devised by D. N. Freedman and M. Dahood. It is based on counting the syllables of the verses or parts of verses, and the aim is to reach a symmetrical number of syllables, because the basic assumption is as follows: Hebrew metre is made up by a similar number of syllables in a series of verses. Alonso Schokel justifiably criticizes this model, stating that the occurrence of symmetrical verses is more accidental than fundamental in Hebrew poetry.95 To this observation I should like to add that we should be cautious about all theories that build on the structure of syllables, because it is not evident how ancient Israelites divided the words into syllables. Therefore, all our attempts in this regard are responsive to subjectivity. It is always worth bearing in mind that the vocalization of Hebrew texts was a long and complex process,96 therefore we cannot be sure that the vowel qualities of preserved manuscripts or modern critical editions really represent the way in which psalms were pronounced at the time when they were written. This has inevitable consequences for attempts to analyse the prosody of ancient Hebrew. However, Dahood and Freedman were clearly on the right track: counting is the correct way to reach sustainable results, but not counting the syllables - instead counting the consonants in each colon leads to an objective and consequently reliable outcome. This method, called either stichometry or colometry was devised by Oswald Loretz on the basis of a study of Ugaritic poetry.97 The number of consonants seems to be rather standard in cola. If there are remarkable divergences from the average we may assume that either the text is corrupt or there are hints of redactional activity. The number of consonants in each cola is greater in Hebrew poetry than in Ugaritic because of the use of matres lectionis letters. Loretz suggests that on average there are 10-16 consonants in a normal Hebrew colon.98 This argument can be confirmed by analysing the 94 ALONSO SCHOKEL himself favours SIEVERS's theory, though he admits the typical problems in attempting to discover an ancient Hebrew pronunciation and accent. See ALONSO SCHOKEL, Manual, 39. 95 ALONSO SCHOKEL, Manual, 46. See also SEYBOLD, Poetik, 102-106. 96 HARVIAINEN (Reduction, 171-172) has dealt with these questions when analysing the phenomenon called 'vowel reduction' in Hebrew. He concludes that vowel reduction in Hebrew is caused by the influence of Aramaic, but even in Aramaic the reduction of very short vowels to shewa and to zero began to occur during the first centuries of the Common Era. Consequently, it is likely that the first traces of a parallel development took place in Palestinian Jewish reading traditions of Biblical Hebrew in the fifth century. As HARVIAINEN mentions, this is exactly the period when Jerome wrote his works and transcriptions. 97 See, for instance, LORETZ, Analyse, 265-269. 98 LORETZ, KOTTSIEPER, Colometry, 49.

32

Introduction

different Psalm texts in detail. It ought to be remembered that drawing conclusions on the basis of counting the consonants can never be mechanical work. The number of consonants is not alone decisive, but we need to pay attention to other stylistic features too, above all the parallelistic structure is essential when poetical texts are in question. The most common literary unit in Hebrew poetry is the bicolon. Sometimes there are even tricola or isolated monocola. Larger units than a tricolon are extremely rare in the Hebrew Bible, though such structures as tetracola occur in Ugaritic poetry. Furthermore, tricola are rather frequent in Ugaritic texts." Form criticism is a principal method for studying the Psalms. It is particularly important to define the genre ("Gattung") of the Psalm and its socio-cultural setting ("Sitz im Leben"). In his classic commentary Gunkel assigned psalms to different categories, and this division is still valid, though some modifications may have taken place. Nowadays disputes over the genres of psalms are not frequent, because most of these classifications are so self-evident. It seems arbitrary to reject such categories as individual complaint psalms or hymns and replace them with some other definitions. Here we can justifiably talk of sustainable results. Unfortunately, the same is not true when we look at the theories concerning the Sitz im Leben of Psalms. It was a dominant view a few decades ago that all the psalms were somehow connected with the cult. This view was supported by Gunkel, though he was cautious in his attitude towards too far-reaching cultic assumptions. Gunkel's successors Weiser and Kraus favoured cultic explanations, and in fact devised theories of ancient Israelite religious feasts.100 Such views became extremely overheated in the so-called cult-mythological school, where various cultic explanations of the religious practices of the ancient Israelites were developed.101 Nowadays it is frequently asked whether there might have 99 LORETZ, KOTTSIEPER, Colometry, 37. 100 WEISER (Psalmen, 2 2 - 2 3 ) assumes an ancient feast of the covenant celebrated by the tribes of Israel. KRAUS (Theologie, 139-140, 145-147) criticizes WEISER's theory, but instead he demonstrates his own hypothesis concerning the royal Zion feast, which would have served as the Sitz im Leben for at least Ps 132. 101

One of the most famous examples of the cult-mythological school was MOWINCKEL's hypothesis of the annual enthronement of Yahweh that was celebrated in Israel, and this feast would have been the Sitz im Leben for several royal psalms and hymns. On the reception and discussion of MOWINCKEL's theory, see KRAUS, Geschichte, 4 6 0 - 4 6 7 . MOWINCKEL's assumption has been widely rejected, but recently LORETZ has rehabilitated it to some extent. LORETZ introduces a new concept to the discussion. He states that in many psalms we may face an altered Sitz im Leben. This is obvious in the enthronement psalms in particular. We have to distinguish between a pre-exilic and post-exilic Sitz im Leben in psalms that include material from different centuries. The weakness of MOWINCKEL's theory is chiefly his opinion that the

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation

of Methods

33

been religious Hebrew poetry that was independent of cultic practices.102 Is it necessary to presume a kind of cultic setting for all the psalm texts? To avoid unnecessary confusions, I should here clarify what I mean in this study when referring to the concept of cult. 'Cult' is definitely an equivocal term, because it can denote so many practices. My starting-point is that the term 'cult' comprises public - often sacrificial - worship that was closely related to the temple of Jerusalem. In this sense neither private meditation nor prayers of an individual are a cultic act. On the other hand, however, it is meaningful to ask, whether the Hebrew religious poetry ever had any 'Sitz im Leben' outside the sphere of the temple. In the Oriental thought the temple was understood as the dwelling-place of the deity and the temple represented the whole cosmos in a minor scale. God was simply present in his sanctuary.103 Literacy was certainly a rare skill in ancient Israel, and thus it is consistent to think that most of the educated people were somehow related to the temple. The temple might have been the place of origin for several poems, but this does not necessarily mean that all those poems were composed for cultic purposes. In the religious life of Israel there were even groups and movements consisting of educated people, but without any close bonds to the temple. The Deuteronomistic movement is a good example of this phenomenon. When the emphases on the Torah and elements of wisdom theology became more and more significant in psalm poetry, the psalms simply grew out from the traditional cultic context, in which the cult had mainly consisted of public liturgy and sacrifices. It is also noteworthy that the Jewish Diaspora enthronement psalms were uniform texts. Therefore MOWINCKEL assumed only one Sitz im Leben. LORETZ, Ugarit-Texte, 450, 492. LORETZ's own conclusion is that the pre-exilic feast of Yahweh's enthronement developed after the exile into the celebration of Yahweh's eternal kingship. LORETZ, Ugarit-Texte, 206. Consequently, collective supplements that were added to an original individual psalm have caused an altered Sitz im Leben. The text was no longer the prayer of a single person but had become a national prayer. SPIECKERMANN is sceptical of the traditional form-critical way of detecting the 'original' Sitz im Leben. In his opinion, such an attempt is Utopian. Furthermore, SPIECKERMANN (Psalmen und Psalter, 145) emphasizes that in psalm exegesis, too, both diachronic and synchronic approaches must achieve a certain balance. 102 ZENGER (Psalmenauslegung, 397) agrees with N. FÜGLISTER on this point, and ZENGER considers the Psalter mainly a book of prayer and meditation. Thus he abandons the traditional scholarly opinion that the Psalter was above all a hymnbook of the second temple in Jerusalem. There are several other scholars who also emphasize the role of the late psalms and the final Psalter as a book of meditation and devotion without direct cultic connections, for instance: STOLZ, Psalmen, 18-29; LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 358; WILSON, Shaping, 72; NÖMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 444 and JANOWSKI, "Verstehst du", 173. 103 A S S M A N N (Ägypten, 3 5 - 5 0 ) elucidates the importance of the temple in ancient Egyptian religion and culture. JANOWSKI (Frucht, 2 4 - 3 1 ) shares A S S M A N N ' s views and applies them to the Hebrew context.

34

Introduction

probably affected the contents of several late psalms. The geographical distance between the Diaspora and Jerusalem had the consequence that far away from the temple the scribes took the role of the priests.104 To put it briefly: Obviously many psalms were used as worship music in both the first and the second temple of Jerusalem. But it is also obvious that the Psalter includes many psalms that have more likely belonged to private meditation rather than to the established cult. Therefore it is not justified to define the whole Psalter as "the hymn book of the Second temple". Redaction criticism is an essential tool for analysing the nature of additional elements and the theological conviction beyond these supplements. 105 Without exaggeration it is possible to state that during their long history all the biblical books have been the object of reworking by a single redactor or group of redactors. Tracing the work of redactors is especially important when the collective understanding of psalms is the focus of attention. Naturally, the literary-critical observations form the starting-point. An important parallel study for my topic was produced by the Estonian scholar Urmas Nommik. 106 He has analysed the redaction of piety ("Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen") in numerous psalms. Nommik concentrates particularly on such expressions as Dpns, DTEh and D1Ton. Nommik assumes that these words in a couple of psalms are the result of a late redaction. Nommik defends his thesis creditably with the aid of colometry, lexical analysis (evaluation of parallels) and the support of traditional exegetical methods. 107 Nommik's conclusions are significant: Reinterpretation of Psalms in the light of D ^ T i theology has taken place predominantly in three different ways. Firstly, a couple of psalms have faced an extent redaction, and in such cases the additions are longer than just one verse. Examples of this phenomenon mentioned by Nommik are the following passages: Ps 31:18-19, 24-25; Ps 32:10-11; Ps 68:3-4; Ps 75:5-6, 11; Ps 97:10-12. Secondly, in some psalms the redaction is confined to a concise addition, examples being Ps 7:10a; Ps 104:35a; Ps 146:9b. Thirdly, there are psalms that were originally composed from a pious point of view. Nommik considers Psalms 1, 11, 58 and 125 to be

104

SPIECKERMANN, Hymnen, 157. KAISER (Methoden, 27) gives the following definition of redaction-criticism: "Das literarkritische Ergebnis wird nun Gegenstand der Redaktionskritik. Sie stellt fest, ob der vorliegende Abschnitt nicht überhaupt erst das Werk eines Redaktors und also ein Kompositprodukt ist. Sie bemüht sich weiter, die Tendenzen der Bearbeitungsstufen zu ermitteln und sie zeitlich einzuordnen." 106 In fact, NÖMMIK's study is based upon an earlier article, Das Gebetbuch der Gerechten (1993) by C. LEVIN. NÖMMIK confirms many of LEVIN'S suggestions. 107 "Sinnvoll durch die klassischen Methoden der Exegese ergänzt, erweist sich die Kolometrie als überaus leistungsfähig." NÖMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 527. 105

3. The Aim of This Study and Presentation of Methods

35

such compositions.108 Psalm 1 is exceptional because it was intentionally composed to be the opening chapter of an extensive collection of poetry. Thus the first psalm belongs, according to Nommik's conclusion, in the same redactional layer as •''pHS supplements in Pss 68, 104 and 146.109 Nommik's observations show that the redaction of piety functioned on the same principles as the suggested collective reinterpretation of the Psalms. The breadth of redaction varies in different psalms - this is a common feature of both the piety redaction and the collective redaction. The time is finally ripe to admit that the Psalms do have a long and complex history. This opinion has unfortunately been ignored in several Psalm commentaries published during recent decades.110 Redaction of single psalms seems to have continued until the final redaction of the whole Psalter. The psalms investigated by Nommik belong to all five books of the Psalter, and, moreover, it is interesting to note that different psalm genres are represented among his research material.111 A precisely similar phenomenon can be perceived when the collectively interpreted psalms are in question. It is interesting that the redaction of piety concerned psalms of different genres and contents. In any case, due to redactorial additions they have all obtained a new dimension. The composition of Psalm 1 as the introduction of the Psalter gives pious emphasis to the whole collection of psalms and 108 NOMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 526. NOMMIK excludes Psalms 34 and 37 from his redaction-critical observation, though these Psalms contain piety themes. The reason for this decision lies in the poetical structure of these Psalms, they are namely acrostics - which is a late feature - and naturally the acrostic poems are regarded as literarily uniform texts without redactional additions. See also LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 379. This definition cannot be followed mechanically, because there are some editorial elements even in acrostic poems, let me refer to Psalms 25 and 34, where the last verses do not fit the otherwise regular structure. 109 NOMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 512, 517. Many other scholars are currently of the opinion that Ps 1 does not have an earlier independent history but was composed as an introduction to the whole collection when the Psalter was about to reach its final form. LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 359; WILSON, Shaping, 74. 110 NOMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 520. 111 In SMEND's categorization Psalms 7 and 31 belong to the genre of individual complaint psalms; Ps 58 is a national lament; Ps 32 a psalm of thanksgiving. Psalms 68, 97, 104 and 146 in NOMMIK'S material represent hymns. Psalm 11 is a psalm of confidence ("Vertrauenslied"), and Ps 125 is among the pilgrim songs. SMEND, Entstehung, 196-200; cf. NOMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 521. Psalm 75, which NOMMIK has analysed, is not included in SMEND's classification, probably because there is no consensus among scholars concerning the precise genre of this psalm. WEISER, for instance, admits certain affinities between Ps 75 and the thanksgiving song of Hannah (1 Sam 2:1-10), but he immediately rejects the idea that Ps 75 could be a song of thanksgiving. As concerns the genre of Ps 75, WEISER (Psalmen, 355) only says that it might be an extract from a cult liturgy.

36

Introduction

to their message. In this connection it is relevant to ask, what the criteria were on the basis of which the redactors selected their material. As Nommik states, none of the five books of the Psalter were the object of systematic redaction of piety; rather, single psalms were chosen here and there. The same is true of my own starting-point: Collective redaction seems to concentrate on single psalms that are scattered around the Psalter. It is noteworthy that the psalms analysed by Nommik are mainly different texts from the psalms I shall be studying. But it is still throughout my study fruitful to try to find out possible connections between piety redaction and collective redaction. There are at least a few psalms where both theological emphases seem to coexist (e.g. Pss 25; 89 and 148). Whatever the actual relationship between these theological approaches has been, the redactional work in both quarters followed the same principles and took place at approximately the same time. Because the growth process of the Psalter was both long and complex, Nommik assumes that piety redaction and the redaction of the different books of the Psalter would have supplemented each other reciprocally.112 To sum up, it is interesting to inquire as to the main theological ideas of the redactors. Which biblical books or traditions offer connections with and affinities to their opinions? This was a crucial question in Nommik's study and it will be as essential for my own research, too. Especially in chapter III of this present study I shall concentrate on the extent and nature of collective redaction.

112

NOMMIK, Gerechtigkeitsbearbeitungen, 520-522.

I. Collective Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic Texts 1. The Composition of Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 40-55) Historical-critical research has long ago acknowledged that chapters 40-55 of the book of Isaiah contain the proclamation of an unknown prophet from the period of the Babylonian exile. In fact, the message of this anonymous prophet, who is traditionally called Second / Deutero-Isaiah, is one of those rare Old Testament scriptures which can be dated with remarkable certainty. At least scholars thought so a couple of decades ago. Rudolf Smend places the texts of Deutero-Isaiah between 546 and 539 B.C.E. A fixed point in this model is the triumph of the Persian king Cyrus in the Near East and Asia Minor in that period.1 Smend aptly assumes that the authentic texts of Deutero-Isaiah originated slightly before the destruction of Babylon, because the course of actual history did not entirely correspond to the predictions uttered by Deutero-Isaiah. Cyrus represented - at least to some degree - tolerance towards foreign religions and therefore he probably did not destroy the gods of Babylon (as is anticipated in Isa 46:l-2). 2 Instead Cyrus expressed respect for these gods and received his power from their hand. The so-called Cyrus cylinder written in Akkadian mentions that the main god of Babylon, Marduk, rejoiced in the deeds of Cyrus. Cyrus ordered this cylinder to be inscribed after his victory over Babylon in 539 B.C.E.3 1

SMEND, Entstehung, 151-152. KAISER, Grundriß II, 4 9 - 5 4 , dates the basic form (Grundschicht) of Deutero-Isaiah to between 5 4 6 - 5 3 8 B.C.E. KAISER also mentions that the texts of DtJes were later reworked and supplemented. However, as a historical starting-point, we may maintain the facts that in 546 B.C.E. Cyrus defeated the kingdom of Lydia, and in 539 B.C.E. the time was ripe for the destruction of Babylon, which Deutero-Isaiah had so fervently anticipated. DONNER, Geschichte, 400. 2 The religious politics of the Persians were not solely tolerant and thus 'modern', as has traditionally been assumed by scholars. There are examples of incidents when the Persians annihilated the temples of their enemies. This action derived from the assumption that a nation was weakened when its gods were left without an abode. Such nations were no longer capable of rebelling. SCHAPER, Priester, 130-131. 3 DONNER, Geschichte, 424. The text of the cylinder shows unambiguously Cyrus's respectful attitude towards Babylonian divinities. LAATO, Servant, 65-67, has analysed

38

I. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

The place of origin of Deutero-Isaiah's composition is not easy to determine. Of course, the traditional view regards Babylon as the environment where the composition was created because the anonymous prophet himself lived there. Recently this assumption has been significantly challenged by scholars who favour Jerusalem as the place of origin.4 With weak evidence even some other areas have been suggested, such as Egypt and Lebanon.5 In this connection we need to ask a fundamental question concerning the origin of exilic literature. The upper class of Judah and the most learned section of the population were taken into exile, and so what kind of capacity did the rest of the people who stayed in Palestine have for composing major literary works? I shall return to this question later. Deutero-Isaiah's own message, which points to a new exodus event, seems to be most understandable among the exiles. On the basis of these arguments I consider it most likely that the basic structure of the composition of Deutero-Isaiah was created in Babylon, where the prophet himself was active. But I have to add that it is also very likely that these texts were later edited and reworked several times, as the following historical survey of research demonstrates. This work by redactors might have happened after the exile in Palestine, probably in Jerusalem.6 1.1 The Origin of the Servant Songs Deutero-Isaiah's most important parallel material for the collective interpretation of the Psalms are the songs relating to the mysterious Servant of Yahweh (mm 12V). There are four Servant Songs in total: Isa 42:1-4; 49:1-6; 50:4-9 and 52:13-53:12. 7 In the course of the history of linguistic and ideological affinities between the Cyrus cylinder and the composition of Deutero-Isaiah. 4 According to BALTZER, Deutero-Jesaja, 50, the composition of Deutero-Isaiah probably originated in Jerusalem. This is confirmed by the cardinal points mentioned in Isa 49:12. 5 SMEND, Entstehung, 152; KAISER, Grundriß II, 56. 6 For instance, KORPEL, Coping, 90, is of the opinion that Deutero-Isaiah preached among the exiles in Babylonia, but his message was equally directed to the Jews in Palestine. GRABBE, "The Exile", 96, supposes that the composition of Deutero-Isaiah might have been completed during the reign of the Persian king Xerxes; thus it would be contemporary with the events related in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. 7 The 'father' of modern research on the Servant Songs was undoubtedly B. DUHM. His commentary on the book of Isaiah, published in 1892, inaugurated a new era in scholarship, and the special character of these songs became widely acknowledged. HAAG, Gottesknecht, 101-105. The number of songs and their limits in the manner in which I support them is already established in critical scholarship. Of course, there are divergent opinions, but I do not see it necessary to discuss them here; for further information on these rather less supported views, look at the instructive research

1. The Composition of Deutero-Isaiah

(Isa 40-55)

39

research these puzzling songs have been the object of intense dispute. Basic problems are connected with both the composition of the songs and the question as to the identity of the anonymous Servant. First of all, we have to ask whether these Servant Songs date back to Deutero-Isaiah himself or whether he cited an older tradition to which he gives a new utterance and content. Or do these songs derive from another person who lived after the prophet and edited his message?8 Another essential question is: who is this mysterious Servant of Yahweh? Answers to these questions represent either individual or collective understanding. I shall return to this issue in the next chapter. In this connection it is unnecessary to make a detailed analysis concerning the authorship of the Servant Songs, because for Psalm research the question of the identity of the Servant is much more relevant. Nevertheless, it is useful to pause for a while and ponder the origin of the Servant Songs in order to make it possible to draw conclusions about the theological emphases of the period in which the Servant Songs originated. For instance, is it possible that the Servant Songs represent post-exilic collective theology? After detailed analysis van Oorschot concludes that in addition to the basic stratum there are as many as seven redactional strata in the composition of Deutero-Isaiah. The Servant Songs would also be part of historical study by HAAG, especially HAAG, Gottesknecht, 4-8. One thing worth mentioning is KAISER's limits for the Servant Songs in his classic study Der königliche Knecht (1959), because these limits differ from later scholarly opinion. For instance, in 1959 KAISER was of the opinion that the first song included Isa 42:1-9 and the third song Isa 50:4-11. Furthermore, KAISER divided the first song into sequences so that in v. 1—4 the servant is introduced, in v. 5 - 7 the call of the servant is depicted and finally in v. 8 - 9 Israel will be the witness of God's forthcoming action. KAISER, Knecht, 18-44. R. G. KRATZ, Kyros, 128-129, emphasizes instead a clear distinction between Isa 42:14 on the one hand and Isa 42:5-7 on the other hand. According to KRATZ's argumentation, the author of Isa 42:5-7 has been willing to give a new interpretation (reinterpretation) to the preceding verses 1-4. This new interpretation would identify the servant with King Cyrus. KRATZ, Kyros, 141. VAN OORSCHOT, Babel, 182, also shares the same opinion as KRATZ. 8 KRATZ, Kyros, 145, strongly favours the explanation that the Servant Songs were originally an independent collection that was later added to the composition of DeuteroIsaiah. HAAG, Gottesknecht, 15-24, deals with the problems of authorship in his history of research. HAAG's conclusion is especially instructive, because it shows at a single glance all the relevant attempts that have been made to explain the origin of the Servant Songs. These attempts can be classified in five categories: 1) The songs are older than Deutero-Isaiah's own text and Deutero-Isaiah himself quoted these songs. 2) The songs were composed by Deutero-Isaiah and he attached them to his other oracles. 3) The songs derive from Deutero-Isaiah but were placed in their present context by later redactors. 4) The songs were composed by a person who lived after Deutero-Isaiah and this same person attached the songs to the composition of Deutero-Isaiah. 5) The songs were composed after Deutero-Isaiah and later redactors attached them to their present context.

40

I. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

the redaction. 9 But not all the four songs represent the same redactional layer. According to van Oorschot, the first and second Servant Songs would belong to the second stage of redaction, to which the fourth song was later added. By contrast, the third song would be a part of the fourth redactional layer, which emphasizes both Zion theology and the theology of the 'word'. 10 On the other hand, R. G. Kratz distinguishes between five different strata: the basic text of Deutero-Isaiah, the Zion layer, the Cyrus supplement layer, the idol layer and the ^soBr "inr layer. Originally independent Ebed Yahweh songs were, according to Kratz, added to the whole composition at the same stage as the Cyrus supplement stratum. 11 I can justifiably state that in modern research the focus has transferred to the interpretation that the Ebed Yahweh songs do not date back to Deutero-Isaiah himself but were added to his prophetic message by later redactors. This collection of four songs was probably originally an independent corpus, but about their more detailed origins we have no knowledge. It is simply inaccessible using our methods. On the other hand, we ought to bear it in mind that there are still some scholars who constantly emphasize both the linguistic and stylistic uniformity of the composition of Deutero-Isaiah. In their opinion, it is useless to attempt to peel back strata of different ages. For instance, in 1983 Tryggve N. D. Mettinger provocatively wished "a farewell to the Servant Songs" (this is precisely the title of his book). He argued that there are no sufficient reasons for regarding the Servant Songs as distinct from the rest of the material in the composition of Deutero-Isaiah. 12 Mettinger's views are supported and further developed by Antti Laato, who has drawn attention to a number of exquisite stylistic features in Deutero-Isaiah. One of these

9 For example, Isa 42:2-3a seems to contradict Isa 43:17, which belongs to the basic stratum of Deutero-Isaiah s proclamation. The mn1 ~n3 songs lack all references to the destruction of hostile nations. VAN OORSCHOT, Babel, 179. 10 VAN OORSCHOT, Babel, 188-196. See also KAISER, Knecht, 53-54. 11 KRATZ's central conclusions are briefly presented in KAISER's introduction, KAISER, Knecht, 53. As concerns the composition of Deutero-Isaiah, ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 292-299, favours a model according to which the present work comprised two editions. The first edition (DtjesE 1 ) included Isa 40:1-5, 9-52:12; the second edition (DtjesE 2 ) would have contained Isa 40:6-8 and chapters 54-55 in their entirety. The first three Servant Songs were part of the first edition, but the redactor quoted them elsewhere. The first redaction originated ultimately in 521 B.C.E., because this stratum apparently does not know the activity of Zerubbabel that began the following year. Though Deutero-Isaiah and his disciples were active in Babylonia, the actual prophetic book might have been finished in Jerusalem among those prophetic circles that had returned from the exile. 12 METTINGER, Farewell, 45-46.

1. The Composition of Deutero-Isaiah

(Isa 40-55)

41

features is chiastic structure within large textual units.13 Usually the existence of such a sophisticated structure presupposes that the textual material derive from one and the same author, because as a consequence of redaction the inner coherence of the text is so badly corrupted that the chiastic structure and other stylistic features are damaged. In any case, Laato's hypothesis is not convincing enough and the discussion will continue. Probably both Mettinger's and Laato's (implicitly) uttered farewell has been premature.14 1.2 The Identity of the Servant The question concerning the identity of the enigmatic Servant has for long been a real crux interpretum. There are two main alternatives: "QU either refers to a particular person (for instance Cyrus or Deutero-Isaiah himself; in the latter case we may speak of an autobiographical interpretation) or it refers to the people of Israel. Baltzer has recently suggested that the Servant refers to Moses. 15 Not only have Christian scholars endeavoured to elucidate the identity of the Servant but Jewish commentators, too, have eagerly discussed this issue. It is possible that even within the Old Testament itself Trito-Isaiah (Isa 56-66) is occasionally the earliest commentary on the Servant Songs. 16 Targum Jonathan underlines the messianic interpretation of the Servant Songs. Far-reaching conclusions are hampered by the fact that we do not

13 LAATO, Servant, 12-13. Laato also deals in particular with the rhetoric structure of Deutero-Isaiah, see LAATO, Servant, 196-216. 14 HERMISSON is strongly of the opinion that this farewell is all too premature. However, HERMISSON, Abschied, 215, expresses his thanks to METTINGER for many good insights and details; nevertheless he considers M E T T I N G E R ' s view of the composition of Deutero-Isaiah unsatisfactory. 15 BALTZER, Deutero-Jesaja, 45-47, aptly states that the Servant of the Servant Songs is a suffering pious person. He is a kind of model with whom both an individual and a group can easily identify. This flexibility is strengthened by the anonymous character of the Servant. Nevertheless, BALTZER himself strongly favours the individual interpretation and regards Moses as the enigmatic Servant. Such a conclusion was earlier reached in certain rabbinic writings. In the Servant Songs BALTZER notices several references to the Torah. According to him, this feature makes the connection between the Servant and Moses even more likely. B A L T Z E R ' s solution is certainly interesting and Deutero-Isaiah contains several references to the exodus; that is indisputable. Deutero-Isaiah faced a new exodus: this time the people had to leave not Egypt but Babylonia. But it is not convincing enough that the Servant should be identified with Moses. The references in that direction are not sufficiently explicit. 16 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 35.

42

I. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

know exactly when Targum Jonathan was composed.17 In Targum Jonathan the first and fourth Servant Songs in particular are given a messianic understanding; the second and third songs refer mainly to the prophet himself. In Hellenistic Judaism the first and second songs are usually understood collectively. As regards the third song, it is difficult to make any exact evaluation because the source material is so varied. In Hellenistic circles the fourth song seems to have been understood mainly as referring to the prophet Deutero-Isaiah himself.18 The Qumran texts have not notably shed any new light on the study of the Servant Songs, because no commentaries (•"HE'S) on these songs have been found. 19 Already before the Middle Ages the collective understanding of the Servant Songs became the most popular within Judaism. In medieval Jewish commentaries (for example the works of Saadya Gaon, Rashi, Ibn Ezra, David Qimhi) the collective Israel interpretation of the Songs completely displaced the messianic interpretation that was still dominant in the Targums. This is particularly evident concerning the fourth Song.20 On the Christian side J. Eichhorn supported a collective understanding of the Servant Songs in his pioneering introduction to the Old Testament, which was published at the end of the eighteenth century.21 It is indisputable that the support which the Hebrew text itself gives unambiguously favours the collective view. There is quite a revealing sentence in the second Servant Song: "You are my servant, Israel, in you I will manifest my glory." (Isa 49:3). The same verse in Hebrew is as follows: -iN3nx •^riBK ^iOfcr HFiir^iiy p1? lat^i). Attempts to interpret 17 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 3 6 - 4 1 . It is interesting to note that when Targum Jonathan explains the fourth Servant Song, it stresses the role of the Servant as a teacher of the Law; see A D N A , Gottesknecht, 1 4 4 - 1 4 5 . 18 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 47. 19 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 47. It is noteworthy that the word 'Israel' does not occur at all in Qumranic Hodayot poetry, which is in fact a reminiscence of the biblical Psalms. Rather, in Hodayot texts the person who prays is always an individual 'I'. Nevertheless, the Sitz im Leben of Hodayot prayers was likely to have been in the cultic life of the Qumran community. LOHFINK, Lobgesange, 38. In Hodayot poetry the verb rna is a common and popular expression. In biblical Hebrew it often refers to Israel's redemption from slavery in Egypt. For the members of the Qumran community contemporary Israel was like a new Egypt from which the pious had to redeem themselves (for example 1QH 2:31-36). LOHFINK, Lobgesange, 61. 20 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 54-58; S. SCHREINER, Jes 53, 184-195. Isaak ben Avraham, who lived in the sixteenth century, also interpreted the Servant of the fourth Song as the suffering people of Israel in the exile. See S. SCHREINER, Jes 53, 170. After the horrors of the Holocaust it has become more and more general in modern Jewish exegesis to regard the people of Israel as the Suffering Servant of Yahweh. HAAG, Gottesknecht, 63. 21 HAAG, Gottesknecht, 96.

1. The Composition

of Deutero-Isaiah

(Isa

40-55)

43

the Hebrew word as a gloss are unconvincing, as Lohfink demonstrated thirty years ago. 22 Manuscript material does not support deleting this word; only one medieval Masoretic manuscript does not contain the word "Israel", but this is very weak evidence. Neither stylistic nor metrical reasons speak in favour of deletion. This argument receives further support when the textual unit Isa 49:1-6 is observed colometrically. When Lohfink wrote his instructive article, the colometrical method was still under development and therefore he could not use it, but I shall here attempt to give a colometric analysis of these verses in order to support the authenticity of the word "Israel" in its present context. D^R 'ÎUQB pinna DiaK'? a1»'?.'!]

11 17

lesa mir -pan ^as •'yap

13 15

Isa 49.2.1. Isa 49.2.2.

rnn Din? ^ oto»! ••^••nnn ÍT ' m

13 13

Isa 49.2.3. Isa 49.2.4.

-i-ra ^ÈPI ^TFion InstfRH

14 13

Isa 49.3.1. Isa 49.3.2.

"isans ^nai'K bortón

14 15

Isa 49.4.1. Isa 49.4.2.

•»Fiar pn1? •'finas ^ r i •'n^D •'ifs ^ani -ín'n1?

18 16

Isa 49.4.3. Isa 49.4.4.

nrp-nx "'tpats'a TT f r»1î c mV Ti^ua-i • N S

14 12

Isa 49.5.1. Isa 49.5.2.

i1?

iiyï

HIT nos nmn içsa •nií'1

11 14

r1?« ïpir inte'1? ^DN1. ^ÎOÊH

13 12

Isa 49.1.1. Isa 49.1.2. Isa 49.1.3. Isa 49.1.4.

Isa 49.5.3. Isa 49.5.4.

intí

T

22 LOHFINK, "Israel", 217-228. BALTZER, Deutero-Jesaja, 390-391, also argues that the name "Israel" in Isa 49:3 is an original part of the verse, but he understands the context as polemical. The divine promise was already given to Moses, long before David. On the other hand, SMEND, in his Introduction, surprisingly favours an individual interpretation of this passage. In his opinion, the word "Israel" in Isa 49:3 is a collectivizing addition. SMEND, Entstehung, 154. SMEND's argument is inconsistent, because elsewhere in the material of Deutero-Isaiah (excluding the Servant Songs) he interprets the Servant as the people of Israel. Why should the Servant Songs be an exception?

44

I. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Isa 49.5.5. Isa 49.5.6.

HIT 'TWa -Q3«l '1ï m 'irtsi

14 11

Isa 49.6.1. Isa 49.6.2. Isa 49.6.3.

-Qir ^ ^ntna [-ics'ij23 3'piT "mtf-nîj; D'pn1? ^¿'n1? 'PtOÉr "H^f 4

14 15 15

Isa 49.6.4. Isa 49.6.5.

oMa liKb ^ n r a jnxn n r ^ n ? ^nijw] nrn1?

14 20

* *H

TT

-

Texts

[19]

The verses above chiefly consist of bicola. Only in v. 6 there are some variations. Verse 6a forms the so-called secondary tricolon, which is composed of a monocolon and a bicolon. On the other hand, v. 6b may be a prose addition. If we removed as a gloss the word ^iOST in verse 3, the ratio of the consonants would be 14+10 and thus the length of the latter hemistich would be clearly below the average that predominates in this unit. Therefore removing the word "Israel" would only mean weakening the metre. Because of these criteria I agree with those scholars who emphasize the authenticity of the word "Israel". In this connection there is no need for literary critical solutions. It is also important to add that all the early versions include the word "Israel". In fact, the early versions - especially the Septuagint - even broaden the interpretational horizon towards collective understanding. At the beginning of the first Servant Song (Isa 42:1) the translator of the Septuagint added the collectivizing words 'Jacob' and 'Israel', which do not occur in the corresponding verse in the Masoretic text. Of course, it is possible that the Greek translator had in front of him a Hebrew text that differed from the later Masoretic tradition, but we might also assume that the early translators were not only mechanical translators but also theologians who introduced their own emphases into the text they were translating. We shall return to this subject when analysing some curious psalms. Isa 42:1 according to the Masoretic text: Isa 42.1.1. ferions 'TIB "P Isa 42.1.2. ^a? nnsn n m

12 13

Isa 42.1.3. Isa 42.1.4.

12 14

T^B 'lin wi] K'SÏ' tria1? taatfa

Isa 42:1 according to the Septuagint: 23

This word is in its context unnecessary and clumsy; it also makes the metrical structure too crowded. Therefore I regard it as a gloss. 24 Here I have corrected the text of Codex Petropolitanus as suggested in the apparatus of BHS.

1. The Composition of Deuter o-Isaiah (Isa 40-55) 42.1.1. 42.1.2. 42.1.3. 42.1.4.

45

laKcofi o TTcfis you, avTiArin^oM 011 a u x o u . loparjA o ekAektos |iOU, TTpoaeSe^aTO a u x o v i] ^"X 1 ! M o u . e'ScoKa t o ttveumcx pou ett' a u x o v , Kpioiv To"lS E0VEOIV E^OIOEI.

Adding the words apir and ^K-©1 would damage the colometry of the Hebrew text; therefore it is a sound conclusion that these collective expressions represent the theology of the Greek translator. In the Syriac Bible, the Peshitta, the names 'Jacob' and 'Israel' are not mentioned in this connection, as we may note for the sake of comparison. Here is Isa 42:1 in the Syriac version: 42.1.1. 42.1.2. 42.1.3. 42.1.4.

,.i-i\\ rCoo

K'saaiaA.

nas.l

The word pair "Jacob and Israel" often occurs in the Psalter, too; what is noteworthy is its frequency in the Psalms of Asaph, as Klaus Seybold has noted.25 The discourse about Israel as the Servant of Yahweh continues in intertestamentary literature (cf. PsSol 17:21)26 and the New Testament (Luke 1:54).27 25 SEYBOLD, Asaph-Psalmen, 147. KAISER, Knecht, 50-52, too, has analysed the word pair 'Jacob and Israel' as they exist in Deutero-Isaiah. KAISER thinks that a kind of sacral tradition lies behind these words. 26 The Psalms of Solomon was probably composed in Palestine between 60-30 B.C.E. and the original language was Hebrew, though the work is preserved in Greek translation. MAIBERGER, Verständnis, 105. WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 130-140, too, deals with the origin and genre of the Psalms of Solomon. According to WASCHKE, PsSol 17 is a lament. This chapter continues a similar Davidic theology as 2 Sam 7 and Ps 89, though there is no direct quotation of these texts in PsSol 17. 27 The verbal forms in the Magnificat (the thanksgiving song of Mary in Luke 1:46 55) are aorists, referring to the past, though modern Bible translations favour present or even future forms in this connection. It is possible to assume here a kind of gnomic aorist, which is not confined to a specific period of time, but this assumption is unlikely. I agree with LOHFINK, who thinks that the Magnificat contain allusions to the history of Israel (verse 54 would above all refer to the release of Israel from the Babylonian exile). God's earlier acts of salvation would thus reach their eschatological culmination in the life of the humble maiden Mary. Hence, the national emphasis is very strong in the Magnificat. LOHFINK, Lobgesänge, 17-22. Scholars have actively discussed the origin of these Lucan Psalms (in addition to the Magnificat there are a few other psalms, see Luke 1:68-79; 2:14 and 2:29-32). It is striking that the Magnificat contains no specifically Christian ideas. As J. D. G. DUNN states, this poem is typically hebraic, both in character and in content. The same is true of the other psalms of the opening chapters of Luke. DUNN's conclusion is noteworthy: "These are all hymns which sprang directly from the soil of pious Judaism; a distinctively Hellenistic influence is wholly absent. In two of the four there is not even anything distinctively Christian - that is, they

46

I. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

It is noteworthy that the title "servant" is used several times by DeuteroIsaiah, even outside the Servant Songs. In many such occurrences the Servant refers to Jacob or Israel. Such passages are, for example, Isa 41:89; 43:1; 44:1-2; 44:21-22; 45:4 and 48:20. Even if the complex redactioncritical reconstruction by Kratz is followed, it is plausible that the later redactor who was responsible for the specific Servant Songs saw the idea of "servant Israel" as already existing in Deutero-Isaiah. Thus it was easy for him to adopt these earlier Israel prophecies and develop them further. This point of view increases the probability of the collective interpretation of the Servant Songs. Outside the Servant Songs the Servant is only occasionally someone other than Jacob/Israel. According to Janowski, the Servant in Isa 43:10 and Isa 44:26 may have been the prophet himself. 28 What is the reason that scholars do not agree on identifying the Servant with the people of Israel? Collective understanding seems to have been a solid interpretation throughout the centuries, long before Rudolf Smend Senior and his successors brought the collective interpretation to Psalm research. I think that there are two basic problems as to why scholars have not unanimously accepted a collective understanding of the Servant Songs. Firstly, the language used in the Servant Songs is grammatically singular and very individualistic. Another more remarkable problem lies in the fact that the Servant clearly receives from God the missionary task to be a light to the nations and to gather Israel and bring back the survivors of Israel. In other words, from the collective point of view the people of Israel would receive from God a salvific task which applies to the people of Israel. This may certainly sound schizophrenic, but probably the contradiction is not as great as it may seem at first glance. It is possible that Deutero-Isaiah (or a later redactor if the Servant Songs are secondary in their present context) considered the Israel released from the exile to have a missionary task towards the rest of Israel which still lived in Palestine.29 This point of view rejoice that the Messiah has already come, but the Messiah remains unidentified. Whatever their ultimate origin and derivation, Luke has almost certainly drawn them from the living worship of the earliest congregations. In other words, they are the psalms of the early Palestinian communities, which reached their present form in a period when there were not yet any 'Christians', only Jews who believed that the Messiah had come." D U N N , Unity, 133. Furthermore, HENGEL, Wirkungsgeschichte, 90-91, has noted the influence of the collectively understood Servant Songs in some later parts o f the Old Testament (Dan 11-12) and in the Apocrypha (Wisd 2:12-20). 28 JANOWSKI, Stellvertretung, 75-76. 29 KAISER emphasizes the role of Israel as a substitute sufferer on behalf of other nations. This is evident particularly when he interprets the fourth Servant Song: "Was Israel jetzt noch leidet, erduldet es zum Heile der Welt." KAISER, Knecht, 129. LAATO, Servant, 140-142, on the other hand, ponders allegorical connections between Isa 5 2 : 1 3 53:12 and Ezek 37:1-14. The book of Ezra clearly gives the impression that the 'true Israel' is represented only by those circles who return from the exile. Those who had

1. The Composition of Deutero-lsaiah

(lsa 40-55)

47

seems to be fruitful, and in fact Laato develops the idea further when he distinguishes between the faithful Israel (= the servant of Yahweh) and the unfaithful Israel. The faithful Israel rises with the aid of King Cyrus to fulfil a new exodus and to carry out the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem.30 Many scholars aptly remark that the Davidic king does not play any role in the proclamation of Deutero-lsaiah, though his message is throughout orientated to the future. Instead of an earthly monarchy the main emphasis had been transferred to the relationship between Yahweh and the people of Israel.31 In addition to the purely individual or collective interpretations, some scholars have during the ongoing debate developed a kind of mixture of these two main alternatives. Then the starting-point is based on the assumption that the identity of the Servant is not the same in all the four Songs. Such mixed interpretations have so far not managed to convince the majority of scholars, but it is remarkable that Kaiser, in his Einleitung, remained in Palestine all the time were not 'the chosen ones'. This topic has recently been widely discussed, see BECKING, Re-enactment, 53; BECKING, Continuity 262, 270; PAKKALA, Monolatry, 236. 30 LAATO, Servant, 20-21. However, LAATO, Servant, 26, has to admit that the concept 'faithful Israel' is difficult to define more precisely. Generally speaking it may refer to a prophetic group which was responsible for the composition of lsa 40-55. Moreover, LAATO, Servant, 35, states that the term "nu does not mean the same group in lsa 42:1-9 and lsa 42:18-25. Thus LAATO refutes HERMISSON's criticism of the collective interpretation. LAATO has also analysed the tradition-history of Deuterolsaiah. He concludes that both stylistic and thematic features allude to Assyrian royal ideology and to the royal and messianic ideology of the Old Testament itself. LAATO makes hypothetic deductions concerning the older messianic texts or royal poems which might lie behind the Servant Songs. According to his theory, these earlier texts might have been descriptions of a messianic figure like King Josiah (Josiah as David redivivus). LAATO, Servant, 68, 224-228, 259. The basic problem in LAATO s theory is that he dates messianic expectations too early. Before the rise of apocalypticism we cannot with certainty speak about messianic hope in the religion of Israel. It is also problematic that LAATO deals with several books of the Old Testament as if they were of equal historical value. This is the point that VEIJOLA particularly criticizes; see VEIJOLA, Deuteronomismusforschung, 7-9. 31 KAISER, Knecht, 132; ALBERTZ, Religionsgeschichte, 444. Also VAN OORSCHOT regards the Servant of the Songs as Israel; it is Israel which is in exile. To this section of the people the hopeful promises for the future are given. "Der Ebed Israel leidet unter der ausbleibenden Heilswende und seiner untergeordneten Stellung in der Völkerwelt, und gerade ihm wird die Einsetzung zum Weltenherrscher verheißen." VAN OORSCHOT, Babel, 193-194. A collective Israel interpretation of the Servant Songs is further supported by at least the following scholars: ACKROYD, Exile, 136; BECKER, Deutung, 565-566; METTINGER, Farewell, 4 3 ^ 4 and WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 251. In his recent work ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 303, also firmly favours the collective interpretation: the Servant is Israel, though all the four songs depict Israel in different manners.

48

I. Collective Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

adopts a mixed interpretation.32 According to Kaiser, the Servant of the first and second Songs is Israel as a mediator of salvation given by Yahweh. The later fourth Song is an interpretation of the first and second Songs. The third Song (Isa 50:4-9) differs clearly from the other songs, and in Kaiser's opinion this song describes the Servant as an ideal prophet who excels even Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Kaiser regards the third song as the youngest and apparently assumes a literary dependence on the texts of Jeremiah and Ezekiel (for instance Isa 50:7 is akin to passages such as Jer 1:18 and Ezek 3:8-9). 33 Like Kaiser, H.-J. Hermisson also assumes that the Servant is not the same in all the four songs. Of course, Isa 49:3 clearly speaks in favour of a collective Servant, but according to Hermisson, we cannot hold the same view when we are dealing with the fourth song. The identity of the Servant is thus to be solved otherwise.34 Hermisson represents the view that Deutero-Isaiah speaks of two servants: Israel and the prophet himself. Both of them have their own task, but the prophet is a more active figure. The prophetic servant is a deputy of Israel, but not exactly its representative. Therefore it is not meaningful to speak of the concept "corporate personality" in this connection.35

32 KAISER, Grundriß II, 58-59. As early as 1959, when KAISER's detailed study of the Servant Songs was published, he excluded the identification of the Servant of the third Song with the people of Israel. KAISER, Knecht, 67-68. However, KAISER's arguments do not seem very convincing. 33 It is noteworthy that Isa 50:7 mentions 'flint' (B'1Ol7n) as a symbol of hardening the face. As a similar symbol 'flint' is used in Ezek 3:9, but in this passage another Hebrew equivalent is chosen ( i s ) . 34 HERMISSON, Abschied, 219-222. ALBERTZ also admits that the fourth Servant Song is a little isolated in its context. It is later than the first edition of Deutero-Isaiah, but it is, however, earlier than the second edition. This fourth song depicts Israel as a substitute sufferer. The second edition of Deutero-Isaiah belongs, according to ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 317-320, to the post-exilic period, around the year 500 B.C.E. 35 HERMISSON, Gottesknechtslied, 4, 18, 22-25. HERMISSON's theory of two servants is further supported by JANOWSKI, who makes a rather similar distinction. JANOWSKI, Sünden, 35; JANOWSKI, Stellvertretung, 74-77. JANOWSKI argues that the prophetic servant does have a special mission to bring the 'servant Israel' back to Yahweh. In JANOWSKI's opinion, the fourth song describes the mission of the prophet after his death. Altogether the distinction between different servants is central in JANOWSKI's model: "Außerhalb und innerhalb der EJL (Ebed-Jahwe-Lieder) treten demnach verschiedene Gottesknechte auf: außerhalb der EJL der Gottesknecht Jakob/Israel und der Gottesknecht 'Deuterojesaja', innerhalb der ersten drei EJL ein Gottesknecht, der mit dem prophetischen Knecht außerhalb der Lieder identisch ist." JANOWSKI, Stellvertretung, 77. According to KRATZ, Kyros, 216-217, the first and second songs have already within Deutero-Isaiah reached a secondary reinterpretation. The literary stratum which reinterpreted the Servant Songs ("WISP -on layer) would derive from the fifth century B.C.E., if KRATZ's analysis is plausible.

2. The Origin and 'Sitz im Leben ' of

Lamentations

49

The survey of various interpretations of the identity of the enigmatic Servant suggested by numerous scholars has probably raised more questions than provided explicit answers. One disputable issue is the genre of the Servant Songs, but we can pass over this topic here.36 Nevertheless, it has become evident that the national elements are emphatically on the foreground in the Servant Songs and even in the other sections of DeuteroIsaiah's composition, though the language that was used is often characteristically individual in its expressions. The Servant Songs indicate an elaborate combination of individual and collective features. The people of Israel receives a special status in this composition and this is a noteworthy observation that will have consequences below when I turn to analyse a number of psalms.

2. The Origin and 'Sitz im Leben' of Lamentations Another example of the collective features of exilic and post-exilic literature is the book of Lamentations. According to the dominant view, the origin of Lamentations is sought in the period of the exile. The old tradition concerning the prophet Jeremiah as the author of Lamentations derives from the Septuagint, because the translation of Lam 1:1 includes an extensive superscription with biographical information (this is an equivalent phenomenon to several psalms which mention biographical references to the life of David in their superscriptions). In the Septuagint Lam 1:1 is as follows: K a i e y s v E T o HETOI TO a i x M a X c o T i o 0 r | v a t TOV lopariÀ Kaî U p o u o a X r m Êprmco0?|vai SKaStaev I s p s u t a ç KÂaicov Kaî È0pilVTlO£V TOV 6pî|VOV TOÎLTOV ÊTTÎ lEpOUOaÂTlM.

The interpretation of the translator may have been influenced by information given in 2 Chr 35:25, where it is mentioned that Jeremiah composed a lament after King Josiah had died. Of course, it is obvious that an assumption concerning the authorship of Jeremiah is legendary when Lamentations is in focus.37 Lamentations expresses the mental stupefaction caused by the destruction of Jerusalem and furthermore these gloomy poems mourn the 36

For further reading, see HAAG, Gottesknecht, 2 7 - 3 3 . On these pages HAAG surveys the kinds of Gattung definitions that have been suggested over recent decades. 37 In critical research the first scholar to doubt the authorship o f Jeremiah was H. von der HARDT, in 1712. Nevertheless, he regarded Daniel, Daniel's three friends and King Jehoiachin as the authors (each would have composed one poem). See BERGES, Klagelieder, 34.

50

/. Collective Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic Texts

fact that a remarkable section of the people was taken into exile in a foreign land. It is worth mentioning that the book of Lamentations is textually an exceptionally well-preserved book in the Hebrew Bible. Only seldom is there a compelling need to make text critical emendations.38 The book of Lamentations includes five laments (one in each chapter). Several attempts have been made to clarify the mutual chronological relationship between these five poems. Even the question of the place of origin is not yet completely answered. The majority of scholars favour a Palestinian origin, but Babylonia, too, has been suggested more than once.39 In any case, a Palestinian origin is the most plausible. Though scholars are fairly unanimous about the region where these kind of laments were written, there is great disagreement concerning the age of the five poems. It is striking that even after detailed analyses scholars can reach exceedingly different - even contradictory - conclusions. While Emmendorffer is of the opinion that chapters 2 and 5 are the oldest in the collection, Millard states that the fifth chapter is the latest of all.40 For my 38 BOECKER, Klagelieder, 10. As is explicitly stated, Lamentations belongs to the genre of laments. The literary structure of this work is fine and well-planned, because it follows the pattern of acrostic poetry. The number of lines in each chapter corresponds to the number of Hebrew consonants (22); in chapter 3 there is the triple number 66. In the first and second chapters every third line begins with a letter which correlates to the order of the Hebrew alphabet; by contrast, in chapter 3 three lines in a row begin with the same letter. In chapter 4 every second line begins with a consonant which corresponds to the Hebrew order. Chapter 5 is not as clearly an acrostic poem, because the initials do not follow any alphabetical order, but the number of lines is also in this case 22, so there is a reminiscence of the Hebrew consonants in the background. 39 At least the following scholars support the idea that Lamentations was written in Palestine (many of them favour Jerusalem in particular): KRAUS, Klagelieder, 12-13 (though in KRAUS's opinion a Babylonian origin is not impossible); VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 82; BOECKER, Klagelieder, 14-15, 25; LEVIN, Verheißung, 34; KAISER, Grundriß III, 33; EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 42^13, 66; ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 129-130; BERGES, Klagelieder, 72. 40 MILLARD, Komposition, 104; EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 39, 66. KAISER has tried to date these laments by analysing the way in which the earlier traditions are reworked in them. In KAISER's opinion, the book of Lamentations does not contain eyewitness testimony, instead he places these laments in the category "Rollendichtung". According to KAISER, the chronological order of the chapters is 2, 1, 4, 5 and 3. The third chapter might be very late, KAISER speaks about the fourth century B.C.E. In the background of the third chapter KAISER reconstructs a situation where an eschatologically-minded pious minority faced disagreement with the anti-eschatological majority; see KAISER, Grundriß III, 32-33. ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 129-130, too, gives a detailed definition of the dating of the poems. The author of chapter 3 was, according to ALBERTZ, responsible for the final redaction of the whole work. FREVEL, Zier, 102103, is of the opinion that the chronological order of the chapters is 2, 1, 4, 3 and finally 5 which does not represent the similar compositional technique as the preceding chapters.

2. The Origin and 'Sitz im Leben' of

Lamentations

51

own purposes it suffices at this stage to state that the book of Lamentations represents exilic theology, though the latest parts and final redaction of the book may have been produced in the early post-exilic period. All five poems share the same style and poetic structure, but plausibly they are not the work of a single author, as Wilhelm Rudolph still believed.41 Nevertheless, all these laments very likely originated in the same circles, but the temporal distance between the oldest and the youngest parts may be several decades. Recently, Christoph Levin has strongly argued against the exilic background of Lamentations.42 One major point in his argumentation is the acrostic structure of Lamentations. Elsewhere in the Old Testament where this regular pattern occurs (e.g., Pss 9-10; 25; 34; 37; 111-112; 119; 145; Prov 31:10-31), we are undoubtedly dealing with very late texts. Could it then be possible that in the period quite close to the exile some poets were already capable of creating acrostic laments? This is a significant question. But the structure cannot be the only decisive criterion when assessing the origin of Lamentations. Even more essential is the content of the book. The terminology that Lamentations uses resembles remarkably the other biblical texts that express the depression because of the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile. The exilic catastrophe is understood in Lamentations as a consequence of the divine wrath (cf. Lam 1:12; 2:2-4, 6, 21-22; 4:11). The bitter question in Lam 5:22 refers to the conditions when the horrors of the exile were still somehow present. Also the awareness of one's own guilt as a contribution to the catastrophe comes forth in Lamentations (Lam 1:8, 14, 18, 20, 22; 2:14; 3:42; 4:6; 5:16).43 Though the memory of the national catastrophe was preserved and developed further in nascent Judaism, such a powerful description as Lamentations transmits to us could hardly have been composed centuries after the actual event.44 Lamentations includes many insights into the past, but it also orientates to the future. The new beginning is possible due to Yahweh's mercy. It is furthermore worth noting that Lam 4:21-22 with its

Chapter 5 might have an earlier independent existence, but as a part of the collection in Lamentations it is certainly a late insert. 41 R U D O L P H , Klagelieder, 193. RUDOLPH'S view is, however, supported by S M E N D , Entstehung, 220. 42 LEVIN, Klagelieder, 1 3 9 4 - 1 3 9 6 . 43 VEIJOLA, Klagegebet, 3 0 3 - 3 0 5 . See also the detailed list of the words and expressions that are common to Lamentations and Ps 89 in VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 5 4 55, 7 9 - 8 0 . Many o f these words include strong connections with the exilic experiences. 44 "Da die Threni so eng mit dem Durchleiden der Exilserlebnisse verbunden sind, wird man sie nicht all zu weit hinabdatieren können. Die Threni zeigen mit ihrem Konzept der Vergangenheitsbewältigung eine exilische Theologie, die in Thr. i-ii; iv- v noch recht nah an dem Untergang steht, in Thr. iii schon einen Schritt weiter zu sein scheint." L A B A H N , Trauern, 526 n. 42.

52

1. Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

impending words addressed to Edom greatly resembles the contents of the book of Obadiah. The people of Edom to some degree profited from the miserable exilic state of Judah, and therefore Lam 4:21-22 fits best into a context that is still close to the exilic events.45 One further observation deserves attention here. In Lam 2:6ba it is stated that Yahweh wiped out the memory of the time of feast and Sabbath (niiB'i ~iuin mrr nsss'). It is noteworthy that here the words mm and m » occur in the same context as is the case in Isa 1:13-14 and Hos 2:13. These verses of the prophetic books are pre-exilic, because they associate the Sabbath with the celebration of the full moon. This is indicated by the occurrence of raaf in the same connection with the new moon.46 The dominant view of the weekly Sabbath was a priestly creation from the post-exilic time that was secondarily projected to ancient times. It is more plausible that the word nattf in Lam 2:6 still reflects the older usage of the term, thus referring to the feast of the full moon 47 This perception should make the interpreters cautious, not dating Lam 2 too late. It seems unlikely that someone - for instance in the fourth century B.C.E. - could still have recalled the older meaning of nattf, when the concept of the Sabbath as the seventh day of the week had found a general acceptance. Therefore Lam 2:6ba is strong evidence for the exilic origin of the whole chapter. What could be the Sitz im Leben of Lamentations? In his commentary on Lamentations Kraus emphasizes a connection between Lamentations and Sumerian/Akkadian prayers. Especially the lament over the destruction of the temple in Ur resembles Lamentations. Therefore Kraus concludes that the specific genre (Gattung) of Lamentations is "a lament because of the destruction of the Jerusalem temple".48 This model has not gained support among other scholars, but has rather been the target of sharp criticism.49 There are no confessions of sin in the suggested Sumerian parallels, but such confessions are essential for Lamentations. Furthermore, it is not certain, as Kraus assumes, that mourning and penitence rituals were arranged in the ruins of the Jerusalem temple during the exile. It remains a pure hypothesis. Rather, it seems obvious that during the exile Mizpah and

45 This is also noted by FREVEL, Zier, 103, when he writes: "Vielmehr scheint sich wegen 4,2If. für das vierte Lied eine spätexilisch-frühnachexilische Datierung nahezulegen. Für das zweite Lied scheint mir eine exilische Datierung nach wie vor am plausibelsten." Concerning the position between Judah and Edom during the exile, see DONNER, Geschichte, 421. 46 VEIJOLA, Propheten, 249-251. 47 VEIJOLA, Propheten, 257. 48 KRAUS, Klagelieder, 9-10. 49 See, for instance, BOECKER, Klagelieder, 12.

2. The Origin and 'Sitz im Leben' of

Lamentations

53

Bethel inherited the position of Jerusalem as cultic centres, and it was in these towns that complaint rituals were arranged.50 The balanced literary structure of Lamentations shows that it was carefully composed. It is even possible that it was from the beginning a literary product intended for meditation without a specific cultic Sitz im Leben. Connections with ancient Sumerian poetry are a little suspicious because of the extremely great distance in time, but certainly we cannot exclude such connections out of hand. In fact, Sumerian laments over the destruction of cities (BALAG songs) were adapted and repeated until the era of the Seleucids.51 One typical feature of these BALAG laments is their generality, such poems being easy to adapt to similar situations. Temple and town are in focus in these Sumerian laments. The most interesting aspect for my own topic is the transposition in Sumerian BALAG texts from individual mournings to collective prayers of the whole nation.52 Nevertheless, the book of Lamentations represents Israel's national theology to such an extent that all comparisons with other writings from the ancient Orient remain approximate. It is already an impressive startingpoint that a complaining and weeping deity typical of oriental laments became in Israel personified Zion.53 2.1 Combination of Individual and Collective Features in Lamentations It is noteworthy for my topic that the collective emphasis is so apparent in Lamentations. Several passages include sudden variations from the first person singular to the first person plural and vice versa (the third person singular is also often used). The first chapter, too, contains such features. The poem begins in the third person singular and the textual unit consists of complaints about the miserable fate of Jerusalem. But in Lam 1:9c and l i b Zion herself speaks about the prevailing situation in the first person singular. In other words, Zion is personified as a single person, like a human being. Wider laments in the first person singular follow in Lam 1:12-16, 50

18-22.54

VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 189. EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 20; ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 124-128. 52 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 22, 37. 53 BERGES, Klagelieder, 50. As such Zion represents the fate of the whole nation. See also LABAHN, Trauern, 522. 54 KRAUS takes it for granted that in these verses the person depicted individually represents a collective quantity: "Die klagende Frau ist also nie eine in sich abgeschlossene Person, sondern stets eine darstellende Gestalt, die eine Gemeinschaft verkörpert." KRAUS, Klagelieder, 27. In fact, personification is a literary effect that is employed in Hebrew poetry elsewhere other than in Lamentations. ALONSO SCHÖKEL defines personification as being when an abstract quality acts like a human being, a person in society. ALONSO SCHÖKEL, Manual, 123-125, mentions several examples 51

54

I. Collective Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic Texts

In Lam 2 the third person dominates and Jerusalem is addressed in the second person singular in verses 13-17, but in Lam 2:20-22 the collective Zion complains again in an "I" speech (the first person singular occurs in an anticipatory way in Lam 2:11). 55 Interpretation becomes more difficult in Lam 3, because the third person point of view is altogether lacking. The main emphasis lies in the "I" lament (cf. Lam 3:1a "I am the man who has seen affliction" - ^sj n?o in an ^s), but there is clearly a communal lament in verses 40-47. This sudden change of person within a textual unit, which is otherwise stylistically uniform, speaks strongly enough in favour of the "lonely sufferer" of Lam 3 being the same as the plural group that speaks in verses 40-47. Individual and collective features are so completely intertwined that individual language may be used though it is in fact a whole community which is speaking. It is also noteworthy that in Lam 3:22 a plural verb form (-1300) is employed though otherwise the first person singular dominates the context. 56 Both Kraus and Boecker leave open the question of the identity of the suffering "man" in Lam 3. Kraus emphasizes that Lam 3 clearly belongs to the Gattung of individual complaints. In his opinion, it is not necessary to suppose here a collective person akin to the first and second chapters. 57 Likewise, Boecker rejects the idea of the existence of a collective "I" in Lam 3. Boecker argues that the masculine "I" (inan) cannot be identified with feminine Zion (cf. the feminine expression ^lrnzi in Lam 3:48) without problems. 58 of this phenomenon, for instance Ps 85:10-12, 14; Isa 58:8; Isa 59:14-15; the most intensive personification in biblical literature is undoubtedly the definition 'Lady W i s d o m ' in the book of Proverbs (Prov 8), noteworthy is also Ben Sira 24. Furthermore, it should be mentioned that the reign of death and the sea are also personified. 55 Also concerning Lam 2, KRAUS is convinced that the grammatically individual speech includes the whole community: "Das 'Individuum' umschließt die Gemeinschaft." KRAUS, Klagelieder, 43. 56 Some Septuagint manuscripts prefer in Lam 3 : 2 2 the singular rendering E £ E A E I T 7 E V HE. But it is noteworthy that Lam 3 : 2 2 - 2 4 was probably absent in the original text of the Septuagint, because it is not included in the most important manuscripts. The Greek text has been supplemented with the aid of catena manuscripts and Origen's recension. 57 KRAUS, Klagelieder, 50-52. 58 B O E C K E R , Klagelieder, 58-61. A collective understanding of Lam 3 is also rejected by H E L B E R G , Land, 380-381, in his article. ALBERTZ, Frömmigkeit, 1 8 3 186, interprets Lam 3 as mixing individual and collective features, but the ' I ' of Lam 3 is not a collective concept, in his opinion. A L B E R T Z imagines (like KRAUS earlier) an exilic lament ritual in which an individual person declared to the gathered cultic community how he had in his private life experienced G o d ' s mighty acts of salvation. Because this happened on a private level, hope and confidence had to be maintained on a national level, too. BERGES, Klagelieder, 182-184, is also of the opinion that connecting masculine ~a: with feminine Zion is not without its problems, but according to BERGES, Zion represents a kind of ideal congregation consisting of both men and

3. The Composition

of the Deuteronomistic

History

55

On the other hand, a remarkable number of scholars have been inclined to favour a collective interpretation of Lam 3. For those who are familiar with recent Psalm research it is no wonder that Joachim Becker strongly supports a collective view in his analysis of Lam 3.59 The Swedish scholar Fredrik Lindstrom also defends the justification of a collective interpretation in this connection - and with reliable arguments. He has namely paid attention to the inner coherence of Lam 3; the plural allusions here and there speak for the correct interpretation: the "I" represents a wider group of people.60 It is furthermore worthy of notice that the "suffering man" of Lam 3 is in Jewish tradition usually interpreted as the people of Israel.61 Lam 4 depicts events mainly in the third person, but the speaker is still a mysterious "I", as is evident in the suffixes in Lam 4:3, 6, 10 (in all these verses the expression "Syria occurs). Or then this expression ^ i r n a is a kind of respectful title for Zion (the structure resembles the typical expression in the book of Ezekiel for instance Ezek 2:1, 3, 6, 8 etc.). If we suppose that ^ i r n a is a title, then the suffix does not play any significant role. Nevertheless, the first person plural occurs in Lam 4:1720, which, according to Kraus, functions as a starting-point for a communal lament.62 Lamentations 4:21-22 is addressed to Edom and Zion in the second person singular. The fifth chapter is throughout a national lament in the "we" form. This concluding chapter shows clearly that collective complaint is dominant in the book of Lamentations and therefore even grammatically singular forms represent a collective message in this context.

3. The Composition of the Deuteronomistic History The vast Deuteronomistic History (Deuteronomy - 2 Kings) has been a constant object of redaction-critical research since Martin Noth's famous work Ùberlieferungsgeschichtliche Studien was first published in 1943. Noth's estimations of the origin and redaction of the historical work have women. On the other hand, Zion can correspondingly be addressed as a masculine person (observe the suffixes in Isa 51:12-16). 59 BECKER, Wege, 90. 60 "By the expression 'I am one who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath' in Lam 3:1, an individual is introduced who is apparently the same as the one we meet in the four surrounding poems in this Bible book, i.e., the people of Judah shortly after the catastrophic year of 587 BCE." LINDSTROM, Suffering, 292. 61 BERGES, Klagelieder, 181. 62 KRAUS, Klagelieder, 73, 75.

56

/ . Collective

Features in Exilic and Early Post-Exilic

Texts

as a result of scholarly debate broadened and become more detailed. In fact, Noth resisted the idea of a general 'Deuteronomistic redaction', instead supposing that only one 'Deuteronomist' was responsible for this enormous literary work.63 Nowadays, there are several opinions concerning the Deuteronomistic history; two main redaction theories are the model of the Gottingen school and the model of the Harvard school. Moreover, some scholars have recently made it questionable as to whether such a holistic historical work ever existed. It seems obvious that even in other biblical books we can trace many Dtr features and phraseology.64 I myself regard the model of the Gottingen school as the most plausible. An especially fruitful parallel for my topic is the national theology sustained by the nomistic redactor (DtrN). But at first it is fair briefly to outline other models, too. Doubts concerning the existence of the Deuteronomistic History have increased over the past ten years.65 For instance, both Claus Westermann and Ernst-Axel Knauf claim that the supposed Deuteronomistic History was defective because it did not include any narration of the exodus event, the most foundational episode in Israel's history.66 Westermann rejects the theory of DtrG for neglecting the significance of oral traditions. In his opinion, it is too one-sided an approach to concentrate solely on written documents as such.67 Westermann thinks that many features which are usually assigned to different redactors in fact derived from oral tradition. This is, of course, possible, but it is very difficult to verify. Westermann does not believe in an intentional large historical work, instead he prefers a model according 63 NOTH, Studien, 3-4. See also ALBERTZ, Intentionen, 258, 280. NOTH supposed that the 'Deuteronomist' was active after 560 B.C.E. in Palestine, somewhere in the region of Mizpah and Bethel. 64 For instance, the book of Jeremiah has been the target of a profound Dtr redaction. ALBERTZ, Religionsgeschichte, 390-397. On the Dtr influence on the Minor Prophets, see the historical survey of research in RÖMER, DE PURY, L'historiographie, 5 8 - 6 0 , 6 2 - 6 3 . For a brief survey of the most popular theories of the origin of the Deuteronomistic History, see ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 2 1 2 - 2 1 4 . However, ALBERTZ reminds us that it is by no means necessary that all the groups that used Dtr phraseology were part of the same movement: "Es ist kurzschlüssig, von der gemeinsamen dtr. Rhetorik auf eine einheitliche dtr. Bewegung oder Schule schließen zu wollen." ALBERTZ, Deuteronomisten, 285. 65 VEIJOLA has written an instructive historical survey of research about such attempts and evaluates each model critically, revealing the weaknesses in their argumentation; see VEIJOLA, Deuteronomismusforschung, 2 4 - 4 1 . 66 WESTERMANN, Geschichtsbücher, 11, 28, 37; KNAUF, Historiographie, 4 1 4 415. 67 WESTERMANN, Geschichtsbücher, 31-36. WESTERMANN's statement on page 34 is emphatic: "In der Diskussion um das DtrG war es ein grundlegender Fehler, daß man wie selbstverständlich allein von schriftlichen Traditionen ausging."

3. The Composition

of the Deuteronomistic

History

57

to which every single book within a supposed Deuteronomistic History was an independent unit and every book was composed separately.68 This view is very problematic indeed. What is the mutual relationship between different historical books, according to Westermann's hypothesis, if all these books were composed independently of each other? If Westermann's theory were true, we might expect that there would be several repetitions between the books, but this is not the case. One book continues seamlessly from the point where the previous book ends. This simple observation makes Westermann's solution highly questionable. Nevertheless, both Westermann and Knauf have paid attention to the linguistic discrepancy between different parts of the Deuteronomistic History.69 On this basis, too, they have tried to make the existence of the Deuteronomistic History questionable. But even this attack is easy to defend. A large literary work which contains material from different periods of time cannot be linguistically uniform. It is also clear that even the deuteronomistic redactors used earlier traditions and the language of these traditions, which undoubtedly differed from their own phraseology. The Dtr redactors modified the parts of the History in a different manner and with a different intensity. It has thus become obvious that the model represented by Westermann and Knauf does not constitute any serious threat to the theory of the Deuteronomistic History. Another attempt to solve the origin of the Deuteronomistic History using redaction-critical methods, beside that of the Gottingen school, was prompted by F. M. Cross (the so-called 'Harvard school'). Cross assumed 68 WESTERMANN, Geschichtsbücher, 78. Only in a few cases does WESTERMANN admit that there are so-called Deuteronomistic features in the Historical Books (1 Sam 12:1-25; 1 Kgs 9:1-9), but these elements are, in his opinion, rather marginal. WESTERMANN, Geschichtsbücher, 104-108. KNAUF, Historiographie, 4 1 7 418, thinks that Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges and 1 - 2 Samuel never belonged to the Deuteronomistic History, but that they are single books with different origins. KNAUF remarkably weakens his own argument when he is compelled to admit that there are several Deuteronomistic additions in the book of Judges (especially in chapters 9 and 1 7 21) and in the books of Samuel: 2 Sam 7 (a royalist editor) and 1 Sam 1-3, 7 - 8 , 12 (an anti-royalist editor). Ultimately, KNAUF regards only the books of Kings as a Deuteronomistic History. Furthermore, KNAUF insists that he has not found any Deuteronomistic psalms. Here I should like to mention that at least Psalms 89 and 132 include unambiguous Deuteronomistic features, as we shall see later in this study.

\ it is consequently most natural to assign the word f Hi* a meaning which refers to the realm of the dead, a kind of underworld (for instance, Dahood in his translation uses the expression 'the nether world'). 25 Elsewhere in the Old Testament j n s occurs with such a meaning at least in Exod 15:12. Grammatically the structure "H + "'35?''; is remarkable because it would be the only case in the Hebrew Old Testament when the little (and in Aramaic very common) word 'H occurs in a Hebrew text. This observation casts some shadow over Dahood's solution. It is better not to suppose too many obscure issues. Othmar KeelLeu aptly states that the arbitrary conjecture ^B1 only creates more difficulties than it actually solves.26 In those parts of the Old Testament which were originally written in Aramaic (Ezra 4:8-6:18, 7:12-26; Dan occurs a few times in instances that are 2:4-7:28) the combination 'H + closely akin to the structure of Ps 22:30 (Ezra 7:21, 23 referring to things; Ezra 7:26 and Dan 6:8 referring to a person). But on this basis it is questionable to draw conclusions concerning the Hebrew text. And we should bear it in mind that the Hebrew text of Ps 22:30a is quite well understandable as such. Therefore there is no need for conjectures. The word •'3^71 denoting 'the fat' fits the context and there is a kind of 23

According to VANONI, Psalm 22, 166, such an emendation is insufficient. It has also been suggested that the verb ^ds in such a context refers to an eschatological banquet; see SCHAPER, Eschatology, 51 n. 198. 24 DAHOOD, Psalms I, 143. KAISER, Gott III, 223 and SEYBOLD, Poetik, 189 support the view that ^¡sn should be replaced by as the apparatus in BHS suggests. 25 DAHOOD, Psalms I, 144. 26 KEEL-LEU, Psalm 22, 406^110. According to JANOWSKI, Konfliktgesprache, 353, the conjecture f i N is unnecessary.

1. Psalm 22

95

antithetic parallelism between 30aa and 30a(3 (mighty people and dying people). Both the end of v. 30 and the beginning of v. 31 are so badly damaged that the Masoretic Text is inappropriate for reading. Several conjectures have been suggested, but it is difficult to estimate which of them is closest to the actual truth. Regarding Ps 22:30b-31a I have mostly followed the reading of the Septuagint, which uses the first person singular. Despite all the attempts at emendation these passages give the impression that the unevenness in the text is caused by reworking.27 Verse 32: In the Hebrew text the subject of the verb n&u is to be deduced on the basis of the suffix in inpis. The Septuagint clarifies the matter and adds the subject to its translation: O T I ETTOI'TIOEU o Kupios. The expression ntoy can be understood as either present perfect or future perfect. 28 1.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 22

Colometric analysis reveals that Ps 22 consists mainly of bicola. In fact, I am of the opinion that the basic form of Ps 22 included only bicola. Those few verses that contain tricola (12, 16, 17) were originally bicola, but were edited at a later stage, and thus new material was added. Verse 27 is an exception, because it is probable that this verse was originally a tricolon: it served as a concluding exclamation at one stage of textual development. Verse 24, which looks like a tricolon on the basis of its lay-out in BHS, one can easily divide into two bicola, as I have done. In almost all the cases which in their present form represent a tricolon, it demands no effort to note that the third colon is usually very isolated, i.e. it does not coherently continue the thoughts expressed in the previous cola. In v. 12 it is plain that the latter 13 clause is secondary. The third cola of v. 16 and 17 are loose in their present context. Therefore Beaucamp has suggested that these cola were originally an independent bicolon (nso "'Dnats'n mtnsu 1 ?! ll 73~n i t ) after verse 14. In the course of textual transmission this bicolon was broken and consequently placed in the wrong order.29 This theory is noteworthy but is extremely difficult to verify. I think that there is even a serious syntactical problem in Beaucamp's model: How well do cola 16b and 17b match each other? I mean that 16b uses the imperfect, while 17b 27

LINDSTROM, Suffering, 73, is of the opinion that the latter part of v. 30 was originally a marginal note that in the course of time was integrated into the actual text. On the other hand, SCHAPER, Eschatology, 52, reminds us that as regards this passage there are only three differences between the Hebrew and Greek verses, two of them minor. Thus LXX witnesses here to a textual tradition that is close to the later Masoretic form. 28 IRSIGLER, Psalm 22, 207. 29 BEAUCAMP, Psautier I, 110.

96

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

probably uses the perfect, if we accept the required emendation. Also, the subject is different, because in 16b it is in the masculine second person singular while in 17b it is in the third person plural. In my opinion, such divergent features do not make good sense within one and the same bicolon, as Beaucamp supposes. The average number of consonants in cola is about 12.8 (I have not counted the superscription because it does not represent poetry). Clearly above this average are verses 2-3. Compared with each other, these verses are approximately of the same length but with the material which follows them they seem to be overloaded.30 But it is practically very difficult to remove something from verses 2-3 without making the whole sentence rather unsound. Therefore I have refrained from making textual emendations in these verses. There is certainly a need for emendations, but because their distinct nature is obscure, all efforts remain no more than guesswork. Accordingly, I have followed the Masoretic Text in my translation. The only "easier" solution concerning verses 2-3 would be to balance v. 3 by removing the vocative in'l7N.31 Thus a harmonious 15+15 metre would remain. But it is not convincing enough that the vocative in this case is secondary, because such a vocative is rather common at the beginning of individual complaint psalms. Anneli Aejmelaeus even considered this feature to be an essential element of traditional prayer, as we noted above in chapter II.4. It is remarkable that in verses 24-32 the number of consonants is occasionally rather uneven between the cola. This is particularly evident in v. 25, where the latter stichos of the first bicolon contains only seven consonants. V. 28a(3 is also quite short, because it contains nine consonants. This oscillation in v. 24-32 raises questions about the literary unity of these passages. I shall return to this question a little later. A significant observation is the looseness of v. 4-6 compared with both the preceding text and the text that follows. There are plural perfects in v. 5-6, but otherwise in the surrounding context the language is emphatically singular. In the colometric analysis v. 4-6 can be distinguished, because their consonantal average is lower than in the rest of the psalm. Naturally, the average remains the same despite the way in which we divide v. 4 into cola. On the basis of colometry it is justified to argue that v. 4-6 are probably a later addition to Ps 22.

30 LORETZ is suspicious if the number of consonants in colon is near twenty. See LORETZ, Analyse, 267-269; LORETZ, Psalmen II, 7 - 8 . 31 This is suggested by VANONI, Psalm 22, 173. There is no support for such a solution in the manuscript material or in the early versions, but by virtue of the metre it could be taken into consideration.

1. Psalm 22

97

1.3 Lexical Connections with Other Psalms and Other Old Testament Texts Until verse 22 Psalm 22 is marked by an impressive complaint which does have thematic affinity with several other individual complaint psalms, though exact parallels are not always possible to detect. The vocabulary of Ps 22 mostly contains ordinary terminology and therefore lexical analysis does not necessarily offer any clear help when trying to discover the possible date of origin of Ps 22. Though Ps 22 is a rather short textual unit within the enormous material of the Old Testament, this psalm contains a few hapax legomena. In v. 16 a grammatically dual word D^nipba means 'palate', while elsewhere in the Old Testament word "^n is used in this sense. Also, the term mag in Ps 22:25 is a hapax. Moreover, the verb "1123 occurs in the hip°il only in Ps 22:8. Some hints about dating Ps 22 may be offered by a couple of rare expressions which occur only in a few other biblical books besides Ps 22. First, we could mention the verb ^ (hip c il) which uses the preposition b besides in Ps 22:8 only in Neh 2:19. The same verb with the preposition occurs in Neh 3:33 and with the preposition 3 in 2 Chr 30:10. Furthermore, an1? (hip°il) is once found in Job 21:3. A common feature of all these parallel passages is their indisputably late post-exilic date.32 Verb "112 in the hithpacel occurs besides in Ps 22:15 only in the following passages: Ps 92:10; Job 4:11; Job 41:9. Even in this case the parallel material attests to a post-exilic origin. In Ps 22:15 there is also another rather rare word, a . As in Ps 22, it is also in its other biblical occurrences (Mic 1:4; Ps 68:3; Ps 97:5) used as a metaphor for melting. In this connection, however, the parallel passages do not offer firm support as regards the date because especially the origin of Ps 68 has for long been a matter of dispute. It is also worth mentioning the verb fpB' ipfel) in Ps 22:25, because elsewhere this verb has strong cultic connections (for instance, Lev 11:11, 13; Deut 7:26; furthermore, the expression 12>'3] fpffl occurs in Lev 11:43 and Lev 20:25). An interesting pair of concepts occurs in Ps 22:24 with the expressions 2pir mr^D and btofr 1 unr^D. These concepts appear only after the exile as the parallels elsewhere in the Old Testament undoubtedly show. The term ^K-®1 u IT occurs in 2 Kgs 17:20; Isa 45:25; Jer 23:8; Jer 31:36-37; Ezek 44:22; Neh 9:2 and 1 Chr 16:13. On the other hand, the expression npir in? can be found in Isa 45:19; Isa 65:9 and Ezek 20:5. The concept "seed of Abraham" (Isa 41:8; Jer 33:26 and Ps 105:6) is closely akin to these expressions. 32

SMEND, Entstehung, 202, 228.

98

III. Collective Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

Psalm 22:28 contains the phrase jntr i paic i 73. This utterance does have some parallels elsewhere in the Old Testament. O f these parallels, the most remarkable for my own topic are passages such as Ps 2:8; 1 Sam 2:10 and Isa 52:10. Every single one of these verses bears collective features. It is especially noteworthy that the latter part o f Ps 22 (v. 23-32) shares numerous lexical similarities with Pss 69 and 102. Firstly, Ps 22:23 uses similar terminology to Ps 69:31 and Ps 102:22. When we put all the three passages next to each other these affinities can easily be noticed. Ps 22:23

Ps 69:31 Ps 102:22

-pinx

bnp

-jinn tin 1 ?

-pef

macs

r m m l i r m i Tts'n •\~6tra2'' nbbnx D^eh-ra m^nni mm n ^ ' i v m

i.voi

A l l the three passages mention the name of God (00). Another common feature of Ps 22:23 and Ps 69:31 is the use of the verbal root bbrt. On the other hand, Ps 22:23 and Ps 102:22 share the root 130. In the background to these three passages there is a common theological idea, even a common theological 'school', but it is not necessary to assume literary dependence between these texts. The expression una v h "prion-«1?! in Ps 22:25 has close parallels in both Ps 69:18 (-paya -pa -inorr^Ki) and Ps 102:3 (-pja "inon-^ ^ao). For Ps 22:27 there is a very close parallel in Ps 69:33: Ps 22:27 Ps 69:33

"iii1?

'/7' v e f n mm thrv linfcn n ^ w t m ? DDDD^ '/7'7 DTl'jR

inO&P OVJIf ISO

The lexical affinity between these two passages further increases, because God's name, which is connected with the verb Bh"l, was probably in both psalms originally mm, but in Ps 69 this holy name is altered to the more neutral form DM1?«, because Ps 69 belongs to the so-called Elohistic Psalter (Pss 42-83). Psalm 22:31-32 has significant parallels in Ps 69:37, Ps 102:19 and Ps 102:29. These similarities are once again obvious when we look at the texts simultaneously: Ps 22:31-32 Ps 69:37 Ps 102:19 Ps 102:29

m'P •'Hi*'? "lao1 1312ST Wit nfcia ^ i1?!] nifr inpis i m n wa 1 ra-iBaf 1 îotf -ansi nfrnr vnv m - ^ m K-QJ Din inns mi ID 1 -p^a1? osrm

uide»'1

mn

nm anon jinir^i

1. Psalm 22

99

These passages share more than one of the following roots: mi, my, i n and •!?. It is also worthy of note that the nipcal participle nbi] in Ps 22:32 means the same as the nip°al participle K~Q] in Ps 102:19. Psalm 22:25 uses the verb TO, which has parallels in Ps 69:34 and in Ps 102:18. In conclusion, it may be stated that the linguistic connections between Pss 22, 69 and 102 are remarkable. This observation is of importance when we later pay more attention to the redaction undergone by these psalms. 1.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 22

Psalm 22 has received ambivalent evaluation by scholars. Some regard this psalm as a literary unity while others base their arguments on redaction theories. The defenders of its unity have been in particular Artur Weiser and Hans-Joachim Kraus. According to them, the apparent divergence in mood between v. 2-22/23 and 23/24-32 can be explained by oracular practice.33 But this explanation is no longer popular. Somehow both Weiser and Kraus were forced to support the oracle view, because they so eagerly defended the uniformity of Ps 22. Otherwise it would have been rather difficult to make any sense of such diverging emphases, as is evident in different parts of Ps 22. Of later exegetes, Peter Craigie criticizes scholars who have doubted the uniformity of Ps 22. In his opinion, this psalm forms in its present condition a harmonious entity, which speaks in favour of interior coherence. Craigie admits that Ps 22 is a mixture of different literary and poetic forms, but these elements of complaint and thanksgiving can be explained, in his opinion, on the basis of liturgical use. In a liturgy the person who prays has moved from complaint to prayer and finally to thanksgiving and praise. According to Craigie, the liturgical use may also explain shifts between individual and collective features. Craigie also defends the originality of the final doxology (v. 28-32). 34 In several commentaries on the Psalms published before World War II it was popular to assume that Ps 22 consists of two originally independent poems. The first one would have characteristically been a complaint and 33 WEISER, Psalmen, 148. In KRAUS s opinion, the Hebrew word WJa in 22bß reveals the existence of an oracle: "Durch ein einziges Wort erklärt der Sänger: Jahweh hat mich erhört". KRAUS, Psalmen, 329. Regarding the Gattung of Ps 22, KRAUS explicitly favours an individual complaint psalm and states that there are expressions of confidence in v. 4 - 6 and 10-12. He does not, however, make any literary- or redactioncritical conclusions concerning v. 4 - 6 . The deepest trouble of the psalmist, in the view of KRAUS, Psalmen, 324-326, is the absence of God and the fatal sickness caused by this absence. 34 CRAIGIE, Psalms, 197-201.

100

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

the second one a thanksgiving (this view is represented at least by Duhm, Cheyne and Schmidt). But recently Fredrik Lindstrom has made a remarkable observation that removes the solid ground from beneath such a hypothesis. In the section of thanksgiving (v. 24-32) there is no mention of a previous crisis situation. As a characteristic feature of individual thanksgiving psalms we may, in the light of the source material, consider references to previous troubles (for instance, Ps 66:16; Jon 2:3). Thus Lindstrom concludes that Ps 22:24-32 would not function as an independent individual thanksgiving psalm, instead it necessarily presupposes some other text as its background. Such a text might be, for instance, the individual complaint in v. 2-22. While Lindstrom abandons the classic theory of two independent psalms, he instead tries to clarify the composition of Ps 22 with the aid of redaction criticism. The growth process of Ps 22 was a much more complex development than merely attaching two poems. The question is one of an original core and its reinterpretation by redactors.35 In the earlier study of Psalm 22 scholars usually saw a change of atmosphere between verses 22 and 23. In my opinion, the real seam from the literary-critical point of view lies between verses 23 and 24.36 It is true that v. 23 already includes elements of thanksgiving and praise otherwise than the large sequence of complaint in v. 2-22, but the pattern of individual complaint psalm seems to require a short thanksgiving after the complaint (examples Ps 7:18; 13:6; 27:6; 28:6-7; 31:20-25; 35:28; 42:6,12; 43:5; 54:8; 56:13-14; 59:17-18; 61:9; 86:12; 109:30-31; 142:8). In other words, without v. 23 the whole preceding complaint would remain deficient. In v. 23 the object, the person addressed, is still Yahweh as in the sequence of complaint (note the second person singular suffixes in v. 23: and "f^ns), but the tone drastically changes after v. 24. In this passage there is mention of a collective group called apir ini, who are exhorted to praise God. In v. 24 there is a sudden change from the cohortatives of the preceding passage to plural imperatives, which is quite exceptional in the language of the Psalms. Imperatives that refer to praise 35 LINDSTROM, Suffering, 66-67. H.-J. FABRY has done research not only on the redaction-critical issues of Ps 22, but also on the psalm's history of influence ('Wirkungsgeschichte'). In his opinion, the Septuagint occasionally brings new emphases as compared with the Hebrew text. For instance, an eschatological attitude and the ideal of poverty receive more emphasis in the Greek translation. FABRY, Wirkungsgeschichte, 286. It is also worthy of note that Midrash Tehillim and the rabbinic tradition from the fourth century C.E. interpret the whole of Psalm 22 nationally. Hearing the prayer is connected to the exodus event, when God answered the prayers of Israel; see FABRY, Wirkungsgeschichte, 307. 36 This is also noted by SPIECKERMANN, Heilsgegenwart, 244, in his detailed study.

/ . Psalm 22

101

in the context of lament are extraordinary, because normally a prefix conjugation is used in such situations.37 According to Becker, the concluding doxology in Ps 22:28-32 was composed during the post-exilic era, when people expected the restoration of Israel's former glory and greatness.38 Irsigler, too, is of the opinion that the collective emphases do not belong to the earliest layer of the text. However, Irsigler regards all the verses 2-27 as the oldest stratum, and dates this unit to the post-exilic period. Editorial supplements are represented by the superscription and eschatological verses 28-32. This eschatological redaction would date back to the fourth/third centuries B.C.E.39 The redaction of Ps 22 is not solely confined to the latter part of the psalm. I think that the original individual complaint psalm was reinterpreted, inserting a collective emphasis within a psalm of complaint. Verses 4-6 are loose in their context and certainly differ from the surrounding complaint. The plural verbal forms in v. 4-6 are distinctive. Verses 3b and 7a could fluently follow each other. The conjunction } in v. 4a is unmotivated, which strongly speaks in favour of a later addition.40 With the aid of v. 4-6 the redactor already built a kind of bridge to the wider praise which takes place in v. 24-32 (cf. the occurrence of n'prm in v. 4 and 26). An equivalent phenomenon can be traced in the reworking of Ps 89. In that case verses 4-5 were inserted within an earlier hymn and thus form a basis for the larger sequence concerning the promises given to David (verse 20 onwards).41 The purpose of collective reinterpretation was to identify the afflicted person rejected by God with the people of Israel suffering during the exile. Many scholars assume that the sequence of an individual prayer in Ps 22 (v. 2-3, 7-23) is not preserved in its original form but indicates traces of reworking.42 It is sometimes astonishing how 37

VANONI, Psalm 22, 180-181. BECKER, Israel, 49-53. 39 IRSIGLER, Psalm 22, 213, 221-224. Some scholars have also attempted to see connections between Ps 22 and the Servant Songs of Deutero-Isaiah. On the other hand, even the differences between these texts are obvious. IRSIGLER, Psalm 22, 219, stresses that there does not exist any idea of 'vicarious suffering' in Ps 22. 40 VANONI, Psalm 22, 179-180 n. 52. It seems rather indisputable that v. 4 - 6 derive from collective redaction. At least these passages belong to a completely different setting than the verses of complaint; see LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 69. Previously SPIECKERMANN made a similar observation, see SPIECKERMANN, Heilsgegenwart, 242-243. 41 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 36. 42 As regards Ps 22 it is difficult to make use of AEJMELAEUS's pattern of the traditional prayer, because AEJMELAEUS even herself admits that the reconstruction does not work well in this particular psalm. There are only a few remnants in this psalm that still reflect echoes from the supposed traditional prayer: "The petition in v. 12 38

102

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

far scholarly opinions may differ even when one and the same text is in question. This is the case concerning Ps 22, too. Several varying alternatives for the composition of this psalm have been suggested and I cannot discuss all of them here. I shall only take a few examples and then clarify my own view. Hermann Spieckermann has written a detailed study of a selection of psalms, and Ps 22 belongs to his research material. He regards verses 1011 as products of redaction, but these passages do not derive from the collective redaction that is responsible for v. 4-6. A common feature of both of these redactors is the use of the root ncn.43 Spieckermann's hypothesis is chiefly based on lexical perceptions, but his assumption is not the only choice. I would here refer only to the fact that colometric reasons do not speak in favour of a secondary nature of v. 10-11. A rather different approach is taken by Peter Weimar. His redactioncritical conclusion is complex. First of all, he considers that Ps 22 can by virtue of its content be divided into three parts: v. 2-12, 13-22 and 2332.44 I think that this division is unsuccessful, because the seam between v. 12 and 13 seems artificial, but this division of contents is not Weimar's main point. Rather, he suggests that at the beginning of the growth process of Ps 22 there were two originally independent psalms. Psalm A would have consisted of v. 2-3 (without the word 1n'17K in 3a), 7-8 and 10-11 (in contrast to Spieckermann, who assigns v. 10-11 to the redaction). In Weimar's opinion, this psalm could not have been written before the exile. Psalm B would have comprised v. 13, 17a, 18-21. This poem represents a lament, Weimar even uses such an expression as "Gebetsformular". The first redactional layer comprised v. 3* (the supplement M^S), 4-5, 9, 12, 14-15, 17b, 22-24a, and 25-27. In connection with this redaction the two follows the pattern of traditional prayer, although without the address". AEJMELAEUS, Traditional, 100. 43 SPIECKERMANN, Heilsgegenwart, 243. The basic level of Ps 22 consists, according to SPIECKERMANN, of v. 2 - 3 , 7 - 9 , 12-16ctp (excluding 12b), 18-23. He assumes that this core was pre-exilic. In the theology of this 'original' psalm there are, in his opinion, close connections with the pre-exilic temple theology. See SPIECKERMANN, Heilsgegenwart, 252. Even FUCHS, Klage, 216, doubted the authenticity of v. 10-11. The literary- and redaction-critical conclusions reached by LINDSTRÔM are also of importance, see LINDSTRÔM, Suffering, 6 9 - 7 0 . LINDSTRÔM firmly rejects the traditional view that the afflicted person in Ps 22 suffered from some kind of disease. Some scholars have interpreted verse 16 as if it were a matter of a fever, because it refers to dryness of the mouth! LINDSTRÔM, Suffering, 85-86, is definitely correct when he states that the suffering of the psalmist is caused by God's irrational absence, which launches the attack of chaotic powers (chaotic powers are represented by animal metaphors, such as dogs, bulls and lions). This is particularly depicted in v. 13-14. 44

WEIMAR, Psalm 22, 473.

1. Psalm 22

103

originally independent psalms were joined together. This redaction emphasizes the role of Yahweh as the only saviour. The second redactional layer consisted of v. 6, 24b, 28-29. By virtue of this redaction the whole poem receives an eschatological dimension. Also, the collective emphasis is taken into account in the theology of the psalm at this stage. The third redactional layer comprised verses 16, 30a and 32. These passages are marked by an apocalyptic orientation: Yahweh is capable of redeeming from the realm of death. Thus Ps 22 was in the course of time the object of numerous modernizing reinterpretations.45 Weimar's reconstruction is undoubtedly impressive but contains some weaknesses, too. Psalm A as reconstructed by Weimar may function as an independent unit (Weimar's solution here reminds me of Aejmelaeus's pattern of "traditional prayer"), but I am sceptical of his reconstruction of Psalm B. It seems to me to be artificial - and even arbitrary - to cut the poem into two between v. 21 and 22. These passages form such a nice parallel structure that it is almost compulsory to presume the same author. Thus I think that Weimar's literary and redaction criticism is far too critical. Furthermore, there is no sense in dividing v. 24 into parts of different ages, if we accept the harmonious colometric structure for this passage, as I suggested above. I also doubt whether we have sufficient arguments for concluding that v. 6 belongs to a different stratum from verses 4-5. Despite some shortcomings in Weimar's hypothesis, I think that his approach is useful. At least it is evident that the present textual form of Ps 22 has a long and varied history behind it. It should be added that colometric reasons do not offer support for all of the arguments presented by Weimar. I do not think we have sufficient criteria for us to detect many secondary elements within the basic psalm (v. 2-3, 7-23; the expression Tfrs in v. 3a and the additional lines 16c and 17c are obviously secondary). Both colometry and thematic contents support the remarkable uniformity of the individual prayer. Instead verses 24-32 consist of material of different origins. First of all, verses 24-27 form an entity which is marked by praise both at the beginning and at the end of the verses (the root ^ n occurs in v. 24 and in v. 27, thus praise frames the whole sequence). Besides praise, verses 24-27 contain the central theme of God's care of the poor and afflicted (especially v. 25 and 27). The whole view becomes collective in v. 24-27, including the offspring of Jacob and Israel (v. 24). With this addition the redactor wanted to give a collective perspective to the whole preceding individual prayer. It is likely that the redactor who reworked and added the material in 24-27 was also responsible for the wording in v. 4-6. 46 Between these units (4-6, 24-27) 45

WEIMAR, Psalm 22, 487-494. 46 See HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 145.

104

111. Collective Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

there are some remarkable linguistic and thematic affinities, particularly noteworthy being the term n^Hfl, which occurs in both v. 4 and v. 26. The occurrence of the name ^JOfir in both of the units (v. 4 and v. 24) is remarkable, too, because this term is not encountered elsewhere in this psalm. This observation strengthens the probability that v. 4 - 6 and 24-27 belong to the same redactional layer. In fact, it may sound weird but the name ^mto1 is not very common in the book of Psalms. Therefore its occurrence in the redactional sections of Ps 22 is of importance.47 The exclamation "isr*? o???1? 1IT at the end of v. 27 would undoubtedly serve well as the final formula of a composition. Almost the same expression in a similar context can be found in Ps 69:33. The textual unit of verses 28-32 derives from a different layer than v. 4-6, 24-27. Verses 28-32 represent one of the latest literary strata in Ps 22 (besides the secondary superscription, of course).48 There is a clear syntactic seam between v. 27 and 28, i.e. verse 28 does not fluently continue the thoughts expressed in v. 27. Also, the theological point of view in v. 28-32 is different from the preceding passages. As I mentioned above, verses 24-27 give a collective interpretation to the individual prayer, when these verses talk about the offspring of Jacob and Israel. In verses 28-32, however, the perspective becomes even more global, because in spite of Israel there are the expressions "the ends of the earth" and "all tribes of gentiles" (tria ninatfi?-'??). Yahweh is the sovereign ruler of all these. Moreover, the theology of v. 28-32 includes 47 According to MANDELKERN's concordance, the name "jfOfc1 occurs in the Psalter approximately sixty times which is not any high frequency per 150 psalms; see MANDELKERN, Concordantiae, 1456-1458. 48 HOSSFELD considers verses 28-32 to be very late. Probably this redaction took place as late as the Hellenistic period. An indication in this direction might be the title '3-IK, which is used of God in v. 31. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 145. The concordance unambiguously shows that 'rut referring to God becomes more and more common after the exile (there are many occurrences in the book of Daniel, but the name mm occurs only four times in Dan). MANDELKERN, Concordantiae, 16. Certainly we have to be a little cautious, not to draw too far-reaching conclusions about the existence of TIK in Ps 22:31, because the use of t i k in the Psalter differs slightly from its use in other biblical books. The term ^"IK occurs in the Psalter altogether 63 times in 39 psalms; in some cases this title occurs together with the Tetragram (mm ^"lR), thus it cannot always simply replace the Tetragram, but TIK must have had some other functions as well. M. ROSEL has defined the use of ^"IK in the Psalter in the following way: 1) In complaints and requests it simply means 'my Lord'. 2) This expression can also represent a polite vocative as in prophetic texts. 3) The title further emphasizes God's supremacy over earthly rulers and creation. 4) 'JIN replaces God's holy name (but this is not as common in the Psalter as one might expect). M. ROSEL, Adonaj, 201. But regarding verses Ps 22:28-32 we can rely on a cumulative argument: There are several indications in these passages that speak for a late date, and in a such context even the expression 'rut can be considered one extra proof of late origin.

105

2. Psalm 69

the idea that the kingship of Yahweh is not solely confined to the living, but the deceased also honour him (v. 30). The badly corrupt verse 30 may in this context be later than the surrounding passages. To conclude, my own view of the redaction process of Ps 22 comes close to the theory suggested by Gottfried Vanoni. According to Vanoni, two wider supplements have been made to the basic psalm (the basic form comprised v. 2-3, 7-23). In the first stage verses 4-6 and 24-27 were added. Of this redactional stratum Vanoni uses the expression "Erweiterung I". After this editing the stratum called "Erweiterung II" was added. This layer comprised v. 28-29 and 31b-32. 49 Yanoni's model also seems to presuppose that verse 30 represents the latest supplement.

2. Psalm 69 2.1 Translation

of Ps 69 and Textual

69.1.1.

[in1? D^B'lEf-^B nSJO!?]

69.2.1. 69.2.2.

Criticism

[17]

[For the director of music: According to "Lilies". For David.]

Dirf1?« •'Jirtfin Bisr-ir Dip wi i?

12 13

Save me, God, because the water has come up to neck.

69.3.1. 69.3.2.

n'p-isp ]pa •'nana -laira psi

14 8

I sank in deep mud, and there was no firm ground.

69.3.3. 69.3.4.

^nsptf nVatfi

13 11

I came into deep waters, and the torrent engulfed me.

10

I was worn out from calling, my throat became hot.

69.4.1. 69.4.2.

•ma -im

69.4.3. 69.4.4. 69.5.1. 69.5.2.

7 9 W-i ni-iBBfa -un •311

69.5.3. 49

8

VANONI, Psalm 22, 185.

13 7

My eyes became weak, while I was waiting for my God. Those who hate me without reason, are more numerous than the hairs of my head. My false enemies are

106

III. Collective Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

69.5.4.

-igttf •'IP'S

7

more numerous than my bones.

69.5.5. 69.5.6.

•'n'ptrîO? -ittfs

10 6

What I did not take, I then return.

69.6.1.

18

69.6.2.

17

God, you know my foolishness, my guilty acts are not not hidden from you.

69.7.1.

69.7.2.

a 1 »'« m

ïpïp u

«fa^K

nisa^ m r r f ï n ç ]

69.7.3.

12

9 [13] 15

69.7.4.

•jtnip

9

M a y those who wait for you not be disgraced b e c a u s e of me, Y a h w e h of hosts. M a y those who s e e k you not be s h a m e d b e c a u s e of me, G o d of Israel.

69.8.1.

nann ^nsö] T i j T 1 ?

15

69.8.2.

13a na^D n n e s

11

69.9.1.

'C?1?

"iHO

13

69.9.2.

••BS

H331

12

nNip" 1 ?

16

69.10.2.

i^s -l^s] ^ a n i n n i s i n i

19

69.11.1.

•'Bia: Dia? r m x i

13

69.11.2.

^ niann1? ' n m

12

69.12.1. 69.12.2.

pö •'Bi-n1? n3Fi»i ^v'ab an1? ' h s i

12 11

W h e n 1 put on sackcloth, 1 b e c a m e a proverb to them.

13 ¡iirir

14

-otf iniBf nlraa-i

14

T h o s e who sit at the gate ridicule me, 1 b e c a m e the song of the drunkards.

69.10.1.

69.13.1. 69.13.2.

69.14.1.

•'jn'pDK

iBif

11

B e c a u s e for your s a k e 1 have endured scorn, disgrace covers my face. 1 w a s a stranger to my brothers, a n d a foreigner to my mother's children. For zeal for your house consumed me and the insults of those w h o insult you fell on me. W h e n 1 wept and kept a fast, that w a s to my reproach.

But 1 pray to you,

2. Psalm 69 69.14.2.

69.14.3. 69.14.4.

•]i:n n r mrr

10

Yahweh, at an a c c e p t a b l e time.

n ^ g

12

n a g a ^JB

12

God, answer me in your great faithfulness in the truth of your salvation.

taipp i j ^ s n naaQK-^Ni

10

^prrana ^p]

69.15.1. 69.15.2.

8

10

69.15.3. 69.15.4.

•ip-'giasJBa-i

10

69.16.1.

o]p n^'atf ^aoefFT 1 ?«

15

69.16.2.

n'p-isa ijjj'pan-^Ni

14

69.16.3.

r r ? i s a ^sr-iBKFr 1 ?«]

16

69.17.1.

I j p n aita—>3 nirp iJJB

17

69.17.2.

107

•''pst naa

14

Rescue me from the mud, do not let me sink. Let me be delivered from those who hate me and from the deep waters. May not the torrent of water engulf me, may not the depths of sea swallow me, may not the pit close its mouth over me. Answer me, Yahweh, because your kindness is good. According to your mercy, turn to me.

69.18.1.

^ a s a *pjp nnppi-^K]

16

69.18.2.

^jm -ina ^ " n s " 1 ?

13

69.19.1. 69.19.2.

^ n a 'ays ica^

14 12

Come to me and rescue me, redeem me because of my enemies.

n a n n FIBT nnx

12

You know how 1 a m insulted. All my e n e m i e s a r e b e f o r e you.

69.20.1.

i

69.20.2.

69.21.1. 69.21.2.

[11] 1

3'P r n a » ' nann

•'na'pa-i ^ntfa n t f u x i

11

Do not hide your face from your servant, for I am in trouble, answer me quickly!

Scorn h a s broken my heart, my d i s g r a c e and s h a m e a r e incurable.

III. Collective Reinterpretation

108 69.21.3. 69.21.4.

'nssa

TO1? n-ipîjl

13

D1on3Ql?i

16

B'S'-I i n-i-na

69.22.1.

14

69.22.2.

f a ' n •'lipo'1. IRDS1?]

15

69.23.1.

ns1? nrnjEfr Djn^BMrr

17

69.23.2.

iiQia'p n.Tü'pEh

[12]

69.24.1.

n i t n o o.Trsj rmtfrrn

17

69.24.2.

-wan TOFI orrjna-i

15

69.25.1.

1BIH

12

69.25.2.

DJ1®1. ^SN i n m

13

69.26.1.

natf] oriTB-'riH

12

Q.T|?n«3

15

r r a r r - i t f s nnx- 1 ?

16

69.27.2.

-nap1. T ^ n a i t o a - ^ K i

18

69.28.1.

aïl?"1?? l ' l ? - ™

12

69.28.2.

'TCpisa W31"1?«]

13

69.29.1.

n ^ n nssa -ina:

12

69.26.2.

69.27.1.

69.29.2.

aar*

rain

« n s r 1 ? « D 1 ? 1 :^ n ? ]

16

69.30.1.

nSiDl ^B

12

69.30.2.

D 1 ^ « ipy-lltf1.

17

in the Psalms I hoped for condolence, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none. They gave poison in my food, and they offered vinegar for my thirst. May their banquet become a snare before them, and their sacrifices a trap. May their eyes be darkened that they cannot see, make their loins make their loins always shake. Pour out your wrath on them, let your indignation overtake them. May their camps be made desolate, let there be no-one to dwell in their tents. For they persecuted those whom you had beaten, they talk about the pain of those you have wounded. Add iniquity to their iniquity, may they not enter your righteousness. May they be wiped out of the book of life, and not be registered with the the righteous. But I am wretched and in pain; may your salvation, God, protect me.

109

2. Psalm 69

69.31.1.

Tifa

nVpn«

16 12

69.31.2.

n i i n ? 13^3?!

69.32.1.

nWp mrr1? nfirni

14

69.32.2.

onaa inpa i s

il

••njs «n irlo®:

8

69.33.1. 69.33.2.

0\;f7K

14

I will praise God's name in song, I will glorify him with thanksgiving.

May this please Yahweh more than an ox, more than a bull with horns and divided hoofs. The poor saw, those who seek God may rejoice. May your hearts live!

69.33.3.

ini]

69.34.1.

1

m.T rrirox-'w sa'tf- ?

9 18

69.34.2.

nn if? rTpirns]

14

69.35.1.

JHKI a:atf •ln^'pn:

15

69.35.2.

•a öa'-i-^Di aia:

12

69.36.1. 69.36.2.

•p's wtfv ^ rn-irr na nn:i

16 13

For God will save Zion, and he will rebuild the cities of Judah.

69.36.3.

rntfTi DO >QBM

13

69.37.1.

n-i^nr inao ¡nn

15

They dwell there and they will possess it and the seed of his servants will inherit it.

69.37.2.

1ÖB' 13,1'Kl

15

For Yahweh hears the needy, he does not despise his prisoners. Let heaven and earth praise him, seas and all creatures in them.

And those who love his name will live there.

Verse 4: In the Hebrew text there is the rare pfel participle ^rrip from the root 'tp. For instance, the reading of the Septuagint (ano tou eXtti'^eiu) seems to require the Hebrew form (pi.inf.cs. + preposition ]H). Nevertheless, the Masoretic Text functions well without any emendation.

110

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

Certainly, the Masoretic tradition represents a more difficult reading and thus should be preferred. 50 Verse 5: The Hebrew expression is a rare hip°il participle from the root nc^. In the early versions there are some divergent interpretations. For instance, the Peshitta renders "more than my bones", as if there had been TiiassJO in the Hebrew text. This reading definitely makes sense in the context and I have followed it in my own translation. Nevertheless, there are still many scholars who do not see any need for emendations.51 Verse 13: In the Hebrew text the latter colon lacks the predicate. According to Tate, the verb irr&P in the first colon functions as the predicate of the latter part of the verse, too.52 The Septuagint makes the sentence more fluent by adding a verb to the latter colon: koci e!s e^e IvpaXXov oi ttivovtes tov olvov. This kind of rendering is also followed by Symmachus. The reading of the Septuagint may also have influenced the translator of the Peshitta (rCi^i ^ j ^ x n ,3 ci_iici). I think that Tate's proposal is plausible. This is not the only instance in the Hebrew Bible when one and the same predicate dominates two parallel clauses. Verse 20: This verse seems too crowded in its present form. The word pair Tin'PDl TiB'3 fits better in connection with v. 21a(3.53 This is what I have done in my translation and colometric analysis. This emendation certainly improves the metre. Verse 23: It is difficult to find exact equivalents in the translation for the words ns and K'plQ. Both of these terms refer to some kind of traps which were used for catching birds. In the ancient Near East there were trapping nets which were set on wood with bait. Touching the bait launched the net and birds were caught in the trap.54 There are some difficulties concerning the interpretation of the word •'•pi1?®''?. The early versions offer different variants, as the apparatus of BHS reveals. By virtue of parallelism it seems most natural to interpret this obscure expression with the aid of slight emendation as a plural form from the word D^E)' ("communion-sacrifice") and to vocalize it D.TD'pK'.55 Thus the word in v. 23a would offer nice parallelism for the latter colon. Verse 21: The last verb in the verse in the Septuagint is TrpoaE0TiKav (the basic form ttpooti'Qtihi means "to add", just like the Hebrew verb ^c1). On 50 51 52 53 54 55

TATE, Psalms, 188; HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 261. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 261. TATE, Psalms, 189. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 262. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 277. See also TILLMANN, Wasser, 49. This view is also supported in HALAT 4.1399, see also HALAT 4.1422-1423.

2. Psalm 69

111

the basis of the Septuagint reading some scholars have suggested that the verb Hao1 in the Masoretic Text should be altered to ISO1.56 The reading of the Septuagint is also supported by the Peshitta: oaaioK'o. As far as I can see, the Masoretic Text provides us here with a reliable and understandable reading and there is no specific need to make emendations on the basis of the early versions. Verse 33: The Septuagint renders all the verbal forms in this passage as imperatives, apart from the last verb, which is in the future form ^getou. Nevertheless, in the language of the Septuagint the future form often occurs with the meaning of an imperative, particularly if there are other imperative forms in the same context. Several commentators have with regard to this verse decided to translate the Hebrew indicative verbal forms as imperatives, 57 but this is by no means necessary. 2.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 69 Psalm 69 consists chiefly of bicola, only twice do we encounter tricola (v. 16 and 33). It is most likely that v. 37b is a concluding monocolon for the preceding poem. The average number of consonants per colon is about 12.8. Occasionally there are cola which either greatly exceed or are much lower than average. For instance, in verses 4-5 there are some exceptionally short cola: 5b(3 contains only six consonants. On the other hand, verse 20 is in its Masoretic form exceedingly long regarding the latter colon (12+22), but probably in one stage of textual transmission some words in v. 20-21 became disordered. The expression Tia^Di nn2>3 is by virtue of the metre more fluent in connection with v. 21 and this was probably its original setting. When we move the words TlO^Dl TIP'S to v. 21, there remains a more harmonious metre (12+11) in v. 20. Furthermore, in such a case the verb ntfttKl in v. 21 would not be as isolated as it is in the Masoretic Text. In conclusion, it is possible to state, however, that Ps 69 is textually a rather well-preserved psalm and its colometric structure does not give cause for far-reaching emendations. My colometrical calculations mainly agree with the corresponding analysis by Tillmann. 58 An interesting case that is still worthy of note in this connection concerns section 7a(3. This passage is crowded by divine names: m?OS m.T TIK. This is in fact the only occurrence in the Psalter when ^"IK and niiOS 56

Thus LINDSTROM, Suffering, 333; HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 262. On the other hand, TATE, Psalms, 191, defends the Masoretic Text. In his opinion, the verb n s c 1 is a pun alluding to the book (nao) mentioned in v. 29. 57 Thus, for example, TATE, Psalms, 188, 191. TATE is also aware of the syntactical problem concerning the verb inn: it lacks a clear object. See TATE, Psalms, 191. 58 TILLMANN, Wasser, 60-65.

112

HI. Collective Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

appear together. On the other hand, such a combination is rather common in the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Amos.59 The parallel structure between nK32 mrp and ^to» 1 TI^K (v. 7b) is rather balanced and fluent, therefore ^"iK should be omitted. Perhaps it was integrated into the written text by accident, because mrp was pronounced in the same way. It is indisputable that the expression ODan1? t h is syntactically a little awkward in its present context. It is not clear what the second person plural suffix actually refers to. In the immediate context the third person plural is dominant. In fact, DDinb in1! might be a kind of liturgical exclamation, and a rather similar clause is found in Ps 22:27b (DDaa'p ",rr "I?1?). Even in this case the sentence is loose. Nevertheless it is remarkable that in both cases the exclamation is preceded by the combination ttf~n + mn1 / DTl^N. It seems likely that this call derives from the same circle. The first collective redaction of these two psalms took probably place simultaneously, so striking are the similarities between these redactional layers. 2.3 Lexical Connections with Other Psalms and Other Old Testament Texts The Hebrew text of Ps 69 includes a few rare expressions which may give hints for dating at least some parts of the psalm. First of all, in Ps 69:3 there is the word ]V, which means "mud". Besides this verse this term occurs elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible only in Ps 40:3. This is a remarkable observation, because Psalms 40 and 69 share several other common features, too. In Ps 69:3 there is another extraordinary term (iaua), which is a hapax. Furthermore, in v. 3 there is the rare word n^'3», which means "torrent". In such a sense this word occurs, besides in this passage and Ps 69:16, only once, in the book of Isaiah (Isa 27:12). This passage of Isaiah belongs to a relatively late stratum, because it represents the so-called Isaiah Apocalypse (Isa 24-27). 60 In Ps 69:9 there is the verbal form "inn, which is a hopcal participle from the root mi. This root does not occur in hopcal elsewhere in the Old Testament. In fact, this root is rather uncommon even in other inflectional categories, because it occurs in qal only in Ps 78:30 and Job 19:13. In nip°al ~m occurs in Isa 1:4 and Ezek 14:5. All these occurrences can 59

M. RÖSEL, Adonaj, 196. SMEND, Entstehung, 147. In this connection it is also worthy of note that the term n^a»' occurs in the Hebrew form of Ben Sira (namely in Ben Sira 4:26b and 5:9b); see BARTHÉLÉMY, RICKENBACHER, Konkordanz, 392. These observations clearly speak in favour of a late origin of the word in question. Words referring to the 'depths of water' belong to metaphorical language that denotes death. JANOWSKI, Toten, 2 4 7 249. 60

113

2. Psalm 69

plausibly be regarded as exilic or (more likely) post-exilic. Scholars disagree to some extent on the origin of Isa 1:4, as to whether it is an authentic speech of the prophet Isaiah himself or a secondary summary of Isaiah's message which would have been inserted in its present context at the stage of later redaction. Recently, Ulrich Berges has rather unambiguously demonstrated that the unit Isa 1:4-9 derives from the exilic/post-exilic period. This argument is especially supported by lexical and theological considerations.61 Furthermore, the word nna in Ps 69:22 belongs in the category of extraordinary vocabulary, because it is a hapax. In the language of v. 14 and 17 there are some affinities with the complaint of Ps 51 (particularly Ps 51:3). Another common feature of these psalms is their restrained, even depreciatory, attitude towards the traditional sacrificial cult (Ps 51:18-19 / Ps 69:31-33). Elsewhere in the Psalter a similar criticism of sacrifices is evident, in Ps 40:7; Ps 50:7-14 and Ps 141:2. The most remarkable lexical similarities are found between Psalms 22, 69 and 102. I have already paid attention to some of these features above in my analysis of Ps 22. Many scholars take it for granted that all these three psalms derive from the same context, whatever it might have been.62 Tate relies on a lexical and syntactic study by Leslie C. Allen when he mentions that Psalms 69 and 102 have a similar structure and many stylistic affinities. The following examples are rather indisputable: Ps 69:18 Ps 102:3

VJI/ ma

p s ^irntan

ix

ynrn ora ^aa

JVS MORROW -pjs

•>m ma

Ps 69:34 Ps 102:21 Ps 69:36a Ps 102:17 Ps 69:37 Ps 102:29

inon-^n M P «

DTU

n n Kb 7'7'rarnNi mrr n^Ta«-1?« v a z t ^ nmon i:n nnD1? TON npw soefi HTTP Hi; ,7JJ'7 JPX ITfflT DM^N 'J n n s a rrcnj jrx mm na~>D Twine/'-* ioe? ^ n s i m^nr vinv v m p 1 "I^Hlb DP in IJD^'7 JHJIT^l

The lexical affinities are in fact so striking that the possibility of coincidence can be excluded. Many linguistic similarities occur in the latter part of Ps 69 (especially in v. 33-37). In precisely these verses the collective emphases are most plainly evident. Thus we are justified in concluding that these verses are the product of redaction.

61 62

BERGES, Jesaja, 61-63. TATE, Psalms, 194.

114

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

2.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 69 Psalm 69 is one of the most frequently quoted psalms in the New Testament. 63 An essential question concerning this psalm is that of its literary unity. 64 How compatible is the individual complaint at the beginning of the psalm with the elements of thanksgiving and collective features that begin in v. 31? Despite the obvious changes of atmosphere and style, some scholars regard Ps 69 as a coherent poem. Weiser assumes on the basis of v. 33 that this psalm was recited before a cultic community. Complaint is transformed into thanksgiving, and the psalmist wishes to express his praise to God before his fellow-men. This might explain the mixture of individual and collective features within one and the same text. 65 Kraus, too, considers this psalm coherent. 66 Adapting the reconstructed pattern for an individual complaint psalm Kraus discovered in Ps 69 the following elements: v. 2a is a cry of prayer, 2b-5 the first complaint, v. 6 confession to God, v. 7 is a request, v. 8-13 continue the complaint (both v. 8 and v. 10 begin with "O like v. 2b), v. 14-19 are requests and wishes, v. 20-22 a complaint caused by humiliation, v. 23-29 express the request that God would annihilate the Psalmist's enemies, v. 30 expresses the miserable state of affairs and the final request. Ultimately, verses 31-37 are marked by a hymn of thanksgiving. It is remarkable that Ps 69 contains several occurrences of God's holy name mrp, though this poem belongs to the so-called Elohistic Psalter. 67 The occurrences of the name Yahweh are in v. 7aj3, 14, 17, 32 and 34. The first of these occurrences, 7a(3, may be explained because mKn^ mrp forms a fixed word pair. A great number of scholars have, however, drawn the conclusion that Ps 69 is an incoherent text including material of different origin. Tate thinks that this psalm mostly derives from the pre-exilic period. Tate argues that v. 10 refers to the temple. This is true, of course, but we cannot be certain that this passage really alludes to the Solomonic temple. It is certainly more plausible to assume that it is the Second Temple which is in question, but Tate ignores this argument. In fact, Tate regards only verses 36-37 as 63

WEISER, Psalmen, 336. There is a concise survey of the history of research on Ps 69 in the commentary on the Psalms by HOSSFELD and ZENGER (HThKAT). Also, the question of the unity of the psalm is discussed there with allusions to different theories. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 265. 65 WEISER, Psalmen, 336-337. 66 "An der Einheit des Psalms sollten keine Zweifel bestehen." KRAUS, Psalmen, 641. 67 TILLMANN, Wasser, 96-97. 64

2. Psalm 69

115

exilic additions, otherwise the poem, in his opinion, dates back to the preexilic era. Tate notes the similarity between Ps 69:36-37 and Ps 51:2021.68 Leslie C. Allen has carried out a thorough analysis of the language of Ps 69. This investigation provides a good basis for further redaction-critical hypotheses. Thus I think it is reasonable to familiarize oneself with Allen's conclusions, because many other eminent scholars (such as Lindstrom and Zenger) have broadly accepted Allen's view.69 First of all, Allen is of the opinion that v. 31-37 did not originally belong in the same context as v. 2 30. Not even verses 2-30 form a unity. This long prayer consists of two parallel sections. The first section covers verses 2-14a(3. The second section begins with the word DTt^K in May and continues to the end of v. 30. As mentioned above, there are some striking similarities between these two sequences. Verses 2 and 14b share the common root U2)'\ Verses 3 and 15 are akin because they both use the verb snta and, besides, the expression •''anpnsje. Similarities continue between verses 3 and 16. For the expression •'inaiaEf rtatsi in v. 3 there is an equivalent in v. 16: "Let no billows sweep me away" (D1t3 rtats ^aaBiT^K). Another common feature of these verses is the occurrence of the term n ^ n o . Verse 5 includes the words and for these there are corresponding expressions in v. 15 0t3

10 15

Incline your ear to me, on the day when I call, answer me quickly.

12

For my days vanish like smoke, my bones burn like a hearth.

102.4.1. 102.4.2.

•una i p i a 3 •'ninsin

16

102.5.1.

vtf? tfii'H nficirns-in

15

102.5.2.

•1 •

15

~t "

• : - *•

Do not hide your face from me on the day when I am in trouble.

My heart was beaten and it withered like grass, for I forgot to eat my bread. Because of the voice of my groaning my bone stuck to my skin.

102.6.1.

^nm« "7ipp

9

102.6.2.

•HSO1? i p s o n p 3 i

13

102.7.1. 102.7.2.

1310 nxp1? niain o b s T ^ n

13 14

I was like a desert owl, like an owl in ruins.

102.8.1. 102.8.2.

mjrmi i nii?»' aa_l7B i i i 3 l i a s ?

10 13

I was watchful and I was like a lonely bird on a roof.

102.9.1.

' i n x 'a-iain oi'rr 1 ?:)

17

102.9.2.

•11730] 13 i ^ i n p

13

All day long my enemies mocked me, those who reproach me use my name in cursing.

102.10.1. 102.10.2.

•'n'pDS onv>? i a K _ , 3 '•'F13pp''033 •'lptfl

14 14

For I ate ash like bread and I mingled my drink with weeping.

102.11.1.

Ifspi lOBpaap

13

Because of your indignation and wrath, for you have lifted me up and thrown me away.

102.11.2.

16

120

III. Collective Reinterpretation •>•1133

içr

10

102.12.2.

»'TN 2&1J3 •'JKl

12

102.13.1.

atfn obis)1? mrr nnxi

16

102.12.1.

102.13.2.

f n s p a n

11

102.14.1.

o r ™ n-ipn nn«

15

102.14.2.

ruan^ n i p ?

9

102.14.3.

[ i s l e 83- 1 ?]

[8]

102.15.1.

,T]3N-ns ^pnasj -nn-1?

17

102.15.2.

uim ?nsm-nRi

12

102.16.1.

HIT Dtf-nx

WT;I

18

102.16.2.

pnsn

18

102.17.1.

^»s mrr r m - 1 ?

13

102.17.2.

111333 HSl]

10

102.18.1.

"isnpn n^api-^s ruj

14

102.18.2.

on^srrns n n - « ^ ]

13

102.19.1.

i r m -in1? ns'j unsri

16

102.19.2.

a y ^ ' T . snaa mn

13

102.20.1.

Wnp Diipa typtfrn:?

16

102.20.2. fiian tn« - 1 ?«

mrr

18

in the Psalms My days are like a declining shadow and I wither like grass. But you, Yahweh, endure forever and your remembrance to all generations. You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favour to her. [For the appointed time has come.] For your servants are pleased with her stones, and they show favour to her dust. The nations will fear the name of Yahweh, all the kings of the earth your glory. For Yahweh rebuilds Zion, he shall appear in his glory. He turns to the prayer of the naked, he does not despise their plea. Let this be written for the coming generation, that people not yet created may praise the Lord. For he looked down from his holy place on high, Yahweh viewed from heaven to earth,

3. Psalm 102 102.21.1.

TO«

102.21.2.

102.22.1.

s'oif^

12

nn-ian '¡¡a nria1?

12

mrr ntf

"ispb

15

102.22.2.

In'snm

13

102.23.1.

HIT QIBB pagro

13

102.23.2.

mrr-nx -ias?1? nia^otM

17

i

102.24.1. 102.24.2.

rT3 ^ a

n|»

10

^

"l»p

6

121 in order to hear the groan of the prisoner, to release those condemned to death. So the name of Yahweh will be declared in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem. When the peoples are assembled, and the kingdoms, to serve Yahweh. He weakened my strength in the way, he shortened my days.

102.25.1. •>niT isna ^¡pan-1?« f 1 ??

14 [20]

Do not take me away in the midst of my days.

102.25.2.

unfa i n a

15

Your years are from generation to generation.

102.26.1.

pnp; pnxn ni:3'7

13

102.26.2.

Di•QB' i InV1 * nfcua-i T T ~ '

13

Long ago you founded the earth and the heavens are the work of your hands.

102.27.1.

I'ogn nnsi -ms' 1 nan

16

102.27.2.

102.27.3.

flEfrrn

They will perish but you remain, they will all wear out like a garment.

• t :o * iaaa •'pai vv * n :

12

DEl^nn 2f-13^3]

[17]

[Like clothes you will change them and they will be discarded.]

102.28.1. 102.28.2.

x-irrnmo 1BFP X'1? "!]tnl3Bfi

7 13

But you are the same, your years will never end.

102.29.1.

•l]Ì3tfi iIHaU-153

14

The children of your servants will dwell

122 102.29.2.

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

DSnn

14

in the Psalms (there), and their descendants will be secure before you?1

Verse 1: The superscription of Ps 102 is peculiar because it lacks a proper name. On the other hand, such psalms without a heading occur several times in the fourth book of the Psalter (Pss 91 100, 104-106; in Ps 98 the Septuagint, however, adds the name of David). Thus Ps 102 is no exception. Nevertheless, v. 1 is usually considered secondary because of its contents.78 Verse 4: "p'ln is syntactically better read as This form with the preposition D is supported by many Masoretic manuscripts and the Septuagint. Nonetheless, even is grammatically possible and is definitely the more difficult reading, as Brunert remarks.79 Verse 5: Concerning this verse the interpretation of the verb ilDB has been a matter of dispute. Allen points out, with good cause, that the verb not»' nowhere else requires the preposition as happens here.80 Partly for this reason, some scholars have deduced that rots' in this verse does not have its usual meaning, "to forget", but an extraordinary meaning, "to wither", "to waste" or "to become exhausted".81 This conclusion is supported by Ugaritic, which does have the verb tkh, meaning solely "to wither", "to wilt".82 In biblical Hebrew there is at least one passage where the verb ro»' occurs in a similar meaning to the root tkh in Ugaritic. This passage is Ps 137:5, where the interpretation 'withering' fits much better than any other interpretation. However, I do not see in Ps 102:5 any compelling need to deviate from the traditional meaning of the verb HDE?", because the idea of 'forgetting' makes good sense in the context. Therefore I have followed the traditional line in my own translation. Loretz, too, criticizes identification of Hebrew nsttf and Ugaritic tkh as regards Ps 102:5.83 77

This last sentence can also be understood as a passive clause in which "pa1? indicates the agent. Thus the translation could be "and their descendants (offspring) will be secured by you" or more fluently: "and you will secure their descendants". SOLLAMO, Passive, 625. 78 LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 375. 79 BRUNERT, Psalm 102, 90. 80 ALLEN, Psalms, 9. 81 LINDSTROM, Suffering, 218, for instance, translates the latter colon of v. 5 in the following way: "I am too wasted to eat my bread." See also DAHOOD, Psalms III, 271. 82 SEGERT, Ugaritic, 204. 83 LORETZ, Psalmen II, 445-446. The lexicon HALAT, however, takes almost for granted the meaning "to wither" for rm' in Ps 137:5b. The authors of this lexicon also consider it possible that nstf may have a similar meaning in Ps 102:5. Moreover, on the basis of Ugaritic, equivalent renderings such as "to bend", "to sink down" have been suggested for the verb See HALAT 4.1381-1382.

3. Psalm 102

123

Verse 6: The beginning of the verse seems deficient without a verb. The apparatus in BHS suggests either Tim1 or Tlt^n to fill the gap. Kraus favours the verb Tim1 because of equivalent expressions in Ps 6:7 and Ps 69:4.84 Allen, on the other hand, is sceptical of such attempts at emendation. According to Allen, the Masoretic Text is understandable without any conjectures.85 In my own translation I have followed Allen's advice, because supplementing the text easily remains no more than guesswork. It is also noteworthy that the early versions do not offer support for textual reconstruction. As the Masoretic Text now stands, verse 6a is a nominal clause, or the verb np3i should be placed in the first colon. Verse 14: The third colon "llJta S3"1? is syntactically clumsy and might be a later extension to the original text. Therefore I have dropped this sentence from my colometric division. Verse 16: The word "[1133 with the second person suffix seems awkward in its context because the surrounding passages contain expressions in the third person. Some scholars have therefore tried to make the text more fluent by replacing the second person suffix with the third person suffix: Tino.86 On the other hand, we should prefer the more difficult reading, which is undoubtedly the Masoretic form f i n a . Verse 20: Here we have a problem concerning colometric structure: in which colon does mir belong? The Masoretic Text (NB atnahl), the Septuagint and the Peshitta place the name of the Lord in the second colon, and I hold this view, too. However, the apparatus in BHS and some scholars87 suggest that HIT belongs in the first colon. I shall deal with this problem more thoroughly in the next chapter. Verse 24: This passage is clearly corrupt. There are a couple of homonymous verbal roots nw in Hebrew. The most common of them is naturally the one which means "to answer". This meaning is followed by the translator of the Septuagint (ctTTEKpiOri), but it makes the whole sentence rather unsound. In this passage we should choose nil? in the second (II) meaning as suggested by HALAT: "to discourage".88 There is another text-critical problem in v. 24. The word in'3 is awkward in this context. Thus the translation should follow the qere reading "'Its. This emendation is supported by the Qumran Psalms scroll 4QPsb, many Masoretic manuscripts, Symmachus, the Peshitta, the Targums and the 84 85 86 87 88

KRAUS, Psalmen, 864. ALLEN, Psalms, 9. Thus, for instance, LINDSTROM, Suffering, 220. See ALLEN, Psalms, 10. HALAT 3.807.

124

III. Collective Reinterpretation in the Psalms

Psalter of Jerome. The Septuagint, however, follows the ketib form of the Hebrew text. Verse 25: The expression ~ia'K seems both syntactically and metrically to be an addition. Probably it is a kind of gloss. The Septuagint interprets this phrase as an imperative: ccvotyyEtAov poi (this would correspond to the Hebrew form ~l'OK). There is a slightly similar expression to the beginning of v. 25 in the book of Job: m'PK "iot< •^irtf-in (Job 10:2). 8 9 In this passage o f Job, however, the word "ltfN is metrically more firmly connected to the text that follows than in Ps 102:25. Verse 28: The expression tMrrnFK] can be understood as referring to an entity: "you are the one". 90 A similar saying, K-in -1 ^, occurs frequently in Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 41:4; 43:10; 43:13; 46:4 and 48:12). A linguistic connection between Deutero-Isaiah and Ps 102 is noteworthy as regards this phrase. 3.2 Remarks on the Colometry of Ps 102 I have carried out the colometric analysis of Ps 102 following the same principles as previously, when Pss 22 and 69 were in focus. The opening verse is excluded, because it is a kind of superscription, though it is not as extensive and clumsy as the superscriptions of Pss 22 and 69. Psalm 102 mainly consists of bicola. Only v. 27 includes a tricolon, but the authenticity of the third colon in this case is far from certain. Probably v. 27b is an interpretative gloss. The average number of consonants in cola is about 13.4. Some cola are clearly below this average, particularly v. 6a, 24b and 28a. Verse 6 is short, because it may lack a verb, but as I stated above, the reconstruction of this passage is beyond our capability. Perhaps at an early stage of textual transmission a verb dropped out, but we can no longer reliably reach the original wording. In verse 20 it is more reasonable to place the name mrp in the latter colon. Above all, metric reasons speak in favour of this kind of decision. With mm in the latter colon the colometric division in v. 20 would be 16+18, but with mrp in the first colon the metre would be more uneven: 20+14. The Masoretic tradition favoured the better colometric division.

8 9 For more details on this subject, see ALLEN, Psalms, 10; WALTKE, O'CONNOR, Syntax, 2 7 - 2 8 . 9 0 JOUON, MURAOKA, Grammar, 575 § 154j.

125

3. Psalm 102

3.3 Lexical Texts

Connections

with Other Psalms

and Other Old

Testament

Psalm 102 includes a few rare terms which may shed light on the origin of this poem. First of all, the verb «pi? in the superscription is not very common in biblical Hebrew. Besides this verse, it only occurs in the qal form twice elsewhere (Isa 57:16 and Ps 61:3). This passage of Trito-Isaiah definitely dates from the post-exilic period, while the dating of Ps 61 is not completely certain, but an exilic or post-exilic origin is the most likely.91 Even the passages where «pi? occurs in other inflectional categories are mainly post-exilic texts. In Ps 102:4 there is the term "ipiB which the Codex Petropolitanus for some inexplicable reason divides with a 'maqqef line into two parts ("in "ip). Other Masoretic manuscripts do not follow this practice. Besides Ps 102, the word "Ipia occurs elsewhere in the Old Testament in Lev 6:2 and Isa 33:14. The origin of this passage of Isaiah is a little obscure, but the text of Leviticus is part of the Priestly Code, which reached its final form in the fifth century B.C.E. Psalm 102:7 includes hardly identifiable names of birds which are also encountered in Lev 11:17 and Deut 14:16-17. The term ^lpttf in Ps 102:10 is also unusual, because it occurs elsewhere only in Hos 2:7 and Prov 3:8. It is interesting that Ps 102:13 has almost an exact literary parallel in the book of Lamentations (Lam 5:19). Ps 102:13

Tii "it1?

Lam 5:19

1

ns'Fi

mm rmsi 1

"IHl H'l ? ^{JO? D.BÍF1 O"?!!?? mm HF1K

Only the word in Lamentations is replaced by ^803. When such obvious affinities are in question, we should seriously consider possible literary dependence between these texts. However, I consider it more likely that behind both texts there was a kind of oral formula, which was connected with praising Yahweh. Oral tradition may easily explain why the first word of the latter colon is divergent in these parallel sentences. Oral tradition was responsive to variants and alteration, even in a fixed formula one word may have been replaced by another. The assumption of literary relationship is fascinating, but the evidence for this suffers remarkably from the fact that no other lexical connections between Ps 102 and the Lamentations can be discovered. Nevertheless, even this slight linkage to the phraseology of Lamentations speaks strongly for the postexilic origin of Ps 102, at least as concerns v. 13. Psalm 102 shares many linguistic affinities with Pss 22 and 69. I have already shed light on this issue when investigating Pss 22 and 69, and it is unnecessary here to repeat all the observations made in that connection. To 91

MILLARD, Problem, 84, regards Ps 61 as exilic or post-exilic.

126

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

put it briefly, there are similarities between the following verses: Ps 102:3 - Ps 22:25 and Ps 69:18; Ps 102:17 - Ps 69:36; Ps 102:18 - Ps 69:34; Ps 102:19 - Ps 22:32; Ps 102:21 - Ps 69:34; Ps 102:22 - Ps 22:23 and Ps 69:31; Ps 102:29 - Ps 69:37. It is noteworthy that in Ps 102 the lexical connections with these other two psalms are not solely confined to the latter part of Ps 102, but rather the greatest frequency falls in verses 17-22, i.e. the middle part of the psalm. This observation and its conclusions have to be taken into account in connection with redaction criticism. 3.4 The Basic Text and Redaction of Ps 102 Psalm 102 includes mutually such divergent material that the assumption of the literary unity of the psalm becomes highly questionable. 92 In his commentary Kraus tries - loyally to his style - to defend the uniformity of the psalm, but has to admit that besides an individual complaint (v. 2-12, 24-25) there are both hymnic sequences (v. 13, 26-28) and sequences from either the prophetic or wisdom tradition (v. 14-23, 29). At the beginning of his comments Kraus once again rejects the collective interpretation accepted prior to Balla. According to Kraus, Ps 102 is an individual complaint psalm. An explanation is still required as to how hymnic elements and sequences of the wisdom tradition match the individual complaint. Kraus manages to find hymnic features in a few other psalms of complaint (Ps 7:7-8; Ps 77:12-13; Ps 86:8-9), which may be due to cultic practices: Yahweh's great historic deeds became once again relevant and present in the cult. The person who prayed did not comfort himself with events in the past, but instead relied on Yahweh's forthcoming acts of salvation. 93 Of more recent commentators, Leslie C. Allen draws a surprisingly conservative conclusion after having described the history of research on Ps 102 in a versatile manner. In his opinion there is no need to abandon the assumption of the original integrity of the psalm. Allen thinks that the structure of the individual complaint is flexible enough to contain elements of confidence and praise. Nevertheless, Allen regards Ps 102 as a poem written after 587 B.C.E. Allen is not convinced of terminological connections with the royal psalms, as Dahood tried to demonstrate. 94 Numerous linguistic similarities between Pss 69 and 102 prove, in Allen's opinion, that Ps 102 was originally a uniform text, because similarities 92

Among earlier scholars BALLA, Das Ich, 114, doubted the unity of Ps 102. A historical survey of research is presented by ALLEN, Psalms, 11-13, and he also comments on different models. See also BRUNERT, Psalm 102, 3 7 - 5 2 (covers in an illuminating way research before World War II). 93 KRAUS, Psalmen, 865. 94 DAHOOD, Psalms III, 10.

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127

occur in both the sequence of complaint (Ps 102:2-12) and v. 13-23. Allen's argument is not persuasive, because the only serious connection with Ps 69 in Ps 102:2-12 is verse 3, which does have a parallel in Ps 69:18. In order to explain this affinity we do not have to suppose any literary dependence between the texts. A natural explanation is based on the stereotypical language of the prayer. Allen tries to clarify the alternation between individual and collective features in Ps 102 by appealing to the concept of "communal solidarity".95 Regarding the structure, Allen divides Ps 102 into three sub-categories. The first one comprises v. 2-12. This view is easy to accept. First of all, these passages distinctively represent complaint. Moreover, it is noteworthy in this sequence that the word "'a1 occurs in v. 4 and 12. Furthermore, the combination 2iSV + ffl'T occurs in v. 5a and 12b. The preposition 3 is repeated six times in v. 2-12 (if we read in v. 4; nevertheless there are five certain occurrences, which itself is a very high number indeed). The second sequence consists, in Allen's opinion, of v. 13-23. This sequence is marked by the holy name mrp, which occurs six times, and furthermore the shorter form m is encountered once (v. 19). Also the term is emphatically in the foreground in v. 13-23, because it occurs in v. 14, 17 and 22. Other repeated words are ~DU (in v. 15 as a noun and in v. 23 as a verb), "in (v. 13 and 19) and Dl> (singular in v. 19, plural in v. 23).96 Allen's third and last sub-category (v. 24-29) repeats the same phrases and concepts as have already appeared in the previous parts of the psalm. For instance, i a 1 occurs again in v. 24 and 25a. Verses 15 and 29 share the term ~p"nu. Verses 20 and 26 have the common word [TO®. For the expression Til in v. 13 there is an equivalent in v. 25 ( a n n ~im). On the basis of Allen's creditable observations it is possible to arrive at far-reaching literary- and redaction-critical conclusions, but Allen himself refrains from such results and maintains the assumption of the original integrity of the psalm. In addition, it is interesting to note that Allen thinks that the Psalmist's distress was caused by sickness.97 On the basis of the detailed analysis presented above, it seems reliable that the oldest stratum of Ps 102 consisted of v. 2-12 and 24-25a. It is possible that the poem of complaint in these passages derived from the pre-exilic period. Verses 13-23 and 25b-29 are later and give a collective content to the whole preceding complaint. National sequences in Ps 102 95

ALLEN, Psalms, 13. LINDSTRÒM, Suffering, 225 n. 99, criticizes ALLEN'S concept. In fact, this concept chosen by ALLEN greatly resembles H. W. ROBINSON's concept of "corporate personality". 96 ALLEN, Psalms, 13-14. DAHOOD, Psalms III, 17, has also detected puns in v. 16-17 and 17-18. 97 ALLEN, Psalms, 14. LINDSTRÓM, Suffering, 230, disagrees on this issue.

128

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Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

include expressions which unequivocally resemble Deutero- and TritoIsaiah.98 Psalms 22, 69 and 102 are closely related. First of all, these three psalms mention Yahweh's royal and eternal reign (Ps 22:29; Ps 69:35; Ps 102:13, 26-27a). Secondly, the wish is uttered that the God of Israel would reveal himself in the restored Zion after the people had returned from the exile (Ps 69:34, 36a; Ps 102:14, 17-18, 21). The third feature is that even the gentiles turn to Yahweh and gather in Zion (Ps 22:28; Ps 102:16, 2223). Fourthly, it is stated that future generations would possess the earth and receive Yahweh's blessing (Ps 22:31-32; Ps 69:36-37; Ps 102:19, 29). In its present form Ps 102 is the product of an intense collective reinterpretation. Even the suffering 'I' of the individual sequences is interpreted as identical with the suffering people of Israel in collective supplementations of the psalm." Lindstrom draws an audacious conclusion by assuming that the individual complaints (v. 2-12 and 24-25a) are remnants of two distinct individual complaint psalms. Lindstrom has reached this conclusion, because the metrical system is divergent between these texts. Unfortunately, Lindstrom favours an obsolete metrical pattern once developed by Sievers. Thus Lindstrom concludes that the dominant metre in v. 2-12 is 3+3, but in v. 24-25a the metre 3+2 is in use.100 The metre 3+2 is typical of the book of Lamentations (the so-called nrp metre). Using purely metrical reasons as a criterion for such a far-reaching conclusion seems rather dubious to me. First of all, it should be acknowledged that there are obscurities in the traditional theories concerning the metre. It is illuminating for the diversity of the phenomenon that Kraus, for instance, presents in his commentary a different metrical structure for these lines from Lindstrom. Kraus admits that the pattern 3+3 dominates in v. 2-12, verse 24 represents the nrp metre, but v. 25a follows, according to Kraus, the metre 2+2+2.101 I should also like to point out that the sequence of v. 24-25a is so short that neither its poetic metre nor even colometric reasons allow us to draw any fundamental conclusions. In any case, Lindstrom argues that v. 2-12 would hardly form a wholly preserved psalm of complaint, because these passages lack several features typical of the genre. Such features mentioned by Lindstrom are petition, testimony of confidence, thanksgiving and a promise of praise. Despite the 98

BECKER and LINDSTRÖM agree on common collective features in Pss 22, 69 and 102. BECKER, Israel, 45; BECKER, Wege, 93-96; LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 2 2 3 224. 99 BECKER, Wege, 91; LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 225. 100 LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 226. 101 KRAUS, Psalmen, 864.

3. Psalm 102

129

individual language, v. 2-12 and 24-25a do have many affinities with exilic literature that reflects collective ideology. Therefore Lindstrom concludes that the apparently individual sections in Ps 102 were originally composed in a collectivizing manner for national needs.102 Lindstrom's analyses are profound and in many respects reliable, but there are also some weaknesses in his arguments. His assumption that v. 2-12 and 24-25a derive from different psalms is not defensible, even though some other scholars (including Becker) maintain a similar idea.103 It is simple to note that these two sections have common vocabulary, above all the term 10% which occurs in v. 4, 12, 24 and 25a. Theologically, too, these passages represent a similar context of complaint. Though we join v. 2-12 and 24-25a together, elements of thanksgiving and praise would still be absent in the earliest stratum of the psalm. But we cannot be entirely sure that they ever existed in this poem. Genres and their characteristic features are specifically theoretical concepts. Not all the concrete texts were compelled to be reworked according to one and the same pattern. One major weakness in Lindstrom's otherwise interesting study is his too rigid reliance on the concept of genre. The Old Testament contains a bitter lament without any positive doxologies - 1 refer here to Ps 88.

The most complex redaction critical model regarding Ps 102 has been presented by G. Brunert. In her opinion, the basic form ("Grundschicht") consists of v. 2-3a*, 3b, 4, 5a*, 5b, 6-12, 25a*, 25b, 26, 27aa, 28b. Collective supplements are represented by v. 13, 14a, 14b*, 15-20a, 20b*, 21-23, 27a(3, 27b, 28a, 29. Moreover, Brunert reckons with some minor additions.104 This kind of redaction critical division is so complex that plausibility inevitably suffers. I think that the oldest layer in Ps 102 consists of v. 2-12 and 24-25a. This poem is probably pre-exilic. The complaint is described with the aid of varying expressions (even animal metaphors are used in v. 7). The Psalmist seems to be exhausted and on the brink of desperation. Connecting v. 2-12 and 24-25a is not without its problems, either. We may speak of syntactical weakness, because v. 24 does not coherently continue the thoughts expressed in v. 12. Verse 24 contains verbal forms in the third person singular (isp and n§»), which is exceptional because in v. 2-12 Yahweh is referred to in the second person singular. Nevertheless, v. 102 LINDSTROM, Suffering, 226-227. Nothing in Ps 102 refers to the divine wrath being the consequence of the people's sins. "The suffering in these individual sections refers, like those which have an explicit collective reference, to the national affliction of Israel, probably in connection with the exile." LINDSTROM, Suffering, 237. 103 BECKER, Israel, 44. Also SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 400, mentions that v. 2 4 - 2 5 a do not seamlessly continue from v. 2 - 1 2 . 104 BRUNERT, Psalm 102, 297-298.

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Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

24 is textually a slightly damaged passage and it is possible that the original text was altered due to the later redaction. It is at least evident that v. 24-25a were in the redaction shifted far away from their original context. In my opinion, the earliest stratum of Ps 102 represents pure individual prayer. Thus it is not a collective lament disguised by individual language, as Lindstrom thinks. Rather, by virtue of the first collective redaction the original individual poem received a national content. At this stage of supplementation v. 13-23 and 25b were added. These lines portray a completely different perspective of interpretation than is evident in the oldest layer. An individual has to step back while praise of Yahweh and a statement of Yahweh's magnitude and universal kingship come to the fore. Moreover, Yahweh is referred to as the restorer of Zion. The passages clearly presuppose exilic events, but may derive from the relatively late post-exilic period, because references to Zion's future prosperity are not necessarily to be associated with the release from the exile. Instead, this kind of emphasis may be purely eschatological and in that case the people expected Yahweh's intervention and Zion's restoration at the end of the earthly era. This first collective supplement forms a nice inclusion, for in the opening passage of the addition, v. 13, there is the term "it5!, which occurs a second time in v. 25b, i.e. in the concluding passage of the first collective redaction. Verses 17-19 have much terminology in common with the latter parts of Pss 22 and 69. This is also true for v. 21-22, which include similar infinitive structures as in Pss 22 and 69 (Ps 102:21 - Ps 69:34; Ps 102:22 Ps 22:23). It would be enticing to imagine that the process of redaction at one stage ended at Ps 102:19, which in fact includes a doxology akin to other concluding formulae. Concerning both style and content, v. 19 would undoubtedly serve well as a concluding passage. The context reveals that the expressions in v. 19 are clearly future, and thematically v. 19 closely resembles the concluding phrases of Ps 22 (Ps 22:31-32). Despite these fascinating observations, there is one major weakness in this theory: v. 2 4 25a would remain rather isolated; it is difficult to find a relevant function for these lines if at some stage the psalm ended with v. 19. Thus it is more reasonable to think that the first collective redaction did not end with v. 19, but extended as far as v. 25b (the earliest redaction is represented by v. 13-23, 25b). Originally, v. 24-25a seamlessly continued from v. 2-12, but the redactor broadly added his own text and thus v. 24-25a are now in a secondary context. The measures taken by the redactor can be explained theologically. Verse 12 contains a complaint concerning the ephemeral nature of life, in contrast to this the redactor wished to stress God's unchangeableness in v. 13. The redactor may have been dissatisfied with

131

3. Psalm 102

the jussive request at the end of the original poem, considering it an inappropriate ending, and therefore added v. 25b, which returns directly to the vocabulary and theme of v. 13. Thus the redactor managed to frame his supplement with similar topics. It seems obvious that Ps 102 was edited in at least two stages. First verses 13—23 and 25b were inserted and then at a later stage v. 26-29 were added, since they clearly contain even more universal views than the first collective redaction. Here we can justifiably speak of successive redaction, because an earlier supplement was further developed by a new supplement. Certainly v. 1 also belongs to the editorial strata, but to define its more precise nature goes beyond the scope of this study. At least it is certain that v. 1 as an editorial product does not derive from the collectively oriented redactors. The addition of v. 26-29 may have taken place at a relatively late stage. There are no certain anchorages for the period of editorial activity, but at least some rough guidelines can be drawn. Odil Hannes Steck seems to favour an extremely late date for Ps 102. In his opinion, the whole psalm not only some editorial supplements - was composed after the Fifth Syriac War. This war took place around 200 B.C.E.105 At least Steck presupposes that the apocryphal book of Baruch would obviously have known Ps 102 (cf. Ps 102:20-21 - Bar 2:16).106 In my opinion, however, the relationship between these texts is rather ostensible and an assumption of literary dependence between these sequences is hardly defensible, as the following comparison shows (I have placed common terminology in italics): Ps 102:20-21a

OTI E£EKUV|;EV E£ U^OU? ayiou

CXUTOU,

xuptos oupavou Eiri ttiv yi]v ettePAe^ev TOU crKoucrai TOV OTSVAYNOV TCOV TTETTE5T]H£VCOV. Bar 2:16

KiipiE, KCXTISE EK TOU OI'KOU TOU ayiou oou KCU Evvoriaov E'I? f)|JAS. KXIVOV, KiipiE, TO o u s OOU KCU CXKOUOOV.

105 In this war the Seleucid king Antiochus III managed to defeat the Egyptian troops of Ptolemy V. DONNER, Geschichte, 479. 106 STECK, Rezeption, 369, 374. STECK dates the book of Baruch to around 150 B.C.E. In another article STECK also favours a late origin for Ps 102 and moreover regards this psalm as a unity, which is quite exceptional concerning all the literary critical observations presented above. See STECK, Eigenart, 372. On the other hand, RO, Armenfrömmigkeit, 167, has recently drawn the conclusion that v. 1 and 13-29 differ both in style and content from the basic form (v. 2-12). The position of v. 24-25a, however, remains indefinite in RO's argumentation.

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Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

In another connection Steck argues that Ps 102, Tob 13-14 and Ben Sira 36 resemble each other so much that they must have been composed within the same period of time. Steck also suggests that Ps 102 was created by the 'macro-redaction' of the Psalter when the five-fold book division came into existence. Psalm 102 includes allusions to Pss 2-89 and also presupposes Pss 90-101. 107 Brunert, too, is of the opinion that Ps 102 was composed in connection with the final redaction of the fourth book of the Psalter (Pss 90-106). 108 In my opinion, the final redactional stage of Ps 102 may be rather late and in this sense Steck's estimate of the year 200 B.C.E. might be reasonable. But an argument that the entire psalm derives from the Hellenistic period is hardly acceptable. Nothing clearly speaks for the Hellenistic origin of the individual complaint psalm (v. 2-12, 24-25a). The growth process of Pss 22, 69 and 102 can be exemplified with the aid of the following chart: basic text

I collective redaction v. 4-6, 2427 v. 32-34

Psalm 22

v. 2-3, 7-23

Psalm 69

v. 2-5, 14ay-19, 31 v. 2-12, 24- v. 13-23, 25a 25b

Psalm 102

II collective redaction v. 28-29, 31-32 v. 35-37 v. 26-29

other later supplements v. 1, 30(?) v. 1, 6 14aß, 20-30 v. 1

It is interesting that all these three psalms seem to have undergone a twofold collective redaction. Other later material in each psalm is represented by the secondary superscriptions. Moreover, in Ps 69 the original individual complaint psalm was at an early stage supplemented by v. 6 14a(3 and 20-30. These additions were made before the first collective redaction. In Ps 22 the latest section is probably v. 30 within the corpus of the second collective redaction. This verse is metrically too crowded and includes an Aramaism. On the basis of similarities and some differences between the redactional layers of these three psalms it is possible to follow how the collective theology developed. First of all, it should be noted that the level 107 STECK, Abschluß, 151-166. In conclusion STECK, Abschluß, 159, writes: "Ps 102 dürfte also von vornherein auf ein fünfgeteiltes Psalter-Buch bezogen oder womöglich sogar im Zuge dieser gestaltgebenden Makroredaktion geschaffen worden sein." 108 BRUNERT, Psalm 102, 291.

3. Psalm

¡02

133

of the first collective redaction in Pss 22 and 69 is quite consistent. In both of these texts the main interest focuses on the people of Israel. In fact, those who have remained faithful to Yahweh are depicted with the same expressions: •"'13U (Ps 22:27; Ps 69:33) and VV .TUT nil run, ®T, ^n], ins and ptsi. These expressions have their background in several passages in Deutero- and Trito-Isaiah: n m n mirr> nabi atfin n^rr 1 ? noia (Isa 44:26b) Who says of Jerusalem: built".109 n m

"It shall be inhabited";

of the towns of Judah: "They shall be

1X31 /7.j®"nirT> " n a i (Isa 51:1 laa(3)

The ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing. 1

]>lt< 101" D^ltf ? Dipns D^D -[an (Isa 60:2la) Then will all your people be righteous and they will possess

the land

forever.

noBf-msf M M "HTD mer'n^n sfiv MIRRNI vu NPYN TIKSIM (isa 65:9) / will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah those who will possess my mountains; my chosen (people) will inherit them, and there will my servants live.

n&v DTD 1J21 (Isa 65:21a) They will build houses and dwell (in them).

Furthermore, one significant feature in the second collective redaction of Pss 22 and 69 (and the first collective redaction concerning Ps 102) is the theme that even foreign nations gather before Yahweh, and Yahweh rules them all. This is related to the cosmic joy (cf. Ps 69:35 in particular). Even these topics are frequently encountered in Deutero- and Trito-Isaiah: ITON1? ISON1! HIT m p : TRU-r1?:) (Isa43:9aap) All the nations gather together and the peoples

assemble.

p s nrnnn linn mrr nfeir-D lyatf in (Isa 44:23aaP; this is an example of the cosmic joy). Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this; shout aloud, O earth |

beneath.

l

pK- 03K- 73TOttfim^iCljS (Isa 45:22a) Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth.

109

The translations of the Isaianic passages on pages 164-166 are in accordance with Version (1984) by International Bible Society.

New International

135

4. Psalm 89 • • m - r 1 » 1 ? t o p 1 rf^rrrva t v o ^ (isa 56:7b) For my house will be called a house ofprayer for all nations. - | m j TO1? •1Dl?m -pis'? D113 ID1?™ (Isa60:3) Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness

of your

dawn.

1

••mm arra^m un:! 'rn -p^x «'•an ? ( I s a 6 0 : l i b ) Men may bring you the wealth of the nations - their kings led in triumphal - p i a a D-i3l70-'7Di - p - n • i ia u n i (Isa 62:2a) The nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your

procession.

glory.

1

maa-rnc

m n ixai mrc^m ••narr^a-nK pap ? (isa 66:18a(3.b) ...to gather all nations and tongues, and they will come and see my glory. ^ysb ninnB'n1? "ifcu-'ja t m 1 (isa 66:23b) All mankind will come and bow down before me.

In the light of these numerous examples there can hardly be any doubt that the collective redaction in Pss 22, 69 and 102 which emphasized the return and rebuilding of the country and Yahweh's kingship over all the world had its background and model in the compositions of Deutero- and TritoIsaiah. The use of the term 'Zion' is characteristic of the book of Isaiah throughout, and consequently it often occurs in Deutero- and Trito-Isaiah: Isa 40:9; 41:27; 46:13; 49:14; 51:3, 16; 52:1-2, 7-8; 59:20; 60:14; 61:3; 62:1, 11; 64:9; 66:8. It is thus plausible that the collectively orientated redactors adopted the name "IT'S from these passages which even otherwise offered a great example of national emphases.

4. Psalm 89 4.1 The Composition

of Ps 89

A closer look at Ps 89 quickly reveals that here we are dealing with a text which very likely consists of diverse material of different origin. The literary unity of this poem is widely questioned. Even Kraus, who otherwise avoids strong literary critical conclusions, admits that Ps 89 is a kind of 'mixture'. 110 Kraus divides Ps 89 into three parts as regards 110 KRAUS, Psalmen, 783. In fact, in KRAUS's opinion the present form of Ps 89 was not gained by simply joining together two independent poems, but earlier material was reworked and exploited in an altered situation. KRAUS's view can be called the 'tradition historical' approach. It is worthy of note that in some recent studies scholars have once again begun to defend the coherence of Ps 89 (thus, for example, VOLGGER, ARNETH and EMMENDÖRFFER; I shall concentrate more thoroughly on EMMENDÖRFFER's thesis in my own study). To put it briefly, EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 239, considers Ps 89 to be a coherent text deriving from the post-exilic period. The poet used earlier traditions when composing his own poem. It is noteworthy indeed that

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content: a hymn (v. 2-19), a broad allusion to God's promises to David (v. 20-38) and a song of lament (v. 39-52). Deviating from Kraus's view many scholars have supposed that Ps 89 consists of at least two independent poems. One would be the hymn in v. 2-19 and the other the complaint in v. 20-52. This point of view was supported in particular by Duhm, Kittel, Gunkel and Schmidt.111 On the basis of v. 48 and 51 Kraus concludes that as a complaint these passages fit best in the mouth of the king.112 Consequently, Kraus is inclined to date the whole psalm (both the hymnic section and the other sequences) back to the time of the monarchy before the exile.113 The culthistorical or cult-mythological school has been almost solely interested in the use of Ps 89 as part of the cult and its possible connections with other liturgical texts from the Ancient Orient. Representatives of this school (such as Mowinckel, Engnell, Widengren and Bentzen) were not particularly interested in literary-critical observations. Lexical and thematic connections between Ps 89 and some Ugaritic texts may exist (the KRT legend), but we have to be cautious when evaluating these possible similarities. The mythical language used in religious poetry was widely common among the nations of the Near East. This fact does not justify the mythologizing of the religious texts of Israel according to a pattern detected in a neighbouring nation, but in the 'golden days' of the cultmythological school such conclusions were sometimes too hastily drawn.114 Scholars have had divergent opinions about the date of origin of Ps 89 and its genre. Regarding the date of origin, the most extreme theories are, on the one hand, Duhm's conclusion that this psalm was composed as late as the reign of Alexander Jannaeus, and, on the other hand, Ahlström's interpretation according to which Ps 89 was originally used in Jebusite liturgies.115 The question of the genre is not easy to solve because Ps 89 contains both hymnic sections and complaint. A recent attempt to shed EMMENDÖRFFER regards both the hymn and the complaint as compatible with each other in this poem and derives them from the same author. 111 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 12 n. 5, gives an illuminating survey of the different models of composition that have been suggested during the history of research. 112 It is characteristic of this interpretation that in v. 51 KRAUS, Psalmen, 781, emends the Masoretic form •yiny to the singular. VEIJOLA criticizes this solution, see VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 113-117. 113 KRAUS, Psalmen, 783. 114 KRAUS, Psalmen, 784-785; KRAUS, Geschichte, 462-466. In Psalm research it was especially WEISER who guided cultic explanations onto firmer ground. WEISER's commentary on the Psalms concentrates more on cultic matters than its predecessors, but at the same time WEISER emphasizes the uniqueness of Israel's cult. This principle WEISER, Psalmen, 7 - 8 , expresses already in the preface to his commentary. 115 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 14-15.

4. Psalm 89

137

light on this complex problem has been made by Hossfeld, using the canonical approach. Hossfeld argues that the transition between individual and collective features is typical of the Psalms of Asaph and the Korahites.116 But ultimately Hossfeld cannot give any clear definition of genre for Ps 89. The question is left open. At the beginning of the 1980s Timo Veijola made a thorough analysis of Ps 89. He investigated literary layers, poetic structure, date of origin, the Sitz im Leben and connections between Ps 89 and Deuteronomistic theology. Particularly interesting are Veijola's observations which show that Ps 89 includes plain collective references. I do not have to offer my own colometric analysis of Ps 89, because Veijola has already done it in great detail. It is sufficient to present his results here. On the basis of his colometric analysis, Veijola divides Ps 89 into three parts, which all derive from different authors and different periods of time: 1) the hymn in v. 2-19 (excluding v. 4-5 which belong to the second section) 2) the section of v. 4-5 and 20-46 which deals with God's promises to David and God's anger towards his chosen one 3) the complaint in v. 47-52. 117 The last verse, v. 53, is probably a very late addition. In fact, it does not even belong to the actual psalm but instead is the final doxology to the third book of the Psalter (Pss 73-89). Corresponding doxologies occur in the final passages of each book of the Psalter.118 Recently, Michael Emmendorffer has strongly defended the coherence of Ps 89, and in this respect his approach differs from Veijola's, though both of these scholars abandon the assumption of a pre-exilic date. Emmendorffer has studied ancient Sumerian laments, especially the socalled BALAG laments which focus on the destruction of temple and city. A characteristic feature of these laments is the stereotyped nature of the language. Though these laments are ancient in origin, BALAG songs were copied and reused until the period of the Seleucids. It is also noteworthy that Sumerian prayers shift from individual petitions to the collective 116

HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 584-585. VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 34-35. HOSSFELD, too, regards v. 4 - 5 as secondary, likewise v. 36-38 and 48^19. The redaction in v. 4 - 5 and 36-38 is, in HOSSFELD's opinion, done on the basis of the royal psalms, but the redaction in v. 48 49 is closely akin to the neighbouring Pss 88 and 90. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 5 8 2 583. According to VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 37, v. 47-52 cannot belong to the same literal stratum as v. 20b^l6, because the poetic structure differs so remarkably. VEIJOLA'S solution has recently faced criticism, as we shall see a little later. 118 MILLARD, Komposition, 154. 117

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in the Psalms

prayers of the whole nation. Therefore the book of Lamentations does have some similarities with the Sumerian laments.119 It was possible for BALAG laments to begin with a hymnic section. Therefore Emmendörffer does not accept a literary-critical seam between v. 19 and 20. Emmendörffer is of the opinion that Ps 89 was composed in one stage.120 Unfortunately, Emmendörffer does not comment on Veijola's colometric conclusions, though there is a clear distinction between the consonantal averages in the hymnic section and in the section of complaint. The average number of consonants per colon in the hymn is 16.16, while in the complaint (v. 20b-46) the average is only 13.03.121 Perhaps Emmendörffer thinks that a poetic sequence does not have to follow the same rules and metre as a prose sequence, though both sections derived from the same hand. Nevertheless, Emmendörffer rejects Gunkel's theory that Ps 89 could have been composed in the northern kingdom of Israel. The theological terms anon and nam« in v. 2 are relatively late. Ps 89 derives from the post-exilic period and probably its original Sitz im Leben was in connection with the ceremonies of lament and fast which took place after the exile. In the figure of the king the troubles and suffering of the Israelite people were brought before Yahweh.122 Emmendörffer's study is profound and contains several interesting insights, but I still support Veijola's literary- and redaction-critical approach to Ps 89. In fact, it is almost indisputable that Ps 89 was the object of intentional redactional activity. It is far more plausible to speak of different literary strata within Ps 89 than to assume a coherent text, because the diversity of the material is so evident. Colometric analysis reveals furthermore that the last bicola of the hymn (v. 17-19) are shorter than the other hymnic cola on average. Probably the hymn at the beginning of Ps 89 was originally an independent text, but in its present form it is secondary, v. 17-19 being additions. This conclusion can be drawn not only on the basis of colometric reasons but some other arguments also favour this kind of solution. A sudden occurrence of the first person plural suffix occurs in v. 18-19 (cf. unp, -imc, l]?1?«; the Peshitta also renders in the first person plural the Masoretic word ÍOU? in v. 18a - ^ J I O X ) . In the preceding passages the first person plural suffix does not occur at all. The praising statement of v. 16, which begins with the word 'HB'K, would serve well as a concluding formula without requiring any continuation. 119 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 20-22, 37-38. On the other hand, TERRIEN, Psalms, 639, is of the opinion that Ps 89 may have served as a liturgy for the annual celebration of a royal ritual of death and transfiguration. However, TERRIEN's cultic reconstruction remains a mere guess, because textual support for his theory is non-existent. 120 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 210. 121 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 34-35. 122 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 208-211.

4. Psalm 89

139

The concluding passage beginning with ntfK also occurs a couple of times elsewhere in the Psalter (Ps 2:12; Ps 127:5; Ps 137:8-9 and Ps 144:15).123 Verses 4-5 and 20-46 derive from a person who knew the hymn prior to him. He attached the hymn more closely to his own message by inserting the material of v. 4-5 in the middle of the hymn and thus established a basis for the long prayer that begins with v. 20. Psalm 89 shares many lexical and theological similarities with exilic and early post-exilic literature, affinities with Deuteronomistic theology being particularly significant. Noteworthy are also connections with Ps 132, Lamentations and other collective psalms of lament (Pss 44, 60, 74, 77, 79, 80, 102 and 108). Furthermore, similarities with prophetic literature are remarkable (cf. Isa 63:7-64:11; Mic 7:8-20; Jer 33:19-26). Deutero-Isaiah reflects throughout theological thoughts akin to Ps 89.124 It seems likely that Ps 89 depends literarily on 2 Sam 7. The author of the psalm knew 2 Sam 7 in the form in which it existed after the thorough redaction of DtrN.125 Precisely the term ~DI) (Ps 89:4, 21, 40) in 2 Sam 7:5 and 8 derives from DtrN, which is also responsible for the honorary title T1J (2 Sam 7:8).126 Terminological study reveals rather indisputably that Ps 89 is later than 2 Sam 7. Psalm 89 namely uses such concepts as "pro, "nm and rr~o, which are very central in Deutero-Isaiah, but are completely absent from 2 Sam 7, because these strongly theological concepts were adopted at a later stage. Psalm 89 is not a pure paraphrase of 2 Sam 7 but is its poetic interpretation which has received influences from elsewhere.127 123

VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 35-36. The hymnic section of Ps 89 is probably old, and may date back to the pre-exilic era. It is also possible that this poem was originally composed in the northern kingdom, see VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 210. 124 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 48-59. 125 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 66. In this respect WASCHKE strongly criticizes VEIJOLA's study. According to WASCHKE, Ps 89 is not a poetic reinterpretation of 2 Sam 7. WASCHKE even states that there is no dependence between these texts, because Ps 89 does not mention the bringing of the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem. Also, themes like rebuilding the temple and Yahweh's historical acts in Israel are absent from Ps 89, though these themes are central in 2 Sam 7. Instead Ps 89 connects the promises of dynasty to creation, chaos and Yahweh's universal domination. WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 64. In a recent article, KOCH, too, suggests that both Ps 89 and 2 Sam 7 have independently of each other - used an oracular text as their source and edited it; see KOCH, Königspsalmen, 30-31. However, the lexical similarities - and dissimilarities as well - between Ps 89 and 2 Sam 7 are most plausibly explained when we follow VEIJOLA's conclusions. 126 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 60-62. 127 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 69; see also EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 222, 239. WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 117, too, admits that in its present state Ps 89 dates back to the

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These lexical observations may offer some reliable anchorages for dating Ps 89:4-5, 20-46. It seems obvious that these lines were written after DtrN but before Deutero-Isaiah. Thus Veijola defines the origin of Ps 89:4-5, 20-46 between the years 550 and 539 B.C.E.128 Other noteworthy suggestions for the origin of Ps 89 have been made. According to Rainer Albertz, Ps 89, when it speaks of 'the anointed of Yahweh', does not refer to the people of Israel but to a particular king. In Albertz's opinion, this king was Jehoiachin, to whom the hopes and expectations of many exiles were directed. According to this interpretation, Ps 89 was composed on Babylonian ground among the exiles between the assassination of Gedaliah and the rehabilitation of Jehoiachin (582-562 B.C.E.).' 29 On the other hand, Hossfeld places the origin of Ps 89 in the period after 515 B.C.E. In exilic period, but disputes any literary relationship between Ps 89 and 2 Sam 7. Instead similarities between Ps 89 and Deutero-Isaiah are rather striking. Especially Ps 89:50 and Isa 55:3b are very closely related. The similarities resemble each other so much that it is plausible that Deutero-Isaiah already knew Ps 89 in its full extent (hymn - David section - complaint). The relationship of dependence goes in precisely this manner: the text of Deutero-Isaiah is later than Ps 89. In Deutero-Isaiah the perspective of interpretation broadens to cover all Israel. In Deutero-Isaiah both i n s and T m are really epithets of the whole people; by contrast, Ps 89 mainly limits these concepts to David and his offspring. This is particularly evident in Ps 89:4, where David is the servant, las). But in Ps 89:40 the term 131) is no longer in individualistic but in collective usage; see VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 138. The basic theological themes of Ps 89 (theology of the covenant, the central role of David and the position of the king) refer, according to HOSSFELD, to the era after the inauguration of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (after 515 B.C.E.). HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 587. The question of the relationship between Ps 89 and the covenant-centred layer DtrB is an interesting issue that would demand a specific study. 128 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 88. This conclusion is based on the assumption that Deutero-Isaiah's authentic ministry took place before 539 B.C.E., when Cyrus defeated Babylon, because Deutero-Isaiah's predictions do not entirely correlate with actual historical events, see SMEND, Entstehung, 151-152. This interpretation, however, is a little obsolete, since nowadays scholars widely accept that the composition of DeuteroIsaiah is very complex and thus it is rather difficult to distinguish between authentic and secondary material. Probably the authentic core is quite modest - as in many other prophetic books of the Bible. Therefore 539 B.C.E. cannot be regarded as terminus ante quem for Ps 89. EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 228, even questions VEIJOLA s thesis as to whether the seam lies between v. 46 and 47. In EMMENDÖRFFER's opinion, a new sequence of the poem begins with v. 39, though the text is coherent. See also C. RÖSEL, Redaktion, 136. 129 Moreover, in ALBERTZ's opinion Ps 89 is a coherent text, because the root ion occurs in both v. 2 and v. 50; ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 120. Perhaps the greatest problem in ALBERTZ's theory is that he almost completely ignores the numerous literary- and redaction-critical observations made by VEIJOLA. If we take these observations seriously it is very difficult indeed to consider Ps 89 a unity. The existence of the same root at the beginning and at the end is not alone a sufficient proof of the alleged coherence of the poem.

4. Psalm 89

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my opinion, this view is the most plausible and Veijola's theory should be revised in this direction. In recent studies the activity of DtrN has been dated much later than Veijola estimated in his study published in 1982. It is likely that Ps 89 derives from the post-exilic period, probably excluding the hymnic section, which might be pre-exilic. Consequently, even the short sequence of complaint in v. 47-52 must be post-exilic, because these lines clearly presuppose the broad David section (4-5, 20-46). Certainly verses 47-52 do have many affinities with exilic and early post-exilic literature, especially connections with Deutero-Isaiah being remarkable.130 Quite recently Hans Ulrich Steymans has noted affinities between Ps 89:45, 20-38 (Steymans places the seam here) and some Assyrian texts which derive from the 7th century B.C.E., notably SAA 9.1. Despite these similarities, Ps 89 does not necessarily date back to the same era as the Assyrian parallel. Steymans estimates that Ps 89 was probably written within 150 years after the Assyrian text.131 Pietsch suggests that Ps 89 in its present form was composed in Palestine 550-520 B.C.E.132 As a place of origin for Ps 89 Veijola suggests Bethel, where the Deuteronomistic movement had moved from its previous base in Mizpah. The original Sitz im Leben of Ps 89 may have been in exilic penitence rituals which took place in at least Mizpah and Bethel.133 In his recent studies Veijola has somewhat modified his theory and nowadays is inclined to suppose that the later nomistically oriented Deuteronomistic redactors probably worked in Babylonia.134 This new attitude leaves open the question of the place of origin for Ps 89. Emmendorffer thinks that in its present state Ps 89 is a priestly work. The author managed to give a reinterpretation of earlier David theology. The terminology of anointing (nefa) is most common in the Priestly Code.135 It is a significant feature in Emmendorffer's analysis that he does not derive Ps 89 directly from the circle of the Deuteronomistic school. Emmendorffer has paid attention to the astonishing fact that the author of Ps 89 was aware of the language and theology of Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomistic schools, but strangely 130 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 89-90. Surprisingly, HOSSFELD takes no clear standpoint on the influence of the Deuteronomistic movement on the origin or redaction of Ps 89. Regarding v. 3 1 - 3 2 HOSSFELD admits, however, that the terms which urge the obedience to the law resemble Dtr formulae. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 100, 594. 131 STEYMANS, Thron, 240-245. 132 PIETSCH, Sproß, 106. 133 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 210. On the other hand, SAUR, Königspsalmen, 183 n. 139, considers it unlikely that Ps 89 would ever have been in cultic use. Rather, this psalm has had its Sitz im Leben in the private meditation. 134 VEIJOLA, Deuteronomisten, 237. 135 EMMENDORFFER, Gott, 221-223.

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enough used this terminology contrary to Dtr theology.136 For instance, he exonerated the people and charged Yahweh for the miserable state of affairs. The author of Ps 89 might have been a contemporary of DtrN, but did not share all the opinions of DtrN; instead the author of Ps 89 related very critically to Dtr theology. Despite Emmendorffer's critical insights, it is still more plausible that Ps 89 rather continues than opposes DtrN's theology as expressed in 2 Sam 7. The composition of both texts was temporally close. Therefore it seems unlikely that during the same period there could have been two opposite groups that nevertheless used the same dtr-phraseology. It should once more be stressed that the author of Ps 89 is not identical with DtrN, but Ps 89 represents a slightly developed form of DtrN's theology in certain respects. But it is not justifiable to doubt that Ps 89 derives from Dtr circles. Ps 89 underlines the collective understanding of David theology and this is completely in line with the view of DtrN. 4.2 Collective Features in Ps 89 The vocabulary of Ps 89 contains some terms that strongly reflect a collective ideology. Particularly illuminating examples are D1Ton and "[Han.137 Verse 20a is a kind of introductory formula and shows that the Israelites were the recipients of divine promises (TI1Tpni?), thus the collectivization of the promises to David which is characteristic of DtrN is well represented even in this biblical poem. Pietsch's observation concerning Ps 89:16-19 is remarkable. He has paid attention to the fact that a collective tone is undeniably present in these passages. For instance, the 'people' mentioned in v. 16 can hardly mean anything else than Israel.138 Veijola, in his study on Ps 89, also notes that v. 16-19 differ colometrically from the rest of the hymn and thus might have a different origin. Perhaps these verses function as an attachment between the hymn and the collectively expressed complaint. An interesting passage from the text-critical point of view is Ps 89:51a nsirj •'ins ~i'Di). Many scholars have followed the reading of about twenty Masoretic manuscripts which differs from the Codex Petropolitanus 139 and thus have replaced the word *p;uij with the singular form 13 ^ EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 2 2 7 - 2 2 9 , 239. PIETSCH (Sproß, 1 0 5 - 1 0 6 , 1 1 8 - 1 1 9 ) supports EMMENDORFFER'S view. Nevertheless, PIETSCH, Sproß, 104, differs from E M M E N D Ö R F F E R ' s conclusions in the respect that PIETSCH regards the hymnic section as the oldest part of Ps 89 and thus notes the seam between v. 19 and 20. 137

VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 135; C. RÖSEL, Redaktion, 139, 145. PIETSCH, Sproß, 113. 139 See, for instance, SAUR, Königspsalmen, 184 n. 142. In S A U R ' s opinion it is plausible to interpret 'the anointed one' of v. 4 7 - 5 2 as an individual, most likely as a king. 138

4. Psalm 89

143

This singular reading is further supported by the Peshitta ( v y ^ . i ) and a few Septuagint manuscripts which represent the recension of Lucian. However, there are not sufficient arguments for an emendation. The plural form ^fHDU fits better with the collective theology that arose during the exile. Also, the concept 'your anointed' (^jrrBa) in Ps 89:39 and 52 received after the exile a new, collective reference. 140 Instead of the king the anointed of Yahweh are the people of Israel. Even the parallelism in v. 5 1 52 between T"QU and "irrft'o indicates that the 'anointed' must have a collective reference. 141 In this connection Waschke, however, speaks of a redaction that assigned a messianic character to Ps 89; in such a context 'anointed' no longer means solely the king. 142 Collectively understood, rp»'a occurs besides in Ps 89 in the following passages: Ps 28:8; Ps 84:10; Ps 132:10, 17 and Hab 3:13a. I shall later in this study analyse each of these passages more thoroughly. Psalm 89:4 uses the word "vna of David, whereas in Ps 106 the same expression refers to Moses (Ps 106:23). Also, the servant of Yahweh ("QU nin1) is 'chosen' (Tilll) in Isa 42:1. The term in question is very likely a strong collective expression. The earliest translators gave a collective content to the word ^ r n ^ in Ps 89:4. The Septuagint renders this expression T O I S E K A E K T O I S pou, and the Targum renders " H T Q N M A K ^ . However, in the Peshitta the collective aspect is not as evident: ^ n ^ V . Psalm 89:27 places in David's mouth words in which David addresses God as his father. Correspondingly, in v. 28 God speaks of David as his first-born The idea of the king as God's first-born is very rare in the Old Testament. In fact, it is so infrequent that it only occurs in this passage. Instead Israel as God's first-born is a more ordinary idea (for instance Exod 4:22; Jer 31:9 and Hos 11:1). By virtue of these parallels it is most natural to interpret the word 1133 in Ps 89 from the collective point of view. 143 Israel's special position as the people chosen by Yahweh himself became more common due to the influence of the Deuteronomistic

1 4 0 BECKER, Deutung, 574, puts it briefly: "Der 'Gesalbte' von V. 39 ist Israel." EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 231, 238, is also of the opinion that the 'anointed' in v. 3 9 and 52 is unambiguously Israel. 1 4 1 PIETSCH, Sproß, 121. 142 WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 6 8 - 6 9 . Nevertheless, WASCHKE does not draw any collective conclusions on the basis of the concept irtfo. In one instance, however, he mentions that the promises once given to David became the common property of Israel, see WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 100. 143 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 2 2 4 - 2 2 5 ; PIETSCH, Sproß, 1 1 6 - 1 1 7 . However, STEYMANS criticizes collective conclusions drawn on the basis of Ps 89; STEYMANS, Thron, 192, 229.

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movement. Exodus 4:22 belongs to the sequence Exod 4:21-23, which is widely considered to be a Deuteronomistic interpolation.144 Moreover, Pietsch has noted some other collective features in Ps 89. For instance, he mentions that v. 23 represents nationalization of the figure of David. Verses 41—42 are also marked by their collective content.145 Accumulation of so many national features, as listed above, within one psalm is strong evidence in favour of the collective interpretation. It is furthermore interesting to note that the collectivizing tendency is in this case not confined to the Hebrew text alone, but continues in some of the early versions.

5. Collective Passages in Various Psalms 5.1 Ps 3:9 Psalm 3 is the first psalm with a dedication to David in the superscription.146 Thematically this psalm contains primarily complaint, but also reliance on God's help. In the traditional definition of the genre Ps 3 is placed in the category of individual complaint psalms. It is possible that the earliest form of Ps 3 might date back to the pre-exilic period. Some indication of an early origin may be given by the fact that this psalm was chosen to open the First Davidic Psalter. Linguistically, Psalm 3 is a good example of an individual complaint, because the Psalmist speaks all the time in the first person, and almost all the suffixes in this prayer are in the first person singular. The only exceptions to this basic pattern are the word l1? in v. 3, which also refers to the Psalmist himself, and the word iB'ij?, which alludes to Yahweh. Against this strongly individualistic background v. 9 is rather peculiar. Undoubtedly it is rather loose in its context. The colometric method is not necessarily the most useful tool when only one passage is in question. Colometric analysis is more reliable and justified when a longer sequence is in focus. Therefore I think we cannot resolve the question of the authenticity of v. 9 solely based on colometric arguments. Instead other methods have to be employed, particularly literary criticism in its various forms. 144

VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 141. PIETSCH, Sproß, 115, 119. 146 CRAIGIE, Psalms, 73, is of the opinion that Ps 3 includes several thematic and linguistic affinities with 2 Samuel. According to CRAIGIE, it is probable that Ps 3 was written in memory of the life of David. CRAIGIE does not see any disturbing seam between v. 8 and 9. Rather, he thinks that Ps 3 is a coherent unity. 145

5. Collective

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145

It is noteworthy that v. 9 consists solely of nominal clauses. This is not completely exceptional even elsewhere in this psalm, because v. 2b-4 are also nominal clauses. Ps 3 mentions enemies and oppressors many times ( h s , 'by trap crzn, -n 1 », but in v. 2-8 the enemies are always the enemies of an individual. There is no mention of enemies of the people. Thus it is justified to ask whether v. 2-8 was reinterpreted at a later stage from a national point of view. It is likely that the redactors wanted to see the apparently individual person who was pursued by his enemies as the suffering people of Israel, and such an interpretation and conviction is put into words in v. 9. On the other hand, without v. 9 Psalm 3 entirely lacks the final doxology, which is a characteristic feature of several individual complaint psalms. Could this psalm have functioned without v. 9? Could it be theoretically possible that v. 2-8 originally formed an independent prayer? I think that v. 2-8 as such form a sufficient prayer.147 Doxology is not a necessary component, though it occurs rather frequently. But Ps 88 is a classic example of a complaint which completely lacks any idea of praise. It is more important to pay attention to the divergent vocabulary of v. 9 as compared with the preceding text than to maintain theoretical patterns concerning the structure of psalms of complaint. Gunkel slightly hesitates in his commentary on the Psalms, as to whether v. 9 is an addition or not, but finally he inclines to regard this verse as secondary.148 In my opinion, the collective redaction in Ps 3 perceptibly shows that the collectively oriented redactors were in close co-operation with the redactors who edited the Psalter in its present form and to its present extent. Psalm 3 opens an extensive collection of Davidic psalms, and when the redactors gave a national reinterpretation to this particular psalm, they at the same time gave a collective emphasis to the whole Davidic Psalter.149

147

SEYBOLD is of the opinion that Ps 3 originally ended at v. 8aa. According to SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 35-36, v. 8apb and 9 are successive additions. Nevertheless, it remains a little obscure as to whether v. 8aa is a meaningful conclusion to the prayer or not. LORETZ, Psalmstudien, 65, is of the opinion that Ps 3:9 is a secondary and collectivizing addition. 148 GUNKEL, Psalmen, 13-15. In this connection GUNKEL mentions B U D D E and WELLHAUSEN as his predecessors when discussing the collectivizing additions in several psalms. SCHMIDT, Psalmen, 7, thinks that the tone in v. 9 is clearly contradictory to the previous verses. In his opinion, this contradiction is based on the fact that a short prayer of thanksgiving was later joined to the prayer of complaint. 149 According to LOHFINK, Psalter, 199, Psalms 1-3 are linked together with catchwords, and this emphasizes the meditative character of the final Psalter. Thus also JANOWSKI, "Kleine Biblia", 385-388. However, we should be cautious not to assume too many complex connections between ancient texts, see WHYBRAY, Reading, 33.

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5.2 Ps 14:7 (Ps 53:7)

Defining the genre of Ps 14 is a difficult task. It can hardly be regarded as an individual complaint, but it does not include features of a national lament either. Nevertheless, as concerns its atmosphere this psalm is closer to complaint than to thanksgiving or praise. Weiser aptly states that Ps 14 contains many issues which are typical of the Old Testament prophets.150 Commentators greatly disagree over the origin and literary coherence of Ps 14.151 The present textual form of the psalm causes great difficulties for understanding, because the Hebrew text is in part badly damaged. Even metrical deductions must be based upon emendations. Between verses 3 and 4 both the Septuagint and a few Masoretic manuscripts add a remarkably long extract. In this connection it is unnecessary to try to reconstruct the original Hebrew form of Ps 14. At least it seems to me that the reading of the Septuagint fits rather fluently in its context. The identity of the transgressors in Ps 14 remains obscure. Never is there any clear statement that they were non-Israelite enemies. Verse 4 speaks of 'my people' (1SIi) and Lindstrom is inclined to regard this word as a gloss,152 but such a conclusion is unnecessary. It is also possible to think that the transgressors described in the psalm operated within the people of Israel, i.e. these transgressors were unfaithful Israelites. In any case v. 7 is bizarre within Ps 14. This verse includes several strongly national concepts (iay ran», il»s, and the word pair 3'pjr - 'PiOfo1., which is very typical in Deutero-Isaiah, cf. also Ps 22:24). This vocabulary in v. 7 clearly deviates from the preceding passages. On this basis it is possible seriously to question the assumption of the literary unity of Ps 14. The 'doublet' of Ps 14, Ps 53, repeats the collective concluding passage almost without change. The most remarkable change is the replacing of God's name mrr by DTI1?}«, because Ps 53 belongs to the so-called Elohistic Psalter. Psalm 14:7 may reflect echoes from the exilic situation, 150

WEISER, Psalmen, 110-111. GUNKEL dates Ps 14 back to the post-exilic period, because the prophet Malachi speaks about similar abuses in the cult (Mai 2). But v. 7b is not necessarily a gloss, according to GUNKEL: "Dieser Schluß, in anderem Versmaß gehalten, könnte vielleicht, aber muß nicht Zusatz sein." GUNKEL, Psalmen, 233. SCHMIDT, Psalmen, 104-105, has observed in the background to Ps 14 a similar critical attitude towards sacrifices, as is evident in Pss 5 0 - 5 1 . Quite surprisingly, SCHMIDT considers Ps 14 to be a unity. Of later commentators CRAIGIE thinks that Ps 14 is probably earlier than the exile. In his opinion, v. 7b does not necessarily refer to the exile. Consequently, CRAIGIE, Psalms, 147, supports the idea of the literary coherence of Ps 14. In SEYBOLD's opinion, Ps 14:4-6 is in disorder, obviously v. 4aa, 5b, 4b, 5a, 6b* belong together. Verse 7 is an addition that includes a reference to a cultic feast. SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 6 6 - 6 7 . 152 LINDSTRÖM, Suffering, 291-292. 151

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147

particularly the terminological proximity of the word pair Jacob-Israel to Deutero-Isaiah hints that the patriotic concluding phrase may derive from the exile, but it is also possible that such an addition was introduced at a later stage of the textual transmission. On the other hand, verses 1-6 may date back to the pre-exilic period.153 5.3 Ps 25:22

Structurally Ps 25 is an acrostic (alphabetical) poem. The Psalter contains several other poems which also represent the same pattern (Pss 9-10, 34, 37, 111-112, 119, 145). Furthermore, a corresponding phenomenon is found in the book of Lamentations. Generally speaking, acrostic psalms are considered to be rather late and literary products from their very origin. Many reasons speak for a late date for Ps 25. First of all, there is the imperative ~\D\ in v. 6-7 (cf. also Ps 119:49); this form is characteristic of wisdom literature. A corresponding late linguistic feature is the request •'nisi? in Ps 25 and in a few other psalms (for instance Ps 25:4-5; Ps 119:26, 64).154 Ps 25 is a prayer in the singular form, and many scholars assume that its genre is an individual complaint psalm.155 Especially v. 15-19 point in this direction. In any case, it is clear that Ps 25 is dominated by an 'I' prayer; both verbal forms and suffixes mainly represent the first person singular (exceptions in v. 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12-14). The most striking feature in Ps 25 is v. 22 which breaks the harmonious acrostic structure. Verse 21 begins with the last consonant of the Hebrew alphabet (n), and such a verse could with good reason be deemed to be a concluding passage. But this is not the case, because v. 22 follows, though it is unfitting in the context. The same situation is encountered at the end of Ps 34, which I shall analyse a little later. Even Weiser, who throughout his commentary avoids sharp literarycritical decisions, regards Ps 25:22 as an addition.156 153 According to HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 99, the earliest core of Ps 14 comprised only v. 1-5, which are of pre-exilic origin. Psalms 14 and 53 are derived independently of each other from the same Vorlage. In some cases it seems that Ps 53 preserved the earlier textual form. C. ROSEL, Redaktion, 58-60. 154 AEJMELAEUS, Traditional, 42. 155 Thus, for example, SMEND, Entstehung, 196. WHYBRAY, Reading, 62, prefers the category of 'wisdom psalm'. 156 WEISER, Psalmen, 162-163. According to GUNKEL, Psalmen, 108, v. 22 is plainly a later addition. Furthermore, GUNKEL made the remarkable observation that only v. 22 uses the word oti^r, elsewhere in Ps 25 the name ni,T occurs. Such an observation cannot easily be bypassed. On the other hand, against the consensus o f the scholarship EATON, Psalms, 81-82, regards v. 22 as an authentic part of the psalm. In his opinion, this verse is to be understood as a summary choral refrain. However, EATON's liturgical view has not found any significant support among the scholars.

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in the Psalms

Verse 22 does not at all refer to the 'I' which is so central in the preceding passages. The point of view in v. 22 is purely national. This feature makes the whole verse very isolated in its context. The verb m a does not occur elsewhere in Ps 25. This verb is common in contexts where the exodus is referred to.157 As Gunkel has stated, the word DM^S in • v« precisely this form occurs only in v. 22. Otherwise the name mm is mainly used. There are some exceptions to this pattern, but they are easy to explain: in v. 2 a form with suffix Ori^R) is found, though due to the acrostic structure it would better belong with v. 1. It is impossible to derive a suffixed form from a proper noun, and thus mrr does not fit in such a context. Furthermore, there is a status constructus form in v. 5. Sudden changes concerning God's name do not always give justification for far-reaching literary critical conclusions, because such alterations are rather common and the changes may be due to many reasons; the assumption of different sources is by no means the only possible alternative. Metrical reasons (parallelismus membrorum), for instance, can explain at least some deviations from Yahweh to Elohim and vice versa.158 For the term rnris in v. 22 there is a parallel in v. 17 (nns). In v. 17 the Psalmist, however, speaks of his own anguish and the national emphasis is not in view. Craigie interprets v. 22 as a postscript which made possible a cultic function for an acrostic poem. The Hebrew text lacks the strophe which should begin with the letter 1. The same phenomenon is repeated in Ps 34, which also shares several other common features with Ps 25 (in the acrostic structure these psalms employ the same words four times at the beginning of a new strophe: Ps 25:12 - Ps 34:13 ' i p ' ; Ps 25:15 - Ps 34:16 "p.p'; Ps 25:16 - Ps 34:17 'ma / 'sa'; Ps 25:22 - Ps 34:23 'ma'). 1 5 9 Craigie considers that this phenomenon is an intentional stylistic feature: l has disappeared and is substituted by an extra a strophe at the end of the psalm.160 Schmidt states that v. 22 cannot be a marginal note that had accidentally been integrated into the basic text, because Ps 34 includes the corresponding incident. From these similarities Schmidt draws the conclusion that Pss 25 and 34 are the work of one and the same person. In 3

157 LOHFINK, Bund, 72. Furthermore, LOHFINK argues that the b line is probably the theological centre of the psalm, because it tells about the forgiveness of sins. The acrosticon begins with K, the highlight begins with L>, and the psalm ends with the a line. Together these letters form the word the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Whether this is a mere coincidence or the intended result, is difficult to say. At least LOHFINK, Bund, 7 2 - 7 9 , regards Ps 25 as a uniform text that was probably composed for its present context. 158 MILLARD, Problem, 88. 159 For a more detailed analysis of the similarities between Pss 25 and 34, see BARBIERO, Psalmenbuch, 518-523. 160 CRAIGIE, Psalms, 217, 221-222.

5. Collective

Passages

in Various

Psalms

149

fact, Schmidt agrees with the old thesis originally suggested by de Lagarde that the verb m a in v. 22 conceals in a pun the autograph of the author.161 Male names derived from the root HID occur a couple of times in the Hebrew Bible: Pedaiah n n a (2 Kgs 23:36), Pedaiahu -inns (1 Chr 27:20) and Pedahel ^Rrna (Num 34:28). The thesis of de Lagarde is enticing in all its imaginativeness, but it cannot be taken as a serious fact when pondering the question of the authorship of Ps 25. It is most natural to interpret v. 22 as a collective addition that was a later supplement to an acrostic prayer. With the aid of this addition the redactors probably endeavoured to give a collective content to the whole preceding poem. In practice this means that the 'I' of the prayer was seen as analogous to the people of Israel. Verses 13-14 (particularly expressions such as TKT1?, Diriin1?, p i s i u n n ) offered useful junctions for nascent collective reinterpretation. 5.4 Ps

28:8-9

Concerning verses 1-7, Psalm 28 can justifiably be regarded as an individual complaint psalm. Verse 7 seems in fact to form a natural concluding phrase to this prayer, because it even includes a little doxology: •lanins. By contrast, verses 8-9 differ from the previous verses in tone, vocabulary and style. These divergences are indisputable. Verses 8-9 do not concentrate on an individual, but the national emphasis is remarkable. The word io'p in v. 8 does not function syntactically, because there is nothing in the previous verses to which the suffix could refer. Thus it is reasonable to make an emendation and read its?1?, which is supported by some Masoretic manuscripts, the Septuagint (TOU Aaou auTou) and the Peshitta. It is once again noteworthy that the early versions favour a national interpretation. The word IrPtfQ in v. 8b is an interesting term, because Ps 28 in its present form derives from the exile or more probably from the post-exilic period.162 The 'anointed one' cannot in that case mean the king. This assumption is supported by the fact that the duty of a shepherd (nun) is given not to the king but directly to Yahweh. In other words, verses 8-9 161

SCHMIDT, Psalmen, 46. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 177, think that v. 8 with its collective features belongs to the redaction that took place at the end of the exile. V. 9, however, represents the post-exilic redaction. On the other hand, we are justified in asking whether it is conceivable to distinguish between these two verses so abruptly. In my opinion, both of these verses may well derive from the same redaction. C. ROSEL, Redaktion, 125-127, also criticizes HOSSFELD's two-fold redactional layers in Ps 28:8-9. But ROSEL's own solution concerning Ps 28:8 is rather complex, too. He thinks that the corrupt form 10*7 was originally D'JO'?. This was later collectivized and thus the form ins»1? was arrived at. 162

150

111. Collective Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

deal with the relationship between Yahweh and the people of Israel without any intermediating monarchy.163 Therefore it is most natural to interpret the expression Irptfa in v. 8b as parallel to the word iaub in the preceding colon. Thus 'the anointed' means the people of Israel. Similar parallelism prevails in v. 9 between the words ^ar and ^n^m. All the time the object of Yahweh's actions is the people of Israel. The collective supplement of v. 8-9 gives a new imprint to the context of complaint in v. 1-7. 5.5 Ps 29:10-11 Psalm research has shown that there are significant connections between Ps 29 and ancient Canaanite and Ugaritic traditions.164 There are some features in Ps 29 which may be defined as archaic, and consequently many commentators deem Ps 29 to be one of the oldest psalms that has been preserved.165 Archaic features can be listed in the following way: 1) D^s 33. is more understandable in extra-biblical texts; also praising God's voice is of non-Israelite origin. 2) Names of places mentioned in the psalm can be located in Syria and are also mentioned in Ugaritic texts ( I b n w n , shrywn, mdbr qds).166 3) Enclitic m in Ps 29:6 (DTpTi) reveals Phoenician influence. 4) Verse 11 seems to be a late addition, since it does not fit the original Canaanite pattern. 5) This psalm is marked by so-called climactic parallelism, which also occurs in Ugaritic texts. The Israeli scholar Yitzhak Avishur has strongly rejected these views, originally presented by H. L. Ginsberg. According to Avishur, the 163 This is a rather revolutionary idea, because usually in the Ancient Orient it was believed that the destiny of the king was crucial for the people. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 180. CRAIGIE, Psalms, 237, 240, thinks that Ps 28 is an individual complaint, but a priest or Levite concluded the prayer with the phrase on behalf of the whole people (v. 8-9). In practice this means that in the temple service the analogy between the individual and society was adapted. 164 See the historical survey of research by LORETZ, Psalm 29, 11-22. LORETZ, Psalm 29, 101-109) also mentions some possible Mesopotamian and Egyptian parallels. 165 Thus, for example, KRAUS, Psalmen, 380. CRAIGIE, Psalms, 246, places the origin of Ps 29 in the 11th or 10th century B.C.E. So far no exact word-for-word parallel to Ps 29 in Ugaritic or Canaanite texts has been found. LORETZ, Ugarit-Texte, 89, 191 192. But the vocabulary of Ps 29 does have several affinities with Ugaritic words, as SEGERT, Poetry, 170-172) demonstrates in his statistical study. 166 GORDON, Handbook, 242, 266, 274.

J. Collective Passages in Various Psalms

151

expression D^N •'¡¡a is not necessarily a Canaanite concept because it occurs elsewhere in the Old Testament (for example Exod 15:11; Deut 32:8 and the narrative sections of Job). Geographical names refer to the boundaries of the Israelite kingdom at the time when this psalm was composed. Enclitic n is surprisingly common in the Hebrew Bible. Furthermore, Avishur states that v. 11 contains similar features to the colophon of the Mesopotamian creation story Enuma Elish: "Marduk is the strength of his land and his people." Due to the harmonious structure of Ps 29, Avishur is of the opinion that v. 11 originally belonged in its present context.167 On the basis of his analysis Avishur concludes that Ps 29 was composed during the great kingdom of David and Solomon.168 In 1984 Loretz published a monograph where he undertook a detailed literary- and redaction-critical analysis of Ps 29. Four years later, in 1988, Loretz wrote a new study in which he slightly modified and altered his earlier conclusions. Loretz's studies benefit even research which concentrates on discovering traces of collective reworking. At the end of Ps 29 there are strong national emphases (particularly in v. 11 - even Avishur has noted the peculiarity of this passage, though he does not draw any critical conclusions on the basis of this fact). We have to analyse whether even v. 10 is a later supplement. Gunkel was convinced that v. 11 should be regarded as a later patriotic addition.169 In 1984 Loretz was inclined to divide Ps 29 into three layers of different origin: 1) the earliest layer (v. 1-2 and 9c), 2) the middle section (v. 3-9b), 3) the latest part (v. 10-11). 170 Thus in 1984 Loretz was of the opinion that both v. 10 and v. 11 167 AVISHUR, Studies, 39^10, 44-51. The word ro occurs in both v. 1 and v. 11. AVISHUR concludes that this inclusion was the original aim of the poet, see AVISHUR, Studies, 73. AVISHUR has also found parallels to v. 11 in Ugaritic and Phoenician sources, see AVISHUR, Studies, 104. It is obvious that the ending D in v. 6 can be interpreted in two different ways. Firstly, it can be understood as a normal masculine suffix in the third person plural, when it could refer either to the names Lebanon and Sirion that follow or to the cedars of Lebanon that are mentioned previously in v. 5. The reading of the Septuagint seems to represent the latter alternative: kcci ouvrpi^ei icupios tcxs KESpous tou Ai(3avou !?» mpa -I:1? rrn»' mrr Even in this case the first stichoi of both bicola are word-for-word the same, and the latter stichos of the first bicolon includes the same expression 'wifip x n a x 1 as Ps 129:1b. Also, Psalm 124:1-2 forms an even colometric metre. Some scholars are of the opinion that the similar openings of bicola in Ps 124:1-2 and Ps 129:1-2 can be explained by redactional activity, i.e. the first bicolon in both incidences represents a collective supplement.241 Certainly repetitions can also function as stylistic effects. This alternative is also tempting when Pss 124 and 129 are in question, because repetition is furthermore used in Ps 124:3-5 (the word occurs three times at the beginning of bicola). But in this case the emphasis on Israel is so evident that there is no need to doubt that the opening section of Ps 129 stemmed from the redactor(s). Redactional sections in Pss 124 and 129 resemble each other so much that they probably derive from the same circles, or even from the same author. The background for the expression ^KHlir Kr~iQiO probably lies in Ps 118:2a where the same phrase occurs. Psalm 118 in its present form is certainly a patchwork that consists of several smaller text units from different ages. According to Levin, Ps 118:1^ and Ps 136 have at one stage of the textual development been adjacent poems. Later the vast Ps 119, the Songs of Ascents and Ps 135 were inserted between these two liturgical texts.242 The redactor who created the collective addition to Ps 124:1 and Ps 129:1 obviously found the model for his wording in Ps 118:2a. This deduction suggests that the collectively orientated redaction in Pss 124 and 129 could have taken place only when the Songs of Ascents were attached to the present context. The mixture of individual and collective features in Ps 129 has been a great problem for scholars who have strictly followed Balla and thus tried to dispute any justification for collective interpretation. This dilemma is evident in Kraus's commentary on the Psalms. Kraus has to admit that occasionally in the Old Testament a larger group of people speaks of itself 241 242

ALLEN, Psalms, 189; see also SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 491. LEVIN, Schlußdoxologie, 23-24.

6. Collective

Features in the Songs of Ascents

171

in the first person singular (for instance Isa 12:1-2; Isa 61:10; Jer 10:1920; Mic 7:7-10), but at the same time Kraus hastens to state that almost all the biblical Psalms are songs of an individual.243 Kraus's view is obsolete from the standpoint of re-evaluating the collective interpretation. Collective emphasis in Ps 129 is obvious, as in other psalms that I am focusing on in this study. What do we know about the date of origin of Ps 129? Certain linguistic features (such as the use of the relative particle E>' in v. 6 and 7) point to a post-exilic origin.244 The terminology which refers to the enemies of Israel is so stereotypical in Ps 129 ( m D^Eh, TPS that on the basis of this vocabulary it is impossible to estimate which single phase in the history of Israel the Psalmist wishes to allude to. Perhaps the stereotyped nature of the language is intentional: the psalm does not directly refer to any exact event, but, generally speaking, it alludes to Israel's past, which was marked by a huge amount of suffering and persecution.245 It is worth bearing in mind that Ps 129 seems to have had a collective content even before the first verse was added, because the plural form appears in v. 8, and Zion is also mentioned in v. 5. But the secondary first verse once more stresses the significant role of Israel.246 6.3 Ps 130:7-8 and Ps 131:3 Within the pilgrim songs Ps 130 is one of the most popular penitential psalms in the Christian tradition. As regards the "Gattung", Ps 130 is usually defined as an individual complaint psalm.247 This definition is sound, at least to some extent. In Ps 130 God is called either mn\ or n \ but God's name is not connected with poetic epithets. Delineating the poetic structure of Ps 130 causes problems, because the Masoretic Text is corrupt at some points. Nevertheless, it seems that v. 1-4 represent the nip metre (3+2), which is characteristic of Lamentations. 243

"Das Ich der Psalmen ist in fast allen Fällen das Ich des einzelnen Sängers." KRAUS, Psalmen, 1045. 244 KRAUS, Psalmen, 1044; ALLEN, Psalms, 189. According to ALLEN, Psalms, 190, the earliest layer in Ps 129 comprised a song of Zion, which was at a later stage taken into cultic use. This song told of Yahweh's great acts of salvation on behalf of Israel. 245 KRAUS, Psalmen, 1044. 246 On the other hand, CROW argues that apart from v. 1 and 5 the language of Ps 129 concentrates on an individual; therefore the collective verses are a sign of a later redaction: "The redactor reinterprets this individual lament so that it becomes a lament of 'Israel' through the nationalizing elements of vv. 1 and 5." CROW, Songs, 84. On the basis of linguistic evidence CROW concludes that the earliest form of Ps 129 probably derives from the rural area outside Jerusalem. 247 SMEND, Entstehung, 196.

172

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Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

This would, however, require that we remove the word ^itf in v. 2aa; this kind of emendation can also be defended for colometric reasons. The Peshitta lacks in this connection the word "Lord". Obviously the poetic structure of verse 5 was from the beginning divergent as compared with the preceding verses, because even with the aid of radical conjectures it is very difficult to put the wording of v. 5 into nrp metre. Verse 6 is clearly corrupt, and the Masoretic Text does not offer a sensible reading. Of the early versions both the Septuagint and the Vulgate represent the reading "from the morning watch until night" (the Greek airo 4>uAaKr]s npcoias would correlate to the Hebrew form i^'nn rn'ati'Kt? "since the last watch of the night"). The Syriac version slightly differs from Greek and Latin.248 Reconstructing the original Hebrew form of v. 6 is probably an impossible task, and we can leave this question here, because from the editorial point of view the most interesting verses are at the end of the psalm. Both metrically and thematically v. 7-8 differ remarkably from the previous verses.249 These verses do not concentrate on an individual, but on the people of Israel. The future promise in v. 8 rna1. K-ini rn'ilSJ Vso) is lexically very closely related to the collective epilogue of Ps 25. The similar petition in these two psalms may derive from the same person or the same theological "school". Once again it is a noteworthy idea that with the aid of collective concluding passages the redactors endeavoured to give a national content to the whole preceding complaint: It is the afflicted people of Israel which turns to God (v. 1-6) and confesses its sins (term niilS in v. 3). Yahweh for his part promises acquittal of all sins, and the term Tn'ilSJ occurs again in v. 8. Hence there is a terminological connection between v. 3 and 8. A later redactor elaborated an earlier text and found a suitable link with his own message. Correspondingly, Ps 25:22 had a lexical connection with Ps 25:17 (the term nri^). Psalm 131 is, together with Pss 133 and 134, one of the shortest poems in the Songs of Ascents. Concerning the genre, Ps 131 is conventionally placed in the category of psalms of confidence. 250 Verses 1-2 are marked by a presentation of matters in the first person singular. The bicola of the first verse follow the nrp metre. In the last stichos of v. 2 it is by virtue of syntax most fluent to read, rather than the participle ^aa, an active verb. In fact, the apparatus of BHS suggests either ^'nan or baari. On the other hand, the reading of the Septuagint seems to presuppose a nominal clause 248

LEE, Lament, 241 n. 65. According to MATHYS, Dichter, 277-279, verses 7 - 8 are a later addition. Psalm 130 faced a strong spiritualizing reinterpretation and hence it is difficult to see any cultic setting for such a poem. 2 50 WEISER, Psalmen, 536; SMEND, Entstehung, 198. 249

6. Collective

Features in the Songs of Ascents

173

in the Hebrew text, because the participle is in the Greek text replaced by the noun d v T a i r o S o a i s . Verse 3 is distinct because of its collective tone.251 It is noteworthy that v. 3 seems throughout to contain elements borrowed from elsewhere. First of all, v. 3a is identical with Ps 130:7aa.252 Ps 131:3b has its counterpart in Ps 121:8b. It is very likely that the collective supplements in Pss 130 and 131 date back to the same period and the same redactor(s). 6.4 The Redaction History of Ps 132

Psalm 132 is the longest poem among the Songs of Ascents. As regards its theme and vocabulary, it is closely akin to Ps 89, which was dealt with above. Defining the exact genre for Ps 132 has caused remarkable problems for scholars. Extra problems arise from widely diverging estimates concerning the date of origin of Ps 132. Weiser's statement about Ps 132 is illuminating. He states that Ps 132 belonged to the inauguration liturgy of the Jerusalem temple. Several references to the king speak, according to Weiser, unambiguously in favour of a pre-exilic date. In addition, Weiser observes a connection between Ps 132 and his own reconstruction, called "the covenant feast of the Israelite tribes".253 Modern scholars have with good cause questioned Weiser's conventional view of an early origin for Ps 132. Though the king is mentioned, it does not automatically mean that the text itself derives from the period of monarchy. Vice versa, according to the most popular current view, Ps 132 dates back to the time of the exile or the early post-exilic period. If this is the case, an interesting question immediately arises: To whom do the royal epithets and the term rptfo refer in a period when the people of Israel learned to live without a Davidic monarch? The main alternatives are either a messianic or a collective interpretation; also possible is the theocratic view, but this can also be combined with the two

251 By virtue of v. 3 WEISER, Psalmen, 537, connects the whole of Ps 131 with the cult of the covenant feast. CROW, Songs, 97, argues that the core of Ps 131 is a fragment or an extract from an older psalm which is not completely quoted. Instead, a collective sentence has been added to the end of the psalm by the redactors. 252 SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 494-495, however, thinks that Ps 1 3 0 : 7 a a w a s at a later stage borrowed from Ps 131:3 a. 253 WEISER, Psalmen, 538. On the other hand, by virtue of Ps 132 KRAUS tried to reconstruct a royal Zion feast; KRAUS, Psalmen, 42; KRAUS, Theologie, 139-140, 1 4 5 147. VON RAD, Theologie I, 54, also favours an early origin for Ps 132, when he defines this poem 'sicher vor-exilisch'. WEISER's reconstruction of the covenant feast has not found supporters among later scholars, instead the whole theory is judged to be too hypothetical. The same is true concerning KRAUS's assumption with regard to the royal Zion feast.

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in the Psalms

aforementioned models.254 Becker strongly rejects the messianic expectation in the royal psalms. In his opinion, the most natural way to interpret Ps 132 is to understand it collectively.255 Nevertheless, in his recent thorough study Michael Pietsch has drawn the conclusion that Ps 132 represents restorative Davidic theology and as such this is a counterreaction to the national Davidic theology expressed in Ps 89. It is worth emphasizing that Pietsch's restorative model as concerns Ps 132 is not identical with messianic expectations. Pietsch is also of the opinion that both the structure and the well-planned composition of Ps 132 speak for the assumption that this psalm is a uniform text which was composed in Jerusalem sometime between the end of the sixth century and the beginning of the fourth century B.C.E.256 According to Waschke, Psalm 132 is no longer in its original form. In his opinion, the sudden changes of person (in v. 3-5 the first person singular, but in v. 6-7 the first person plural) may be explained by the assumption that the poet here quotes earlier traditions. Of course, this is not the only relevant interpretation. Saur is of the opinion that Ps 132 is a 'patchwork' containing various material which the redactors have combined. In the seams and the editorial links late Dtr emphases are reflected. Saur argues that in its final form Ps 132 is more than a sum of its components.257 In any case, it is evident that in Ps 132 individual and collective elements are rather intertwined. Moreover, Waschke thinks that 254

For different models of interpretation, see BECKER, Deutung, 562-563. C. RÖSEL, Redaktion, 152-155, ponders whether the title rp»'0 is in this psalm used presently or restoratively. Because of this ambiguity defining the date of origin for this psalm is very difficult. 255 "So bleibt nur die Möglichkeit, die Königspsalmen theokratisch auf das Volk zu deuten." BECKER, Deutung, 570. A clear argument against the supposed messianic expectation is the fact that rnsfo in Ps 132 is present, not future. See BECKER, Deutung, 576. 256 PIETSCH, Sproß, 123-138. CROW, too, regards Ps 132 as a deliberately composed poem and turns down the scholarly views that this psalm would be just a combination of originally independent songs. CROW admits that only v. 7 - 9 might come into question as an extract from an earlier poem; see CROW, Songs, 105. In fact, CROW argues that Pss 121-122 and 132-134 have been added by the redactors to the collection of the Songs of Ascents. Moreover, he is of the opinion that these poems were even composed by the redactor; see CROW, Songs, 171. 257 SAUR, Königspsalmen, 230-231, 246-247. Furthermore, SAUR argues that Ps 132 is not an original poem in the Songs of Ascents but instead it has been added to the collection secondarily (cf. the length of this psalm and the theological discrepancies as compared with the other Songs of Ascents). In SAUR's opinion, Ps 132 presupposes the other Songs of Ascents and develops them further. Eventually, Ps 132 reached its final form when it was edited by the royal psalm-editors who - according to SAUR - played a significant role in the editing process of the whole Psalter; see SAUR, Königspsalmen, 321-322, 337-338.

6. Collective

Features in the Songs of Ascents

175

v. 1 lb—13 represent late Deuteronomistic ideology and thus they belong to the Dtr redaction.258 Certainly the vocabulary of these passages is strongly marked by Dtr influence. It is also worthy of note that Pss 89 and 132 do have much common vocabulary. Both of these psalms contain the following "special" terminology: n n a , Trra, "nil, KG3. " i a and T o n (in the plural).259 Despite the similarities, Veijola excludes the possibility that one psalm intentionally quoted the other. This argument is plausible, because in spite of the lexical affinities it is impossible to perceive parallel sentences between these psalms. Common terminology is based on the fact that the authors of both psalms independently used chapter 2 Sam 7 as their background. The divine promise once given to David was a theological starting-point for the Psalmists as well as for the redactors. This promise is developed further in these poems with the aid of Deuteronomistic theology. The influence of Dtr language is obvious in Ps 132, parallels being found throughout the Deuteronomistic History.260 Ps 132 even includes such Dtr expressions as do not have counterparts in Ps 89, let me just mention the phrase *[Jtp:i n a in Ps 132:11, which has parallels only in the book of Deuteronomy (Deut 7:13; 28:4, 11, 18, 53; 30:9).261 Psalm 132 includes both lexical and theological connections with the texts of DtrB. It is a natural conclusion that the date of origin for Ps 132 is close to the period when DtrB was active. This observation rules out assumptions of the early origin of Ps 132.262 Linguistically, there are some archaic features in Ps 132, but these features do not prove an ancient origin, but rather they show that the poet intentionally endeavoured to

258

WASCHKE, Gesalbte, 69. VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 49. The word l?: occurs in the Psalter only in these two psalms, which is naturally remarkable. According to EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 2 4 6 - 2 4 7 , the term m a in Ps 132 no longer refers to the covenant with David but to the covenant of Sinai. Yahweh takes the role of teacher of the law. 260 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 72-73. See also LEVIN, Verheißung, 2 5 4 - 2 5 6 . The combination of low', m a and n r a that occurs in Ps 132:12 is characteristic of Dtr language; WEINFELD, Deuteronomy, 330, 336. 261 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 74. Connections between chapters Deut 7 and Deut 28 are remarkable indeed. In a recent study VEIJOLA, Redaktion, 251, argues that the present form of Deut 7 is partly caused by the dtr redactor called DtrB. This redactor was interested in covenantal issues, therefore the sign 'B' (b e rit). Chapter Deut 28 was either a model for the redactional activity of DtrB in chapter 7 or it is also possible that even Deut 28 mainly dates back to DtrB himself. 262 LAATO has tried to prove that Ps 132 is not a product of Dtr theology but instead an early prayer whose royal ideology stems from the reign of David, and the earliest Sitz im Leben belongs to the Solomonic period. LAATO, Psalm 132, 65. However, the terminological analysis does not support LAATO's view. 259

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adopt obsolete language.263 An archaic feature that I could mention is the title "the Mighty one of Jacob" (l'p!T Tim) in v. 2 and 5. The same title also appears in Gen 49:24. Furthermore, the hardly explainable status constructus form njttf in v. 4 and the use of the preposition b in connection with the verb Dp are indications that the poet really pursued archaic language.264 Like Ps 89, Ps 132 represents a poetic interpretation of the collective Davidic theology developed by DtrN. In other words, the figure of David became a guarantee of national salvation. In the light of these arguments it is really hard to defend Allen's view that Ps 132 derived from the period of King Josiah. However, even Allen has to admit that Ps 132 received a new national content when it was joined to the collection of pilgrim songs in order to continue Pss 130 and 131, which are marked by national emphases.265 Both Becker and Veijola are of the opinion that the term 'your anointed' (imtfo) in Ps 132:10b refers to the plural expression 'your righteous ones' (TTPtj) in the previous verse, and that both of these terms have the same meaning: the people of Israel.266 This collective view becomes even more convincing when we consider the significance of the name 'David'. David is mentioned in v. 1, 10-11 and 17. David and the anointed one occur as parallel words in v. 10 and 17. The historical David died almost five hundred years before this psalm was composed. Does the David of the psalm refer solely to the historical David or was the picture of David somehow altered and developed through the centuries? In my opinion, Ps 132 clearly shows that David became a symbol, a national symbol that incorporated both the historical person of David, his offspring and above all the people of Israel. This is quite explicitly stated in Isa 55:3b. Earlier promises to David and his dynasty were transferred to Israel and therefore it is also possible that David was a kind of pseudonym for Israel. This is also noted by Emmendorffer, who rehabilitates H. W. Robinson's old concept of "corporate personality" when analysing the collective features, particularly in Ps 132:1 and 10.267 Pietsch seems to be reluctant to favour collective interpretation regarding Ps 132, but even he admits that 'the

263 VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 75. BECKER, Deutung, 576, is also of the opinion that Ps 132 is either exilic or post-exilic. SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 497, argues that, like Ps 89, Ps 132 was composed during the exile. 264 ALLEN, Psalms, 201-203. 265 ALLEN, Psalms, 209. 266 BECKER, Deutung, 576; VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 161. The same observation was made long ago by J. WELLHAUSEN - in the golden era of collective interpretation. See VEIJOLA, Verheißung, 161 n. 3. 267 EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 242, 247.

7. The Collective

Use of the Term rv&a in Post-Exilic

Theology

177

anointed' in v. 10 refers to the people of Israel.268 Pietsch in fact assumes a double reference to the title rPfifO: in v. 10 it means the people of Israel, but in v. 17 it only alludes to David in the restorative sense. Pietsch himself raises the essential question: Should the people be placed - through terminological identity - in the intentional continuation to David and the promise given to him?269 Pietsch has done competent work, analysing different models that arise on the basis of 2 Sam 7, and the four-fold lines of interpretation (collective, restorative / messianic, parenetic and temple theological) are quite impressive in the history of reception of 2 Sam 7. I only ask, whether it is justified that one particular biblical text can only belong in one of Pietsch's categories. I mean that it is plausible that different Jewish circles may have interpreted one and the same text from different points of view. Thus Ps 132, for instance, may have meant for some groups a collective text and for some other groups a restorative text, because the text itself includes hints in both directions. In any case, the collective features in Ps 132 are so evident that their existence cannot be disputed. The latter part of Ps 132 (v. 11-17) includes an extensive section of promises. It is stated that all these promised things will benefit the people of Israel and the inhabitants of Zion. Certainly this psalm (like Ps 89) is marked by a contradiction: the present state of affairs is not the best possible, but the minds and expectations of the people are turned towards the future. 270 In particular v. 15 includes notable affinities with several other collectively edited psalms: Yahweh's blessing is directed to Israel (cf. Ps 3:9, Ps 29:11), the poor of Israel will abundantly be fed (like in Ps 22:27). Such lexical observations also increase the probability that Ps 132 was composed after the exile.

7. The Collective Use of the Term ITB'Q in Post-Exilic Theology The word rPltfO occurs in the Hebrew Old Testament altogether more than thirty times. In the prophetic books there are only a few occurrences. This term is most common in Leviticus and in the books of Samuel. In Leviticus rrtfo refers solely to the priests who were anointed to their office. In the books of Samuel rrtfo mainly refers either to Saul or to David. The word 268

PIETSCH, Sproß, 133. "Soll das Volk durch die terminologische Identität bewußt in Kontinuität zu David und der ihm gegebenen Verheißung gestellt werden?". PIETSCH, Sproß, 137 n. 785. 2 ™ EMMENDÖRFFER, Gott, 248. 269

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rPttfn also occurs ten times in the book of Psalms (Ps 2:2; 18:51; 20:7; 28:8; 84:10; 89:39, 52; 105:15; 132:10, 17). Some of these occurrences we have already dealt with. In particular, rrttfo is an interesting term in postexilic texts, because it cannot naturally refer to a Davidic king in a period when there was no Jewish king in Judah. Therefore the term rPBfO must have received a new, meaningful content in post-exilic theology. Relevant alternatives are either collective or messianic expectation. Messianic expectation became more pronounced in the Jewish literature of the intertestamentary period. References to iTEf'G in the latest parts of the Old Testament (like Dan 9:21-27) do not prove messianic expectation in the eschatological sense, because it is more likely that these passages allude to the high priest in office at that time.271 It is traditionally taken almost for granted that rrttfo in Ps 105:15 refers to prophets who were anointed for their tasks (e.g. 1 Kgs 19:16) or to the Patriarchs. But in a recent article Bernard Gosse convincingly demonstrates that rptfo does have a collective sense even in Ps 105:15. Thus all the community is rptfo and this is a response to Ps 89 in particular.272 This is a fruitful approach, and below I shall analyse occurrences of rvttfo in Ps 2, Ps 84 and Hab 3 and try to find out whether collective understanding is meaningful when these texts are in question. 7.1 Ps 2 Psalm 2 is often classified as a royal psalm (or even a messianic psalm), and certainly contains royal features.273 According to the popular present

271

SEYBOLD, Art. ntfo (ThWAT V), 57. "Ainsi Ps 105,15, répond à Ps 89,52 et à Ps 74,9. Les titres de 'messie' et de 'prophète' ont été transférés à Abraham, puis à la communauté." GOSSE, Psautier, 380. 273 KRAUS and SMEND, for instance, are of the opinion that Ps 2 belongs in the category of royal psalms; see KRAUS, Psalmen, 145; SMEND, Entstehung, 200. On the other hand, messianic interpretations arise partly on the basis of the New Testament. Psalm 2 is one of the most frequently quoted psalms in the New Testament. The early Christians saw in this psalm prophecies of Jesus. The messianic interpretation naturally abandons the idea that Ps 2 refers to the coronation of a historical king. The messianic interpretation is characteristically orientated towards the future, it looks forward. The universal dominion over different nations that is promised to the "king" in Ps 2:6 was never reality to any Israelite or Judean king. Instead messianic expectations were full of such universal dimensions. Though the messianic interpretation may sound enticing and reasonable, it has its difficulties, too. According to BECKER, the basic problem is that we cannot with certainty claim that any Old Testament Scripture includes clearly messianic texts. Such texts belong rather to the intertestamentary period; see BECKER, Messiaserwartung, 43 44, 85-86. Nevertheless, BECKER'S view is not the only truth. Some royal psalms were certainly a natural target for messianic interpretation. Apocalyptic movements favoured messianic ideas, and several messianic expectations 272

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view, Psalms 2-89 at one stage of textual development comprised a collection that can be defined as the Messianic Psalter.274 A closer look at Ps 2 shows that messianic and collective emphases are not easy to distinguish. In Ps 2 there are some interesting text-critical problems. Verse 6 contains the Hebrew words 'Oi7t3 ("my king") and 1!SHp ("my holiness"), but in the Septuagint their suffixes are in the third person singular: PaaiXeus urr' a u T o u , opos t o a y i o v o u t o u . Dahood solves the problem by insisting that in this case and in many other cases the Hebrew suffix refers to the third person singular ("his" or "her"). 275 Dahood bases his argument on the fact that in Phoenician the ending "y" explicitly indicates the third person singular. Nevertheless, many of Dahood's theories are too fantastic to be taken seriously, and this view in particular is one of them. We do not have to assume any obscure linguistic connections between Hebrew and Phoenician in this case, because there is an easier and more probable explanation for the rendering of the Septuagint. The context reveals that verse 6 is in its Hebrew form a little isolated, because this is the only verse where Yahweh is speaking. Rather, in verses 7-9 the one who speaks is someone else; in the conventional view, the speaker in these verses is the king mentioned in the speech of Yahweh. By emending the suffixes in v. 6 the Septuagint translator tried to make the whole text more fluent. In addition, he managed to find the same subject for all the verses 6-9. In the Septuagint Yahweh is not speaking at all, but it is the king who speaks in v. 6. Because of this view the Hebrew verb "'Fippj in v. 6 is translated as passive in the Septuagint: KaTBOTciSriv (followed by the passive agent utto). The Masoretic Text in verse 6 represents the more difficult reading - but at the same time a sensible reading - and that is why we ought to prefer it. The expression "•~-lp0'3 at the beginning of verse 12 is very obscure indeed. It is one of the most disputed passages in the Hebrew Psalter, and several scholars have suggested different emendations. According to one popular view, this is a case of metathesis. This means in practice that the expression nripE>'3 and the preceding verb I1?1] should be read in the following order: lb 1 ] "imp»'], and originally the text might have been: lpttf] l ^ n n ("kiss his feet" - as a sign of devout reverence).276 Such a conjecture were created. But, in my opinion, nothing clearly indicates that Psalm 2 refers to events in the distant future. 274 Thus, for example, C. RÖSEL, Redaktion, 213-214. 275 DAHOOD, Psalms I, 10-11. 276 GUNKEL, Psalmen, 8, 12, suggested that i ^ - n lptfa was the original form. ANDERSON, Psalms I, 69-70, refers to some other biblical verses in which kissing the feet or other equivalent expressions occur as a sign of deep humility (Ps 72:9; Isa 49:23; Mic 7:17; Luke 7:38, 45). On the other hand, KAISER, Gott III, 207 n. 159, is of the

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is not the only alternative for explaining the difficult sentence. The explanations are sometimes full of creativity and imagination, as the historical survey of research by Paul Maiberger clearly shows.277 For instance, Henri Cazelles derives the word 12 from Ugaritic, in which the adjective brr means "pure", like barru in Akkadian.278 There are several homonymous "in roots in Hebrew and one of them has the same meaning, "pure", as in Ugaritic and Akkadian (cf. Ps 19:9 and Ps 24:4). In Psalm 2 "Q meaning "pure" could refer to the Torah, which is perfect, immaculate and pure. This chain might explain the reading of the Septuagint: Spa£aa0E TTaiÖEi'as. It is peculiar that even the Aramaic Targum (!) supports the reading of the Septuagint. The word "a is not understood as a son in the Targum, but instead the Targum includes a request to receive education / discipline (toa^lN f ^ p ) . It is probable that the Targum is independent of the Septuagint. Therefore in the background of the Aramaic translation there might have been a wide-spread interpretation that 12 means "pure" as a synonym for the Torah. The Vulgate shares the same interpretation but is clearly dependent on the Septuagint. The problem that still remains is the Hebrew verb which issues the command to kiss. The act of kissing the Torah (scroll?) as a sign of deep reverence can be attested in modern Judaism, but it is uncertain whether such a custom existed in Judaism under the Persian and Hellenistic rulers. Loretz rejects Cazelles's view that should be derived from the Ugaritic root. Instead, Loretz makes the conjecture msna lpttf], but at the same time Loretz admits that this verse is one of the worst and most famous problems in the Psalter.279 A deeper analysis regarding this obscure expression is, however, unnecessary in this connection, because it would easily go beyond the scope of my study. The expression ~n~ipt5'] is not a crucial statement when the collective interpretation of Ps 2 is in focus. Gunkel assumes that the original Sitz im Leben of Psalm 2 was the enthronement of a Judean king or its anniversary.280 According to this interpretation, verses 7-9 are words spoken by the king in such a ceremony. However, Gunkel's theory cannot answer the question, whose enthronement Psalm 2 concerns. Who might this king have been? The unrest and revolts depicted in verses 1-2 were common in the ancient Orient, when a powerful ruler died and the nations that had lived as his vassals attempted to rid themselves of his yoke. Such words are rather opinion, that the correct reading should be I1? msna its':3i, which means "approach him with trembling". 277 MAIBERGER, Verständnis, 90-110. 278 SEGERT, Ugaritic, 182. 279 LORETZ, Psalmstudien, 40. 280 GUNKEL, Psalmen, 5. The same view is also supported by ANDERSON, Psalms I, 63.

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difficult to associate with any actual event in the history of Israel or Judah. After the death of Solomon the kingdom was divided and its powerful status lost. Neither Israel nor Judah had any significant vassals; on the contrary, both Israel and Judah themselves became vassals of stronger nations. Nonetheless, one interesting detail should be mentioned in this connection: In c. 850 B.C.E. King Mesha of Moab repudiated his vassal relationship to Israel after King Ahab of Israel had died (2 Kgs 3:4-5). Mesha was successful in his revolt, as he states in the famous stone inscription (the Mesha stele).281 Even the Old Testament admits the Mesha's success, albeit indirectly (2 Kgs 3:27). Gunkel strongly criticizes scholars who regard Psalm 2 as a post-exilic text based on the evidence that verse 8 includes universal dimensions.282 1 Nations and the ends of the earth are mentioned D3N). Gunkel is of the opinion that such universal visions did not appear for the first time in Deutero-Isaiah but that they are already represented in earlier literature. Gunkel mentions a few concrete examples: Gen 49:10; Mic 5:3 and Deut 28:13. In the present state of research, however, these examples seem to be exilic or post-exilic passages, though the origin of Gen 49:10 is disputed.283 Connecting Psalm 2 closely to the cult and some kind of enthronement ceremony has led some scholars to reconstruct a cultic drama. It would have served as the original Sitz im Leben of the psalm. In this pattern the nations in revolt are not real nations but representatives of the power of chaos. Such attempts to explain the background of Psalm 2 were popular in the so-called "cult-mythological school".284 Subsequently scholars have rejected these theories - and rightly so. We cannot be sure whether there ever was any cultic drama in Israel, though such an activity would have taken place at Ugarit. The various cultic practices performed by neighbouring nations are not always compatible with the circumstances of Israel. And we simply know too little about the cultic life of ancient Israel to be able to draw sound conclusions. All the attempts remain mere guesswork.285 281

See DONNER, Geschichte, 268, 303-304. GUNKEL, Psalmen, 10. 283 The whole of chapter Gen 49 consists of distinct material (WESTERMANN, Genesis III, 250), but on the other hand Westermann is of the opinion that Gen 49:10 dates back to the time of the Judges; see WESTERMANN, Genesis III, 264. For the origin of Mic 5:3, see BECKER, Deutung, 567; for the whole chapter Deut 28, see VEIJOLA, Redaktion, 251. 284 See the description of this school in KRAUS, Geschichte, 460 467. 285 WILLIS, Cry, 46, offers his own interesting solution to the problem of Psalm 2. He has noted that the language of the psalm is reminiscent of cries of defiance which took place in situations of conflict. The typical features of such cries of defiance are 1) 282

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Several other models concerning the origin of Ps 2 have also been suggested and I shall present some of them here briefly. Loretz has carried out a thorough colometric analysis of Psalm 2. On the basis of this analysis Loretz regards the hemistich Trt&'O-'?!?! mrp-1?!? (Ps 2:2b) as a later addition. In a recent study Markus Saur has questioned this solution, because if v. 2b is removed, there is nothing which the plural suffixes in v. 3 could refer to. 286 Basically Saur is right but he has not read Loretz's arguments thoroughly enough. Loretz argues that the inserted verse 2b has caused changes also in the following sentence which seems very likely. 287 Furthermore, Loretz thinks that verses 6 - 8 are secondary in their present context. Probably verses 6a and 7aa originally formed a bicolon. 288 Loretz even mentions that verses 6-8 do not contain any Aramaisms at all, therefore these passages could date back to the pre-exilic era. This argument is not solely sufficient, but of course nothing definitely excludes Loretz's assumption of an early date for verses 6-8. Nevertheless, Loretz takes for granted that Psalm 2 in its present form is a post-exilic composition. Beyond the present forms the text may have had a long prehistory and therefore even a short single text can consist of separate material of different origin. Psalm 2 reflects the theology of Israelite convocation during the post-exilic period. One of the basic theological principles in that the threat of impending conflict, 2) affirmations of certainty by the speaker that he will prevail, 3) warnings to the enemy that they should surrender. WILLIS mentions several examples, both from the Old Testament itself and from ancient Near Eastern literature. The Old Testament depicts the encounter between David and Goliath (1 Sam 17:41-47), the conflict between Abijah and Jeroboam (2 Chr 13:4-8,10,12) and the ultimatum of Yahweh to King Sennacherib of Assyria (2 Kgs 19:22,25-28) by using the cries of defiance. Furthermore, WILLIS, Cry, 40 4 3 , mentions the battle between Baal and Mot which is described in the texts of Ugarit. Even in that ancient text the real fight is preceded by a furious battle of words. BECKING, "TSpfe", 77-79, has discovered terminological similarities between Ps 2:9b and some Mesopotamian texts. Crushing a clay vessel is a widely-used metaphor in texts written during the reigns of Tiglath-Pileser III and Sargon II in the eighth century B.C.E. In these Mesopotamian texts different enemies or hostile towns are crushed. The same metaphor may also occur in prayers of exorcism performed by ordinary people. In such prayers a general wish concerns the destruction of witchcraft and demons. This metaphor of dashing pottery does not necessarily refer to military actions alone. BECKING takes almost for granted the temporal proximity between Neo-Assyrian texts and Psalm 2. 286 SAUR, Konigspsalmen, 28. 287 LORETZ, Psalmstudien, 35. 288 LORETZ, Psalm 2, 16. In a later work LORETZ regards v. 9, too, as a secondary passage; see LORETZ, Psalmstudien, 43. In LORETZ's opinion, v. 1-5 and 10-11 reflect the unrest typical of the Hellenistic era. The origin of v. 6 - 9 is pre-exilic and, according to LORETZ, these lines might derive from some kind of royal ritual that once took place in Jerusalem.

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period was the nationalization of the Davidic monarchy. It was possible to interpret Ps 2 as referring collectively to an ideal Israel.289 Friedrich Diedrich places the origin of Psalm 2 sometime between 300 and 200 B.C.E. He refers to the disturbances that prevailed during the time of the Diadochi in Palestine. Diedrich has also noticed lexical similarities between Psalm 2 and some apocalyptic writings. Diedrich regards Judah / Jerusalem as the possible environment of origin, but does not exclude even Egypt as the country of origin.290 Christoph Rosel stresses the similarities between Ps 2 and Ps 89. Both of these poems speak of the father-son relationship when they denote the relationship between God and the king. Moreover, the use of the term rrttfo connects these texts. According to Rosel, the pre-exilic basic form of Ps 2 consisted of v. l-2a, 3-4, 6a, 7-9. It is probable that verse 2b was added in the same connection when Pss 2 and 89 were set as the framework of the large collection.291 Though Ps 2 is best defined as a patchwork and thus reconstructing the original form is nearly unattainable, it is still useful to follow the suggestion that Ps 2:2b derives from the redaction that dealt Pss 2 and 89 as framing poems of the large collection between them. It cannot be a coincidence that both of these texts contain the title rptfo. Adding this term to Ps 2 has caused an ambivalent result: Depending on the reader's background "the anointed" may have meant either a messianic figure or the people of Israel. The atmosphere in Ps 2 as a whole is close to the eschatological thoughts. Nations are rebelling and fighting, but curiously the name 'Israel' is not mentioned at all in this psalm. Zion occurs in v. 6, but, in addition to this, it is tempting to think that the term ITBJ'O had collective content in the mind of the redactor. In works by many rabbis and in midrashic exegesis Psalm 2 is often interpreted messianically. As is well known, the early Christians seized on this view, too.292 On the other hand, the collective interpretation is no curiosity either. For instance, Midrash Tehillim seeks support for the collective understanding in the books of the Pentateuch.293 Exodus 4:22 289

FÜGLISTER, Verwendung, 208. DIEDRICH, Psalm 2, 56-60. According to OTTO, Theologie, 51, the framework of Ps 2 (v. 1-6, 9) dates back to the 8th/7th centuries B.C.E., and at a later stage v. 7 - 8 were inserted. As a whole Ps 2:1-9 derives from the Neo-Assyrian period and, in OTTO's opinion, the Jerusalemite royal ritual actualized the domination of Assyria. On the other hand, KOCH, König, 11, has noticed many parallels to v. 7 - 9 in Egyptian texts from the period of the New Empire. On the terms 'Old Kingdom', 'Middle Kingdom' and 'New Empire', see DONNER, Geschichte, 40. 291 C. RÖSEL, Redaktion, 90, 102-105. 292 Psalm 2:7 is quoted in both Act 13:33 and Heb 1:5, 5:5 in the New Testament, and all these passages are marked by their messianic emphases. PIETSCH, Sproß, 3 1 0 - 3 1 1 . 293 MAIBERGER, Verständnis, 106-110; BARBIERO, Psalmenbuch, 45. 290

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declares the people of Israel to be the first-born of God. Consequently, mentioning the son in Psalm 2 (and now I refer to verse 7: nns 133) means that God addresses instead of the king all the natives of Israel. A short section in Deutero-Isaiah clearly declares that the special status of David with all the divine promises now becomes the property of all Israelites (Isa 55:3-5, particularly 3b). But one has to admit that it is not always simple to make a clear distinction between messianic and collective interpretation. Perhaps some texts are intentionally ambivalent. The most peculiar linguistic phenomenon in Psalm 2 is the noticeable frequency of Aramaisms. I think that their occurrence in a Hebrew text certifies the assumption of a late origin. 2 Kings 18:26 shows that as early as during the Judean monarchy the upper class was able to understand Aramaic, but the common people did not understand it. The so-called "Official Aramaic" (or Imperial Aramaic) became the dominant language in the lands of the Fertile Crescent under Persian rule. This development led little by little to the displacement of Hebrew as a spoken language.294 In the very opening verse of Psalm 2 the verb ttfjn is an Aramaism. In the Hebrew Old Testament it occurs only here. By contrast, the same root can be found in the Aramaic parts of the book of Daniel (Dan 6:7, 12, 16). The normal Hebrew equivalent to the verb Bin is, for instance, the verb nan, which in fact occurs several times in the Psalter. Another Aramaic verb is urn in v. 9. With this meaning ("to break") this verb occurs only seven times in the Hebrew Old Testament (Isa 24:19{2x}; Jer 15:12; Mic 5:5; Job 34:24; Prov 18:24 and Ps 2:9). All these occurrences can justifiably be considered rather late texts. In the Aramaic book of Daniel the same verbal root occurs in Dan 2:40. The normal Hebrew equivalent in this case would have been fS"l.295 It is interesting that the reading of the Septuagint in verse 9 (TToinavEi?) seems to refer to the more common Hebrew verb nsn, that can be found 167 times in the Old Testament. In the Septuagint we can perceive a conscious theological tendency, even messianic features. The psalm speaks of a king and an anointed one, so the verb Troi^iaivco ("to shepherd") would undoubtedly fit well in this kind of context. In the apocryphal work called The Psalms of Solomon (especially in chapter 17) there are some obvious similarities with Psalm 2, though we cannot speak of an explicit quotation. The verses PsSol 17:23b-24a are particularly interesting: 294

ROSENTHAL, Grammar, 6. On the basis of 2 Kgs 18:26 SEYBOLD, Poetik, 44, asserts that at least some people in Palestine were able to speak Aramaic even in the preexilic period. Therefore it is not always evident that Aramaisms represent late linguistic features. In any case, the Psalms do not contain extent passages in Aramaic. The existence of Aramaisms is confined to some single words. 295 DEIBLER, Stellung, 79.

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EKTpt^iat UTTEpTi^auiav a n a p T c o X o u cos cskeuti KEpapEcos EV pa(3Sco o i S r i p a o u v T p l ^ a i Traoav UTTOoxaoiu aurcoi/.

The expressions used in The Psalms of Solomon are closer to the use of the verb inn of the Masoretic Text than the Greek version of Psalm 2. According to Pietsch, PsSol 17 represents modification of the restorative model in favour of the messianic reinterpretation.296 Thus PsSol 17 is based upon the divine promise in 2 Sam 7. Furthermore, the word ill in v. 12 is usually regarded as the Aramaic form of the common Hebrew word ]n ("son"). Even in one passage of Proverbs the word ~Q occurs in the Hebrew Old Testament referring to a son (Prov 31:2, which is probably a very late text). But the real meaning of the word "Q in Ps 2:12 remains obscure. Nevertheless, in addition to the Aramaisms some other philological observations support the theory of late origin. The verb ~|0] ("to be consecrated", "to be exalted", "to install") is very rare indeed in the Old Testament. The only parallel can be found in Proverbs, when personified Wisdom speaks about herself: 1F1DB3 nbiup (Prov 8:23), but in fact this verse is rather problematic, because the early versions vary at this point. Psalm 2:7 speaks of God as a deliverer, which is quite an extraordinary idea in the Old Testament. In fact, the same idea occurs, besides in Psalm 2, only in Deut 32:18: " ^ ' n p n?2f'm •'B'fi u s . A rather similar idea is also found in Ps 110:3, but this verse is text-critically extremely problematic, because the Hebrew text is clearly corrupt. Though the son of God refers to an earthly king, in the Old Testament this concept never includes the idea of incarnation.297 Furthermore, it is worthy of mention that for the pun -roil - -raKF! in Ps 2:11-12 the only Hebrew parallel can be found in Trito-Isaiah (Isa 60:12), which is certainly a post-exilic text. In addition, there is a similar phonetic play on the same words IDS? and 13K in an Aramaic passage in the book of Jeremiah (Jer 10:11): m u s b s p i s i {oatf-H s^nbs Din1? ] n a « n n b s «natf m n r r p i « m a n

296

nns nasi

PIETSCH, Sproß, 250. It was otherwise in ancient Egypt, where the Pharaoh was regarded as the incarnate god Horns. ASSMANN, Ägypten, 148. SCHLIßKE, Gottessöhne, 7 8 - 7 9 , 93, aptly reminds us that at a later phase of development the title 'son of Re' referring to the Pharaoh meant a less remarkable status than the earlier title 'incarnation of Horus'. Finally, SCHLIßKE concludes that there remains a mythical vestige in Ps 2 according to which the king in Jerusalem was something more than an ordinary man - he was a son called by Yahweh. Furthermore, KOCH, König, 1, emphasizes that the term 'son of God' was understood metaphorically in Israel. 297

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In the light of the arguments presented above Psalm 2 seems to have been written after the exile. In their commentary on the Psalms, Hossfeld and Zenger are of the opinion that the basic text of Psalm 2 (verses 1-9) was intentionally created as a kind of introduction to a larger collection of psalms. This happened at a late stage of the growth process of the Psalter. According to this view, Ps 2:1-9 derive from about 300 B.C.E. In the contents of the psalm it is possible to see reflections of the unrest typical of the period after the death of Alexander the Great (died 323 B.C.E.). At that time especially many small nations faced cruel oppression. Hossfeld and Zenger also maintain that Psalm 2 represents nationalization of Davidic theology. In their opinion, verses 10-12 were added when the final redaction of the Psalter took place,298 and I share their view completely. The final form of Ps 2 obviously dates back to around the year 200 B.C.E. This view finds support in the language of Ps 2. I think that the metaphors of Psalm 2 belong to the language characteristic of apocalyptic literature. The Old Testament contains only one purely apocalyptic work: the book of Daniel.299 Some apocalyptic features are represented in other Old Testament books as well. H. D. Preufi gives the following examples: Isa 24-27; Ezek 38-39; Mic 4:11-13. Often the boundaries between prophetic text and apocalyptic text are flexible. It is difficult to say with certainty which tradition is represented by the books of Joel and Zechariah 298 HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen I, 51. In an earlier article ZENGER suggests that the basic form of Ps 2 comprised v. 1-4, 6 - 9 (excluding 2b and 6b). It is also noteworthy that v. 10-12 no longer speak of an earthly king, but instead the kingship of Yahweh is in focus. See ZENGER, Beobachtungen, 501, 505. 299 The messianic figure of Dan 7 (the one who is like a son of man) is usually seen as an individual who will redeem his people at the end of days. This idea was foundational for early Christianity. Nevertheless, Dan 7 is obviously best understood with the aid of collective interpretation. Dan 7 was originally written in Aramaic - and Psalm 2, too, includes a few striking Aramaisms, as we noted above. According to a generally accepted view, the animal figures of Dan 7 are best explained as follows: the lion = Babylonia, the bear = Media, the leopard = Persia, the most horrible animal = the Hellenistic kingdom. It is consistent that the son of man refers in this context to the people of Israel. This interpretation is admitted in the text itself (Dan 7:18,27; note the plural form p r t a ^'np). BECKER, Deutung, 568; PREUB, Theologie 2, 303. Of course, scholars have given various explanations for Dan 7 and the mysterious figure depicted there ("one like a human being"). COLLINS's excursus on this subject is very instructive; COLLINS, Daniel, 304-310. Recently, KAISER, Gott III, 227-228, has rejected the collective Israel interpretation as concerns Dan 7. He argues that 'the one like a human being' refers to the archangel Michael. However, this conclusion is not in line with the view that the animal figures symbolize some nations, and thus I think it is difficult to agree here with KAISER. The people of Israel as a human figure is the most natural consequence in the apocalyptic description of Dan 7.

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Theology

187

(esp. chapters 1-8). Zechariah 9-14 contain more apocalyptic features.300 Psalm 2 fits well in the apocalyptic framework. The powers of chaos that threaten Israel and Jerusalem will perish (cf. Joel 4; Zech 12, 14; Ezek 3839). The language of Psalm 2 is inspired by apocalyptic expressions and the eschatological world of thought. Apocalyptic literature flourished a couple of centuries both before and after the birth of Christ. The earliest forms may derive from the fourth century B.C.E., which is traditionally considered "a dark century" in the history of Israel.301 We do not have much information concerning that century, but we may assume that it was an active period from a literary point of view. National emphasis might have been one counter-reaction against the Hellenizing tendencies that were common under the rule of the Diadochi. Later this opposition led to the Maccabean wars. The concepts of 'Hellenistic uniform culture' and 'Israel as a chosen people' were basically incompatible with each other. It is finally worth mentioning Jerome F. D. Creach's study on Yahweh as a refuge. Creach argues that the root non and its cognates belong to a redaction which covers the whole Psalter. In this respect Ps 2:12d (*?? nefs D 1pin") seems to provide the model for the First Davidic Psalter (Pss 3— 41) that follows.302 This does not mean that non roots should be found in every psalm. It is indisputable that n o n in Ps 2:12 derives from the redaction; a corresponding case also occurs in Ps 34:23 (ia •1C'nn~'73). But Creach's main assumption of the overall 'refuge' redaction of the Psalter remains vague, because non and its cognates are only seldom editorial additions in the texts analysed by Creach. 7.2 Ps 84:10 As regards its content, Ps 84 should be classified as a pilgrim song.303 As the only anchorage for dating Ps 84 Weiser mentions the term ^rraiip in v. 10. According to the traditional view, this would refer to the pre-exilic situation, but nowadays scholars understand that this kind of pattern cannot be adopted mechanically. Every single occurrence of the 'anointed' must be evaluated on its own, when the age of the text is to be clarified.

300

PREUß, Theologie 2, 299. DONNER, Geschichte, 467. 302 CREACH, Refuge, 17. 3 3 » WEISER, Psalmen, 385; WANKE, Zionstheologie, 18. According to SMEND, Entstehung, 199, Ps 84 is a hymn. On the other hand, it is worthy of note that Ps 84 lacks many features that are widely considered to be characteristic of hymns. Relative clauses and participles with God as subject are very rare in Ps 84. It is furthermore stressed that Ps 84 includes features typical of an individual lament; see SEYBOLD, Psalmen, 331; HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 51-100, 511. 301

188

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

in the Psalms

Becker regards the word uaaa in v. 10 as the key for interpreting the whole psalm.304 In its context this expression can be understood in two divergent ways: it is either an epithet that refers to the king305 - then God is asked to look at the king (cf. Ps 89:19; the other parallel passage mentioned by Becker, Ps 47:10, is text critically problematic) - or 1JMO is a vocative referring to God himself.306 This kind of vocative referring to God is not unique in the Old Testament (for instance Gen 15:1). Early versions (like the Septuagint, the Peshitta, Aquila, Symmachus and the Psalter of Jerome) seem to favour the vocative interpretation. The term pa occurs also in Ps 84:12 which describes God as a sun and shield: ts'asi n3 mrr pp-i. Both the Septuagint and the Peshitta have, however, another reading at this point. The beginning of v. 12 in the Septuagint differs completely from that of the Masoretic tradition: o t i e'Aeov Kai dXrjQsiau ayaTTOt xuptos o Gsos. It is possible that at this point the Hebrew text in the Greek translator's Vorlage was different from that which we know on the basis of the MT tradition. Using the word 'sun' as Yahweh's metaphor is quite extraordinary in the Old Testament; instead it is reported that »'OtS as a pagan deity was worshipped in Judah before the religious reform of Josiah (2 Kgs 23:5). It seems that the beginning of Ps 84:12, as it now stands in the MT, is a product of redaction. This is indicated by several observations: The first criterion is the divergent reading in some of the early versions. Secondly, the clause of this Hebrew verse does not consistently continue those thoughts expressed in v. 11. Furthermore, in the present form v. 12 seems to include too many divine names. Both d^h'jn and mrp in v. 12a(3 are syntactically clumsy. As already mentioned, the term pa is common to vss 10 and 12. It is noteworthy that in v. 10 the term is provided with the first person plural suffix that does not occur elsewhere in this psalm. Thus this word can easily be distinguished from the rest of the material. As regards Ps 84, the term pa indicates the work of the redaction. Due to the plural suffix in v. 10 this redaction orientates collectively. This assumption is confirmed by the use of iTEfo in the parallel colon. Because of the existence of this word many older exegetes were compelled to date this psalm back to the pre-exilic time, since only the king was meaningful to be understood as the anointed one. But in his classic study Die Zionstheologie der Korachiten Gunther Wanke suggested with many reliable arguments that the Korachite Zion theology and its 304

BECKER, Deutung, 572. Thus HALAT 2.517. CREACH, Refuge, 53, has noted that an earthly monarch is never directly addressed as a 'refuge' in the Psalms, but a couple of times such an association comes close, and textual examples mentioned by CREACH are Ps 84:10 and Ps 89:19. 306 WANKE, Zionstheologie, 20-21, argues that both pa and rro'a in Ps 84:10 presuppose the use of these terms in Ps 89:19. 305

7. The Collective

Use of the Term 1VSÎO in Post-Exilic

Theology

189

most prominent representatives (Pss 46, 48, 84 and 87) belong unambiguously to the post-exilic period.307 Therefore irts'B can no longer refer to an earthly monarch. The only meaningful choice remaining is to interpret this term collectively: the anointed incorporates the whole people of Israel. This view is supported by Becker who regards v. 9-10 as a later addition.308 It is also worth mentioning that even theocratic emphasis comes forth in this particular psalm. Verse 4 includes a theocratic allusion when it speaks of God as a king: nftos mrr. The apparatus of BHS suggests that this formula is an addition. This is plausible, because such a vocative is metrically problematic. The possible secondary material in Ps 84 is represented by v. 4b, 7b, 9-10 and 12aa(3.309 By virtue of these redactional supplements the basic text has obtained a new content that can aptly be defined with two attributes: collective and theocratic. Additions derive from a period when the term rpttfo did not yet include messianic features.

307

W A N K E , Zionstheologie, 107. BECKER, Deutung, 572. Prior to BECKER'S study the secondary nature o f these verses had been noted by GUNKEL (Psalmen, 3 6 9 - 3 7 2 ) . HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 5 1 2 - 5 1 3 , have paid attention to the looseness o f v. 9 - 1 0 in their present context. These lines represent the only petitions in the whole psalm, and v. 9 is also colometrically problematic. Thus verses 9 - 1 0 represent a later supplement, which is completely in line with Ps 2. It is indisputable that v. 11 continues seamlessly from v. 6 8. In another article ZENGER convincingly demonstrates that verses 9 - 1 0 were added in order to bind Pss 84 and 86 more closely together; see ZENGER, Psalter, 17. S E Y B O L D , Psalmen, 333, suggests that Ps 84:10 could be a quotation that derives from the pre-exilic period though the rest of the psalm is not necessarily as old. This is possible, o f course, but S E Y B O L D leaves unanswered, why a post-exilic psalm would quote a pre-exilic sentence that contains a reference to the anointed of Yahweh. The term rpsfia had to have a sensible meaning during the time when there was no Davidic king in Judah. 308

309 ZENGER is of the opinion that the words in v. 4 beginning with and reaching until the end of the verse belong to the sphere of redaction; see HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 515. This solution is not the only choice, because metrically the both bicola in v. 4a form a balanced structure. Without the clause -pninaiB-m ¡ r m a s nnzMB'R the transition to v. 5 would seem too awkward. Thus I would state that there is a slight weakness in Z E N G E R ' s argumentation at this point. But v. 4b is undoubtedly a later addition. On the other hand, ZENGER is on the right track when he concludes that v. 7b is metrically problematic, because it would form together with the preceding line a tricolon which otherwise does not occur in this psalm. Therefore ZENGER drops v. 7b out as secondary and supposes that this clause stems from the redaction that joined Pss 84 and 85 firmly together. Also the particle is often a sign o f a later reworking, and this little word occurs at the beginning of 7b. HOSSFELD, ZENGER, Psalmen 5 1 - 1 0 0 , 5 1 4 - 5 1 5 . W A N K E , Zionstheologie, 16-17, however, argues that 7b is a part of a bicolon that has lost its latter part in some stage of the textual development.

190

III. Collective

Reinterpretation

7.3 The Psalm of Habakkuk (Particularly

in the Psalms

Hab

3:13a)

The third chapter of the book of Habakkuk includes a psalm that has not been preserved in the actual book of Psalms. As concerns the collective interpretation, Hab 3:13a is extremely interesting and therefore it is appropriate to have a brief look at this text, which offers parallel material to collectively understood psalms. In Hebrew the passage in question is as follows: •^ma'p-nx oaf^ You came out to save your people,

^ay vpi'p nxir

to save your anointed

one.

It is indisputable that ITBH and DU function as parallel concepts in this verse. The origin of the book of Habakkuk is still rather obscure. It is not entirely certain, whether chapter 3 is a later augmentation or not.310 It is interesting that the Habakkuk Pesher found at Qumran (lQpHab) does not contain explanations of the third chapter. On the basis of this evidence, however, we are not allowed straightforwardly to conclude that the third chapter did not yet exist when the Pesher was written. Omission of the third chapter from the Pesher may be caused by the stylistic difference of this chapter as compared with the two preceding chapters. It may also be asked whether any of the Qumran Peshers were originally fully encompassing. Nevertheless, it seems obvious that chapter 3 is not a literary unity, but instead includes material of different ages.311 The earliest prophecies in the book of Habakkuk, which mention the invitation of the Chaldeans, belong either to the period when the Babylonians were growing stronger during the reign of Nabopolassar 310 SEYBOLD, Habakuk, 4 5 - 4 7 , presents the history of the book of Habakkuk as a complex process. In his opinion, this prophetic book reached its present form as late as the fourth century B.C.E. In any case, SEYBOLD regards the psalm of Habakkuk as an originally independent text. In his opinion, even the psalm was composed after the exile. Furthermore, BECKER, Deutung, 571, refers to Hab 3:13a and states that it is hardly earlier than the exile. ALBERTZ, Exilszeit, 187, regards Hab 3 : l - 1 3 a and 15-16 as exilic. Other sections in the third chapter would represent post-exilic supplementations. 311 "Hab 3 bildet keine ursprüngliche Einheit, ist vielmehr ein sehr komplexer Text." SEYBOLD, Habakuk, 75. This statement is certainly true, but unfortunately SEYBOLD errs in interpreting the term 'anointed' in v. 13 too literally. SEYBOLD sees here a reference to a Davidic king of Judah and consequently estimates that this hymnic extract was composed before the exile. See SEYBOLD, Habakuk, 79-80. HAAK, Habakkuk, 9899, also thinks that Hab 3:13 represents royal theology typical of the pre-exilic period. Thus 'anointed' can only be the epithet of a king. Besides this passage of Habakkuk, HAAK also erroneously regards Pss 89 and 132 as pre-exilic texts. In any case, HAAK is certainly right when he states that the third chapter is older than the texts from Qumran. See HAAK, Habakkuk, 7 - 8 .

7. The Collective

Use of the Term rvtt/'Q in Post-Exilic

Theology

191

(625-605 B.C.E.), or to the reign of King Jehoiachim of Judah (608-598 B.C.E.).312 This latter view, which was especially promoted by Wilhelm Rudolph, is the more likely. For Habakkuk's contemporaries it may have been theologically problematic that Yahweh sent the ungodly Babylonians to fulfil his will. The same phenomenon is later repeated in Deutero-Isaiah, where the Gentile Persian King Cyrus appears as the executor of Yahweh's salvation plan. At a later stage the book of Habakkuk faced a multilevelled reinterpretation. Even by virtue of parallelism (~|rp®'B - ~[Cii) v. 13a strongly refers to collective orientation. Among the early versions, especially the Septuagint rendering increases the probability of national argumentation. The Septuagint speaks of the anointed in the plural (!): ! £ R | X 0 E S SIS

ocoxripiav Aaou aou,

TOU

oaoai

TOUS~XPIOROUS-

aou.

Also, a couple of Masoretic manuscripts represent in this connection the plural reading. The plural concept "anointed ones" can sensibly mean nothing else than the citizens of Israel, because the A stichos mentions the people. Parallel structure between the stichoi is indisputable. The Septuagint shows explicitly the same content as is already included in the singular form in the Hebrew text. No matter whether singular or plural reading is preferred in this case, the word ITEi'O refers in this context unambiguously to a collective object, the people of Israel. The early translators better clarified this state of affairs in their renderings. It is interesting to note that occasionally the collective emphases are seen better and more often in early versions than in the Hebrew text (cf. Isa 42:1 with revealing collective supplements in the Septuagint). In the Psalter this is evident as concerns Ps 89:4, where the Hebrew expression H1!!?1? was rendered in Greek by TOI7 aav nsr

lip?

iniinj-i isan mrr rnina DK rnpx;

n&sjTif ?

It seems likely that the textual form of the Pentateuch was already quite stabilized around 350 B.C.E.23 Some minor additions or alterations may, of course, have taken place even later, but the largest amount of material was fixed at that time. The textual form of Nebiim was established later. Malachi 3:22-24 forms an intentional reference to the opening chapter of Joshua. In the book of Ben Sira there are clues that Ben Sira knew both the Pentateuch and the corpus of prophetic books. Ben Sira 48:10 undoubtedly presupposes the colophon of Malachi (Mai 3:22-24). It is very likely that the whole of the Nebiim was rather fixed when Ben Sira wrote his own book around 180 B.C.E.24 Once again it is possible that some texts fluctuated for a relatively long time (like the book of Jeremiah, which in the LXX is much shorter than in Hebrew), but most of the texts were already in their final form. Against this background it is easily understandable that the people responsible for the final redaction of the Psalter wanted to join together both the Pentateuch and the Nebiim by stressing the importance of the Mosaic law. The threefold division of the Hebrew Bible is mentioned in the translator's preface of Ben Sira (according to the LXX: ETS TE xr|v T O U vopou KCXI T Q U TrpoVJL? iD) was in the background. In llQPs a Psalm 145 is followed by a poem which was previously known only from the Syriac Bible. Therefore I have referred to this text as Ps 154, as it stands in the Peshitta. The genre (Gattung) of this psalm is a hymn with some features of the wisdom tradition.121 Thus the transition from Ps 145 to Ps 154 is fluent, because Ps 145 itself is a hymn and contains some emphases typical of the wisdom tradition. The apocryphal text "Plea for Deliverance" follows after Ps 154. Some vague connections may be detected between these two poems but they are far from clear.122 In any case, both of these apocryphal texts display the individual's reliance on Yahweh. By contrast, Ps 139 seamlessly develops further the ideas already expressed in "Plea for Deliverance". Until verse 18 Psalm 139 speaks of God's care and protection. But the rest of the psalm, Ps 139:1924, does not fit into this same theme. The discourse about the enemies is 119 LEVIN, SchluBdoxologie, 22-23, concludes that the basic form of Ps 118 (verses 1^4) served as a liturgical introduction to Ps 136. Furthermore, he thinks that Ps 136 was for some time the final doxology of the book of Psalms as a whole. Therefore all the material between Ps 118:4 and Ps 136:1 was inserted at a later stage. 120 DAHMEN, Rezeption, 196. 121 SANDERS, DJD IV, 76; VAN DER WOUDE, JSHRZ IV/1, 36. 122 According to DAHMEN, Rezeption, 2 9 7 - 2 9 8 , both thematic and semantic connections between the "Plea for Deliverance" and adjacent psalms are nearly nonexistent.

226

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective

Redaction

used in llQPs a to build a kind of "bridge" from Ps 139 to Ps 137.123 Psalms 137 and 138 follow each other as in the Masoretic tradition. After Ps 138 there is an interesting exception in llQPs a as compared with the Masoretic tradition. Psalm 138 is followed by a prayer which derives from the book of Ben Sira (ch. 51). Even between Ps 138 and Ben Sira 51:13-30 there are some striking similarities, let me mention the corresponding custom of praying towards the temple (Ps 138:2; Ben Sira 51:14). Gratitude is also a connecting theme between these poems. Perhaps the most significant difference is the wisdom character of Ben Sira 51, because Ps 138 lacks the features of the wisdom tradition. An apocryphal text, "Apostrophe to Zion", is a logical consequence in such a context where the temple is mentioned, though the "Apostrophe to Zion" does not itself explicitly mention any temple. But the emphasis on Zion is very strong in this poem. The theme of Zion is taken a step further by Ps 93, which stresses the kingship of Yahweh (a theocratic model). After Ps 93 there are a few canonical psalms, but in a different order as compared with the Masoretic Text. The transition from Ps 93 to Ps 141 is hard to explain logically, because there are neither self-evident lexical nor theological connections between these two poems. Almost as incomprehensible is the transition from Ps 141 to Ps 133. It is peculiar indeed that Ps 133 was separated from the other pilgrim songs and placed in this context. As far as I can see, there is only one vague similarity between Pss 133 and 141, namely the metaphor of oil on the hair (Ps 133:2; Ps 141:5; in both passages the words and occur).124 Possible connections between Ps 133 and Ps 144 are also difficult to detect. One obvious feature in Ps 144 is that it mentions David (Ps 144:10). In llQPs a Ps 144 belongs in columns XXIII-XXIV, in other words it clearly belongs in the latter part of the manuscript. It is remarkable that at the end of llQPs 3 the role of David receives increasing emphasis. Psalm 144 is followed by an apocryphal poem, Ps 155, which is a combination of elements of thanksgiving and complaint.125 Thus Ps 155 serves well as a link between Pss 144 and 142, because they represent thanksgiving and lament respectively. Psalms 142 and 143 follow each other in 11 QPsa as in the Masoretic tradition, but the transition from Ps 143 to Ps 149 is perhaps too abrupt. Psalms 149-150, which contain joyful cries of hallelujah, are followed by an apocryphal text, "Hymn to the Creator". This hymn undoubtedly fits well in its context, because it is 123 FLINT has also noticed distinct compositional principles within the texts consisting of columns XVIII-XX; see FLINT, Psalms Scrolls, 198. 124 However, DAHMEN, Rezeption, 301 n. 168, argues that the occurrences of the word in 1 and the root db: in Pss 133 and 141 are of importance. '25 VAN DER WOUDE, JSHRZ IV/1, 36.

8. The Significance

of I IQPs" for Redaction

Theories of the Psalter

227

based on the praises already expressed in Pss 149-150. The "Hymn to the Creator" seems to presuppose the creation stories of Genesis, but it is remarkable that this apocryphal hymn stresses so much the role of wisdom in the process of creation (line 4: "He established the dawn by the knowledge of his mind"; line 7: "Blessed be he who makes the earth by his power, establishing the world in his wisdom."). After the "Hymn to the Creator" the importance of David for the composition of 11 QPsa becomes evident, since there is one verse (2 Sam 23:7) concerning David's last words at the beginning of column XXVII. Probably the scroll originally included the whole unit 2 Sam 23:1-7, but the preceding verses were in the lower part of the manuscript, which is damaged. This canonical résumé of David's significance is in llQPs a followed by an apocryphal summary of David's deeds and achievements (David's Compositions). It is noteworthy that the role of David as a poet is strongly emphasized in this apocryphal work. An interesting question is, what was originally the relationship between David's Compositions and the tendency to dedicate several psalms to David in their superscriptions. To be frank, David's Compositions would be a sufficient and effective conclusion to the whole preceding compilation.126 Instead, the text in llQPs a continues on. David's Compositions are followed by a Davidic psalm, Ps 140. Psalm 140 is followed by the last text of the pilgrim songs, Ps 134. A peculiar feature of Ps 134 is its reference to cultic practices that took place at night. It is interesting that such a short poem is the penultimate text in the large scroll 1 lQPs 3 . 127 Finally, 1 lQPs a includes Ps 151 (A+B). This poem particularly has been the subject of a lively scholarly debate, because it has been preserved in three divergent forms: in llQPs a , in the Septuagint and in the Peshitta. Scholars are fairly unanimous about the theory that llQPs a represents the most original reading of these three variants.128 The Hebrew Vorlage, which the translator of the Septuagint used, was at least in some parts of the text close to the Hebrew form represented by llQPs a , but it is 126

Thus also LANGE, Endgestalt, 108, who regards Pss 140, 134, 151A and 151B as later additions to the compilation represented by 1 lQPs a . See also DAHMEN, Rezeption, 307. 127 MILLARD presumes that isolating Pss 133-134 from the other pilgrim songs has something to do with the polemic attitude of the Qumran community towards the temple in Jerusalem; see MILLARD, Komposition, 220. This view is also supported by DAHMEN, Psalmentext, 117, who has noted that entering the temple is replaced in l l Q P s 3 by the Torah, because Ps 132 is followed by Ps 119. In DAHMEN's opinion, even the secondary blessing at the end of Ps 133 in 1 lQPs a is tendentious and reflects the theology of the Qumran community. 128 SANDERS, DJD IV, 59-60; VAN DER WOUDE, JSHRZ IV/1, 33; FABRY, Kanonizitat, 59.

228

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective

Redaction

noteworthy that the superscription of Ps 151 is longer in the Septuagint than in llQPs 3 . On the whole, the reading of the Septuagint as regards Ps 151 is shorter than the corresponding text in llQPs 3 . There are several lines in the Hebrew text that do not appear at all in the Greek translation. For instance, 11 QPsa mentions that Samuel anointed David as king, but this statement does not appear in the Septuagint translation of Ps 151. The Syriac Peshitta simply depends on the Septuagint as regards Ps 151. Certainly Ps 151 in llQPs a once more stresses and underlines the importance of David. This poem is planned as a kind of culmination of the whole scroll. 8.4 llQPs" Compared with Other Psalms Scrolls Found at Qumran Most of the Psalms manuscripts found at Qumran came from either cave 4 or cave 11. It is of importance that only nine manuscripts offer psalms in a variant order as compared with the Masoretic Text (the total number of Psalms manuscripts found at Qumran is 39). In practice this means that most of the scrolls follow the Masoretic order. Of course, the variant readings of llQPs a are the most significant; in a few other divergent manuscripts the variants are minor (usually only one psalm in an 'abnormal' order). Solely this fact presents problems for Flint's hypothesis of the Edition Ha (1 lQPs a -Psalter). Is it reasonable to assume an independent edition on the basis of only one large scroll and a couple of tiny fragments? The reading of llQPs 3 hardly finds any support in other Dead Sea Psalms scrolls. The only possible candidates are 4QPse and llQPs b . 129 Unfortunately it is problematic to evaluate these two manuscripts because their present condition is so fragmentary. But on the basis of textual comparison Dahmen considers it impossible that 4QPse and 11 QPsa could represent the same composition. The only certain similarity between these manuscripts is the transition from Ps 118 to Ps 104. But, for instance in Ps 105:1, these manuscripts do not offer the same textual form.130 However, 11 QPsa and 11 QPsb are parallel manuscripts. Certainly it is significant that llQPs b preserves part of the "Plea for Deliverance" (frag. 4) and two words of the "Apostrophe to Zion" (frag. 6). Furthermore, fragment 7 of llQPs b displays Pss 133, 141 and 144 in the same order as llQPs a . 131 Nevertheless, it should be added that there is at least one apparent difference between llQPs a and llQPs b ; the latter uses square script even when the holy name rUT is in question. The first preserved fragment of 129 130 131

FLINT, Psalms Scrolls, 198-199. D A H M E N , Rezeption, 5 5 - 5 7 . GARCIA MARTINEZ, TIGCHELAAR, VAN DER WOUDE, DJD XXIII, 38.

8. The Significance

of llQPs" for Redaction

Theories of the Psalter

229

1 lQPs b includes Ps 77:18-Ps 78:1.132 Thus it is extremely difficult to estimate which psalm this scroll originally began with. Also, the badly damaged 1 QPsb possibly represents the same composition as 11 QPsa. The same remark concerns 4QPs" as well.133 8.5 Is llQPs" Qumranic or Pre-Qumranic? It is indisputable that llQPs 3 includes a great variety of texts from different decades, even from different centuries. It can roughly be stated that the final redaction of the canonical Psalter took place sometime between 200-150 B.C.E.134 It is even possible that some of the latest psalms, like Pss 149-150, were composed for the later canonized Psalter merely in order to reach a harmonious number.135 The book of Ben Sira was probably composed between 190-175 B.C.E.,136 therefore the compilation beyond llQPs 3 cannot be earlier than this period, unless we assume that Ben Sira took ch. 51 from tradition.137 It seems likely that the canonical form of the Psalter was already quite final at the time when the community of Qumran began its activity. The translator of the Septuagint knew the Psalter in the form akin to the Masoretic tradition. As we noted above in section 5, it is very likely that even Ben Sira seems to have known the Psalter in the form as it stands in the Masoretic tradition. This observation is not based upon vague allusions to other 'writings of ancestors' (àÀXcov TraTpicov (3i(3Àicov) which are mentioned in addition to the law and the prophets in the translator's preface in the Greek version of Ben Sira. The unit Ben Sira 14:20-15:10 rather explicitly reveals that in the background of these verses there can be only the book of Psalms - in its Masoretic order. In fact, Ben Sira gives a kind of early midrashic interpretation of the Psalter.138 This further evidence makes Flint's 132

FLINT, Psalms Scrolls, 262. DAHMEN, Rezeption, 60-61. 134 LANGE, Endgestalt, 108. DAHMEN, Psalmentext, 121, thinks that the later canonized form of the Psalter was rather stable around 200 B.C.E. VAN DER WOUDE, JSHRZ IV/1, 31, suggests a pre-Qumranic origin for Pss 151-155, even though these poems were not taken into the proto-Masoretic Psalter. 135 Thus LOHFINK, Lobgesange , 1 0 1 . 136 SKEHAN, DI LELLA, Wisdom, 10; HENGEL, Judentum, 242. 137 It is uncertain whether the sequence Ben Sira 51:13-30 had an earlier independent existence before it was attached to the book of Ben Sira. DAHMEN, Rezeption, 243. 138 MARBOCK, Wirkungsgeschichte, 211; DAHMEN, Psalmentext, 121-122. LANGE, Endgestalt, 105-106, however, is critical of such an assumption. In some late psalms the Torah is depicted as the primary source of salvation, safety and consolation. In other words, the Torah had become a refuge. CREACH, Refuge, 72, writes: "By meditating on tora one could come under the protective care of Yahweh (Ben Sira 14:2627) to experience Yahweh's presence, as if in the temple itself." 133

230

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective

Redaction

hypothesis less convincing. If llQPs 3 really represented an independent edition that even competed with the proto-Masoretic compilation, one should suppose that this kind of edition would have left more traces than it actually did. The prose section at the end of llQPs 3 , David's Compositions, presupposes the 364-day solar calender.139 This is a remarkable observation, because it is wellknown that the Qumran community observed the solar calendar, but in the temple of Jerusalem at the same time the lunar calendar was used. The different calendar has traditionally been interpreted as a sectarian feature of the Qumran community. Thus it would be rather easy to assert that the whole manuscript 11 QPsa derives from the Essenes of Qumran. Unfortunately, the question is not so simple to answer. The solar calendar also exists in Jewish texts that were probably written before the founding of the community at Qumran. These texts are 1 Enoch, Jubilees and the Temple Scroll (the last mentioned may also be of Qumranic origin).140 In his investigation Dahmen has observed that 11 QPsa throughout adds to psalms some features that are characteristically Qumranic. For instance, regarding Ps 149, llQPs a attempts to assert that only those who belong to the group called DT'On are really ^fOST ''H. This variant is secondary and represents the theology of the Qumran community.141 According to Dahmen, the first half of llQPs 3 seems to be wellplanned, but then the apocryphal texts in particular are quite loose in their context. In the latter part of the composition both complaints and petitions appear. In Dahmen's opinion, the textual form of llQPs" indisputably reveals that this manuscript is a product of the Qumran community.142 There is strong evidence that the proto-Masoretic Psalter represented the only extensive edition of the Psalter (cf. the Psalter in LXX and Ben Sira 14-15). There might have been some flexibility concerning the order of a few adjacent 139

FLINT, Psalms Scrolls, 198. FLINT strongly defends the pre-Qumranic origin of llQPs"; see FLINT, Psalms Scrolls, 199. As a pre-Qumranic feature in l l Q P s a Flint mentions the absence of references to the enigmatic Teacher of Righteousness, but this alone is not a sufficient argument. Suffice it to mention that the Hodayot poems do not refer to the Teacher of Righteousness either, though Hodayot poems were undoubtedly among the texts produced by the community itself. Similarly, the Teacher of Righteousness is absent from the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, though this poetic liturgy is probably of Qumranic origin. 141 DAHMEN, Rezeption, 226. Another Qumranic feature is found in the messianology reflected in the textual form of Pss 122 and 132. See DAHMEN, Rezeption, 292. 142 DAHMEN, Rezeption, 310-313. DAHMEN's conclusion is unambiguous: "Von seiner Textform her erweist sich l l Q P s a als qumranisches Produkt, als eigenständig, einzigartig und insgesamt der MT-Textform nachgeordnet." DAHMEN, Rezeption, 313. 140

8. The Significance

of llQPs"for

Redaction

Theories of the

Psalter

231

psalms, but it is improbable to assume fluidity to such a degree as 11 QPsa represents. Many scholars still assume that the arrangement of the poetic material in llQPs" is due to liturgical reasons whatever they might have been. This view is supported in particular by Kaiser.143 There is even some confusion as to what the term "Psalter" exactly means. It can be defined as a book containing a collection of Psalms for liturgical or devotional use, as is the case with the Masoretic Psalter (also 11 QPsa meets this criterion). But in research some smaller collections ("Teilsammlungen") may also be called Psalters, like the Elohistic Psalter. In order to avoid confusion I have followed in my own analysis the principle that a 'Psalter' is either the canonical Masoretic Psalter or its earlier forms when the process of redaction was still continuing. Thus we are justified in concluding like Dahmen, that llQPs a is not a "Psalterrolle", but is certainly a "Psalmenrolle".144 8.6 llQPs" and the Collective Redaction of the Psalter Our previous survey has shown that llQPs 3 is very likely a Qumranic product. It seems reasonable to speak of an eschatological compilation, though liturgical allusions are also possible. Even though llQPs a was never such an independent authoritative edition as Flint supposes, the redaction-critical method is a useful tool when analysing the manuscript in detail. Some unknown person (or group of people) is responsible for the arrangement of textual material in llQPs 3 . As we have seen, there are often palpable reasons why certain poems were placed next to each other. llQPs 3 is excellent parallel material to the canonical Psalter, because it points out the work of the redactors. Approximately the same textual material can be arranged in divergent order on the basis of different theological emphases. llQPs a concentrates on David and it is also striking that complaints are so negligible in this scroll. My own task is to analyse the traces of collective redaction in the Psalter. Above I mentioned that llQPs 3 includes several psalms with collective supplements. To the list I gave in that connection I could add Ps 102:18-29, which is preserved in fragment C II of llQPs 3 . All the 143

KAISER, GottI, 343. D A H M E N , Psalmentext, 122-123. D A H M E N has particularly concentrated on the weaknesses in FLINT'S hypothesis of different authoritative editions of the Psalter. First o f all, D A H M E N seems to be dissatisfied with FLINT'S rather one-sided approach, when he only develops further J. A. SANDERS's views without taking into account other relevant possibilities. There are also some fundamental mistakes in FLINT'S statistical method. See D A H M E N , Psalmentext, 112-114. Furthermore, DAHMEN, Psalmentext, 122, states that Pss 9 0 - 1 5 0 did not fluctuate at the time of the Qumran community as much as FLINT suggests. 144

232

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective

Redaction

collective features that are present in the Masoretic Psalter can also be found in llQPs a . If at least some of these collective additions derive from those who took care of the final redaction of the Psalter, this simply means that llQPs 3 presupposes the proto-Masoretic Psalter after its final redaction. Thus 11 QPsa would depend on the canonical form of the Psalter and this extraordinary manuscript could be regarded as a secondary compilation. Nevertheless, this secondary character of llQPs 3 and its literary dependence on the proto-Masoretic Psalter has been demonstrated by Dahmen in several ways. By virtue of collective reinterpretation the primacy of the proto-Masoretic Psalter can furthermore be proved when we briefly look at the relationship between Pss 148 and 149. Psalm 148:14 is definitely loose in its present context. It is a kind of patriotic passage following a beautiful hymn. For me this verse represents the product of collective redaction. Many scholars assign Ps 148:14 either to the final redaction or to the Hasidim redaction of the Psalter.145 It is even possible that verse 14 was added in order to attach Pss 148 and 149 more firmly. Psalm 148:14 includes similar vocabulary to Ps 149:lb-2: Ps 148:14 Ps 149:1b—2

b^p-a»

PTprrtt

n'pnp

ias?1? ^

dti.

]l«s ->s rfcto teier no®? n n v n ^ z inton ns'paa •l'rr

The term •''Ton further occurs in Ps 149:5 and 9. In llQPs a Pss 148 and 149 are not adjacent psalms. Therefore it is indispensable to know whether llQPs" contained Ps 148:14 or not. Unfortunately, this knowledge is not directly accessible to us, because only the first twelve verses of Ps 148 have been preserved in 11 QPsa. But the reconstructions leave no doubt: Ps 148:14 was in llQPs a , and thus the opening line mrp l ^ n corresponds to the end of the poem where the exclamation rr i ^ n occurs.146 If Ps 148:14 really was included in 11 QPsa, this evidence is sufficient for the statement that llQPs 3 used the collectively edited canonical Psalter and that the author of the manuscript was aware of the final form of the Psalter. Certainly the fruits of collective redaction corresponded well to the theological conviction of the Qumran community. Probably the members of this community considered only themselves to be the 'true Israel', the recipient of numerous divine promises. When they recited the text of llQPs 3 , they accepted the earlier reworking of collectively oriented redactors, and furthermore they adapted these texts to their own situation.

145 146

FÜGLISTER, Ps 149, 81; LEVIN, Gebetbuch, 378; LANGE, Endgestalt, 118. DAHMEN, Rezeption, 129-130.

9. Conclusion

233

9. Conclusion In recent Psalm research it has become obvious that the Psalter in its final form is not a haphazard compilation of religious poems, but the result of a deliberate process. In modern research more emphasis is focused on the relationship between adjacent psalms. Also, the smaller collections within the Psalter are nowadays given more attention than a few decades ago. Certainly scholars have always been aware of the existence of smaller subcollections. The enigmatic Elohistic Psalter (Pss 42-83) is perhaps the most well-known of them. But now the significance of the sub-collections to the growth process of the Psalter is better understood. It can roughly be stated that the Psalter was formed by adding earlier independent collections together. In this process several late psalms were still added and many previously existing psalms were reworked. One form of reworking was the collectivizing tendency. It seems that the First and the Second Davidic Psalter form the core of the so-called Messianic Psalter that was quite fixed around 300 B.C.E. This collection comprised the material from Ps 2:1-9 until Ps 89, excluding only some late psalms and smaller late inserts. At the later stage the collection grew in its latter part and various material was added (like psalms of the so-called Egyptian Hallel, Songs of Ascents etc.). Gradually Psalms 90-145 found their way to the Psalter. Psalm 1 was composed to be the introduction to the Psalter and in the larger scale this psalm was planned to serve as the introduction to the whole section of the D'airo of the Hebrew Bible. Psalm 1 has some striking similarities with other framing passages in the section of D1K133 in particular. Psalm 1 emphatically stresses the role of the Torah, and it is also possible to see reflections of np 1 !^ piety in this psalm. The fivefold book division of the Psalter was at the latest done when the material ranged to Ps 145. This division endeavoured to reach an analogy to the Pentateuch. But it is unnecessary to presume that all those concluding doxologies derive from one and the same hand. The Psalter as a whole depicts the lifestyle of a person who lives according to the scribal ideals. The law is the basis and the source of life. Therefore the law is so central at the very beginning of the Psalter (Ps 1). The law also appears here and there even later within this collection. This may underline the fact that the law is always present. Despite the obedience to the Torah, one's life may include much suffering. This fact is evident on the basis of several complaint psalms which can be found particularly in the Davidic collections. Finally, when Pss 146-150 were added to the end of the Psalter, the whole composition reached its ultimate goal. At the end there was the praise to Yahweh. This was the scribal ideal:

234

IV. The Nature and Extent of Collective

Redaction

from suffering to praise, and all the time the significance of the Torah is in the background. Psalms 146-150 contain features of D'Ton piety. Such features also occur in a number of other psalms in different parts of the Psalter. These "Hasidim" supplements in some psalms may indicate the latest redactional stratum within the Psalter. It seems obvious that the Psalter was almost in its final form around 180 B.C.E. This is a reliable date for the so-called final redaction of the Psalter. But this statement does not exclude the possibility that a few minor additions took place even later. It is probable that some late supplements reflect echoes from the Maccabean revolt. It is important to analyse the growth process of the Psalter, because it sheds light on the collective reworking. It seems indisputable that rather often the collectively edited psalms occur at structurally significant positions. Psalm 3 opens the First Davidic collection, Pss 25 and 34 frame a smaller sub-collection, the Second Davidic Psalter begins with Ps 51, the third book of the Psalter is framed by collective texts (Pss 73 and 89). Collective redaction is not a uniform phenomenon, but took place during several generations. But it is obvious that in all the cases the redactors have wanted to give a new content to the psalm they have reworked. At least the group of D T ' o n is very likely one of those religious movements which is responsible for national additions. But there have been several other groups as well. Qumran manuscript llQPs a offers an interesting parallel to the protoMasoretic Psalter. The order of psalms in this scroll differs significantly from the later canonical form. Nevertheless, it seems indisputable that llQPs 3 is throughout secondary as compared to the proto-Masoretic tradition. llQPs 3 was probably in some kind of liturgical use in the community of Qumran and also the eschatological features of that composition are noteworthy. From the redaction-critical point of view it is important to note that a large number of psalms have been arranged according to different editorial principles than in the proto-Masoretic Psalter. 11 QPsa focuses on the figure of David, but the national emphases are not so essential in this composition.

Summary

During the era of historical-critical Psalm research the question of the identity of the "I" in the psalms has been answered in different ways. The real breakthrough for the collective understanding of the "I" in the Psalms was achieved by Rudolf Smend Senior's article Über das Ich der Psalmen, first published in 1888. Later the collective interpretation of the Psalms spread rapidly both to German scholarship (e.g. F. Baethgen) and to American exegesis (e.g. C. Briggs). In extreme interpretations the "I" of the psalms was nearly always seen as referring to the people of Israel. The supremacy of the collective interpretation began to fail following the studies by Hermann Gunkel and Emil Balla. Especially Balla's research Das Ich der Psalmen (1912) was an epoch-making contribution on behalf of the individual interpretation of the Psalms. Gunkel's famous commentary on the Psalms continued along the same path. The main emphasis in scholarship quickly moved from one extreme to another: the collective interpretation was abandoned, and it was no longer possible to see any justification for this theory. This trend in research becomes evident in a couple of Psalm commentaries written after Gunkel (such as works by A. Weiser and H.-J. Kraus). Since the 1960s Joachim Becker has worked for a certain rehabilitation of the collective understanding of the Psalms. Gradually scholars have seized on this challenging topic. It has been realized that the constant identification of the "I" of the Psalms with the people of Israel is unreasonable, but likewise it is unfair completely to dispute the existence of the collective interpretation of the Psalms. Thus it is meaningful to raise the question to what extent collective reinterpretation of the Psalms existed in ancient Israel. In the course of critical study there have been different attempts to understand the transitions between individual and community in the Psalms. Widely popular was H. Wheeler Robinson's concept of "corporate personality". In this model - as in Sigmund Mowinckel's concept of "Great Ego" - a single man was considered to be capable of representing the whole people. Wheeler Robinson's and Mowinckel's views were mainly based upon cultic understanding of the Psalms. In this respect modern Psalm research has clearly chosen a different approach. Because

236

Summary

our knowledge of the ancient Israelite cult is quite meagre, it is wise to refrain from far-reaching reconstructions. Furthermore, it has been noticed that there are many psalms in the Psalter that hardly ever had a cultic function. Modern scholarship understands the Psalter as a meditation and educational book rather than as a liturgical hymn-book. On this basis Jiirgen van Oorschot's concept "Rollendichtung" and Bernd Janowski's concept "Multiperspektivitat" are more useful in the modern study. Janowski, for instance, has paid attention to the feature that many psalms were originally composed to serve as generalizing and flexible writings. Therefore it demanded little effort to give them a new content in the altered circumstances (a collective emphasis is one form of such re lecture).

In neighbouring cultures there was religious poetry that resembled the biblical Psalms. But in these extra-biblical poems there are only seldom transitions between the individual and the community. In Egyptian hymns and prayers only a few such cases are detectable and the same is true of ancient Mesopotamian prayers (the "we" form is throughout very rare). The greater interest can be focused on parallel material that can be found in the Old Testament itself - outside the Psalter. In Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 40-55) specific attention concentrates on the socalled Servant Songs. Concerning the identity of the Servant scholars have referred, for example, to Moses, King Cyrus, the prophet Deutero-Isaiah himself, but steady support has also been given to the view that the Servant is identical with Israel. In fact, this interpretation is the only one which unambiguously receives support from the text itself (Isa 49:3, that has not turned out to be a later gloss). Furthermore, Israel occurs as the Servant of Yahweh in Deutero-Isaiah even outside the Servant Songs (Isa 41:8-9; 44:1-2; for example). It would be strange if in the Servant Songs the Servant meant something else than in the surrounding context. Also, in Lamentations individual and collective features are intertwined. Lamentations 3 introduces in a singular manner a sufferer who is easily identified with the people of Israel. Moreover collective emphases are strongly present in the late, nomistic layers of the Deuteronomistic History. At the end of the exile and during the early post-exilic period the group of redactors no longer saw any need for the earthly Davidic monarchy. Instead, the people of Israel remarkably rose to be the recipient of God's promises which were originally given to David and his dynasty. Thus divine prophecies received a new, collective content. This interpretation also appears in Deutero-Isaiah (Isa 55:3-5). In several studies Timo Veijola has paid attention to the phenomenon of how collective features play a significant role in post-exilic theology. My own study thus confirms Veijola's observations.

Summary

237

Modern Psalm research has begun to focus more and more on the relationship between adjacent psalms and on various sub-collections within the Psalter. It has become clear that the Psalter is not a haphazard compilation of single psalms, but the consequence of a deliberate process. This so-called canonical approach is useful even from the perspective of collective interpretation, because it opens up a new dimension to the significance of the position of the psalms within the extensive collection. Gunkel first used the form-critical method on a large scale in Psalm research and the classification of psalms into different genres (Gattungen) chiefly stems from him. Most of the collectively edited psalms originally belonged to individual complaints, but some other genres also appear in this connection (such as hymns). Gunkel and his followers had problems in finding an appropriate definition and function for the collective emphases that occur at the end of many psalms, because these scholars so strongly rejected the probability of the collective interpretation. As regards the cultic Sitz im Leben of several psalms, it is difficult to say anything certain. Nevertheless, it is obvious that due to redactional alterations the Sitz im Leben of the Psalms has also faced changes. New emphases are, for instance, collective, messianic and theocratic interpretations. There are a surprisingly great number of affinities between messianic and collective interpretations. Therefore it is not always easy to determine which tradition the text in question represents. Because of the complex growth process of several psalms the previously dominant view of the existence of priestly salvation oracles has nowadays become dubious. It is better to explain the sudden changes of atmosphere in the Psalms text-internally than to assume some text-external oracle uttered by a priest. The analysis of single psalms revealed that at least about 20 psalms at some stage faced collective redaction. This is very obvious in Pss 22, 69 and 102. In their basic form they all belong in the category of individual complaints, but later they were collectively reworked. In fact, the exegetical analysis showed that these three psalms were the object of a twofold collective redaction. In the first collective layer belong Ps 22:4-6, 24-27; Ps 69:32-34; Ps 102:13-23, 25b. The latter collective stratum is represented by Ps 22:28-32; Ps 69:35-37; Ps 102:26-29, which reflect wider perspectives than the first layer. As regards some psalms, the collective emphases obviously derive from the early post-exilic period (this definition fits well psalms that seem directly to depend on Deuteronomistic terminology and theology, e.g. Pss 89 and 132). Concerning several psalms, the collective supplements are confined to the final verse. With the aid of such supplements the redactors endeavoured to influence the readers' way of understanding the psalm. Apparently a minor addition may have opened up a collective perspective

238

Summary

on the whole preceding prayer. In Pss 25 and 34 the national supplement at the end of the text breaks up the alphabetical structure. In Ps 73 the collective supplement is already found at the beginning of the poem, which is quite rare. In Ps 30 national emphases are placed in the middle of the original text. The so-called Songs of Ascents (Pss 120-134) contain dominant features and traces of collective redaction. At least Pss 125, 129, 130, 131 and 132 in this collection reflect collective emphases. The original "I" in many psalms was later seen as personified Israel, which had faced much suffering and oppression during its history. Collective theology seems to have had to a certain degree impact on the use of the term rPifD in post-exilic theology. In Pss 2 and 84 a collective reference for "the anointed" is probable. The same idea also appears outside the Psalter in the psalm of the prophet Habakkuk (Hab 3), in which the "people" and the "anointed" indisputably occur as parallel expressions (Hab 3:13a). This is even more obvious in the Septuagint, that renders the anointed in the plural (xptaxous). It is interesting that in some cases collective features more explicitly appear in the early versions, particularly the Septuagint (cf. Ps 89:4 LXX and Isa 42:1 LXX). The growth process of the Psalter was a long and complicated development. Around the second Davidic Psalter (Pss 51-72) both a group of Korahite psalms (Pss 42-49) and a group of Asaph psalms (Pss 50, 7383) were attached. After this the entity consisting of Pss 42-83 was ready and "elohistically" edited. God's holy name mm was replaced by crn'PK. The basic motive for the Elohistic Psalter has not become entirely clear, but it is tempting to think that the more neutral term DTI1??* offered better links with international views than the nationally more limited mm. When the first Davidic Psalter (Pss 3-41) and the rest of the Korahite collection (Pss 84-89 without Ps 86) were attached, the extent of the so-called Messianic Psalter was reached. Psalm 2:1-9 served as an introduction to this collection, that was quite fixed about 300 B.C.E. Gradually the Psalter also grew in its latter part. Finally, Psalm 1 was composed to function as an introduction to the whole Psalter and even to the large D'OlfD section of the Hebrew Bible. At the final redactional stage the psalms of the Minor Hallel (Pss 146-150) were added at the end of the composition. Probably even before this addition the fivefold book division of the Psalter was made as an analogy to the Pentateuch. This division is marked by final doxologies at the end of each book (Ps 41:14; 72:18-19; 89:53; 106:48 and 145:21). The Psalter was quite close to its final form around 180 B.C.E., because at that time Ben Sira seems to have known the proto-Masoretic Psalter (Ben Sira 14:20-15:10 and also Ben Sira 39:1-15). It is fruitful to analyse the composition of the Psalter, because collectively edited psalms often

Summary

239

appear in key positions of the composition: Ps 3 opens the first Davidic Psalter; Pss 25 and 34 frame one sub-collection; the second Davidic Psalter begins with Ps 51. Moreover, the third book of the Psalter is framed by collective texts (Pss 73 and 89). Only a little is known about the redactors of the Psalter or of individual psalms. Because the Psalter gradually grew to its present extent, even redactional activity took place over several generations. Such terms as Dip'HS and D 1 T o n occur in the Psalter and they might tell us something about the redactor groups in the background to the Psalter. Drawing firm conclusions is made more difficult by the fact that it is unclear whether such terms can be treated as proper nouns. If they were certainly names, they would refer to some unambiguous groups. Regarding some textual examples (like Ps 148:14), it seems likely that at least the group of ffTon was responsible for maintaining collective theology. CTTon theology represents one of the latest redactional layers in the Psalter. Later the movement of the Hasideans appears as a significant circle in 1-2 Maccabees. In any case, it is clear that over a long period of time several different people and groups participated in the collective reinterpretation of the psalms. An interesting parallel to the proto-Masoretic Psalter can be found in the Qumran scroll 11 QPsa. In this manuscript the Psalms occur in a rather divergent order as compared to the canonical Psalter. Furthermore, 11 QPsa includes some apocryphal writings. A detailed analysis showed that 11 QPsa is throughout secondary in comparison with the proto-Masoretic tradition. Nevertheless, llQPs" indisputably indicates that almost identical psalm material can be arranged in a completely different way if the redactional opinions and emphases are dissimilar. 11 QPsa concentrates on the figure of David and interprets it eschatologically. By contrast, national emphases are not so significant in this Qumranic compilation.

Bibliography The abbreviations in the following bibliography are in accordance with Siegfried M. Schwertner's Abkürzungsverzeichnis (TRE, Sonderausgabe; 19942 Berlin - New York). Moreover 1 use the following abbreviations: ATDA BiblE HBiS HThKAT NSK.AT WBC

Das Alte Testament Deutsch Apokryphen (Göttingen) Biblische Enzyklopädie (Stuttgart - Berlin - Köln) Herders Biblische Studien (Freiburg - Basel - Wien) Herders Theologischer Kommentar zum Alten Testament (Freiburg Basel - Wien) Neuer Stuttgarter Kommentar. Altes Testament (Stuttgart) Word Biblical Commentary (Waco, Texas)

Text Editions ASSMANN, J., Ägyptische Hymnen und Gebete. BAW. Zürich - München 1975 BROCK, S.P. (ed.), Isaiah. The Old Testament in Syriac. According to the Peshitta Version. Part III, fascicle 1. Leiden 1987 ELLIGER, K., RUDOLPH, W. (ed.), Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Vierte, verbesserte Auflage. Stuttgart 1990 GARCIA MARTINEZ, F., TIGCHELAAR, E.J.C., VAN DER WOUDE, A.S. (ed.), Qumran Cave 11 II. 11Q2-18, 11Q20-31. DJD XXIII. Oxford 1998 RAHLFS, A. (ed.), Psalmi cum Odis. Septuaginta. Zweite, durchgesehene Auflage. Vetus Testamentum Graecum Auctoritate Academiae Litterarum Gottingensis editum 10. Göttingen 1967 - Septuaginta. Id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interpretes. Verkleinerte Ausgabe in einem Band. 2. Auflage. Stuttgart 1979 SANDERS, J.A. (ed.), The Psalms Scroll of Qumran Cave 11 (llQPs 3 )- DJD IV. Oxford 1965 WALTER, D.M. (ed.), The Book of Psalms. The Old Testament in Syriac. According to the Peshitta Version.Part II, fascicle 3. Leiden 1980 VAN DER WOUDE, A.S., Die fünf syrischen Psalmen. JSHRZ IV/1. Gütersloh 1974, 2 9 47. WÜNSCHE, A. (ed.), Der Midrasch Tehillim. Oder Haggadische Erklärung der Psalmen. Nach der Textausgabe von Salomon Buber zum ersten Male ins Deutsche übersetzt und mit Noten und Quellenangaben versehen. Hildesheim 1967

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Lexicons, Grammars and Concordances BARTHÉLÉMY, D., RICKENBACHER, O. (hrsg.), Konkordanz zum hebräischen Sirach. Mit syrisch-hebräischem Index. Göttingen 1973 GORDON, C.H., Ugaritic Handbook. Revised Grammar, Paradigms, Texts in Transliteration, Comprehensive Glossary. AnOr 25. Roma 1947 HOLLADAY, W.L., A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Based upon the lexical work of Ludwig Koehler and Walter Baumgartner. Tenth corrected impression. Grand Rapids, Michigan 1989 JOÜON, P., MURAOKA, T., A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew I—II. SubBi 14/1—II. Roma 1991 KOEHLER, L., BAUMGARTNER, W. et al., Hebräisches und aramäisches Lexikon zum Alten Testament I-V (=HALAT). Dritte Auflage. Leiden 1967-1995 MANDELKERN, S., Veteris Testamenti Concordantiae Hebraicae atque Chaldaicae. Editio nona aucta atque emendata. Tel Aviv 1974 PAYNE SMITH, J., A Compendious Syriac Dictionary. Reprinted. Oxford 1957 ROSENTHAL, F., A Grammar of Biblical Aramaic. Fifth printing. PLO. Neue Serie V. Wiesbaden 1983 SEGERT, S., A Grammar of Phoenician and Punic. München 1976 - A Basic Grammar of the Ugaritic Language. With Selected Texts and Glossary. 4th edition. Los Angeles, California 1997 WALTKE, B.K., O'CONNOR, M., An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Winona Lake, Indiana 1990

Other Literature ACKROYD, P., Exile and Restoration. A Study of Hebrew Thought of the Sixth Century BC. OTL. London 1968 - The Chronicler in His Age. JSOT.S 101. Sheffield 1991 ÂDNA, J., Der Gottesknecht als triumphierender und interzessorischer Messias. Die Rezeption von Jes 53 im Targum Jonathan untersucht mit besonderer Berücksichtigung des Messiasbildes, in: Der leidende Gottesknecht. Jesaja 53 und seine Wirkungsgeschichte mit einer Bibliographie zu Jes 53. Hg. v. B. Janowski und P. Stuhlmacher. FAT 14. Tübingen 1996, 129-158 AEJMELAEUS, A., The Traditional Prayer in the Psalms. BZAW 167. Berlin - New York 1986, 1-117. ALBERTZ, R., Persönliche Frömmigkeit und offizielle Religion. Religionsinterner Pluralismus in Israel und Babylon. CThM A:9. Stuttgart 1978 - Religionsgeschichte Israels in alttestamentlicher Zeit 1-2. GAT 8/1-2. Göttingen 1992 - Die Exilszeit als Ernstfall für eine historische Rekonstruktion ohne biblische Texte: Die neubabylonischen Königsinschriften als 'Primärquelle', in: Leading Captivity Captive. "The Exile" as History and Ideology. Ed. by L. L. Grabbe. JSOT.S 278. Sheffield 1998, 22-39 - Die Exilszeit. 6. Jahrhundert v. Chr. BiblE 7. Stuttgart - Berlin - Köln 2001 - Die Intentionen und die Träger des Deuteronomistischen Geschichtswerks (1989), in: DERS., Geschichte und Theologie. Studien zur Exegese des Alten Testaments und zur Religionsgeschichte Israels. Hg. v. I. Kottsieper und J. Wöhrle. BZAW 326. Berlin New York 2003, 257-277

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Wer waren die Deuteronomisten? Das historische Rätsel einer literarischen Hypothese (1997), in: DERS., Geschichte und Theologie. Studien zur Exegese des Alten Testaments und zur Religionsgeschichte Israels. Hg. v. I. Kottsieper und J. Wöhrle. BZAW 326. Berlin - New York 2003, 279-301 ALLEN, L.C., Psalms 101-150. WBC 21. Waco, Texas 1983 - The Value of Rhetorical Criticism in Psalm 69. JBL 105 (1986), 577-598 ALONSO SCHÖKEL, L„ A Manual of Hebrew Poetics. SubBi 11. Roma 1988 ANDERSON, A.A., The Book of Psalms I. Introduction and Psalms 1-72. NCeB. London 1972 ASSMANN, J., Ägypten - Theologie und Frömmigkeit einer frühen Hochkultur. 2. Auflage. UTB 366. Stuttgart - Berlin - Köln 1991 - Das kulturelle Gedächtnis. Schrift, Erinnerung und politische Identität in frühen Hochkulturen. München 1992 - Tod und Jenseits im Alten Ägypten. München 2001 AURELIUS, E., Zukunft jenseits des Gerichts. Eine redaktionsgeschichtliche Studie zum Enneateuch. BZAW 319. Berlin - New York 2003 AVISHUR, Y., Studies in Hebrew and Ugaritic Psalms. Publications of the Perry Foundation for Biblical Research. Jerusalem 1994 BAETHGEN, F., Die Psalmen. Dritte, neubearbeitete Auflage. HK II/2. Göttingen 1904 BALLA, E., Das Ich der Psalmen. FRLANT 16. Göttingen 1912 BALLHORN, E., "Um deines Knechtes David willen" (Ps 132:10). Die Gestalt Davids im Psalter. BN 76 (1995), 16-31 BALTZER, K., Deutero-Jesaja. KAT 10/2. Gütersloh 1999 BARBIERO, G., Das erste Psalmenbuch als Einheit. Eine synchrone Analyse von Psalm 1-41. ÖBS 16. Frankfurt am Main 1999 BARSTAD, H.M., The Myth of the Empty Land. A Study in the History and Archaeology of Judah during the "Exilic" Period. SO.S XXVIII. Oslo 1996 BARTON, J., Reading the Old Testament. Method in Biblical Study. Second edition. London 1996 BAUMGARTNER, W., Die Klagegedichte des Jeremia. BZAW 32. Giessen 1917 BEAUCAMP, E., Le Psautier I. Ps 1-72. SBi 7. Paris 1976 BECKER, J., Israel deutet seine Psalmen. Urform und Neuinterpretation in den Psalmen. SBS 18. Stuttgart 1966 - Wege der Psalmenexegese. SBS 78. Stuttgart 1975 - Die kollektive Deutung der Königspsalmen. ThPh 52 (1977), 561-578 - Messiaserwartung im Alten Testament. SBS 83. Stuttgart 1977 - 1 Chronik. NEB.AT 18. Würzburg 1986 BECKING, B., "Wie Töpfe sollst du sie zerschmeißen". Mesopotamische Parallelen zu Psalm 2,9b. ZAW 102 (1990), 59-79 - Ezra's Re-enactment of the Exile, in: Leading Captivity Captive. "The Exile" as History and Ideology. Ed. by L.L. Grabbe. JSOT.S 278. Sheffield 1998, 40-61 - Continuity and Community: The Belief System of the Book of Ezra, in: The Crisis of Israelite Religion. Transformation of Religious Tradition in Exilic and Post-Exilic Times. Ed. by B. Becking and M.C.A. Korpel. OTS 42. Leiden 1999, 256-275 BERGES, U., Das Buch Jesaja. Komposition und Endgestalt. HBiS 16. Freiburg - Basel - W i e n 1998 - Who Were the Servants? A Comparative Inquiry in the Book of Isaiah and the Psalms, in: Past, Present, Future. The Deuteronomistic History and the Prophets. Ed. by J.C. de Moor and H.F. van Rooy. OTS XLIV. Leiden - Boston - Köln 2000, 1-18

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Source Index

Deuteronomy

Genesis

11 1 1-2:4 12 1 7-9 1 11-12 1 15 1 16 1 21 1 24-26 1 28 1 30 2 2:1 4:23-24 15:1 16:1 18 18:1 29:31 32:10-12 32:13 49:10 49:24 49:29

166 166 166 166 166 166 166 166 166 166 166 17 166 11 188 76 206 90 76 77 78 181 176 11

Exodus

4:21-23 4:22 15:11 15:12 28

143-144 144,183 151 94 72

6:6-9 7 7:6 7:13 7:26 13:6 14:16-17 25:5-10 26:5 27 28:4 28:11 28:13 28:18 28:53 30:9 32 32:3 32:8 32:18

212 175 214 175 97 213 125 11 11 205 175 175 181 175 175 175 210 153 151 185

Joshua

1-12 1:8 7 7:24

60 19812 13

Judges

5 6:13

12 82

1 Samuel Leviticus

6:2 11:11 11:13 11:17 11:43 20:25

125 97 97 125 97 97

Numbers

34:28 35:33

148 160

1-3 1:5-6 1:9 1:9-18 1:11 1:17-18 1:18 2:1-10 2:10 4:4 7-8

57 76 72 7373 72 73 5, 3 98, 90 57

Source Index

260 1 Samuel (continued) 12 57 12:1-25 57 14 13 222 16-17 222 17:34-37 17:41-47 182 11 25:1 2 Samuel 5:12 7 7:5 7:8 7:9-11 7:22-24 7:23 23:1-7 23:7 24

62, 65 45, 57, 62-63, 80-81, 139-140, 142, 177, 185, 220 139 139 81 81 213 227 222,227 13

/ Kings 2:34 8:14-61 8:48 9:1-9 19:16

11 63-64 59 57 178

2 Kings 3:4-5 3:27 17:20 18:26 19:15 19:22 19:25-28 23:5 23:25-25:30 23:36 24-25

181 181 97 184 90 182 182 188 58 149 64-65

Isaiah 1:4-9 1:13-14 4:2 7:1-7 7:14 8:8 8:23-9:6 11:1-5

112 52 79 81 79 79 79 79

12:1-2 24-27 24:19 27:12 29:19 33:14 38 38:9-20 38:18-19 40-55 40:1-9 40:9 40:27 41:4 41:8 41:8-9 41:9 41:10 41:13 41:14 41:17 41:27 42:1 42:1-4 42:1-9 42:18-25 42:24 43:1 43:3 43:9 43:10 43:13 43:17 43:21-22 43:28 44:1 44:1-2 44:21 44:21-22 44:23 44:26 45:1 45:4 45:19 45:22 45:25 46:1-2 46:3 46:4 46:13 48:1 48:12

5, 171 112, 186 184 112 212 125 74 5 154 37, 47, 236 40 135 15, 134 124 97, 134 46, 236 214 15 15 134 134 135 44-45, 143, 191,238 12, 38 39, 47 47 134 46, 134 15 134 46, 124 124 40 134 134 134 46, 236 134 46 134 46, 134 193 46, 134 97 134 97 37 134 124 135 134 124, 134

Source Index 48:17 48:20 49:1-6 49:3 49:6 49:12 49:14 49:23 50:4-9 50:4-11 51:3 51:11 51:16 52:1-2 52:7-8 52:10 52:12 52:13-53:12 54-55 55:1-5 55:3 55:3-5 56-66 56:7 57:16 58:6 58:8 59:14-15 59:20 60:3 60:11 60:12 60:14 60:21 61:3 61:10 62:1 62:2 62:11 63:7-64:11 64:9 65:9 65:21 66:8 66:18 66:23 Jeremiah 1:18 10:11 10:19-20 11:18-23

15 46 12, 38, 43-44 43, 48, 179, 236 134 38 135 179 12,38, 48 39 135 134 135 135 135 98 40 12, 38,46 40 81 140,176 66, 80, 184, 236 41,209 135 125 160 54 54 135 135 135 185 135 135 135 171 135 135 135 139 135 97, 134 134 135 135 135 48 185 171 5, 116

12:1 12:1-6 15:10-12 15:12 15:15-21 17:5-8 17:12-18 17:14-18 18:18-23 20:7-18 23:8 29 31 31:9 31:36-37 33:11 33:19-26 33:26 49:31 52 52:28-30

162 116 116 184 5, 116 198 5 116 5, 116 116 97 60 15 143 97 225 139 97 161 64-65 64

Ezekiel 2:1 2:3 2:6 2:8 3:8-9 14:5 17 18 20:5 21:26-27 37:1-14 38-39 44:22

55 55 55 55 48 112 60 15 97 72 46 186-187 97

Hosea 2:7 2:13 11:1

125 52 143,214

Joel 4

187

Jonah 2:3 2:3-10

100 5

Micah 1:4 2:12-13

97 79

262 Micah

Source Index (continued)

4:11-13 5:1-7 5:3 5:5 7:7-10 7:8-20 7:17

186 79 181 184 5, 171 139 179

Habakkuk

3 3:1-13 3:13 3:15-16

193,238 190 143, 190-191,215,238 190

Zephaniah

1:17

160

Zechariah

3:1-2 7:7 9-14 12 14

223 161 79, 187 187 187

Malachi

3:22-24

198-199

Psalms

1 1:1 1:2 1:3 1:6 1-2 1-3 1-41 1-89 2 2:1 2:1-2 2:1-9 2:2 2:3 2:6 2:6-8 2:6-9 2:7 2:7-9

34-35, 198-199, 202, 204, 206, 209,212,217, 233,238 67 68, 198-199 198-199 68 67-68, 200, 203 145 67, 196 217 27-28, 79, 178-187, 193, 198, 238 68 180, 183 183, 186, 197, 233,238 178, 183,215 183 179,182 182 179 182, 184-185 179, 180

2:8 2:9 2:10-12 2:11-12 2:12 187 2-89 3 3:8 3:9 3—41 5 6 6:3 6:7 6:9 7 7:7-8 7:10 7:18 8:10 9-10 11 12:6 13:2-6 13:6 14 14:2 14:3 14:4 14:6 14:7 15-24 17 18:17 18:51 19 19:9 20:7 21 22

22:4 22:4-6 22:23 22:24 22:24-27

97, 180 180, 184 186, 198 185 67-68, 139, 179, 185, 132, 179, 197, 202 26,71, 144-145,211, 217, 234, 238-239 92 144-145, 177,211,213, 216 187, 197, 200, 238 8 4, 74 76 123 74 8, 35 126 34, 206 100, 117 117 51, 147 34-35 212 73-74 74, 100, 117 26, 146-147 196 146 146, 196 196 146-147, 196, 211, 213, 215 68-69 8 115 178 68, 199 180 178 68 4, 8, 27, 29, 6 8 , 7 1 , 8 5 105, 113, 124, 132-135, 192, 206-207,211, 2150,237 71 192,237 117, 130 146,213,215 117, 192,211,237

Source Index

22:25 22:27 22:28 22:28--29 22:28--32 22:29 22:30 22:31--32 22:32 24 24:4 25 25:1 25:2 25:3-10 25:5 25:6 25:9 25:12 25:12-19 25:13-14 25:15 25:16 25:17 25:21 25:22 25-34 26 27:6 28 28:1-7 28:6-7 28:8 28:8-9 28-30 29 29:1-2 29:3-9 29:5 29:6 29:7 29:10-11 29:11 30 30:1 30:2-6 30:3 30:4

126,133 112, 133, 177 128 133 134, 192,211,237 128 154, 192 24, 128, 130, 133, 212 126 68 180 4, 6, 26,30,35,51,6869, 71, 147-149, 192, 207,211,234, 238-239 147 147 147 147 211 211 148 147 148 148 148 148, 172 147 147-149, 157, 172,211, 213,215 68 8 100 4, 26 149-150 100 143, 178,213 149-150, 154,211,213, 216 83 26, 167 151-153 151-153 152 150-151 153 150-154 177,211,213,216 26 155 154, 156 76, 154 154, 156

30:5-6 30:7 30:7-13 30:8 30:10 30:12 30:12-13 30:13 31 31:5-6 31:18-19 31:20-25 31:24-25 32 32:6 32:10-11 33 34 34:3 34:4 34:9 34:10 34:12 34:13 34:16 34:17 34:20 34:22 34:23 35 35:28 37 38 38:14 39 39:3 39:8 40 40:2 40:3 40:7 40:14-18 41 41:5 41:14 42:5 42:6 42:12 42-49 42-72

263 154-157, 208,211 155-156 155-156 155 154 157 155 154-155 35, 207 92 34, 206 100 34, 208 35 115 34 69,218 6, 26,35,51,68-69, 147-148, 157, 192, 207, 211,234, 238-239 211 157 157 157 157 148 148,211 148 211 211 148, 157, 187,211,213 207 100 35, 51, 147, 212 4, 68, 207 68 68 68 68 68, 112, 118, 207 68 112 113 196 67,217 76 199,238 217 100 100 197, 238 200

264

Source Index

Psalms (continued) 42-83 98, 164, 195-197, 233, 238 43:5 100 44 6, 10, 12, 82, 139 82 44:10-17 45 79 46 189 47:10 188 189 48 48:9 196 161-162 49 161 49:11 50 197, 238 50:7-14 113 50:7-15 18 51 4, 6, 26, 28,71,211, 234,239 51:3 113 51:3-19 158 51:12 158 51:15 4 51:18-19 113,158 51:20-21 18, 115, 117-118, 158159,211,213,215 51-71/72 117, 197, 201,238 53 146, 196 53:7 146,215 100 54:8 56:13-14 100 58 34 59:17-18 100 60 139 60:3-5 82 60:4 76 60:9 203 60:12 82 61:3 125 61:9 100 65:10-11 76 66 80 66:1—4 153 66:16 100 68 35 68:2-4 206 68:3 97 68:3—4 34 69 4, 27, 76, 78, 85, 98, 105-118, 124, 132-135, 192, 206,211-212,215 69:4 123 69:7 196

69:18 69:31 69:32-34 69:33 69:33-34 69:34 69:35 69:35-37 69:36 69:36-37 69:37 69-71 69-72 70 70:6 70-72 71 72 72:1-7 72:9 72:12-14 72:16 72:17 72:18-19 72:20 73 73:1 73:2-3 73:3 73:3-12 73:4 73:6 73:7 73:9 73:10 73:11 73:12 73:22 73:23-26 73:24 73-74 73-83 73-89 74 74:3-11 74:6 74:21 75 75:5-6 75:11

98, 126 98, 126 18,211,237 98, 104, 133 134,212 99, 126, 128, 130, 133, 213 128, 134 133-134, 211, 237 126, 128, 133,215 128,213 98, 126 207 118 196, 207 196 118 218 197,218 201 179 201 201 201 199,201,238 197, 201-202 26, 192,211, 234, 238239 159-165,211,215 160 162 161 160 160 160 160 159-160, 163-164 160-162 161 161 163 163 68 118, 164, 197, 238 137, 164, 200 82-83, 139, 156, 164 82 92 212 35 34 34

Source Index 77 77:8-21 77:12-13 77:18-78:1 78 78-80 79 79:1-8 80 80:5-14 83 83:10-13 84 84:4 84:5 84:6-8 84:7 84:9-10 84:10 84:11 84:12 84-89 84-150 85 85:2 85:7-9 85:8 85:9 85:10 85:10-12 85:14 86 86:1 86:8-9 86:12 87 88 89

89:2 89:4 89:4-5 89:16 89:16-19 89:19 89:20 89:20-38

82,139 82 126 229 82 164 82, 139, 156, 208 82 82, 139 82 82, 164 82 26, 178, 189, 193, 197, 238 189 189 189 189 189 143, 164, 178, 187-189, 215 189 189 164, 238 196 189, 197 164 164 215 215 215 54 54 189, 197,238 207,212 126 100 189, 197 77, 116, 129, 137 145, 197 4, 27,36, 45, 57, 79,81, 135-144, 164, 174-176, 183, 190, 192, 197,211, 215,233-234, 237, 239 138 139, 143, 164, 191,238 139-141 138 138, 142 138, 188 138,211 141

89:20^16 89:21 89:23 89:27-28 89:28 89:39 89:40 89:41—42 89:47-52 89:50 89:51 89:51-52 89:52 89:53 90 90-101 90-106 90-145 90-150 91-100 92:10 93 93:1 93:1-3 93-100 95:3 96 96:7-10 96:10 97 97:1 97:5 97:10 97:10-12 98 99:1 101 101-102 101-103 102 102:2-12 102:3 102:13 102:13-23 102:14 102:17 102:18 102:18-29 102:19

265 139-141 139 144 143 164 143, 164, 178 139 144 137, 141, 142 140 142,211 143 143, 164, 178 199,202, 238 82, 137, 198 132 132,200, 202 233 200-201,205, 2 0 9 , 2 1 7 219 122 97 226 198 221 80 198 152, 204 152 198 35 198 97 206, 208 34 122 198,217 197,218, 221 218 223 4, 27, 78, 85, 98, 113, 118-135, 139, 192, 206207,211,215, 221,237 78 98, 113 71 211,237 215 113,213,215 99 231 24, 98-99

266 Psalms

Source Index (continued)

102:21 102:22 102:25 102:26-29 102:29 103 103:3 104 104:12 104:35 104-106 105 105:1 105:1-3 105:6 105:15 105:25^15 105-106 106:1 106:23 106:47-48 106:48 107:1 107:20 107-145 108 108:9 109 109:30-31 110 110:3 111-112 113:1 113-118 115:1 118 118:1 118:1-4 118:4 118:8 118:9 118:15 118:16 118:28 118:25-29 118:29 119 119:1-6 119:15-28 119:22

113,213 98,215 237 211,237 24, 98, 113 197, 221 76 35,221,224, 228 204 34 122 224 204 224 97 79, 178 221 68 204-205, 225 143 204-205 199, 238 204,225 76 200 139, 203 203 207, 221,223 100 79, 156, 203 185 51, 68, 147 209 198, 221,223 153 228 204, 222,224-225 224-225 224-225 222, 224-225 222, 224-225 222, 224-225 222, 224-225 224-225 224-225 222 51, 147, 170, 198-199, 204, 224, 227 222 222 90

119:26 119:37-49 119:49 119:59-73 119:64 119:82-96 119:105- 120 119:128- 142 119:150- 164 119:171- 176 120 120-134 121:1-8 121:4 121:8 121-122 122:1-9 122:4 123:1-2 124 124:1-2 124:7-8 125 125:1 125:5 126:1 126:1-6 127:1 127:5 128:4-6 128:5 128:6 129 129-132 129:1 129:1-8 129:5 130 130:1-8 130:7 130:7-8 130:8 131 131:1 131:3 132

147 222 147 222 147 222 222 222 222 222 222 16, 167, 193, 198, 222, 238 221 168 173 174 221 168 221 170 168, 170 221 26, 34, 169, 238 168 168,211,215,222 168 221 221 139 221 168 168 5, 26, 238 83 5, 169-171,211,213, 215,222 221 168 4, 26, 171-173, 176, 238 221 171-173 168, 171-173,211,213, 215, 222 213 4, 26, 172-173, 176, 238 222 168, 173,211,215, 222 27, 32, 57, 79, 168, 173177, 190,215,224, 227, 237-238

Source Index 132:1 132:2 132:4 132:5 132:6-7 132:8-18 132:9 132:10 132:10-11 132:11-13 132:11-17 132:12 132:13 132:15 132:16 132:17 132-134 133 133:1-3 133:3 133-134 134 134:1 134:1-3 134:3 135 135:1 135:1-9 135:17-21 135-136 136 136:1 136:1-16 136:26 137 137:5 137:8-9 137:9 138 138:1-8 138:2 138-145 139 139:8-24 139:19-24 140 140:1-5 141 141:2 141:5 141:5-10 142

176 176,211 176 176 174 222 211 143,176-178 176 175 177 175 168 177,211,213 211 143,176-178 174 172, 222, 226-228 221 168 222, 224, 227 172, 222, 227 209 222 168 170,210, 224 209 222 222 198 170, 198, 224 204 222 222 226 122 139 221 226 221 226 197-198 8, 226 221 225 227 222 226, 228 113 226 221 226

142:4-8 142:8 143 143:1-8 144 144:1-7 144:10 144:15 145 145:1 145:1-7 145:13-21 145:21 146 146:1-2 146:8 146:9 146:10 146-150 147 147:3 147:20 148 148:1—4 148:1-12 148:5-6 148:7 148:9 148:10 148:11 148:11-14 148:12 148:13 148:14 149 149:1 149:1-2 149:3 149:5 149:7-9 149:9 149-150 150 150:6 151 151-155 152-153 154 154-155

267 222 100 226 222 226, 228 222 226 139,222 51, 147, 200, 209, 225, 233 225 222 222 200, 204, 238 35, 224 224 206 34, 206, 221 166,221 198,200, 203-204, 209, 233,238 221,224 76 166 26, 36, 224, 232 166 221 166 166 166 166 166 167 166 166,215 165-167, 208,211,213, 215,224, 232, 239 226, 230, 232 167, 207-208 232 157 167, 208, 232 222 166-167, 208, 232 226-227, 229 222 166 203,218, 221,227-228 219, 229 222 222, 225 218, 221

Source

268 Psalms 155

(continued) 222,226

Job 1-2

3:3-26 4:11 10:2 10:2-22 12:6 16:12 19:13 20:4-11 20:8 21:3 21:7-16 21:23 22:12-20 22:13 22:18 34:24 38 38:8 38—40 41:9

223 5 97 124 5 162 161 112

162 162 97 162 161 162 162 92 184 165 90 17 97

Proverbs 3:8 7:10 8 8:23 18:11 18:24 31:2 31:10-31

212 125 160 54 185 160 184 185 51

Ecclesiastes 3 8:11-12 8:12-13 8:14-15 9:2-3

162 162 161-162 162 162

Lamentations 1: 1 1: 8 1: 9 1: 11 1: 11-16 1: 12

49 51 5, 53 53 5 51

2:20-22

Index 1:12-16 1:14 1:18 1:18-22 1:20 1:22 2:2^1 2:6 2:11 2:13-17 2:14 2:20-22 2:21-22 3 3:1 3:22 3:22-24 3:40—47 3:42 3:48 4:3 4:6 4:10 4:11 4:17-20 4:21-22 5 5:16 5:19 5:22

53 51 51 5, 53 51 51 51 51-52 54 54 51 54 51 54, 169, 236 54, 66 54 54 54 51 54 55 51, 55 55 51 55 51-52, 55 82 51 125 51

Daniel 94 2:4-7:28 2:40 184 3:52-90 (LXX)165 3:82-83 (LXX)167 6:7 184 94 6:8 6:12 184 184 6:16 186 7:18 7:27 186 9 19 9:4-19 19 9:21-27 178 11-12 46 12:2 94 Ezra 4:8-6:18 7:12-26 :21

94 94 94

Source Index 7:23 7:26 9 9:4 9:6-15 10:3

94 94 19-20 206 19 206

Nehemiah 2:19 3:33 3—4 9 9:2 9:6-37

97 97 158 19-20 97 19

1 Chronicles 1-9 4:40 16 16:8 16:13 16:23-33 16:34 16:35-36 21:1 27:20

214 161 204-205 204 97 204 204 204-205 223 149

2 Chronicles 13:4-8 13:10 13:12 30:10 35:25 36

182 182 182 97 49 64

2 Maccabees 14:6

208

Wisdom of Solomon 2:12-20 46 Ben Sira 4:26 5:9 6:37 14:20 14:20-15:10 14:26 14:26-27 24 36 39:1-15 42-43 48:10 50:28 51:1-12 51:13-30 51:14

112 112 204 204 204, 229-230, 238 204 229 54 132 204,238 165 199 204 5 221,226,229 226

Psalms of Solomon 1:3 6 17 45 17:21 45 17:23-24 184-185 Baruch 2:16

131

Jubilees 1

81

Apocrypha Judith 9:2-14 Tobit 13 13:1-18 13-14

Testament of Judah 24:1^ 81 19 81 164 132

1 Maccabees 2:29-38 207 2:42 207 7:12 208 7:13 207 7:17 208 14:41—49 156

Dead Sea Scrolls 1QH 2:31-36 42 4QpNah III, 2 91 4QpNah III, 4 91 lQpHab 190 217 lQPs" 4QPs b 123, 220 4QPse 217,219, 228 4QPsf 217, 223 4QPsn 229 4QPs u 217 1,205,217-232, 2: llQPs" 239

270

Source Index

Dead Sea Scrolls (continued) llQPsb 217, 228 llQPsd 217

Acts 10:1-11:18 13:33

Midrash Tehillim 1 1:1

2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1 81

New Testament

Hebrews 1:5 5:5

183 183

2 Peter 3

9

Revelation 21:1-8

81

Luke 1:46-55 1:54 1:68-79 2:14 2:29-32 7:38 7:45 24:27

45 45 45 45 45 179 179 199

9 183

Author Index Ackroyd, P. 8 , 1 5 , 4 7 , 6 0 , 8 0 Âdna, J. 42 Aejmelaeus, A. 28, 75-78, 84, 96, 101103, 147 Ahlström, G.W. 28, 136 Albertz, R. 9, 14-15, 40, 47^18, 50, 53-54, 56, 58-61, 64-65, 140, 159, 190 Allen, L.C. 113,115-116,122-124, 126-127, 165, 168, 170-171, 176 Alonso Schökel, L. 31, 53 Anderson, A.A. 179-180 Arneth, M. 135 Assmann, J. 12, 16, 21, 23-25, 33, 161, 185,212 Aurelius, E. 58, 63 Avishur, Y. 150-153 Baethgen, F. 2 , 4 , 8 2 , 156,235 Balla, E. 5-7, 10, 12, 126, 235 Ballhorn, E. 20,214 Baltzer, K. 3 8 , 4 1 , 4 3 Barbiero, G. 67-68, 148, 183 Barstad, H.M. 65 Barthélémy, D. 112 Barton, J. 29 Baumgartner, W. 7, 26 Beaucamp, E. 89, 95 Becker, J. 7-8, 14, 22, 25-27, 47, 55, 75, 78-80, 101, 128-129, 143, 174, 176, 178, 181, 186, 188-190, 205, 235 Becking, B. 47,64, 182 Begrich, J. 6 , 7 2 , 7 5 Bentzen, A. 136 Berges, U. 49-50, 53-55, 113, 206, 209-210, 216 Bodendorfer, G. 194 Boecker, H.J. 5 0 , 5 2 , 5 4 de Boer, P.A.H. 73 Briggs, C.&E. 4, 235 Broyles, C.C. 163 Brunert, G. 122, 126, 129, 132, 198

Budde, K. 145 Carroll, R. 64 Cazelles, H. 180 Cheyne, T.K. 4, 100, 153 Collins, J.J. 186 Craigie, P. 72, 91-93, 99, 144, 146, 148, 150, 152, 155, 157 Creach, J.F.D. 187-188,229 Croft, S.J.L. 8 Cross, F.M. 58 Crow, L.D. 169,171,173-174 Dahmen, U. 203,205,217,220-221, 223-232 Dahood, M. 31, 91-92, 94, 122, 126127, 159, 179 Deißler, A. 8,184 Delitzsch, F. 3 Diedrich, F. 183 Dietrich, W. 58,62 Di Leila, A.A. 204,229 Donner, H. 37, 56, 59, 83, 131, 156, 181, 183, 187, 203 Doughty, C.M. 11 Duhm, B. 5, 15, 28, 38, 82, 100, 136, 167 Dunn, J.D.G. 45-46 Dürkheim, E. 11 Eaton, J.H. 8, 147 Eichhorn, J. 42 Emmendörffer, M. 10, 15, 25, 50, 53, 82-83, 135-143, 175-177 Engnell, I. 136 Fabry, H.-J. 100,217-219,221,227 Flint, P.W. 1 , 6 8 , 9 1 , 2 0 5 , 2 1 7 - 2 2 1 , 226, 2 2 8 - 2 3 1 Freedman, D.N. 31 Frevel, C. 50,52 Fuchs, O. 93, 102 Füglister, N. 33, 79, 167, 183, 198, 232

272

Author Index

Garcia Martinez, F. 228 Gerleman, G. 3 Gerstenberger, E. 74-75 Gese, H. 91,204 Ginsberg, H.L. 150 Gordon, C. 150 Görg, M. 16 Gosse, B. 80, 178 Grabbe, L.L. 38 Gunkel, H. 2-3, 6-7, 10, 12, 16, 26, 32, 136, 138, 145-147, 151-152, 157, 179-181, 189, 235,237 Gzella, H. 203 Haag, H. 3, 38-39, 41-42, 49 Haak, R.D. 190 von der Hardt, H. 49 Harviainen, T. 31 Helberg, J.L. 54 Hengel, M. 46, 162-163, 204, 209, 216, 229 Hermann, S. 59 Hermisson, H.-J. 4 1 , 4 7 - 4 8 Holladay, W.L. 160 Hossfeld, F.-L. 8, 68-69, 72, 103-104, 110-111, 114, 117-118, 137, 140141, 147, 149-150, 153-154, 156159, 163-164, 186-187, 197, 200, 203 Howard, D.M. 67 Hughes, E.R. 10 Hurvitz, A. 169

Korpel, M.C.A. 38 Körtner, U. 29 Kottsieper, I. 31-32,85 Kratz, R.G. 3 9 - 4 0 , 4 6 , 4 8 , 1 5 2 - 1 5 3 , 202, 204 Kraus, H.-J. 2, 6-7, 32, 50, 52-55, 6 9 71, 77, 84, 99, 114, 117, 123, 126, 128, 135-136, 150, 154, 158-159, 163, 165, 171, 173, 178, 181,214, 235 Krüger, T. 161-162 Laato, A. 37, 40-41, 46-47, 175 Labahn, A. 51,53 de Lagarde, P. 149 Lange, A. 2 1 8 , 2 2 7 , 2 2 9 , 2 3 2 Lauha, A. 161-162 Lee, S.H. 172 Lescow, T. 92 Levin, C. 13, 22, 33-35, 50-51, 62, 78, 122, 156, 160, 167, 170, 175, 195, 198, 201, 203, 205-208, 214, 225, 232 Levy-Bruhl, L. 11,14 Liesen, J. 204 Lindström, F. 26, 55, 90-92, 95, 100102, 111, 114, 118, 122-123, 127129, 146 Lohfink, N. 42^13, 45, 58, 73, 145, 148, 200,210, 229 Loretz, O. 23, 31-33, 74-75, 80, 85, 96, 122, 145, 150-153, 155, 162, 180, 182, 198, 209

Irsigler, H. 95, 101, 159-161, 163-165 Jacquet, L. 159 Janowski, B. 20-23, 33, 46, 48, 63, 69, 72, 90-91, 93-94, 112, 145, 152, 154-156, 162, 202-203, 236 Japhet, S. 214 Joffe, L. 118,196 Joüon, P. 90, 92-93, 124 Kaiser, O. 34, 37^10, 45-48, 50, 58, 94, 163, 179, 186,213-214, 231 Kampen, J. 207-208 Keel-Leu, O. 94 Kilian, R. 72 Kittel, R. 136 Knauf, E.-A. 56-57 Koch, K. 139, 183, 185, 197, 203

Maiberger, P. 45, 180, 183 Maier, J. 193-194 Mandelkern, S. 104 Marböck, J. 204,229 Mathys, H.-P. 172 Mays, J.L. 198 McCann, J.C. 202 McCarter, P.K. 73 Mettinger, T.N.D. 40-41, 47 Michel, D. 162 Millard, M. 1, 50, 72-74, 125, 137, 148, 196, 222, 227 Mitchell, D.C. 195, 197, 202 Mowinckel, S. 7, 12, 16-18, 22, 26, 30, 32-33, 74, 136, 235 Müller, H.-P. 17-18,22 Muraoka, T. 90, 92-93, 124

Author Index

Nentel, J. Nissinen, Nömmik, Noth, M.

58 M. 72, 75 U. 34-36, 161, 165, 206, 209 55-56

O'Connor, M. 71, 90, 92, 124 Oeming, M. 203 Olshausen, J. 4 van Oorschot, J. 18-20,22,39^10,47, 236 Otto, E. 183 Pakkala, J. 1 5 , 4 7 , 6 1 , 2 0 6 Pardee, D. 153 Payne Smith, J. 91 Pietsch, M. 62, 80-81, 141-144, 174, 177, 183, 185,220 Porter, J.R. 12-13 Preuß, H.D. 186-187 dePury, A. 56,58-60 von Rad, G. 27, 173 Rahlfs, A. 207 Räisänen, H. 9 Reemts, C. 200 Reindl, J. 22 Rendtorff, R. 3, 58 Rickenbacher, O. 112 Ro, J. 131, 157, 160 Rodd, C. 10 Rogerson, J. 2, 12-14 Römer, T. 56, 58-60 Rösel, C. 140, 142, 147, 149, 174, 179, 183, 196-198, 202 Rösel, M. 80, 104, 112,220 Rosenthal, F. 184 Rudolph, W. 51, 191 Ruppert, L. 25, 165-167 Saldarini, A.J. 208 Sanders, J.A. 1 , 2 2 1 , 2 2 5 , 2 2 7 , 2 3 1 Sauer, G. 204 Saur, M. 141-142, 174, 182, 200-201 Schaper, J. 37, 80, 94-95, 199, 203 Scharbert, J. 1 5 , 2 3 , 2 5 , 7 7 Schlißke, W. 185 Schmidt, H. 100, 136, 145-146, 149 Schreiner, J. 204 Schreiner, S. 42 Segert, S. 72, 92, 122, 150, 180 Sellin, E. 15

273

Seybold, K. 30-31, 45, 94, 117, 129, 145-146,154-155, 159-160, 167168, 170, 173, 176, 178, 184, 187, 189-190, 205, 220 Sievers, E. 30-31, 128 Skehan, P.W. 204,229 Smend, R. (sen.) 4, 6, 12, 15, 46, 235 Smend, R. 2, 34, 37-38, 43, 51, 58-59, 71, 74, 77, 79, 97, 112, 140, 152, 171-172, 178, 187, 191 Soggin, J.A. 60 Sollamo, R. 30, 122 Spieckermann, H. 26, 33-34, 82-83, 89, 91-92, 100-102, 152-153,155156, 158, 166 Steck, O.H. 28, 131-132, 199, 204, 209 Stekhoven, J.Z. 7 Steymans, H.U. 141,143 Stolz, F. 33 Täte, M.E. 1 1 0 - 1 1 1 , 1 1 3 , 1 1 5 , 1 5 8 159, 163 Terrien, S. 93, 138 Tigchelaar, E. 228 Tillmann,N. 110-111,114,116-117 Tournay, R.J. 164 Ulrich, E. 29 Vanoni, G. 89, 93-94, 96, 101, 105 Veijola, T. 8, 13, 28, 47, 50-53, 56, 58-63, 73, 82, 101, 136-142, 144, 175-176, 181,208,211-212, 236 Volgger, D. 135 Vorländer, H. 15 Waltke, B.K. 7 1 , 9 0 , 9 2 , 124 Wanke, G. 187-189,191 Waschke, E.-J. 45, 47, 79, 139, 143, 175 Watts, J.W. 191 Weber, B. 72 Weimar, P. 102-103 Weinfeld, M. 175 Weippert, H. 58,64 Weiser, A. 33, 35, 74, 82, 99, 114, 136, 146-147, 163, 165, 172-173, 187, 235 Wellhausen, J. 15, 58, 145, 176, 214 Westermann, C. 5 6 - 5 7 , 7 0 - 7 1 , 7 7 , 8 2 , 84, 181

274

Author Index

de Wette, W.M.L. 2 - 3 Wheeler Robinson, H. 6, 10-14, 17, 22, 127, 176, 235 Whybray, N. 145, 147, 158, 198, 200 Widengren, G. 136 Willis, J.T. 181-182 Wilson, G.H. 33, 35, 200-202, 204, 219 Witte, M. 163 van der Woude, A.S. 220, 225-229 Wünsche, A. 1 Würthwein, E. 63

Zenger, E. 8, 22, 33, 67-69, 103-104, 110-111, 114, 117-118, 137, 140141, 147, 149-150, 153-154, 156159, 163-164, 186-187, 189, 196198, 200-203, 205, 210-211, 221 Zimmerli, W. 68

Subject Index Acrostic structure 50, 147-149, 157 Anthropology 11, 13-14 Canonical approach 66-68 Colometry 31-32, 43-44, 95-96, 111112, 124, 138, 169, 182 Corporate personality 10-15,22, 127, 235 Dead Sea Scrolls 29-30, 91, 190, 217232, 234, 239 Deuteronomistic History 27, 55-64 Egyptian hymns 15-16, 23-25, 236 Elohistic Psalter 146, 164, 195-197, 233,238 Exile 9, 40, 64-65 Final doxologies 199-202 Great Ego 16-17, 22, 235 Hasideans (Chasidim) 207-210, 234, 239 Hellenism / Hellenistic period 81, 132, 162-163,212,215-216

Konstellation 21 Maccabean era 155-156, 203, 207-208 Mültiperspektivität 20-23, 236 Parallelismus membrorum 17, 32, 148 Polysemie 17-18, 22 Priestly Code 28, 125, 141, 152, 166, 214 Rollendichtung 18-20, 22, 236 Salvation oracles 71-75, 92-93 Servant Songs 12, 26, 38^19, 236 Songs of Ascents 167-177, 198, 222 Sumerian BALAG laments 53, 137-138 Traditional prayer 28, 75-78 Zion 53-54, 128, 133-135, 158, 2 1 2 213,215 Zwillingspsalmen 68

Forschungen zum Alten Testament Edited by Bernd Janowski, Mark S. Smith and Hermann Spieckermann Alphabetical Index

Barthel, Jörg: Prophetenwort und Geschichte. 1997. Volume 19. - : see Hermisson, Hans-Jürgen. Baumann, Gerlinde: Die Weisheitsgestalt in Proverbien 1-9. 1996. Volume 16. Bodendorfer, Gerhard und Matthias Miliard (Hrsg.): Bibel und Midrasch. Unter Mitarbeit von B. Kagerer. 1998. Volume 22. Chapman, Stephen B.: The Law and the Prophets. 2000. Volume 27. Diße, Andreas: see Groß, Walter. Ego, Beate: see Janowski, Bernd. Emmendörffer, Michael: Der ferne Gott. 1997. Volume 21. Finlay, Timothy IX: The Birth Report Genre in the Hebrew Bible. 2005. Volume 11/12. Finsterbusch, Karin: Weisung für Israel. 2005. Volume 44. Frevel, Christian (Ed.): Medien im antiken Palästina. 2005. Volume 11/10. Groß, Walter: Die Satzteilfolge im Verbalsatz alttestamentlicher Prosa. Unter Mitarbeit von A. Diße und A. Michel. 1996. Volume 17. Hanhart, Robert: Studien zur Septuaginta und zum hellenistischen Judentum. 1999. Volume 24. Hardmeier, Christof: Erzähldiskurs und Redepragmatik im Alten Testament. 2005. Band 46. Hausmann, Jutta: Studien zum Menschenbild der älteren Weisheit (Spr lOff). 1995. Volume 7. Hermisson, Hans-Jürgen: Studien zu Prophetie und Weisheit. Hrsg. von J. Barthel, H. Jauss und K. Koenen 1998. Volume 23. Huwyler, Beat: Jeremia und die Völker. 1997. Volume 20. Janowski, Bernd und Ego, Beate (Hrsg.): Das biblische Weltbild und seine altorientalischen Kontexte. 2001. Volume 32. Janowski, Bernd und Stuhlmacher, Peter (Hrsg.): Der Leidende Gottesknecht. 1996. Volume 14. Jauss, Hannelore: see Hermisson, Hans-Jürgen. Jeremias, Jörg: Hosea und Arnos. 1996. Volume 13. Kagerer, Bernhard: see Bodendorfer, Gerhard. Kiuchi, Nobuyoshi: A Study of Hata' and Hatta't in Leviticus 4-5. 2003. Volume 11/2. Knierim, RolfP.: Text and Concept in Leviticus 1:1-9. 1992. Volume 2. Köckert, Matthias: Leben in Gottes Gegenwart. 2004. Volume 43. Köhlmoos, Melanie: Das Auge Gottes. 1999. Volume 25. Koenen, Klaus: see Hermisson, Hans-Jürgen. Kratz, Reinhard Gregor: Kyros im Deuterojesaja-Buch. 1991. Volume 1. - : Das Judentum im Zeitalter des Zweiten Tempels. 2004. Volume 42. Lange, Armin: Vom prophetischen Wort zur prophetischen Tradition. 2002. Volume 34. Liess, Kathrin: Der Weg des Lebens. 2004. Volume II/5. MacDonald, Nathan: Deuteronomy and the Meaning of „Monotheism". 2003. Volume II/l. Marttila, Marko: Collective Reinterpretation in the Psalms. 2006. Volume 11/13.

Forschungen zum Alten Testament Michel, Andreas: Gott und Gewalt gegen Kinder im Alten Testament. 2003. Volume 37. see Groß, Walter. Miliard, Matthias: Die Komposition des Psalters. 1994. Volume 9. - : see Bodendorfer, Gerhard. Miller, Patrick D.: The Way of the Lord. 2004. Volume 39. Müller, Reinhard: Königtum und Gottesherrschaft. 2004. Volume II/3. Niemann, Hermann Michael: Herrschaft, Königtum und Staat. 1993. Volume 6. Otto, Eckart: Das Deuteronomium im Pentateuch und Hexateuch. 2001. Volume 30. Perlitt, Lothar: Deuteronomium-Studien. 1994. Volume 8. Podella, Thomas: Das Lichtkleid JHWHs. 1996. Volume 15. Pola, Thomas: Das Priestertum bei Sacharja. 2003. Volume 35. Rösel, Martin: Adonaj - Warum Gott 'Herr' genannt wird. 2000. Volume 29. Ruwe, Andreas: „Heiligkeitsgesetz" und „Priesterschrift". 1999. Volume 26. Sals, Ulrike: Die Biographie der „Hure Babylon". 2004. Volume II/6. Schapen Joachim: Priester und Leviten im achämenidischen Juda. 2000. Volume 31. Schenker, Adrian (Hrsg.): Studien zu Opfer und Kult im Alten Testament. 1992. Volume 3. Schmidt, Brian B.: Israel's Beneficent Dead. 1994. Volume 11. Schöpßin, Karin: Theologie als Biographie im Ezechielbuch. 2002. Volume 36. Seeligmann, Isac Leo: The Septuagint Version of Isaiah and Cognate Studies. Edited by Robert Hanhart and Hermann Spieckermann. 2004. Volume 40. - : Gesammelte Studien zur Hebräischen Bibel. Herausgegeben von Erhard Blum mit einem Beitrag von Rudolf Smend. 2004. Volume 41. Spieckermann, Hermann: Gottes Liebe zu Israel. Volume 33. Steck, Odil Hannes: Gottesknecht und Zion. 1992. Volume 4. Stuhlmacher, Peter: see Janowski, Bernd. Süssenbach, Claudia: Der elohistische Psalter. 2005. Volume 11/7. Sweeney, Marvin A.: Form and Intertextuality in Prophetic and Apocalyptic Literature. 2005. Volume 45. Vos, Christiane de: Klage als Gotteslob aus der Tiefe. 2005. Volume 11/11. Weber, Cornelia: Altes Testament und völkische Frage. 2000. Volume 28. Weippert, Manfred: Jahwe und die anderen Götter. 1997. Volume 18. Weyde, Karl William: The Appointed Festivals of YHWH. 2004. Volume II/4. Widmer, Michael: Moses, God, and the Dynamics of Intercessory Prayer. 2004. Band 11/8. Willi, Thomas: Juda - Jehud - Israel. 1995. Volume 12. Williamson, Hugh: Studies in Persian Period History and Historiography. 2004. Volume 38. Wilson, Kevin A.: The Campaign of Pharaoh Shoshenq I into Palestine. 2005. Volume 11/9. Young, Ian: Diversity in Pre-Exilic Hebrew. 1993. Volume 5. Zwickel, Wolfgang: Der Tempelkult in Kanaan und Israel. 1994. Volume 10.

For a complete catalogue please write to the publisher Mohr Siebeck • P.O. Box 2030 • D-72010 Tubingen/Germany Up-to-date information on the internet at www.mohr.de