THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE PSALM TITLES
by
James H. Fraser
Introductory notes or psalm titles are
found in the
text
of many of the Biblical Psalms. These notes have been
maligned
and given a place of secondary importance by
critics
and translators alike in recent generations. The
majority
of critical scholars consider them to be late addi-
tions
to the text which in many cases are based upon ques-
tionable
exegesis or just plain conjecture. Such criticisms
are
unfounded in light of the Biblical and extra--Biblical
evidences
which point to their antiquity and credibility.
It is uncertain whether or not the
titles were
attached
to the psalms at the time of composition. However,
there
is ample evidence to show that they have long been a
part
of the Psalter text. Both the manuscript evidence and
Biblical
evidence outside the Psalter support the view that
they
have always been a part of the canonical text of the
Psalter.
Some of the terms used in the titles had lost
their
meaning by the time the LXX translation was made indi-
cating
that the liturgical instructions of the titles had
been
in disuse for years. Also, several examples of this
literary
pattern may be gleaned from the Bible and extra-
Biblical
literature. They show that it was a well-known
practice
to attach either a title or colophon to poetic com-
positions
long before the post-exilic period.
The titles are valuable guides to the
interpretation
of
the Psalter. They give accurate and reliable information
concerning
the authors, historical settings and liturgical
use
of the psalms in question. When l; is used with a
proper
name authorship is implied, although in the case of
Asaph
and the "sons of Korah" it is a generic designation.
The
support of other Scripture together with the internal
agreement
of the contents of the psalms with the titles
shows
that there is no justifiable reason for doubting the
authenticity
of the psalm titles.
Accepted by the Faculty of
Grace Theological Seminary
in partial fulfillment of
requirements for the degree
Master of Theology
D. Wayne
Knife
Donald Fowler
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
ACCEPTANCE PAGE iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS v
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS viii
Chapter
I. INTRODUCTION 1
General Character and Content of the Titles 3
Divergent Views on the Value of the Titles 4
The Inspired Scripture View 4
The Authentic-Tradition View 5
The Critical-Tradition View 6
The Psalter-Compilation View 7
The Midrashic-Exegesis View 7
The Cultic-Setting View 8
The Higher-Critical View 9
The Scope and Purpose of the Thesis 11
II. THE ANTIQUITY OF
THE PSALM TITLES 12
Textual Evidence for Their Antiquity 12
Hebrew Manuscripts 13
The MT 13
The
Manuscripts from Other Areas 21
v
vi
Ancient Versions 22
LXX 22
The
Aramaic Targum 24
The Syriac Peshitto 25
Linguistical Evidence for Their Antiquity 26
Literary Evidence for Their Antiquity 29
Biblical Examples 30
A Hebrew Inscription 31
Ancient Near Eastern Parallels 32
III. THE CREDIBILITY OF THE TITLES 37
The Designation of Authorship in the Titles 38
Problems Relating to Interpretation 38
The Usage of l; 38
Possession 39
Dative 39
Subject or Serial 41
Genetive of Authorship 42
The Usage of Proper Names 45
David 45
Davidic King 45
Commander 46
Davidic Collection 46
King David 47
The Levitical Musicians 49
Asaph 51
Ethan and Heman 54
The Sons of Korah 57
vii
Moses 60
Solomon 61
David as Author 63
Historical Views of David the Psalmist 63
Objections to
Davidic Authorship 67
Historical Notices in the Titles 72
General Character
of the Historical Notes 72
Objections to the
Credibility of the
Historical
Notes 74
Positive Arguments
for the Credibility of
the
Historical Notes 80
Summary Statement on the
Credibility of the
Psalm Titles 82
IV. THE ORIGIN OF THE PSALM TITLES 83
V. CONCLUSION 87
. . . . . . . . . . . .
APPENDIX A: A
COMPARISON OF THE MT TITLES AND THE DSS
TITLES 89
APPENDIX B: POSSIBLE
MEANINGS OF l;
COMBINED WITH A
PROPER
NAME 92
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS
CITED 93
LIST OF
ABBREVIATIONS
AJSL American Journal of Semitic Languages and
Literature
ANET James
Pritchard, ed., Ancient Near Eastern
Texts
BA Biblical Archaeologist
BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of
Oriental Research
Bib Biblica
BDB Francis
Brown, S. R. Driver, C. A. Briggs,
Hebrew and English Lexicon
of the Old Testament
CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly
ExpTim Expository Times
ICC International
Critical Commentary
IEJ
JBL Journal of Biblical Literature
JSS Journal of Semitic Studies
OTS Oudtestamentische Studien
RB Revue Biblique
VT Vetus Testamentum
VTSup Vetus Testamentum, Supplements
ZAW Zeitschrift für die
Altestamentliche Wissenschaft
viii
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
In recent years there have been no works of major
significance dealing
with the psalm titles. Thirtle's book,
The
Titles of the Psalms, published in 1904 and considered by
some to be the standard
work on the subject is no longer of
much help in dealing
with the real issues. As has been
pointed out by Nestle,
Thirtle's theory that the musical por-
tions of the
superscriptions should really be subscriptions
to the preceeding
psalms is of little consequence.1 In
addition to his theory
of subscriptions, Thirtle also dis-
cusses and applies the
meaning of the terms found in the
titles but is of little
help in responding to the critics who
question their
authenticity.
It is largely due to the influence of these critics
who have minimized the
value of the psalm titles that there
has not been more
written on the subject. For the most part
the critical scholars
have dismissed the titles as secondary
additions, which
contain no reliable information that may be
1E. B. Nestle, "The
Titles of the Psalms," Exp Tim
23
(May 1912):383. For a more complete evaluation of
Thirtle's
work see Roderick V. Smith, "The Titles in the
Psalms"
(M. Div. thesis, Grace Theological Seminary, 1974),
pp. 45-51.
1
2
used to determine the
authorship or background of the various
psalms.1
While this may be the general trend among the crit-
ical scholars it has
been pointed out by such reputable
scholars as K. A.
Kitchen that "this attitude rests on no
particle of respectable
evidence and has much against it."2
On the contrary side there is much evidence to verify
the traditional view
that the psalm titles are authentic.
From the standpoint of
textual criticism it can be shown that
they do belong to the
canonical text of the Psalter. Then as
they are examined
linguistically, it becomes apparent that
many of them must have
been written long before the exile,
making the probability
of their authenticity more likely.
The possibility that
they may have been a part of the orig-
inal composition or at
least added soon after is seen by the
fact that compositions
from the ancient Near East as far back
as the time of Abraham
have been found with similar patterns
of superscriptions or
subscriptions.
These evidences along with the Biblical materials
which support the
testimony of the titles concerning such
matters as authorship
and historical backgrounds weigh in
favor of the
authenticity of the titles.
1Brevard S. Childs,
"Psalm Titles and Midrashic
Exegesis,"
JSS 16 (Autumn 1971):137.
2Kenneth A. Kitchen,
"The Old Testament in Its Con-
text:
3 From Joshua to Solomon," Theological
Students'
Fellowship
Bulletin 61 (Autumn 1971):11.
3
General Character and Content of
the Titles
The value of this study of the authenticity of the
superscriptions may be
seen in reviewing the general charac-
ter and content of the
titles. Of the 150 Biblical psalms
there are 116 which
have some type of title.1 These titles
have often been ignored
by English readers of the psalms
because most English
versions relegate them to a position of
secondary importance by
placing them at the head of the psalm
in small print or
leaving them out altogether. The Hebrew
Bible, on the other
hand, incorporates them into the text of
the psalm so that when
the verses were numbered in the six-
teenth century they
were counted as the first verse or part
of the first verse.2
Thus, indicating that in the Massoretic
tradition of the Hebrew
Bible they were regarded as an
integral part of the
text.
Following Bullock's outline, the information con-
tained in the titles
may be divided up into five categories:
(1) authorship, (2)
historical origin, (3) literary features,
1That means that there are
34 psalms which in the
Talmud
are referred to as "orphan Psalms." This number may
be
reduced even further if the opening h.yA Ull;ha of the
Hallel
psalms is considered as a title rather than a part of
the
composition. Delbert R. Hillers' "A study of Psalm 148,"
CBQ 40 (July
1978):325 favors the view that they are edito-
rial,
thus fitting into the category of a title. However,
for
the purpose of this paper they will be considered as a
part
of the actual psalm composition. This is the view
favored
by Kemper Fullerton, "Studies in the Psalter," The
Biblical World 36
(1910):326-27.
2Cristoph Barth, Introduction to the Psalms (New
4
(4) liturgical use, and
(5) musical notations.1 The primary
concern of this paper
is with the first two categories of
authorship and
historical origin. Not only are they the
crucial areas of
controversy, but they also provide vital
information which
should serve as foundational guidelines
for any study of the
psalms. The other three areas will be
discussed primarily
from the standpoint of their antiquity
and therefore their
contribution in helping to establish the
trustworthiness of the
material pertaining to the first two
categories.
Divergent Views On the Value of
the Titles
Most scholars would agree that there is at least some
value in the titles,
though a few reject them as altogether
worthless. Since no one
knows for sure how or when the ti-
tles came to be a part
of the psalms, speculations on their
origin have abounded.
This then has paved the way for a wide
diversity of views
concerning their value. The following
seven views are
representative of some of the attitudes of
scholars toward the
psalm titles either as a whole or toward
certain parts of them.
The Inspired Scripture
View
The belief that the titles should be considered as a
part of the inspired
text of Scripture was the general
1C. Hassell Bullock, An Introduction to the Old
Testament
Poetic Books (Chicago: Moody Press, 1979), p. 124.
5
concensus among those
whom Callan refers to as "the older
Catholic
authorities."1 Included among these older Catholic
authorities are such
notable early church writers as Augus-
tine and Theodoret.2
This view is not widely held or at
least not expressed
among scholars today even though it can
be defended from the
standpoint of tradition and canonicity.3
Based upon the
available textual evidence today, they have
always been a part of
the Scriptural text.
The Authentic-Tradition
View
In general those who hold to this view believe that
the titles are reliable
and accurate traditions, though not
necessarily a part of
the original text. Examples of adher-
ents to this view
include Wilson, Leupold, Green and Unger.
Wilson, who has made
one of the most significant contribu-
tions to the subject by
his two-part series in the 1926
issue of The Princeton Theological Review,
concludes on the
bases of objective
evidence that "the headings of the psalms
are presumptively
correct."4 Leupold
suggests that they
1Charles J. Callan, The Psalms (
Wagner,
Inc., 1944), p. 7.
2C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, 3 vols.
reprint
ed. (
1966),
1:25.
3The popular radio preacher
Charles Swindoll, WBCL,
"Insight
for Living," 2 August 1983, has referred to the
psalm
titles as being inspired.
4R. D.
395.
6
were added by
trustworthy leaders in
wanted to preserve a
"valuable and well-authenticated tradi-
tion."1
Green2 and Unger3 both conclude that as ancient
traditions the titles
should be accepted as true except in
individual cases where
there is adequate proof to the con-
trary. The implication
of both writers' conclusions is that
such proof may not
exist.
The Critical-Tradition
View
The proponents of this view, such as Kirkpatrick4
and Perowne5
of the nineteenth century and Sabourin6 more
recently, accept the
titles as ancient traditions which may
or may not be
trustworthy. Therefore, their value must be
weighed and tested by
the usual critical processes. This
critical process may in
some cases simply result in a
1H. C. Leupold, Exposition of the Psalms (Grand Rap-
ids:
Baker Book House, 1959), p. 6.
2Henry W. Green, "The
Titles of the Psalms,"
Methodist Review 72 (July
1890):506.
3Merril F. Unger, Unger's Commentary on the Old
Testament, 2 vols.
(Chicago: Moody Press, 1981), 1:740.
4A. F. Kirkpatrick, The Book of Psalms, Book I, The
University
Press, 1897), pp. xxix-xxx.
5J. J. Stewart Perowne, The Book of Psalms, 2 vols.
in
1, 4th ed. (
reprint
ed.,
pp.
97, 101-103.
6Leopold Sabourin, The Psalms: Their Origin and
Meaning (Staten Island,
New York: Alba House, 1974),
pp. 16-17.
7
different
interpretation of what has traditionally been held
to be the authors of
the psalms (dvidAl;
etc.), rather than a
complete rejection of
the title.
The Psalter-Compilation View
This view completely rejects the psalm titles as
reliable traditions
which indicate the author, date, or
character of the
original psalms. However, they are consid-
ered of some value in
determining how the psalms were used
and how they were
collected together into their present
form.1
According to this view the various parts of the ti-
tles indicate smaller
collections of psalms which the indi-
vidual psalms were a
part of at one time. Each time then
that a psalm was taken
from one collection and put in another
the name of the
previous collection would be prefixed to it.2
With this view the titles
would be of no value in interpret-
ing the text of the
psalms themselves.
The Midrashic-Exegesis
View
The midrashic-exegesis view is concerned primarily
with the historical
data in the titles and in some cases with
the area of authorship.
Proponents of this view include
1Charles Augustus Briggs
and Emilie Grace Briggs, A
Critical and
Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Psalms,
vol.
1, ICC (
p.
lviii. See also J. W. Rogerson and J. W. McKay, Psalms
1-50, The
University
Press, 1977), p. 3.
2George R.
33 (1914): 199.
8
Childs, Slomovic, and
Bruce. Childs1 and Bruce2 deal only
with the historical
portions. They propose that these are
derived from the text
of the psalm reflecting the work of an
early Jewish exegete
rather than an independent historical
tradition. Slomovic
carries the theory even further to in-
clude the identity of
the authors as being derived from a
form of rabbinic
midrash.3 The principle value of the psalm
titles according to
this view is found in the area of herme-
neutics. They represent
early attempts to interpret the
Biblical psalms.
The Cultic-Setting
View
The form-function approach to the study of the psalms
as advocated by Gunkel
and Mowinckel led to the proposal by
Mowinckel that the
titles have a cultic meaning. Though the
historical notes are
considered later additions by editors
who misunderstood the
meaning of dvidAl;
the rest of the
material including dvidAl; are really technical terms
associa-
ted with the use of the
psalm in the cult." Weiser, who
1Childs, "Psalm
Titles," p. 143.
2F. F. Bruce, "'The
Earliest Old Testament Interpreta-
tion,"
in The Witness of Tradition, OTS 17 (
Brill,
1962), p. 52.
3Elieser Slomovic,
"Toward an Understanding of the
Formation
of Historical.Titles in the Book of Psalms," ZAW
91
(1979) :380.
4Sigmund Mowinckel, The Psalms in
2
vols. in 1, trans. D. R. Ap-Thomas (
1962) , 2:99, 210-17.
9
pretty much follows
Mowinckel's view of the titles, explains
that dvidAl; means "for the Davidic
ruler" who exercises cer-
tain functions in the
cult.1 The chief value of the titles
for the adherents of
this view is to support their theory
that the psalms were
actually composed for and used in the
cultic services of the
temple rather than derived from real
historical experiences.
The Higher-Critical View
The early opinion of the higher critics was that the
psalms were composed
much later than the time of David.
This led to the belief
that the titles must be spurious ad-
ditions of the text
based on groundless and erroneous con-
jecture. The end result
being that they were rejected as
untrustworthy. Toy,
writing in 1886 said: "The statements
of the titles are
worthless; that is though they may in some
cases be right, they
may always be wrong, and are therefore
of no use as critical
guides."2 This was the view of Driver3
and Cheyne4
as well as many others at that time.
1Arthus Weiser, The Psalms, trans. Herbert Hartwell,
The
Old Testament Library (
Press,
1962), pp 96-97.
2C. H. Toy, "On the
Asaph-Psalms," Journal of the
Exegetical
Society 6
(1886):73.
3S. R. Driver, An Introduction to the Literature of
the Old
Testament
(1897; reprint ed.,
Publishing
Co., 1956), p. 378.
4Thomas Kelly Cheyne, The Origin and Religious Con-
tents of Psalter (
10
Interestingly enough
this was the view of Calvin who regard-
ed them as marginal
glosses which were of little value in
interpreting Scripture.1
This extremely low view of the psalm titles has
seemingly fallen right
along with the higher critical theory
which placed most of
the psalms in the post-exilic period.
The discoveries of Ras
Shamra, along with literary research
in
hymnody in vogue before
and during David's time, with some
amazing parallels to
the Biblical psalms.2 These finds,
together with the
evidence from
ics to push the date of
the origin of the psalms back into
the pre-exilic period
and reconsider the testimony of the
headings.
These many views along with minor variations which
will be interacted with
further at appropriate places in the
thesis, point out the
present state of confusion concerning
the real purpose and
value of the psalm titles.
1John Calvin, Commentary on the Book of Psalms, vol.
2
trans. James Anderson (
Publishing
Co., 1949), p. 27.
2R. Laird Harris,
"Psalms," in vol. 2 of The
Bibli-
cal Expositor (Philadelphia:
A. J. Holman Company, 1960),
pp.
35-36. See also Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the
Bible, s.v.
"Psalms, Book of," by J. B. Payne; and William
Foxwell
Albright, Archaeology and the Religion of
(Baltimore:
The John Hopkins Press, 1942), pp. 125-29.
11
The Scope and Purpose of
the Thesis
The purpose of this paper is to provide objective
evidence to support the
thesis that the psalm titles are
authentic. They are
trustworthy witnesses concerning the
authorship, age,
purpose and occasion of the various psalms
concerning which they
give such information either implicit-
ly or explicitly.
The format of the paper will be first of all to pre-
sent evidence arguing
for the antiquity of the titles as
they are found in the
MT. Then to examine the credibility
of the titles in
matters relating to authorship and histori-
cal data. Having then
presented the evidence certain deduc-
tions and conclusions
will be drawn concerning the origin of
the psalm titles and
their benefit to the present day
scholar.
CHAPTER II
THE ANTIQUITY OF THE PSALM TITLES
There is considerable evidence that the psalm titles
have always been a part
of the canonical text of the Old
Testament Scriptures.
This in itself would argue in favor
of the authenticity of
the titles because of the very nature
of Scripture as God's
inspired Word. Further evidence seems
to indicate that they
can be dated back much earlier even
than the time when the
OT canon was completed around 400
B.C.1 Thus,
not only placing their authenticity on sound
footing textually and
theologically but also historically as
well.
Textual Evidence for their
Antiquity
In their effort to discredit the validity of the
psalm titles some
critics have pointed to the lack of agree-
ment among the ancient
manuscripts when it comes to the
1Although many critical
scholars would disagree with
this
early date for the completion of the canon, it does
harmonize
with the well-established tradition that the
spirit
of prophecy departed from
Ezra.
For a full discussion of the canonization of the OT
see
R. Laird Harris, Inspiration and
Canonicity of the Bible
(Grand
Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1957), pp. 154-
79.
12
psalm titles.1
These discrepancies are cited as evidence
that the titles at
least in part are late additions. While
this may be true
concerning some of the titles found in the
LXX and the Syriac
Peshitta, the majority of the titles as
they are found in the
MT find substantial support for their
antiquity in nearly all
of the ancient Hebrew manuscripts
and the ancient primary
versions which are available to us
today.
Hebrew
Manuscripts
The
MT
Prior to the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in
1947, virtually all of
the known Hebrew manuscripts were
based upon the work of
the Masoretes, who sought to stan-
dardize and preserve
the text of the OT. The oldest of
these manuscripts still
available today come from the tenth
and eleventh centuries.2
Besides these early editions of
the Psalter numerous
other editions based on earlier manu-
scripts are available
for comparison. In examining these
many manuscripts, there
is near unanimous agreement on the
1Frederick Carl Eiselen, The Psalms and Other Sacred
Writings (New York: The
Methodist Book Concern, 1918), p. 43
Otto
Eissfeldt, The Old Testament an
Introduction, trans.
Peter
R. Ackroyd (New York: Harper and Row, 1965), p. 451.
2The oldest ones being the
Alleppo Codex from the
first
half of the tenth century and the Codex Leningradensis
(L),
which is dated around A.D. 1008. Ernst Würthwein, The
Text of the Old
Testament,
trans. Errol F. Rhodes (
SCM Press Ltd., 1979)
pp. 34-35.
14
text of the headings.
R. D. Wilson concludes from his study
of these manuscripts
that "the text of the headings of the
Psalms in the Textus
Receptus is almost perfect so far as
the evidence of the
Hebrew MSS. and printed editions of
Kennicot and DeRossi is
concerned."1 From this, it is evi-
dent that the headings
of the psalms were part of the stan-
dard text which the
Masoretes so meticulously sought to
preserve in the second
half of the first millennium, A.D.
The standard text, however, appears to have been
established already by
the end of the first century A.D.
with the result that
all other variant lines of tradition in
Judaism were destroyed.2
This in the past has made the work
of OT textual criticism
much less conclusive since there
were no Hebrew texts
available which were not derived from
the MT tradition which
was standardized around A.D. 100.
With the discovery of
the Dead Sea Scrolls beginning in 1947,
numerous ancient
manuscripts were made available which had
not been subjected to
the standardization process which lies
behind the MT. This is
evident in that all three text types
are represented at
1R. D.
2Bruce K. Waltke, "The
Textual Criticism of the Old
Testament,"
in vol. 1 of The Expositors Bible
Commentary,
ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein (
House,
1979), pp. 216-17. A date in the early second cen-
tury
A.D. under the leadership of Rabbi Akiba is suggested
in
William Sanford Lasor, David Allan Hubbard, and Frederic
Wm.
Bush, Old Testament Survey (
Eerdmans
Publishing Company, 1982), pp. 32-33.
15
the Textus Receptus, the Samaritan
Pentateuch, and the LXX.1
Thus, the Dead Sea
Scrolls have become crucial in the study
of the OT text and in
determining the validity of the psalm
titles as they are
found in the MT.
The
Numerous fragments and in some cases substantial
portions of manuscripts
containing the Biblical psalms have
been found in the
years. Perhaps the most
significant of these finds was the
Psalms Scroll (11QPsa)
from cave 11 at
been dated by Sanders
in the Herodian period between A.D. 30
and 50.2 In
addition to the Psalms Scroll several other
text portions
containing psalm titles have been found in
Qumran Caves 4 and 11,
in the Nahal Hever region, and on
Masada.3 As
these texts are examined they are found to be
in essential agreement
with the MT in the assignment of ti-
tles to the various
psalms they contain except for a few
minor variations.4
1Waltke, "Textual
Criticism," p. 214.
2J. A. Sanders, The Dead Sea Psalms Scroll (
3For a catalog of all the
pre-Masoretic Psalms manu-
scripts
known before 1965 see J. A. Sanders, "Pre-Masoretic
Psalter
Texts," CBQ 27 (April 1965), pp.
114-17.
4For a comparison of the
Dead Sea Scrolls psalm
titles with the MT
titles see Appendix A.
16
One of the more interesting texts from
contains part of a
commentary on Psalm 45 (4QpPs45). It is
significant to the
present study because it contains the
psalm title along with
an explanatory note before the con-
tents of the psalm with
its commentary are given. Allegro's
translation of the
title and explanatory note is as follows:
"To the
choirmaster: according to the (Lil)lies. (A maskil
of the Sons of Korah, a
song of lots). They are the seven
divisions of the
penitents of Is(rael). . . ."1 This is then
followed by the text of
the first verse of the psalm itself.
The inclusion of the title in the commentary would
seem to indicate that
the writer considered it an essential
part of the psalm text.
As Smith has pointed out, "the ma-
terial he wanted to
deal with was in the text of the psalm,
but he could not quote
the text without giving its proper
title."2
The explanatory note on the title may be a further
indication tat the
writer considered the title a part of
the sacred text and
therefore worthy of comment.
Two other texts from
lished lished which
contain one psalm title each. The first,
4QPsb,
contains part at least of Psalms 91-118 with Psalms
1John M. Allegro,
ies
in the
1968),
p. 45.
2Smith, "The Titles in the Psalms," p.
36.
17
95 and 104-111 omitted.
The only title or part of a title
that is preserved from
these psalms is d[vdl] from Psalm
103, which agrees with
the MT.1 The parts of the manuscript
which should contain
the other titles have deteriorated.
The second of these published texts from cave 4 is
4QPsq. It
contains Psalm 33 (which immediately follows the
last verse of Psalm 31)
and Psalm 35:4-20. In it, Psalm 33
which does not have a
title in the MT is given the title
rvmzm
ryw dvdl.2
Though different than the MT, this
does agree with the LXX
in attributing the psalm to David.
The rest of the relevant texts from cave 4 have been
assigned to Monsignor
P. W. Skehan, but have not yet been
published.3
The longest of these, 4QPsa, has, however, been
dated by Skehan in the
Hasmonean period, placing it in the
latter half of the
second century B.C." This date is con-
firmed by Cross.5
Skehan has also let it be known that 4QPsa
"arranges
the Psalms and their
titles as they still appear in the
1Patrick W. Skehan, "A
Psalm Manuscript from
(4QPsb)," CBQ
26 (July 1964): 318.
2J.
T. Milik, "Deux documents inedits du desert de
Juda,"
Bib 38 (1957): 245-68.
3Sanders,
"Pre-Masoretic Psalter Texts," pp. 114-17.
4P. W. Skehan, "The
Criticism,"
Volume du congres in VTSup 4 (
Brill,
1957), p. 154.
5Frank
Qumran and
Modern Biblical Studies (
Doubleday and Company,
Inc., 1958), p. 122.
18
Masora," adding
further that "there is no special separa-
tion between title and
text."1 From this arrangement Cross
concludes that the
collection of canonical psalms was al-
ready fixed by
Maccabean times.2 It may be further conclud-
ed that the psalm
titles were an integral part of that text
back in Maccabean
times.
Two of the manuscripts from cave 11 have been pub-
lished so far. They are
the well-known Psalm Scroll
(11QPsa) and
11QPsb.
Like the Psalm Scroll, 11QPsb has also been
dated in
the Herodian period in
the first half of the first century
A.D.3 It
contains one psalm title which is in agreement
with the MT and is
included as a part of the text (the first
verse of the psalm
itself continues on the same line).
Thus, the second line
of script taken from Psalm 133 reads:
. . . bv]F
hm hnh dyvdl tv[lfmh
ryw.4
The Psalm Scroll from cave 11 has yielded by far the
most material for
comparison with the MT. In addition to
the forty-one Biblical
psalms given in part or in whole, the
scroll contains eight
apocryphal compositions including
1Skehan, "The
2Cross, The Ancient Library, p. 122.
3J. Van Der Ploeg, "Fragments dun manuscrit de
psaumes de Qumran (11QPsb)," RB 74 (1967):408.
4Ibid.,
p. 411.
19
seven non-Biblical
psalms and one prose piece about David.1
The scroll is unique
not only by the inclusion of the apoc-
ryphal compositions but
also by the arrangement of the
psalms which differs
from the traditional order. This has
led Sanders to
conclude, contrary to Cross (see above), that
the Psalter was still
open-ended in the first century, and
that the Psalms Scroll
represented a "local Palestinian text
with its own internal
problems of limited fluidity."2 He
does allow however, on
the basis of the materials from cave
4, that Books I and II
of the Psalter may have been fixed
much earlier.3
Sanders theory of an open-ended Psalter in the first
century A.D. however,
has not been accepted by textual crit-
ics as a whole.
Goshen-Gottstein gives some convincing evi-
dence that the scroll
was never intended to be more than a
"liturgical
collection."4 A view which is adopted by
Würthwein.5
Likewise Skehan makes several observations con-
cerning the scroll
which seem to indicate that 11QPsa is
dependent upon
"the complete collection of Psalms as we
1Sanders, The
2Ibid., pp. 157-58.
3Ibid., pp. 13-14
4M. H. Goshen-Gottstein,
"The Psalms Scroll
(11QPsa);
A Problem of Canon and Text," in vol. 5 of Textus
(
1966),
pp. 29-33.
5Würthwein, The
Text of the OT, pp. 32-33.
20
know it."1
If indeed, the Psalms Scroll is simply a liturgical
collection, the
presence of the psalm titles in thirteen of
the Biblical psalms
used is even more significant. It would
indicate that the
compiler considered the titles an integral
part of the text which
should not be left out, even though
they did not apply
specifically to the liturgical purpose of
the collection.
Unfortunately, many of the psalms contained in
11PQsa are
"orphan psalms" or are missing the first verse
and therefore, are
irrelevant to the present study. However
there are fourteen of
the psalms which can be compared to
the MT (see Appendix
A). Eleven of these have essentially
the same titles as the
MT (Pss. 121, 122, 126, 127, 129,
130, 133, 138, 140,
143, and 145).2 The only substantial
differences are found
in Psalm 144 where dvdl
is omitted
from 11QPsa
and in Psalms 104 and 123 where dvdl
is added.
It should also be noted that two of the apocryphal
psalms contain
headings. Psalm 151A is designated: hyvllh
ywy
Nb dyvdl,
"A Hallelujah of David the Son of Jesse;"
and Psalm 151B begins: xybn vHwmwm dy []l hr[]bg
tlHt
Myhvlx,
"At the beginning of David's power after
1Patrick W. Skehan,
"The Biblical Scrolls from
ran
and the Text: of the Old Testament" BA
23 (September
1965):100.
2Two minor differences
involving one letter are
found in Psalms 121 and
145.
21
of God had anointed
him."1 Neither one of these titles
can be described as
characteristic of the Biblical titles.
This may be an
indication that they were written much later
than the Biblical
psalms which may be why they were never
included in the MT
though they are found in the LXX.
Manuscripts from Other
Areas
There have been two other texts or fragments of a
text discovered in the
which dates to the
latter half of the first century A.D.
was found in the Nahal
Hever region and contains the end of
Psalm 15 and the title
of Psalm 16 as it appears in the MT.2
The second is a much larger manuscript portion from
with the same titles as
the MT.3 Yadin has given a first
century A.D. date for
this manuscript as well.4
These manuscripts along with the Psalter texts from
part of the canonical
psalms in the first century A.D. and
even as far back as the
second century B.C. The essential
agreement of these
texts with the MT as far as the titles
1Sanders, The
2Y. Yadin, "Expedition
D," IEJ 11 (1961):40.
3Y. Yadin, "The
Excavation of
Preliminary
Report," IEJ 15 (1965):104.
4Ibid., p. 103.
22
are concerned tends to
confirm the great antiquity of the
titles as a part of the
established OT text.
Ancient
Versions
LXX
The Greek translation of the Psalter has for some
proven a valuable
source of evidence in favor of the authen-
ticity of the psalm
titles, while for others it has been
used as evidence
against their authenticity. The problem
for the latter group is
in the fact that the LXX while basi-
cally presenting a
literal translation of the psalms them-
selves has taken the
liberty to make changes in the psalm
titles. This has been
interpreted to mean that the trans-
lators did not have the
same respect for the titles as they
did for the psalms
themselves.1 However, as the critical
text of the LXX is
examined it is discovered that these dif-
ferences have been
greatly exaggerated.
In Rahlfs' edition of the Greek Psalter one finds
an essential agreement
with the traditional Hebrew text ex-
cept that there are
several additions.2 These additions
involve: adding David
as the author of thirteen anonymous
psalms (33, 43, 71, 91,
93-99, 104, and 137), adding Haggai
and Zachariah to Psalms
146-148, plus several additions of
1Eiselen, The Psalms, p. 44.
2Alfred :Rahlfs, ed., Septuaginta, 9th ed., 2 vols.
(Stuttgart: Würtembergische
Bibelanstalt, 1935).
23
liturgical or
historical notes.1
R. D. Wilson who has done extensive research into
the different Greek
manuscripts and secondary versions of
the LXX Psalter
summarizes his work as follows:
The Greek Septuagint omits one author
mentioned in
the Hebrew, and one Greek manuscript
or another adds
the author's name in about 20 cases.
Most of this
testimony of the variations of the
manuscripts of the
Septuagint from the Hebrew is rendered
doubtful by
the fact that one or more of the
ancient versions
from the Septuagint are found in
almost every case
to differ from the Greek original as
preserved in B
and A and to agree with the Hebrew original.2
This seems to suggest as Pietersma has shown that
there are many
inner-Greek additions to the titles of
Rahlfs editions of the
LXX which almost certainly do not
rest on a Hebrew Vorlage.3 The fact that in
some cases there
is near unanimous
manuscript witness for these extra--MT
titles "may mean
no more than that the ever expanding Davidic
tradition totally
eclipsed all other witnesses."4
Kooij, meanwhile, attributes at least some of the
extra-MT titles to the influence
of a Palestinian origin of
the LXX Psalter. Thus,
he seems to imply that the additions
were original with the
translators themselves or taken from
liturgical notations
which had been added to the Hebrew
1For a complete listing of
all the variations in the
various
LXX manuscripts and secondary versions see
"The
Headings of the Psalms," pp. 380-89.
2Ibid., p. 391.
3Albert Pietersma,
"David in the Greek Psalms," VT
30
(April 1980): 225-26.
4Ibid., p. 219.
24
manuscripts.1
Having responded briefly to the problems raised by
the LXX psalm titles a
word needs to be said concerning
their value. As DeWette
has pointed out in response to
those who argue against
the genuineness of the titles on the
basis of the LXX, the
titles were translated by the LXX
translators.2
That means then that their existence goes
back well before the
second century B.C. when the Psalter
was translated into
Greek. Furthermore, in looking at some
of the nonsensical
translations of some titles, it appears
that the translators
respected the titles enough as part of
the various psalms that
rather than omitting them it was
better to at least
attempt to translate them.
The
Aramaic Targum
ious editions of the
Targums. He concludes that the Hebrew
text they used for
their translation of the headings must
have been the same one
that is available today.3 He also
notes that the
translators must have had a great reverence
for the text of the
titles because of the "ludicrous"
1Arie Van Der Kooij,
"On the Place of origin of the
Old
Greek of Psalms," VT 33 (January
1983):73-74.
2DeWette,
"Introduction to the Psalms," trans. J.
Torrey,
The Biblical Repository 3 (July
1833):468-69.
3Wilson, "The Headings
of the Psalms," p. 373.
25
results of their
efforts to be accurate in the translation.1
The
Syriac Peshitto
It is in the Syriac Peshitto that a significant
variation of the psalm
titles occurs. Bloemendaal points
out that in the
manuscripts and printed editions of the
Peshitto the psalms are
"either without titles or have ti-
tles which differ
completely from those in the Hebrew and
Greek texts."2
It appears that the original translators may
have left them out and
that they were subsequently replaced
by others. No one knows
for sure why they were left out
originally.
of the
suestia and Theodoret
that the Peshitto departed from the
Hebrew text in the case
of the psalm titles.3 He then goes
on to cite several
passages from the writings of both of
these men to show that
the titles were present in both the
Hebrew and Greek texts
of their day and should not be ig-
nored.4
were omitted for
liturgical, dogmatic, or utilitarian
1Ibid.
2William Bloemendaal, The Headings of the Psalms in
the
3Wilson, "The Headings
of the Psalms," p. 377;
Bloemendall,
The Headings of the Psalms, p. 12,
agrees with
this
view.
4Wilson, "The Headings of the Psalms,"
pp. 377-79.
26
reasons and replaced by
other headings considered to be more
edifying.1
It is thus, unfair to use the Syriac Peshitto as an
argument against the
antiquity of the titles. Nor is there
any real proof that the
Hebrew text from which the transla-
tion was made did not
contain the titles.
In addition to the above versions,
uated the Greek
versions of
from the second
century, and Jerome's Latin translation
from the late fourth
century.2 He has found that they al-
ways agree with the
Hebrew in the titles except in one case
in Symmachus and
Theodotian.3
The predominate agreement of the ancient Hebrew manu-
scripts and ancient
versions of the Psalter with regards to
the titles is a strong
argument in favor of the antiquity
and genuineness of the
titles. From the second century B.C.
on, all the evidence
shows a genuine respect for the titles
as an integral part of
the Psalter text.
Linguistic
Evidence for their Antiquity
Another convincing argument for attributing an early
date to the psalm
titles--perhaps even pre-exilic times--is
the difficulty which
the early translators had in translating
1Ibid., pp. 379-80.
2Ibid., pp. 373-75.
3Ibid., pp. 390-91.
27
some of the terms. It
appears that by the time the LXX was
translated in the
second or third century B.C. the meaning
of some of the terms
had already become obscure, indicating
a lengthy period of
disuse in order for them to be forgotten.
A prime example of this phenomena is found in the
early translations of
the term Hacenam;la
which occurs fifty-
five times in the
titles. Today it is generally understood
to mean "for the
director of music" (NIV), based upon the
usage of the root HcAnA in the Chronicler.1 However,
in the
LXX version of the
titles it is translated ei]j
to> te<loj,
"unto the
end" or "forever," as if it were Hcan,lA.
Mean-
while in Habakkuk 3:19
the LXX translates Hacenam;la
as tou?
nikh?sai.
A quick look at some of the other ancient versions
shows that the
confusion over the meaning of Hacenam;la
was not
just a local problem to
the translators in
Targums give the
translation xHbwl,
"to praise." Aquilla
Symmachus, Theodotian
and Jerome read t&?
nikopoi&?, "to
the
conquest-maker;" e]pini<kioj,
"of victory;" ei]j to<
ni?koj,
"for the victory;" and victory, "victor" respec-
tively.2 In
each case the translators attempted to render
1Mowinckel would disagree
with this interpretation.
In
The Psalms in Israel's Worship,
2:212, he takes it to
mean
"for the merciful disposition (of Yahweh)" or "to dis-
pose
(Yahweh) to mercy" as if the psalm was designed to
propitiate
Yahweh.
2B. D. Eerdmans, The Hebrew Book of Psalms, OTS
4 (Leiden: E. J. Brill,
1947), p. 54.
28
as near as possible a
literal translation of the title; but
because the word had
gone into disuse years before, the
meaning had been lost.
Besides the term Hacenam;la
there are several other
liturgical and literary
features given in the titles whose
meanings have been
lost. In some cases their meaning is
still a matter of
conjecture even as they were in the time
of the early
translations.
As to when or how the meanings were lost it is
impossible to say for
sure. Eerdmans has suggested that
following the exile
(during which the temple singers could
not practice, Ps.
137:4) when the musicians returned to Jeru-
a brief revival of the
temple music under Ezra it did not
last. Thus, the
liturgical use of the psalms as it was prac-
ticed in the first
temple never really took hold and the
meanings of several
technical terms were lost.1
The antiquity of the titles is also supported by the
fact that the language
of the titles reflects the early
Hebrew writings rather
than late. It would be expected that
if the titles were late
additions they might use words bor-
rowed from Aramaic or
Greek such as the terms for musical
instruments in Daniel
3.2 Yet in the titles a large pro-
portion of the words
are not found in later Hebrew or in any
1Ibid., pp. 46-48.
2John F. A. Sawyer,
"An Analysis of the Context and
Meaning
of the Psalm-Headings," Transactions
of the Glasglow
University
Oriental Society 22 (1967-1968):26.
29
Aramaic dialect.1
According to
roots of many of these
words have closer analogies in Baby-
lonian than in any
other language.”2
The linguistical evidence would thus seem to suggest
that the origin of
these titles must go back at least to the
time of Ezra and very
possibly much earlier. If this is the
case it is very
probable that they were a part of the pro-
phetic tradition and
therefore have rightfully been preserv-
ed in the Biblical
text.
Literary Evidence for Their
Antiquity
It is well-known by Biblical scholars that the Old
Testament was not
written in a vacuum. While it is true
that the theology of
the Hebrews was unique, their writing
style and expressions
were often analogous to that of their
ancient Near Eastern
neighbors. Such an analogy can be seen
in the case of the
psalm titles. Thirtle mentions that tab-
lets and cylinders have
been found from
ing hymns and prayers
with both superscriptions and subscrip-
tions: the
superscriptions giving the author and the sub-
script lines intimating
that the document was a temple copy
of a state original.3
1R. D.
Testament, revised by
Edward J. Young (
1959),
p. 154.
2Ibid.
3James William Thirtle, Old Testament Problems
(London: Henry Frowde,
1907), p. 83.
30
In addition to these pieces of comparative litera-
ture from without,
there are also both Biblical and non-Bib-
lical compositions from
within
that the practice of
attaching either a heading or a colo-
phon to a piece of
literature was in vogue in pre-exilic
times at the time the
various psalms were composed or earlier.
Biblical
Examples
The best-known Biblical example (if such a title out-
side the Psalter comes
from 2 Samuel 22:1. Here the narra-
tive introduces the
following psalm attributing it to David
at the time when Yahweh
delivered him from the hand of all
his enemies and from
the hand of Saul. This is significant
because the psalm which
follows is also recorded as Psalm 18
in the Psalter with
essentially the same title. The only
difference is that in
Psalm 18 the style is characteristi-
cally "title
style" (. . . dvidAl; hvAhy;
db,f,l; HacEnam;la), whereas
in 2 Samuel 22 it is
narrative style (dveDA rBeday;va.
. . hOAhyla).
The Samuel Text then
confirms the validity of the Psalm 18
title as well as sets a
precedent for identifying the
author and occasion of
such writings as being pre-exilic.
From the Pentateuch written in the fifteenth century
B.C. comes the example
of Moses' song in Exodus 15:1 and
Miriam's song in Exodus
15:21. In both instances the author
or singers are
identified. Further examples from the books
of Samuel include
Hannah's prayer (1 Sam. 2:1) which is set
in poetic form, and
David's lament from 2 Samuel 1.
There are also two key examples from the seventh and
31
eighth century prophets
Habakkuk and Isaiah. In Isaiah 38:9,
Isaiah introduces the
psalm of Hezekiah with these words
which are in
characteristic "title style," –jl,m,
UhyA.qiz;hil; bTAk;mi
Oyl;HAme
yHiy;v OtloHEBa hdAUhy;. Then in Habakkuk 3 both a superscrip-
tion and a colophon are
given to Habakkuk's prayer. The
superscription reads: tOnyog;wi lfa xybinA.ha qUq.baHEla hl.ApT;;
and the
colophon: ytAOnygin;Bi HacE.nam;la.
After
studying the above examples in relation to the
psalm titles, Tur-Sinai
came to the conclusion that the
psalms were originally
part of an historical narrative.
Consequently, the psalm
titles merely represent a portion of
that narrative. This
would imply then to him that there is
an element of truth in
the psalm titles, though in some
cases the psalms
attributed to David may just be poetical
enlargements of David's
sayings.1 Such a theory is very un-
likely to be proven
true, but the psalms set in the narra-
tives of Scripture with
appropriate titles or introductions
do establish the fact
that other Biblical psalms from pre-
exilic times had
comparable titles.
A Hebrew
Inscription
In addition to the Biblical examples of superscrip-
tions outside the
Psalter there has recently been discovered
at Khirbet el Qom an
inscription in one of the tombs which
contains both a
superscription and a colophon to what is
1N. H. Tur-Sinai, "The
Literary Character of the
Book of Psalms," OTS 8 (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1950), p.
265.
32
believed to be a prayer
either by or for the man buried
there.1
According to Miller this inscription comes from "the
same social,
historical, and geographical setting out of which
came many of the
Psalms, i.e., Judah during the time of the
Divided Monarchy and
the Exile."2 The transliteration and
translation of the text
given by Miller is as follows:
1. (1) 'ryhw h‘sr ktbh
2. brk ’ryhw lyhwh
3. wmsryh 1’ srth / hws‘ / lh
4. 1’ nyhw
5. wl’
srth
6. r h
1. (for) Uriyahu the rich: his
inscription. (Or:
has written it)
2. Blessed is Uriyahu by Yahweh;
3. Yea from his adversaries by his
asherah he has
saved him.
4. (Written) by Oniyahu
5. (. . . ?) and by
his asherah.3
The title or first line of the inscription gives
presumably the owner or
author of the inscription who is
identified as
"Uriyahu the rich." The colophon at the end
then identifies Oniyahu
as the one who cut the inscription
and possibly composed
it. The parallels with the psalm ti-
tles are self-evident.
Ancient Near Eastern
Parallels
Several of the Sumerian psalms from the time of
Hammurabi have been
found which contain subscriptions.
1Patrick D. Miller,
"Psalms and Inscriptions,"
Congress Volume VTSup 32
(Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1957),
pp.
315-19.
2Ibid., pp. 311-12.
3Ibid., p. 317.
33
These subscriptions
give at times the author, purpose, god
addressed, tune,
musical instruments, and other notes simi-
lar to those found in
the Psalter.1 There are even techni-
cal classifications of
psalms in these colophons such as
balbale,
adab, tigi, and sagarru
whose meanings are unknown
today.2
These classifications are comparable to the Hebrew
Miktam, Maskil and
Shiggion.
In the liturgical hymn to Sin the colophon gives
some liturgical
instructions identifying the melody and in-
strument by which it
was to be accompanied. Langdon gives
the following
translation: “It is a sagar melody. Sung on
the flute to Sin.”3
In a liturgy to Enlil the colophon
reads: "A prayer
for the brick walls of Ekur, that it re-
turn to its place. A
Song of Supplication."4 Here the
purpose of the hymn is
given. An example of one which iden-
tifies the author is
the colophon from another hymn to Enlil
which reads in part:
"Copy from Barsippa, according to its
original, written and
collated. Tablet of Beliksur son of
Belishkunni son of
Iddin-Papsukkal worshipper of Nebo."5
1Wilson, A Scientific Investigation, p. 141.
2Kitchen, "The OT in
Its Context," p. 12.
3Stephen Langdon, Sumerian Liturgies and Psalms
(Philadelphia:
Published by The University Museum, 1919),
p.
279.
4Ibid., p. 308.
5Ibid., p. 329. For further
examples of colophons
in
Sumerian literature see James B. Pritchard, ed., Ancient
Near Eastern
Texts Relating to the Old Testament, 3rd ed.
with
supplement (
Press, 1969), pp. 496,
637-45, 579-82.
34
While the latter may be
a librarian's note, it nevertheless
shows the desire of the
ancients to preserve such informa-
tion in the form of
notes either at the beginning or end of
the psalm.
Several of the Egyptian hymns and prayers from the
second millennium B.C.
also contain such information as
author, god addressed
and occasion.1 This information is
usually contained in an
introductory statement which in some
cases is rather
lengthy. They are not really comparable to
the psalm titles except
for the fact that these Egyptian
hymns do sometimes have
the author identified and/or the
occasion.
The analogy has also been drawn by Sawyer between
the psalm titles and
the Akkadian ritual texts dating from
the third century B.C.
He notes that these ritual text:
contain a combination
of some or all of the following
elements:
the cultic occasion when the
composition is to be
uttered;
the official appointed to utter it;
the type of composition (prayer, incantation,
lamen-
tation);
the title of the composition;
the instrument(s) to accompany it;
the mode of utterance (singing, reciting).2
While all of these
elements (except for the last) are found
in the psalm titles, it
may be significant that there is no
indication of author or
historical background in the
1Ibid., pp. 365-81.
2Sawyer, "An Analysis
of the Psalm-Headings," pp.
28-29.
35
Akkadian texts. Sawyer
suggests that this might be because
these two elements
belong to a non-cultic background.1
It should also be noted with regard to this analogy
that some of these
texts were copied from older Babylonian
texts.2
Consequently, the analogy should not be taken to
imply a late date for
the psalm titles.
In addition to the presence of titles and colophons
in the psalms of other
ancient Near Eastern peoples as far
back as the third
millennium B.C. there is also ample evi-
dence for the need of
such notes. Sarna points out that as
early as the third
millennium B.C. professional singers and
musicians were a part
of the temple personnel in both
show the possibility
that the psalm titles could come from
the period of David.
It appears from the evidence thus far presented that
the psalm titles are
indeed very old. There is no evidence
from the standpoint of
textual criticism which goes back to
the second or third
century B.C. that there was ever a time
when they were not
considered a part of the text of Scrip-
ture. The nonsensical
translations of certain words in the
1Ibid., p. 29.
2Pritchard, ANET, p. 334. For the full text of
these
see pp. 331-45.
3N. M. Sarna, "The
Psalm Superscriptions and the
Guilds,"
in Studies in Jewish Religions and
Intellectual
History, ed. Siegfried
Stein and Raphael Loewe (
36
titles of the LXX would
indicate that at the time of trans-
lation they were
already "hoary with age." Furthermore, the
analogy from other
writings both Biblical and non-Biblical
shows that the use of
titles or colophons to give the type
of information
contained in the titles was certainly not un-
known in the time when
the psalms were written.
While age alone does not guarantee that the titles
are authentic, it,
certainly increases the possibility. A
careful study of the
titles themselves in the context of the
Biblical revelation
will determine whether or not they are
credible witnesses of
all that they claim.
CHAPTER III
THE CREDIBILITY OF THE TITLES
The principle reason for rejecting the psalm titles
among the critics of
the old critical school was that the
titles attributed many
psalms to David. According to their
theory of the
development of religion, David was a man of
his age--primitive both
ethically and morally--and therefore,
unable to write the
kind of material found in the Davidic
Psalms.1 As
Driver writes concerning these psalms "they
express an intensity of
religious devotion, a depth of spir-
itual insight, and a
maturity of theological reflection, be-
yond what we should
expect from David or David's age."2
However, with the discovery of both the
Scrolls and a fully
developed hymnody with similar vocabu-
lary and form which was
in vogue in David's time, this atti-
tude toward the psalm
titles has changed. The trend in many
cases has been to
retain the titles as they are but to re-
interpret them, at
least in the matter of authorship. Thus,
it will be necessary in
discussing the credibility of the
titles to establish
first of all the meaning of the terms
1Smith, The Psalms Translated, pp. 243-45.
2Driver, An Introduction to the Old Testament, p.
377.
37
38
which have
traditionally been interpreted as designations of
authors. Once it has
been established that these terms are
designations of
authorship, a defense of their credibility
and that of the
accompanying historical notices will be
given.
The Designation of Authorship in the
Titles
In the Massoretic Psalter there are a total of one
hundred psalms which
are ascribed to authors by prefixing
the authors' names with
the preposition l;.
Seventy-three
of these are attributed
to David, twelve to Asaph, eleven to
the Sons of Korah
(including Psalm 88, which is also ascrib-
ed to Heman the
Ezrahite), two to Solomon, and one each to
Moses and Ethan the
Ezrahite.
Problems Relating to
Interpretation
One of the major problems in understanding the psalm
titles is the ambiguity
of the terms which are used espe-
cially as it relates to
the designation of authorship.
First of all there is
the problem of how the l;
which pre-
fixes a personal name
is to be understood. Then, closely
associated with that is
the question concerning the meaning
attached to the proper
names.
The
Usage of l;
Since there are several different usages of the
preposition l;, its meaning must ultimately be
determined by
context. Unfortunately
with many of the psalm titles there
39
is not sufficient
context to determine the meaning. The re-
sult is that many
different views have arisen concerning its
meaning in the psalm
titles.
Possession
In some instances the preposition l; prefixed to a
personal name denotes
possession and can be translated,
"belonging
to."1 This usage is not only found in Scripture,
but is also quite
common in seal inscriptions. Several of
these seals have been
found in
exilic period.2
For the most part they contain the owner's
inscribed design with
his name prefixed by l
indicating that
he is the owner of the
seal. Thus, in some cases at least,
when the construction l; prefixed to a personal name stood
alone it denoted
possession.
Dative
The dative usage of l;
translated "to" or "for" is
the most common in
Biblical Hebrew.3 This is the usage
which the
cult-functional school of interpretation applied
to the psalm titles.
Mowinckel the leading scholar in that
1BDB, p. 513.
2Examples of these seal
inscriptions can be found in
Graesser
Jr., "'The Seal of Elijah," BASOR
220 (December
1975):63-66;
Herbert G. May, "Seal of Elamar," AJSL
52
(1936):197;
and M. Heltzer, "Some North-west Semitic
Epigraphic
Gleanings from the XI-VI Centuries b.C.,"
Institute
Universitario Orientale 31 (1971):183-92.
3BDB, pp. 510-11.
40
regard says that dvidAl; means "for David"
indicating that
the psalm was composed
and designed for the Davidic king to
use in the festival
cult as he represented the people.1
The preposition l;
is used this way in the titles in
some instances (Hace.nam;la ) but not with the personal names.
In fact its usage in
this way with Hac.enam;la
occurring in the
same titles as dvedAl;, JsAxAl;
or Hraqo-yneb;l;
helps to rule
out the possibility of
the dative sense for l;
with a proper
name in the titles.
In a slightly different mode of thought Terrien
opting for the dative
usage of l;
suggests that dvidAl;
should be taken to mean
"Psalm dedicated to David," or
"Psalm written in
the name of David."2 This view has re-
ceived little attention
and finds no support in the psalms
themselves.
The dative sense of l;
is also used in the LXX which
consistently translates
dvidAl;, t&? Dauid
in the Psalm
titles. However,
Pietersma has pointed out that in the pro-
cess of textual
transmission t&? Dauid
was frequently
changed to tou? Dauid
with the apparent purpose of clar-
ifying Davidic
authorship.3 The usage of the dative in the
LXX is probably best
explained by the efforts of the
1Mowinckel, The Psalms in
2Samuel Terrien, The Psalms and Their Meaning for
Today (Indianapolis:
The Bobbs-Merrill Co., 1952), p. 32.
3Pietersma, "David in the Greek
Psalms," p. 225.
41
translators to give a
literal translation.
Subject or Serial.
A third possible usage of l;
in the titles finds
support from the notes
which appear at the top of the clay
tablets from
epic poems have the
name of the hero prefixed by the
ic preposition which is
equivalent to l;
(1-Aqht, 1-Krt and
1-B’l). In some cases
the hero is a god (Baal) so it cannot
be an indication of
authorship. Most likely it is designed
to identify the subject
and should be translated "concerning
Aqhat," or “pertaining
to Aqhat.”1 Another possibility sug-
gested by Sabourin is
that these headings indicate the
"cycle" or
literary serial to which the compositions are
attributed.2
The possibility that the l;
may denote the subject
of the psalm may be
ruled out in that it does not fit many
of the psalms in which
the only subject is Yahweh. There is
the possibility,
however, that the l;
could indicate the
literary serial or
collection from which the psalm was taken.
If this is the case,
however, the basis for the psalm being
in that collection is
easier explained in terms of author-
ship rather than
subject or function as would be the case at
1Kitchen, "The OT in
Its Context," p. 13.
2Sabourin, The
Psalms, p. 14.
42
Genitive of Authorship
The most widely held view of the usage of l; in the
Psalm titles down
through the years has been that it is a
lamed
auctoris. Gesenius supports this meaning in the psalm
titles by noting that
in other semitic dialects, especially
Arabic, this is a
customary idiom.1
That this is a possible meaning for l; can also be
seen from the use of l; in Ugaritic where both B; and l;
can
mean "from"
or "by."2 Normally, in Hebrew, one would expect
to find the preposition
-Nmi when the sense of
"by" or "from"
is intended. However,
in Ugaritic (a predecessor of the
Hebrew language) the
preposition -Nmi
was unknown. Either
B;
or l; was used instead.
Thus, even after -Nmi
was intro-
duced into Biblical
Hebrew the prepositions B;
and l; con-
tinued in many cases to
retain the meaning "from."3
The genitive use of l;
in the psalm titles is well-
attested among scholars
but many are reluctant to call it a
genitive of authorship.
refers to it as a
genitive of relationship similar to its
usage in I Kings 5:15
(Heb.) where Hiram is called a friend
1William Gesenius, Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar, ed. and
enlarged
by
28th
German ed. by A. E. Cowley (
Press,
1910), par. 129.
2Cyrus H. Gordon, Ugaritic Textbook in Analecta
Orientalia
38 (Rome: Pontificium Institutum Biblicum, 1965),
p.
42.
3Sabourin, The
Psalms, p. 14.
43
of David (dvidAl; MrAyhi hyAhA bhexo).1
Various interpretations
have consequently
arisen concerning the meaning of such ex-
pressions as dvidAl; and JsAxAl;
based upon different inter-
pretations of the
proper name.
While it is true that each independent usage of l;
with a personal name in
the titles cannot be proven to be a
reference to authorship,
it can be shown that at least some
of them do. It is only
logical then to assume that with the
consistency with which l; is used with personal names in the
titles that the same
meaning should be attached in each case
unless there is
sufficient proof to the contrary.
The usage of the
lamed auctoris is found in two in-
stances outside the
Book of Psalms which are not questioned.
In Isaiah 38 the psalm
of Hezekiah is introduced as bTAk;mi
Uhy.Aqiz;hil;,
"the writing of Hezekiah." In this case the context
clearly indicates that
Hezekiah was the author. Likewise
Habbakuk 3:1 introduces
a prayer which is authored by Habba-
kuk with the words xybinAha qUq.BahEla hlApiT;, "a prayer
of Habbakuk
the prophet."
Assuming that each part of a psalm title was written
at the same time, the
historical occasions connected with
thirteen Davidic psalms
show that the l;
was intended to
indicate authorship. In
fact two of these historical notes
claim that David sang
or spoke the words of the psalm on a
1William L.
Lexicon of the
Old Testament
(
Publishing Co., 1971),
p. 169.
44
given occasion (Psalms
7 and 18). The clear implication is
that whoever wrote
these historical notices understood dvidAl;
to indicate authorship.
Additional proof for this meaning is supplied by the
colophon at the end of
Book II (Ps. 72:20). Here it is
stated that the prayers
of David the son of Jesse are ended.
This colophon follows
the benediction of Psalm 72:18-19 which
concludes Book II of
the Psalter. Thus, the colophon has
been understood to
refer to all of the psalms in Books I
and II. This raises
some additional problems especially
since the last psalm in
Book II--Psalm 72 is given the title
hmolow;li.
There are also some psalms in this part of the
Psalter attributed to
the sons of Korah and Asaph. The ma-
jority of them however,
are designated dvidAl;
and would fit
the general description
of "the prayers of David son of
Jesse."
One other example in which l;
refers to the author
may be found in the
inscription from Khirbet el Qom (see
above p. 32). The
fourth line, according to Miller, is part
of a colophon referring
to the scribe or author of the in-
scription using the
phrase l'nyhw, "by Oniyahu."1 There is
also the possibility
that a l stood before the
initial name
Uriyahu and that he may
have been the author since it is
identified as his
inscription.2 Certainly there is ample
1Miller, "Psalms and
Inscriptions," p. 315.
2Ibid.
45
evidence to show that
the lamed auctoris is a valid
possibil-
ity in the psalms and
that the l;
with a personal name was
intended at least in
some instances to identify the author.
The
Usage of Proper Names
Along with the multiplicity of meanings attributed
to the l; have come several different
interpretations of the
names contained in the
titles. For instance dvidAl;
has been
interpreted as David
the son of Jesse, the Davidic king, or
the Davidic collection.
Likewise, the names Asaph and the
sons of Korah have been
understood as the names of musical
guilds rather than the
individuals. The rest of the names
(Moses, Solomon, Heman
and Ethan) have for the most part
been accepted at face
value.
David
Davidic King. One
of the views concerning dviDA
as
it occurs in the titles
is that it refers to the Davidic
king--not necessarily
David himself but any king from the
house of David.1
This understanding of David is based in
part upon some of the
prophetic references in Hosea,
Jeremiah and Ezekiel2
in which the prophets anticipate the
time when the people of
1Weiser, The Psalms, p. 96; Mowinckel, The Psalms
in
2Hos. 3:5; Jer. 30:9; Ezek. 34:23; 37:24.
46
their God and David
their king."1 However, the prophetic
passages refer
specifically to the Messiah not just any
Davidic king.
Commander. A
somewhat similar view of the meaning
of dvidA based upon the Mari texts is to
translate it as
"commander."2
In the Mari texts the word dawidum at
first
was interpreted as
"general" or "commander," but as Kitchen
points out it was later
discovered that dawidum was actually
linked to the
Babylonian word dabdum meaning
"defeat."3
Needless to say the
view is no longer held by any reputable
scholars.
Davidic Collection.
A view that is generally ac-
capted by modern
scholars is that dvidAl;
refers to the col-
lection of psalms from
which these psalms were taken. It is
presumed that the
collection may have had dvidA
or dvidAl; as
the title for the
entire collection. Such a theory does not
rule out the
possibility that some or all of the seventy-
three Davidic psalms
may have been authored by David, but in
many cases this view is
adopted as an alternative to author-
ship for some psalms.4
1A. A.
Century
Bible (
Co.
Inc., 1972), p. 44.
2Ibid.
3K. A. Kitchen, Ancient orient and Old Testament
(Downers
Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1966), pp. 84-
85.
4This is evident in
Oesterley's discussion of dvidAl;.
W.
0. E. Oesterley, The Psalms (London:
S. P. C. K., 1953),
p. 10.
47
The fact that this theory cannot be completely re-
jected is apparent from
the corresponding use of Hraqo-yneb;li.
It is unrealistic to
assume that each of the psalms so des-
ignated were
collectively authored by Korah's sons. The
title is better taken
to mean that these psalms originated
among the sons of Korah
and belonged to a collection by that
name.1 Even if dvidAl;
is taken to be a reference to the
collection by that
title it must ultimately indicate that
David authored the
psalms in that collection.
King David. The
view that King David was the author
of these psalms finds
ample support in the rest of Scrip-
ture. In the historical
books David is pictured as a man
with great musical
ability. Second Samuel 23:1 labels him
as the "sweet
psalmist of
his harp before King
Saul because of his expertise in that
area (1 Sam. 16:16-23).
Some of his compositions are even
recorded in the
historical narrative of 2 Samuel and 1 Chron-
icles (2 Sam. 1:17-27;
3:33-34; 22:1-51; 23:1-7; 1 Chr. 16:7-
36; 29:10-13). In fact
the psalln attributed to David in
1 Samuel 22 is the same
one attributed to him in Psalm 18.
It is also ironic that
Psalm 95 and parts of Psalms 105 and
106 are contained in
the composition attributed to David in
1 Chronicles 16, yet,
none of them have titles identifying
them as Davidic.
Certainly if the titles were the work of
later editors they
would not have missed the obvious.
1Bullock, An
Introduction to Poetic Books, p. 125.
48
David also indicates in 2 Samuel 23:1-2 that he had
received a special
annointing from God to sing and proclaim
God's Word in song.
This fact is confirmed by the NT words
of Jesus and the
apostles. The following list shows the
number of places in the
NT where parts of a psalm are quoted
and in the context
David is identified as the author.
Psalm 2--Acts 4:25-26
Psalm 16--Acts 2:25-28
Psalm 32--Romans 4:6.8
Psalm 69--Acts 1:16-20; Romans 11:9-10
Psalm 95--Hebrews 4:7
Psalm 109--Acts 1:20
Psalm 110---Matthew 22:44; Mark
12:36-37; Luke 20:42-44;
Acts
2:34
In all but two
instances (Psalms 2 and 95) the titles of
those psalms contain dvidAl;, indicating that Christ and the
apostles understood it
to be an indication of David's author-
ship and affirmed that
assertion to be true.
The other two psalms which the NT attributes to
David are anonymous in
the Hebrew Bible.1 Some have taken
this to be an
indication that the NT writers were simply
following the view of
their contemporaries that David was
the author of the
entire Psalter.2 In response to this
1It should be noted that
the LXX, which the writer
of
Hebrews uses, does attribute Psalm 95 to David and in
some
manuscripts of the LXX Psalm 2 is also attributed to
him.
The inspired witness of the NT writers would indicate
that
at least some of the additional titles found in the LXX
are
based upon an authentic tradition.
2Briggs, Commentary on Psalms, pp. lv-lvi;
Josephus
considered
David the author of the entire Psalter--Flavius
Josephus,
The Works Flavius Josephus, trans.
William
Whiston,
vol. 2: Antiquities of the Jews I-VII (Grand
Rapids: Baker Book
House, 1974), pp. 465-66.
49
Payne has pointed out
that no psalm which claims other
authorship, or contains
later historical allusions (e.g. Ps.
137) is ever attributed
in Scripture to King David.1 This
is noteworthy in light
of the fact that there are over sixty
psalms quoted or
alluded to in the NT.
Whether the intent of the writer who placed the ti-
tles at the head of the
psalms was to indicate author or
collection the ultimate
conclusion, based on the rest of the
Biblical evidence is
that the psalms so designated were
authored by King David.
The Levitical Musicians
While David is the most prominent author listed in
the psalm titles, the
Levitical musicians also made a sig-
nificant contribution
to the Psalter. According to the ti-
tles; twelve psalms are
assigned to Asaph, eleven to the
sons of Korah, and one
each to Heman and Ethan. As was the
case with dvidAl; there is considerable disagreement
over
whom or what the names
are intended to designate.
The individuals named in these titles are generally
understood to be
contemporaries of King David. According to
the Chronicler; Asaph,
Heman and Ethan were assigned by
David as the leaders of
music in the house of the Lord
(1 Chr. 6:31-46;
15:16-19; 16:31-42; 25:1-8), and the sons
of Korah were assigned
to be gatekeepers (1 Chr. 9:17-19;
1Payne, "Psalms, Book of," p. 927.
50
26:1-19). While it is
true that in some cases the psalms
fit well the time and
character of David's contemporaries,
it is also true that
there are some glaring anachronisms
which have caused some
like Perowne to discount the possi-
bility of all the
titles being trustworthy.1
These anachronisms have led other scholars to the
conclusion that these
names do not refer to individuals but
rather to musical
guilds named after the prominent leaders
from David's day. These
guilds which were a common feature
of both secular and
religious society in the ancient Near
East often followed a
familial pattern of organization.
Sarna points out that
it was not uncommon for certain skills
to stay in the same
family generation after generation.2
Evidence for such family guilds is found in the
Chronicler and the books
of Ezra and Nehemiah. According to
1 Chronicles 25, David
together with the commanders of the
army set apart some of
the sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun
for the ministry of
prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres
and cymbals. The sons
who were appointed were under the
supervision of their
respective fathers. In the case of
Asaph's descendants at
least, this skill and responsibility
remained in the family
clear up until the time of Ezra (Ezra
2:41; 3:10; Neh. 11:17,
22; 12:35, 46).
However, there are some problems with simply
1Perowne, The Book of Psalms, 1:96-97.
2Sarna, "The Psalms Superscriptions,"
p. 287.
51
interpreting JsAxAl; as a reference to the guild named
after
Asaph. Other
suggestions have been given as to the inter-
pretation of JsAxAl; as well as the other titles in
this
group.
Asaph. It is in
these Asaphite psalms that the
anachronisms are most
evident if David's contemporary Asaph
is taken to be the
author. For example, both Psalms 74 and
79 are psalms of lament
over the complete destruction of
place until the
destruction of 586 B.C. Likewise, Payne has
suggested that Psalm 83
is more suitable to the ministry of
the Asaphite Jahaziel
in 825 B.C. than to David's contempo-
rary (cf. Ps. 83:5-7
and 2 Chro. 20:1, 2, 14).1
If it is maintained that Asaph is the author of
these psalms, then they
must be understood to be prophetic
psalms intended for use
in the troublesome times that Asaph
foresaw by the Spirit
of God. Spurgeon mentions this possi-
bility and sees no
difficulty with it.2 In fact Asaph was
known as a seer (hz,Ho) who had recorded words suitable for
praise in the temple
worship (2 Chr. 29:30). However, the
form is quite
uncharacteristic of predictive prophecy else-
where in Scripture. The
lament in both Psalms 74 and 79 is
from one who has
personally experienced the disaster and not
just seen it from a
distance.
1Payne,
"Psalms, Book of," p. 928.
2Spurgeon,
The Treasury of David, 2:272.
52
Another possibility is that they were composed by
another Asaph at a much
later date either during or after
the exile. Delitzsch
points out that in Barhebraeus’
commentary on Job and
in his Chronikon several traditions
are referred to
"Asaph the Hebrew priest, the brother of
Ezra the writer of the
Scriptures."1
Support for such a
tradition is still
wanting.
The view which is the most tenable, though not with-
out its problems, is
that JsAxAl; indicates the
family or
guild from which the
psalm originated.2
Perowne rejects
this view because it
makes the sons of Asaph guilty of lit-
erary imposture since JsAxAl; in a title would customarily
designate authorship.3 It may be further
questioned in that
the post-exilic writers
refer to the members of the Asaphite
family or guild as the JsAxA-yneB; (2 Chr. 35:15; Ezra 2:41;
3:10; Neh. 11:22). The
question that is raised is this:
if the Korahite psalms
are designated Hraqo-yneb;li
in the
titles, why are not the
Asaphite guild psalms designated in
a similar manner?
The discrepancies between the titles and the post-
exilic writers in this
regard may not be that significant,
1F. Delitzsch, Psalms, vol. 1, trans. Francis Bolton
in
Commentary on the old Testament,
reprint ed. (Grand.
Rapids:
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1975), p,. 12.
2R. K.
(Grand
Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1969),
p.
979.
3Perowne,
The Book of Psalms, 1:96-97.
53
for the Chronicler also
differs from the psalm titles by
referring to the sons
of Korah as Korahites rather than
Hraq-yneBi.
In reality this is just another evidence that
neither the
superscriptions or the Chronicler are dependent
upon each other. Sarna
has carried this analysis one step
further to show that
they both in turn contrast strongly with
the realities of the
restoration period as recorded in Ezra
and Nehemiah. His
conclusion is that "Psalms and Chronicles
must both represent
genuine preexilic, if irreconcilable
traditions."1
Another version of this view which associates the
Asaph psalms with the
musical guild is that JsAxAl;
designates
the Asaphite collection
or repertoire of hymns from which the
psalm was taken. This
collection may have been compiled and
named after Asaph with
more psalms added by his descendants
in later years.2
A similar view suggested by Briggs is that the Asaph
psalms were originally
collected by an editor, not on the
basis of authorship or
guild origin, but on the basis of
content and purpose.3 Indeed, the psalms do
resemble each
other in character.
Drijvers has characterized Asaph's
collection as
"more didactic and historical with a strongly
1Sarna, "The
Psalm Superscriptions," pp. 285•-86.
2A. Cohen, The Psalms in Soncino Books of the Bible
(London:
The Soncino Press, 1969), p. 156.
3Briggs,
Commentary on Psalms, p. lxvi.
54
prophetic
flavour."1
However, this could easily be
accounted for by unity
of authorship or guild tradition.
Delitzsch attributes
some but not all of these twelve psalms
to David's contemporary
who according to Psalm 78:69 must
have lived until the
early part of Solomon's reign. The
rest, he says, whether
they were composed by Asaph's descen-
dants or someone else
were added to Asaph's collection
because they are
modeled after Asaph's psalms.2
For the most part these are "educated guesses"
based
upon the slightest
amount of evidence. It must be admitted
that there are some
real problems in simply interpreting
JsAxAl;
as a single author from the time of David. The prob-
lem is best resolved by
recognizing the solidarity of the
guild family in
retaining the name of Asaph their founding
father.3
Ethan and Heman.
The identification of Heman and
Ethan whose names are
given in the titles of Psalms 88 and
89 with the added
designation "the Ezrahite" attached to
each poses some
different problems. First of all there is
the problem of which
Heman and Ethan is intended. Then
there is the added confusion
caused by the double title of
Psalm 88. There both Hraqo-yneb;li and yHirAz;x,ha NmAyhel; appear in
1Pius Drijvers, The Psalms, Their Structure and
Meaning (New York:
Herder and Herder, 1965), p. 18.
2Delitzsch, Psalms, 3:24.
3This argument
could also be used against actual
Davidic
authorship except for the fact that there is no
evidence for a Davidic
guild of musicians.
55
the title.
If Hraqo-yneb;li
appeared in the title with just NmAyhel;
there would be no
problem since the Levite musician Heman
was a descendant of
Korah (1 Chr. 6:33-37--Heb. vv. 18-22).
However, the added
designation yHirAz;x,hA
seems to link Heman
and Ethan to the great
men of wisdom with whom Solomon was
compared in 1 Kings
4:31 (Heb. 5:11). The 1 Kings passage
lists these great men
of wisdom as Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman,
Calcol and Darda, the
sons of Mahol. The same four names
appear again in 1
Chronicles 2:6 as four of the five sons of
Zerah of the tribe of
this information is
that the title of Psalm 88 contains two
different statements
concerning the origin of the Psalm
which are
irreconcilable.1
In response to Delitzsch's conclusion it may first
of all be observed that
the sons of Zerah (1 Chr. 2:6) of
the tribe of
not be the same men
mentioned in 1 Kings. In fact the impli-
cation of the 1 Kings
passage is that these wise men were
contemporaries of King
Solomon. Secondly, the designation
"sons of
Mahol" in 1 Kings 4:31 (Heb. 5:11) may actually
indicate membership in
a musical guild. Albright interprets
it to mean
"members of the orchestral guild" based on its
derivation from the root
lUH. The meaning of lUH is much
like that of Greek o]rxe<omai,
"to dance," from which the
1Delitzsch,
Psalms, 3:24.
56
English word
"orchestra" comes.1
thought suggests that
it is "an appellative expression mean-
ing 'sons of the dance
'"2
Thus, the possibility remains
open that the Heman and
Ethan found in the titles and 1 Kings
may also be the
musicians mentioned in the Chronicler.
If this is true, the problem with the designation
"the
Ezrahite" must be explained. Kidner assumes that it is
an equivalent of
Zerahite, a clan of
that the clan adopted
the Levites Heman and Ethan into their
membership.3 Albright rejects this
identification with
Zerah and instead
interprets it to mean "members of a pre-
Israelite family."4 This interpretation is
derived from the
noun form hrAz;x, which means “a native,”5 and in Numbers 9:14
is distinguished from
both the Israelite and the stranger.
This meaning would suggest that both Heman and Ethan
were Canaanite
proselytes who were adopted into the Levite
tribe so as to be able
to use their musical abilities in the
worship of Yahweh.
Scriptural reason
against using Canaanite proselytes in the
musical guilds so long
as they accepted the worship of the
1Albright, Archaeology and
2The New Bible Dictionary, s.v.
"Mahol," by J. G. G.
3Derek Kidner, Psalms 1-72 in The Tyndale Old Testa-
ment
Commentaries (
Press,
1973), p. 35.
4Albright, Archaeology and
5BDB,
p. 280.
57
true God, Jehovah.1
Thus, it is best to understand the names Heman and
Ethan in the titles as
David's musicians who were noted for
their wisdom in
addition to their musical skills as leaders
of their respective
guilds. The added ascription of
Hraqo-yneb;li
in
Psalm 88 may be an indication that Heman's
guild was named after
Korah rather than himself.
The designation NtAyxel;
in Psalm 89 must be treated
in the same was as JsAxAl; (see above), since verses 28-51
describe conditions in
The other suggestion
given by Kidner is that the psalm
originally ended with
verse 37 and was composed by David's
contemporary Ethan.3
The Sons of Korah.
There are eleven psalms, includ-
ing Psalm 88 which are
designated Hraqo-yneb;li
by their
1Clifford
Part
II--David and the Critics." Bible
and Spade 1 (Spring
1972):
53-54.
2In the book of 1
Chronicles the name Jeduthun
replaces
Ethan after chapter 16, but both names evidently
belong
to the same person (cf. 1 Chr. 6:31ff.; 15:17, 19
with
16:37-42; 25:lff.). The name Jeduthun also occurs in
the
titles--twice with the preposition –lf (Pss. 62, 77)
and
once
as NUdyodyli in a Davidic Psalm (Ps. 3§). Herbert
Gordon
May, "’ ‘
Psalms,"
AJSL 58 (January-October 1941): 83,
suggests that it
may
refer to the name of a melody rather than a person in
the
titles. Nahum Sarna in Encyclopaedia
Judaica, s.v.
"Psalms,
Book of" suggests that it may be a musical instru-
ment.
3Derek Kidner, Psalms 73-150 in The Tyndale Old
Testament
Commentaries (
Press,
1973), p. 320.
58
titles. These include a
personal lament (Ps. 88), two com-
munal laments (Pss. 44,
85), four songs of
84, 87), two
secular-type wisdom psalms (Pss. 45, 49), an
enthronement of Yahweh
psalm (Ps. 47), and personal psalms
relating to the
Sanctuary (Pss. 42/43, 84).1 In the psalms
of the last category
the author expresses his own personal
longing for or
attachment to the temple. In fact,
Psalm 84:10 indicates
that the author was a doorkeeper in
the house of the Lord.
This then provides a vital clue to the identification
of the "sons of
Korah." For in 1 Chronicles 26:1-19 some of
the Korahites
(descendants of Korah) are appointed to be the
gatekeepers of the
house of the Lord. This responsibility
remained with the family
even after the return from the
Babylonian exile (1
Chr. 9:17-19; cf. Ezra 2:42; Neh. 7:45)
giving evidence of a
distinctive group (guild) which per-
sisted for many
generations. A part of their group may have
been involved in the
musical aspect of worship as well, for
in 2 Chronicles 20:19
the Korahites are among the Levites
who stood up to praise
the Lord in the days of Jehoshaphat.
Furthermore, it has;
already been noted that the musical
guild leader Heman was
also a descendant of Korah. This
may be an indication
that the Hraqo-yneB; had
double duty in the
priestly
responsibilities of the temple, making them well
1Martin J. Buss,
"The Psalms of Asaph and Korah,"
JBL
82 (December 1963): 382-83.
59
qualified to compose
the quality and type of psalms in this
group.
Another theory concerning the "sons of Korah"
pro-
posed by Miller is that
they were cultic leaders who lived in
the area of
occasional pilgrimages
there during the period of the
Divided Kingdoms.1 The theory centers
around the discovery
of an ostracon with the
inscription Hrq ynb
from Tel Arad.
This ostracon which was
once part of a large bowl with the
names of several
families or groups listed on it was found
in a royal, Yahwistic
sanctuary in the ancient royal fortress
dating back to the
period of the Divided Kingdom.2
While it is possible that some Levite descendants of
Korah were assigned to
the outpost of
written these psalms
from there, there is no reason for
assuming as Miller does
that the Korahites did not reside in
valid reason for
assuming that the Edomite (Gen. 36:16),
Calebite (1 Chr.
2:42-43), Benjaminite (1 Chr. 3.2:1-6), and
Levitical Korahites all
represented “the same tribal group
which entered southern
and settled among the
Calebites in the vicinity of
1J. Maxwell
Miller, "The Korahites of
CBQ 32 (January
1970): 59, 66-67.
2Ibid., p. 64.
3Ibid.,
p. 67.
60
Such an assumption destroys
the credibility of the geneo-
logical records of the
Chronicler.
The references within the Korahite psalms which
speak of the writers
asspociation with the temple and in
particular the
gatekeepers of the temple imply that the
"sons of
Korah" were more than just the collectors of these
hymns. Rather these
psalms were actually composed by one of
the descendants of the
notorious Levite who rebelled against
Moses and Aaron.
Moses
The meaning of hw,mol;
has not been a major problem
in the area of interpretation
since nearly all scholars
whether they agree with
the title or not take it to be
attributing the
authorship of Psalm 90 to Moses. For many
critics this is
impossible and this psalm then is given as
a prime illustration of
the unreliability of the titles.1
that "this and
similar ancient guesses imply that the head-
ings of the Psalms must
not always be taken at their face
value."2
Mowinckel's chief argument against Mosaic authorship
of Psalm 90 is that it
does not reflect the primitive,
collective outlook of
those ancient times when
1Oesterley, The Psalms, p. 18.
2Anderson,
The Book of Psalms, p. 46.
61
ambitiously intent on
conquest. To him the psalm is too
individualistic--concerned
with the personal interests of a
community that knows it
is under the wrath of God--rather
than looking forward to
the fulfillment of God's promises to
the nation.1 However, the psalm is
not written simply from
whole standing before
God.
From the positive side, there are many
similarities
between the language of
the psalm and that of the Pentateuch
written by Moses.
Green, who gives an exhaustive list of
these, points out that
in many cases these coincidences are
too subtle to be the
work of an imitator, but rather reflect
the operation of the
same mind.2
Solomon
The identity of hmolow;
in the titles of Psalm 72 and
127
is certainly understood to be King Solomon. The princi-
ple area of controversy
is whether the hmolow;li
in Psalm 72
should be translated
"by Solomon" in the sense of authorship
or "for
Solomon" in that Solomon seems to be the subject of
the prayer.
That Solomon was well-qualified to
write both of
these Psalms there is
little doubt. First Kings 4:29-34
1Mowinckel, The Psalms in
102.
2Green, "The
Titles of the Psalms," pp. 491-93; For
the
answer to some other objections to Mosaic authorship see
Leupold, Exposition of the Psalms, pp. 641-43.
62
describes his great wisdom
and says that he wrote as many as
a thousand and five
songs. Psalm 127 especially befits
Solomon
as a man of wisdom being written in the form of
wisdom literature like
many of his other writings recorded
in the book of
Proverbs.1
Psalm 72 on the other hand
reflects some of the
experiences of Solomon's life--a pros-
perous reign,
sovereignty over many nations, and receiving
gold from
Some have argued that Psalm 72 was not
written by
Solomon but by someone
else like David about Solomon. One
reason for this is that
the prayer seems to have Solomon as
the subject, and it
would be inappropriate for Solomon to
expect the people to
use such a prayer prepared by himself
on behalf of himself.2 In response to this
Leupold has
shown that the prayer
could be Solomon's prayer for his son
or a prayer designed to
instruct the people how to pray for
"the
realization of the divinely appointed destiny of his
father's house."3 It may be compared to
Solomon's prayer
in 1 Kings 3:6-9.
Another reason for assigning this
psalm to David
instead of Solomon is
due to a misunderstanding of verse 20
which reads: "This
concludes the prayers of David son of
1Leupold, Exposition of the Psalms, pp. 890-91.
2Ibid., p. 515.
3Ibid.
63
Jesse."
This statement was not a part of the original
psalm. Instead, it is a
colophon which appears after the
doxology of Book II and
summarizes the contents of Books I
and II of the Psalter.
It was evidently added by the com-
piler or an editor. The
note was designed to recognize
David
as the chief author of these books; not the only
author, since there are
also psalms by the sons of Korah and
one by Asaph besides
this one by Solomon.1
David as
Author
One of the most serious charges leveled against the
psalm titles is that
they lack credibility in attributing 73
of the 150 psalms to
David. As
character of Christ and
the Apostles is at stake" if David
was not the author of
at least the psalms attributed to him
in the New Testament
(see above p. 48).2
In surveying the
views of scholars down
through history David has always been
held in high esteem as
a writer of psalms. It is only in
relatively recent
history that Davidic authorship has been
questioned.
Historical Views of David the
Psalmist
The earliest extra-Biblical references to David as
an author are found in
the Apocryphal books of Ecclesiasticus
1Ridner, Psalms 1-72, p. 254.
2John J.
Test"
(Class Syllabus, Grace Theological Seminary, 1977),
p. 23.
64
and 2 Maccabees from
the second century B.C. In Ecclesias-
ticus 47:7-11 David is
described as a man of song and praise
who organized the
musicians for temple worship.1
Second
Maccabees
refers to "the works of David" as being among the
writings collected by
Nehemiah when he founded a library
(2
Macc. 2:13).2
The next reference is found in the prose insert in
column XXVII of the
Psalms Scroll from Qumran Cave 4. The
pertinent lines of this
insert are translated by Sanders as
follows:
And
david, the Son of Jesse, was wise, and a light
like the light of the sun, and
literate, and dis-
cerning and perfect in all his ways
before God and
men. And the Lord gave him a
discerning and enlight-
ened spirit. And he wrote 3,600
psalms; and songs to
sing before the altar over the
whole-burnt perpetual
offering every day, for all the days
of the year, 364;
and for the offering of the Sabbaths,
52 songs; and
for the offering of the New Moons and
for all the
Solemn
Assemblies and for the day of Atonement, 30
songs. And all the songs that he
composed were 446,
and songs for making music over the
stricken, 4. And
prophecy which was given him from
before the Most
High.3
Whether or not this composition is based on a valid
tradition handed down
from David's time or originated in the
show that the
1The Apocrypha, An American Translation, trans.
Edgar
J. Goodspeed (New York: Random House, Inc., 1959),
pp.
317-18.
2Ibid., p. 448.
3Sanders,
The
65
of David as the musical
composer and author of many psalms.
The Rabbinic writers for the most part
assigned the
work of the Psalter to
David though not necessarily the
authorship of every
psalm. The second century A.D. Talmud
tract Baba Bathra (14b)
states, "David wrote the Book of
Psalms
with the aid of the ten ancients, with the aid of
Adam the first,
Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, Heman, Jeduthun,
Asaph,
and the three sons of Korah,"1
Apparently David was
considered the author
of some psalms, but the editor of the
entire Psalter.
Very similar is the statement of the
Midrash on the
Psalms from a latter
date. On Psalm 1:2 is included the
statement that "as
Moses gave five books of laws to
so David gave five
books of Psalms to
little later ten men
are listed as authors of the Book of
Psalms; namely Adam,
Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, David,
Solomon,
Asaph, and the three sons of Korah.3
The opinions of several Jewish commentators between
the tenth and
thirteenth centuries concerning the authorship
of the Psalms have been
summarized by Neubauer and in each
case David is held to
be the principle author of the
1Briggs, Commentary on Psalms, p. liv.
2William G.
Braude, trans., The Midrash on Psalms,
2 vols., in Yale Judaica Series 13, ed.
Leon Nemoy (New
Haven:
3Ibid.,
1:10.
66
Psalms.1 R. Saadyah Gaon (died
940) considered David the
author of all the
Psalms and takes the other names as persons
responsible for singing
them.2
Salmon ben Yeroham, Yepheth
ben Eli, Abraham ibn
Ezra and David Qamhi (or Kimhi) all
accept multiple
authorship according to the designations in
the titles.3
It was also the view of some of the
early Church
Fathers that David was
the author of the whole Psalter.
Augustine
for example considered the other names found in
the titles to be the
individuals whom David, in composing
the Psalms,
prophetically represented.4
It was in the seventeenth century when
Benedict
Spinoza began to
expound the
Psalter
that respect for Davidic authorship began to be
undermined. The final
abandonment of Davidic authorship by
the higher critics came
in the nineteenth century with the
rise of the
critical-historical approach. At that time the
1Ad Neubauer,
"The Authorship and the Titles
According to Early Jewish
Authorities," in vol. 2 of
Studia Biblica
et Ecclesiastica,
ed. S. R. Driver, et al.
(Oxford:
at the Clarendon Press, 1890), pp. 10-28.
2Ibid., pp.
1C-13.
3Ibid., pp. 1P,
20-21, 25-27, 28; cf. David Kimhi,
The Commentary
of Rabbi David Kimhi on Psalms CXX-CL,
ed.
and trans. Joshua Baker and Ernest W. Nicholson
(Cambridge:
at the University Press, 1973), p. 11.
4Dewette,
"Introduction to the Psalms," pp. 456-
57.
67
Davidic
authorship was almost completely abandoned.1
Since
then with the aid of
some key archaeological discoveries and
the rise of the
form-critical school it has been shown that
there is good reason
for at least viewing many of the psalms
as pre-exilic and thus
answering the key objection to
Davidic authorship.2
Objections to Davidic Authorship
Five reasons are given by Driver as to why the
majority, at least, of
the seventy-three psalms ascribed to
David
cannot be his.3
His first objection is that many of
these psalms are
reminiscent of earlier psalms and lack the
freshness and
originality expected from the originator of
Hebrew
hymnody. Such an objection arbitrarily limits David's
poetic genius and fails
to take into account the extenuating
circumstances out of
which these psalms often arose.
The second objection, involving the
presence of
pronounced Aramaisms is
much more objective. These Arama-
isms may be explained
in part by transmission. Weiser says
concerning these late
linguistic forms, they are "conclusive
only for the final form
of the psalms in question, not for
1Nahum M. Sarna,
Prolegomenon to The Psalms, Chrono-
logically Treated
with a New Translation, by Moses Butten-
weiser,
in the Library of Biblical Studies, ed. Harry M.
Orlinsky
(New York: KTAV Publishing House, Inc., 1969),
p.
xv.
2Charles Lee
Feinberg, "The Date of the Psalms,"
BSac 104
(October-December 1947):439-40.
3Driver, Introduction to the OT, pp. 374-77.
68
the date at which they
came into existence."1
Oesterley
applies the same
argument not just to word forms but even to
some of the later
thoughts.2
each of these Aramaisms
and comes to the following conclu-
sions: (1) There are
only fifteen genuine Aramaisms in the
Psalms, and of these
only nine occur in Davidic psalms;
(2)
these Aramaisms may actually have originated from other
ancient Semitic
languages; and (3) there is no reason why
David
could not have used Aramaisms since he ruled over all
of the Aramaeans as far
as the Euphrates.3
The most recent
blow to Driver's
argument comes from the discovery of
Aramaic
elements in the fifteenth-century Ugaritic texts
which in terms of
language, poetic form and syntax are very
similar to Hebrew
Poetry.4
Driver's third objection is that some
of these psalms
have stylistic
affinities with psalms which are much later
than David's time. Such
affinities, however, can not prove
any thing concerning
the date of a psalm. Like the first
objection it tends to
be very arbitrary and simplistic.
The last two objections which are quite similar are
1Weiser, The Psalms, p. 92.
2W. 0. E.
Oesterley, A Fresh Approach to the Psalms
(London:
Ivor Nicolson and Watson, 1937), pp. 62-63.
3Wilson,
"The Headings of the Psalms," pp. 28-32.
4Harrison,
Introduction to the OT, pp. 983-84.
69
legitimate objections
which must be answered. Here Driver
cites several instances
of psalms which are unadapted to
David's
situation or character and psalms which presuppose
the circumstances and
character of a later age. A prime
example of this
phenomena is the implication that the temple
has already been built
(Ps. 5:7 (8); 27:4; 68:29 (30);
138:2).
But the usage of lkAyhe
in these passages need not
refer to Solomon's
temple as may be seen from its usage in
1 Samuel 1:9 and 3:3.
Furthermore, as Archer points out,
there is proof in Psalm
27 which uses lkAyhe
that the psalm
could not have been
written after Solomon's temple was built
because the sanctuary
is also referred to as hKosu,
"booth"
and OlAh;xA, "His tent."'
There are also a number of psalms in
which the
writer identifies
himself with the poor and needy during
evil times when the
wicked are established and the godly are
oppressed (Pss. 12, 25,
37, 38, etc.). Once again Driver
claims that these do
not fit into the historical accounts of
David's
life. Yet as Green has pointed out what better time
could be found for such
compositions than the time when
David
was being jealously pursued by Saul. At that time
David was God's
anointed and Saul had been rejected by the
Lord.
On one occasion Saul even massacred the priests sus-
pected of aiding David
and Abiathar had to flee for his
1Gleason L.
Archer, A Survey of Old Testament Intro-
duction
(Chicago: Moody Press, 1974), p. 441.
70
life.1 Here is fertile ground
out of which such a psalm
could have arisen.
Psalm 51:18-19, where a reference is
made to building
up the walls of
later reference to the
hope of restoration. Here it is a
matter of
interpretation. The expression "building the
walls" can mean
"to strengthen, enlarge, and fortify them"
(1
Kgs. 11:27; 12:25; 15:17, 22); or it can be used figura-
tively to mean
"give prosperity" (Ps. 28:5; 89:4).2 The
latter meaning would
maintain the synonymous parallelism of
the verse.
The references to the king in the
third person
rather than the first
person may also seem strange coming
from David, however, it
is a common phenomenon in ancient
literature. In fact
many times in the OT Yahweh is quoted
and speaks of Himself
in the third person.3
Thus, it may be
observed in these few
examples that in most cases where the
critics object to
Davidic authorship of a psalm it is
because not all of the
possible interpretations that would
relate it to David's
time have been exhausted.
The argument of Sarna that the David
of Samuel and
Kings was a man of his
age who was ethically and morally
primitive and therefore
unable to write with the depth of
1Green, "The
Titles of the Psalms," p. 505.
2Ibid., p. 496.
3Archer,
A Survey of OT Introduction, p. 440.
71
spiritual insight and
religious devotion reflected in the
Psalms
is based on an evolutionary bias.1
gious and ethical
concepts did not develop over a period of
years, but were given
to them by God at
before David's time.
The psalms of David then reflect a
thorough knowledge of
God's law. As to the argument that
David
was not exposed to the succession of trials and afflic-
tions of the kind
represented in the Psalms, it can not be
substantiated. On the
contrary, Delitzsch summarizes David's
psalms as follows:
They
are the fruit not only of his high gifts and
the inspiration of the Spirit of God
(2 Sam. 23:2),
but also of his own experience and of
the experience
of his people interwoven with his own.
David's path
from his anointing onwards, lay
through affliction
to glory. . . . His life was marked by
vicissitudes
which at one time prompted him to
elegiac strains,
at another to praise and thanksgiving;
at the same
time he was the founder of the
kingship of promise,
a prophecy of the future Christ, and
his life, thus
typically moulded, could not express
itself other-
wise than in typical or even
consciously prophetic
language.2
Space does not allow for all of the
objections to
Davidic authorship in
the individual psalms to be answered.
These,
however, are treated in the commentaries on the Psalms
by such writers as
Delitzsch, Kirkpatrick and Perowne.3
1Sarna, "The
Psalms Superscriptions," p. 287.
2Delitzsch, Psalms, 1:9.
3For an
exhaustive treatment of positive evidence
for
Davidic authorship see International
Standard Bible
Encyclopaedia, s.v.
"Psalms, Book of," by John Richard
Sampey.
72
The
Historical Notices in the Titles
If there is one item from the psalm titles that is
especially helpful in
interpretation it is the historical
notices, for they give
the historical occasion which
prompted the
psalmist--in each case, David--to write. Yet,
this is the one area in
the headings which has received the
most criticism. Some of
this criticism is based upon the
general character of
these notices and some on specific
problems found in the
psalms.
General Character of the
Historical Notes
A total of thirteen psalms contain
these historical
notices in their
titles.1
Everyone of them are identified
as Davidic psalms (dvidAl;) and refer to events in David's
life. Most, but not
all, of these events are recorded in
the books of Samuel.
The following is a list of these thir-
teen psalms with the
corresponding passage from the histor-
ical books of the OT as
it was compiled by Driver.2
Psalm 3--2
Samuel 15, etc.
Psalm
7--allusion obscure
Psalm
18--2 Samuel 22
Psalm
34--l Samuel 21:13
Psalm
51--2 Samuel 12
Psalm
52--l Samuel 22:9
Psalm
54--l Samuel 23:19
Psalm 56--1
Samuel 21:11 (or 27:2f., 7-12)
Psalm 57--1 Samuel 22:1; 24:3ff.
Psalm 59--1 Samuel 19:11
1This number may
be increased to 14 if Psalm 30 is
included.
The title there reads "A psalm, A song. For the
dedication
of the temple. Of David." (NIV).
2Driver,
An Introduction to the OT, p. 370.
73
Psalm
60--2 Samuel 8:13 (cf. v. 3 Zobah); 1 Chronicles
18:12
Psalm 63--l Samuel 23:14ff.; 24:1;
26:2
Psalm 142--1 Samuel 22:1; 24:3ff.
In summary; Psalms 7, 34, 52, 54, 56, 57, 59, and
142 refer to the period
of David's persecution by Saul;
Psalm
18 to the climax of his reign; Psalm 51 to his con-
fession of sin with
Bathsheba; Psalm 60 to the Syro-Ammonite
war; and Psalms 3 and
63 to his flight from Absalom.
In all but two instances these historical
references
follow a set pattern of
syntax. There is a noun clause
introduced by the
temporal conjunction B;
with the infini-
tive construct. Then
the finite verb is used in the follow-
ing coordinate or
subordinate clause.1
The two exceptions
to this stereotyped
form are found in Psalm 7 and 18. In
each of these titles
the particle rw,xE
introduces a rela-
tive clause. The
relative clause of Psalm 7 describes the
psalm as "that
which he (David) sang to Yahweh concerning
the words of Cush, a Benjamite."2 With Psalm 18 the
obvi-
ously different form is
probably due to its adaptation from
2
Samuel 22:1. Similar to Psalm 7 the relative clause uses
the finite verb with
the non-technical reference to "this
song." In all but
Psalm 7 either the syntactical construc-
tion or a prepositional
phrase indicates the time or
1Childs,
"Psalm Titles," p. 138.
2Childs views
this title as belonging to a litur-
gical
setting since -lf in every other occurrence in the
titles
refers to the manner in which the psalm is to be
rendered; Ibid., p.
138.
74
occasion with which the
psalm is to be associated.
An intriguing parallel to this
stereotyped form of
historical note is found
in the introduction to Hezekiah's
psalm in Isaiah 38.
Like the historical notes in the psalm
titles it is introduced
with the infinitive construct joined
to the preposition B;. The similarity is seen in the tech-
nical psalm
classification and designation of authorship as
well. From this it may
be concluded that by Hezekiah's time
a fixed form of psalm
title was being used.
Objections to the Credibility
of
The Historical
Notes
The stereotyped form of these
historical references
has been used by Childs
as evidence that they were part of
an exegetical process
by ancient rabbis who desired to
supply a setting for
these independent compositions.1
This
view is echoed by
Bruce, although he is willing to admit
that some at least of
the "historical" titles probably find
their origin in the
time of the monarchy. He cites the
example of Psalm 18.2
Another view with less respect is cited by Oesterley.
He
sees them as the work of a redactor who wanted to draw
attention to certain
words or episodes which came to his
mind from the
historical books as he studied these psalms.3
1Ibid., pp.
142-43.
2Bruce, "The
Earliest OT Interpretation," p. 46.
3Oesterley,
A Fresh Approach to the Psalms, p.
86.
75
Weiser is even more
critical in calling them
additions designed to
establish Davidic authorship and thus
David’s
authority for the cultic practices of the Second
Glueck says that these notices have
nothing to do
with the historical
setting of the psalm. Instead, they
were added as a kind of
mnemotechnic used by the director of
music to remind the
people of this or that psalm.2 All of
these explanations
seriously undermine the credibility of
these historical notes
placing them in the category of con-
jecture or downright
deceitfulness. Much of modern scholar-
ship has abandoned the
view that these notes represent
ancient traditions for
a variety of reasons.
A common complaint is that the
contents of the psalms
are inconsistent with
their historical contentions.3
How-
ever, as they are
individually examined it is found that
these objections are
based upon a superficial understanding
of both the historical
texts and the psalm texts. For
example, Eerdmans
assumes that
in the title of Psalm 7
is the Cushite who reports to David
the death of Absalom,
and then notes the difference of mood
1Weiser, The Psalms, p. 38; cf. Edward R.
Dalgish,
Psalm Fifty-One (Leiden: E. J.
Brill, 1962), p. 245.
2J. J. Glueck,
"Some Remarks on the Introductory
Notes of the Psalms," in Studies on the Psalms, in Die Ou
Testamentiese
Werkgemeenskap in Suid-Africa (Potchefstroom,
3Eerdmans,
The Hebrew Book of Psalms, p. 37.
76
between the psalm and 2
Samuel 19:1.1
Such an assumption
cannot be
substantiated, in fact, Eerdman is one of the few
who makes that
assumption. Bruce conjectures that
be a "kinsman and
emissary of Saul otherwise unknown," or
another name for
Shimei.2
No definite identification can
be made from the
Biblical information which raises the
question of where an
"exegete" would have gotten his infor-
mation.
Many of these apparent inconsistencies
may be ex-
plained by the fact
that the psalms express the thoughts and
emotions of David in
various crisis and not simply the
historical facts. For
example Eerdmans rejects the authen-
ticity of the title of
Psalm 142 because in the psalm David
is pictured as a lonely
man forsaken by all his friends.3
The
title, meanwhile, identifies it as a psalm of David in
the cave; where,
according to 1 Samuel 22, he was joined by
his family and about
400 men. David, in Psalm 142 was not
giving an indication of
who was or was not with him in per-
son, but rather an
expression of his inward feelings on that
occasion.
It is also possible that David may have recorded the
words of some of these
psalms sometime after the experiences
as he reflected back
upon them. Kidner suggests this
1Ibid.,
2Bruce, "The
Earliest OT Interpretation," p. 48.
3Eerdmans,
The Hebrew Book of Psalms, p. 399.
77
possibility in response
to the objection that the polished
work of art represented
by the acrostic of Psalm 34 could
not have been written
in the life or death situation
described in the title.1
This could also account for the
strong statement of
faith which some commentators find to be
inconsistent with the
fear which led David to feign madness
before the king of
sistencies may also be
answered by pointing to David's
persevering faith and
proficient poetic ability as he was
guided by the Holy
Spirit.
The lack of specific references within the psalms to
the events described in
the titles should not be used as
evidence against their
authenticity. On the contrary,
Harris sees a divine
purpose in such titles which he express-
es with regard to Psalm
56.
It
expresses trust in time of trouble; but the
Philistines, or
explicitly mentioned. The psalm very
likely was
written years after the event as David
thought upon
those desperate days. He did not write
just for the
pleasure of writing about his
experiences. By the
Spirit
of God, he was moved to write a general psalm
that would also be helpful to us when
we are cap-
tured by our Philistines in the twentieth century.2
It is the above mentioned lack of specific ref-
erences within the
psalms to the events described in the
titles which has led to
Slomovic's view concerning the ori-
gin of these titles. He
suggests that the rabbis used all
1Kidner, Psalms 1-72, p. 44.
2Harris,
"Psalms," p. 38.
78
the
midrashic-hermeneutical methods to determine the set-
tings for these psalms.1 For instance, he sees
a linguistic
connection between
Psalm 56 and the narration of 1 Samuel
21:11-16.
The word llahA
appears three times in the Psalm
and once in the Samuel
narrative. Also, the expression of
fear, xrAyxi (Ps,. 56:4) is connected with the only
mention of
fear on David's part in
the Historical narratives (1 Sam.
21:13).2 Certainly if this was
the explanation for the ti-
tles there would be
good reason to question their authen-
ticity.
Another reason for discrediting these
notes is that
in some cases they
differ from the information given in the
historical narratives.
For example, in Psalm 34:1 the king
of
called Achish. Another
very conspicuous difference is found
in the title of Psalm
60. There it is said that David
fought the Aramaeans
and Joab returned and struck down
12,000
Edomites in the
2 Samuel 8 mentions
David's defeat of the Aramaeans and
identifies David as the
one returning from striking down
18,000
Edomites in the
icles 18:12 it is
Abishai who struck down 18,000 Edomites in
1Slomovic,
"Formation of Historical Titles," p. 352.
2Ibid., p. 372;
Patrick W. Skehan, "A Note on
Ps.
34,1," CBQ 14 (July 1952):226,
also sees the use of the
root
llahA
as the connecting link between Psalm 34:3 and
1 Sam. 21:14.
79
the
These differences, however, need not
be construed
as irreconcilable
accounts of the same event. In the case
of Achish and Abimelech
they both refer to the same person.
Achish
is the king's personal name and Abimelech is his
title, similar to the Pharaoh
of Egypt (cf. Gen. 20 & 26).1
As
for Psalm 60:2, Green has shown how that the last part of
the title may simply
refer to a separate part of David's
overall campaign
against
Joash.2 The obvious
differences in the case of Psalm 60:2
from the historical
narratives has led some like Butten-
wieser to consider this
as a genuine heading.3
In fact this
is the only heading
Buttenwieser considers to be genuine.
Perowne questions the authenticity of these histori-
cal notices on the
basis that they only occur in Davidic
psalms. He argues that
the history of David is much better
known than of the other
psalmists so it was easier to fit
his psalms into a
particular occasion in David's life. This
is then confirmed by
the fact that most of them are taken
almost word for word
from the historical books.4
This argu-
ment does not stand for
it is just as easy to attribute
1Green, "The
Titles of the Psalms," p. 499.
2Ibid., pp.
499-500.
3Moses
Buttenwieser, The Psalms, Chronologically
Treated, with a
New Translation,
Prolegomenon by Nahum M.
Sarna,
in the Library of Biblical Studies, ed. Harry M.
Orlinsky
(New York: KTAV Publishing House, Inc., 1969), p.
70.
4Perowne,
The Book of Psalms, 1:101.
80
these titles to someone
like the author of the historical
books who was himself
familiar with the events of David's
life.
Positive Arguments for the
Credibility
of the Historical
Notes
Some of the reasons for rejecting the authenticity
of the historical notes
may just as easily be used to sup-
port their
authenticity. The variations and additional bio-
graphical details may
be cited as evidence for the use of a
different tradition
behind at least some of the titles from
what is given in the
historical books.
These different traditions do not
necessarily mean
that the titles are
authentic, but it does argue for their
antiquity. For example
in the case of Psalm 7, there would
be no reason for
introducing the unknown "
in the title unless it
was a detail that had been passed
down with the psalm
itself.1
The same could be said con-
cerning some of the
details introduced in the title of
Psalm
60. They must have been valid traditions for as
Archer says, "A
later editor would never have ventured to
manufacture new details
not contained in Samuel and Chron-
icles."2
It may also be noted that the want of a clear
1Kidner, Psalms 1-72, p. 46.
2Archer,
A Survey of OT Introduction, p. 443.
81
connection between the
contents of a psalm and the psalm
title is best explained
by a tradition connected with the
psalm from the time it
was written. Meanwhile, some of the
other psalms in the
Psalter which contain obvious historical
allusions have no such
titles. If these historical refer-
ences are the work of a
rabbinic exegete it seems strange
that he would pass over
the obvious and make up an histori-
cal setting based upon
such meager evidence in some cases.
In summary, these notes which in
thirteen instances
give the historical setting
out of which the psalm arose
deserve serious
attention. They give important clues con-
cerning the origin of
many other psalms beside their own.
They
show that many of the psalms arose out of the experi-
ences of the life of a
man who walked with God. Therefore,
unless it could be
proven that there is a conflict between
the claim of the title
and the contents of the psalm they
should be accepted as
trustworthy.1
As far as their origin
is concerned it must be
admitted that there is no way of
knowing how they
originally became a part of the text.
Kidner's remarks on
this are especially appropriate.
It
should perhaps be left an open question whether
some are the product of comparing
scripture with
scripture, and others the product of
historical
records. What matters is their truth,
which there
is no valid reason to doubt, and which finds
1Many of the
claims by critics that such conflicts
do
exist have been shown to be unsubstantiated by Green,
"The Titles of the Psalms,"
pp. 494-504; and by Leupold in
his commentary, Exposition of the Psalms.
82
incidental
confirmation in the light which they throw
on the psalms they
introduce.1
Summary Statement on the
Credibility of
the Psalm
Titles
From the internal and external
evidences examined
with regard to the
credibility of the psalm titles it may be
concluded that they
represent authentic traditions. As such,
they are to be taken at
face value and may be used as accu-
rate and reliable
sources of information concerning the
author, historical
setting, and liturgical use of the psalms
where such information
is given. The musical and liturgical
notes would apply to
their usage in the
it is likely that some
of them were still functionable in
the
1Kidner,
Psalms 1-72, p. 46.
CHAPTER IV
THE ORIGIN OF THE PSALM TITLES
It is impossible to discern with any
certainty when
or how the titles came
to be a part of the various psalms.
Several
theories have been proposed, many of which have
already been discussed
and shown to be faulty on one account
or another. The most
acceptable view in light of the pre-
ceding material is that
they are pre-exilic in origin and
very likely date back
to the time of composition.
The first line of argument comes from
a comparison
of the psalm titles with
the Chronicler. First Chronicles
16:7-36
gives a composite psalm consisting of Psalms 105:1-
15; 96:1-13; the
closing prayer of Psalm 106:47; and the
doxological colophon of
Book Four of the Psalms. This com-
posite psalm was
committed to Asaph by David to be sung by
the Levitical singers
on the day that the ark of God was
brought up to
ent form of the Psalter
including the titles must have been
established before the
Chronicler wrote.
This fixed form is indicated first of
all by the
inclusion of the
doxology which has been shown to belong to
the final redaction of
the Psalter, serving a literary and
83
84
not a liturgical
function.1
As far as the titles are con-
cerned it may be
assumed that they were already established
at this time since
Psalms 96, 105 and 106 remained anonymous
even though the
Chronicler identified them as Davidic.
One additional passage from Chronicles
which
form before the
Chronicler wrote is 2 Chronicles 29:30.2
According
to it the Levites were ordered by Hezekiah to sing
praises to Yahweh with
the words of David and Asaph. This
indicates that there
were psalms recognized as belonging to
David
and Asaph not only in the Chronicler's day, but also
in Hezekiah's day. It
is not certain whether they were
recognized by their
titles or a distinct collection, but
apparently David's and
Asaph's psalms were distinguishable
a little over 200 years
after they were written.3
Further evidence for an early origin of the titles
comes from the
arrangement of the Psalter. The Psalter is
divided into five books
with the majority of the titles
being found in the
first three. The fourth and fifth books
contain only four
psalms which have any kind of musical
directions and these
psalms are Davidic.
as an indication of a
1Fullerton,
"Studies in the Psalter," p. 192.
2Ibid., p. 190.
3By this time
This
is confirmed by the Annals of Senacharib in which he
reports
that male and female musicians were included in the
tribute paid by
Hezekiah. See Pritchard, ANET, p.
288.
85
titles.1 In response to those
who claim that these titles
are associated with the
worship in the
asks, "why do we
not find the most choice notes with the
later psalms?"2
The Chronicler of course supports this
arrangement
in that it was under
David's leadership that the more elab-
orate service of song
in the former
Thus,
it should come as no surprise that in the first three
books of Psalms
sixty-five of the eighty-nine psalms have
musical
directions. These are almost without exception
identified as being
composed by David or his contemporaries.
It
may also be noted here that the two Asaph psalms which
by their context must
be considered exilic psalms (Pss. 74
and 79) have no musical
directions.
It is suggested then that all of the
information
contained in the psalm
titles finds its origin in the period
of the composition of
the psalms. This does not necessarily
mean that the titles
were affixed to the psalms by the
author, though that was
undoubtedly true in some cases.
Most
likely they were placed at the head of the psalms by
the editor or compiler
as the Psalter was being formed.
There has been much
speculation concerning how the title:
came into the text of
the psalms. Nevertheless, the fact
remains that they are a
part of the text of Scripture that
God
has seen fit to preserve. All the evidence that has
1Bernard C.
Taylor, "The Psalms with Their Super-
scriptions,"
Hebraica 1 (April 1884):30.
2Ibid.
86
been presented suggests
that their origin lies squarely
within the prophetic
tradition of the OT Scriptures which
makes their
authenticity a foregone conclusion.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION
The ultimate conclusion from the
evidence that has
been presented is that
the psalm titles are authentic. They
may not have been
written by the authors of the various
psalms but they do
represent ancient and reliable traditions.
This
is shown in part by the antiquity of the titles. From
the standpoint of textual
studies, there is no evidence to
show that there was
ever a time when they were not a part of
the text. By comparing
the titles with other portions of
Scripture
it seems very probable that they were fixed well
before the exile. Even
if some were added as late as Ezra's
time that would still
place them within the "prophetic tra-
dition."
As a product of the "prophetic
tradition" they
deserve then to be
respected, recognized and understood as
an integral part of the
various canonical psalms to which
they belong. To omit
these titles from the text, as The
New English Bible
does in its translation, is a great
disservice to the
reader.1
1Driver gives the
reasons why they were omitted as
follows. "Some are historical
notices, obviously deduced
from
the text and often unsuitable; all are of doubtful
value. . . ."
Concerning the musical notations he says
87
88
The information contained in the
titles has been
shown to be accurate in
the areas of authorship and histor-
ical backgrounds. When
the preposition l;
is used in the
titles with a personal
name the author of the psalm is indi-
cated either
personally, as is the case with David, or
generically, as with
Asaph and the sons of Korah. When an
historical background
is given for a psalm, it does not rep-
resent the speculation
of some Jewish rabbi but the actual
historical context from
which the psalm originated. The
other notes, which were
not specifically discussed, repre-
sent actual
instructions and factual information which were
important for the usage
of the psalm in
Thus,
these latter notes provide important clues concerning
the role of psalmody in
conveying God's Word to
their public worship.
In summary, the psalm titles are trustworthy witness-
es concerning the
authorship, age, purpose and occasion of
the various psalms
concerning which they give such informa-
tion either implicitly
or explicitly.
"they
are now for the most part unintelligible." He goes
on
to note the totally different notes found in the Syriac
version
and concludes that "as such the headings are almost
certainly
not original." See Godfrey R. Driver, Introduc-
tion
to The New English Bible, The Old
Testament (n.p.:
APPENDIX A
A Comparison of the MT
Titles and the DSS Titles
Psalm MT1 Col. Line 11QPsa2
121 tvlfml ryw III
1 tvlfmh ryw
122 tvlfmh
ryw III 7 same as MT
dvdl
123 tvlfmh
ryw III 15 tvlfml dyvd[ ]
126 tvlfmh ryw IV
9 same
as MT
127 tvlfmh
ryw IV 16 hmvlwl [ ]
hmlwl
129 tvlfmh ryw V
4 [ ]w
130 tvlfmh ryw V
10 same
as MT
133 tvlfmh
ryw XXIII 7 same
as MT
dvdl
138 dvdl XXI 1 same as MT
140
rvmzm
Hcnml XXIII 12 same as MT
dvdl
143 dvdl
rvmzm XXV
6 same as MT
144 dvdl XXIII 12 no
Title
145 dvdl hlht XVI
7 dyvdl hlpt
1Taken from K.
Elliger and W. Rudolf, eds., Biblia
Hebraica
Stuttgartensia
(
1967/1977).
2Taken from J. A.
Sanders, The Psalms Scroll of
of
89
90
Psalm MT Col.
Line 11QPsa
104 no
Title Fragment El1 dvdl
133 dvdl
tvlfmh ryw dvdl tv [ ]
4QPsb 3
103 dvdl d[ ]
4QPsq4
33 no
Title rvmzm ryw dyvdl
4QpPs455
45 Mynww
lf Hcnml ] My [ ] lf Hcnml
lykWm
Hrq-ynbl
tdydy ryw
Nahal Hever frg.6
16 dvdl Mtcm ]
vdl Mt [ ]
1J. A. Sanders, The Dead Sea Psalms Scroll (
2J. Van Der Ploeg ,
"Fragments d'un manuscrit de
psaumes de Qumran (11gPsb)," RB 74 (1967):411.
3Patrick W.
Skehan "A Psalm Manuscript from
(4QPsb)," CBQ
26 (July 1964): 318.
4J. T. Milik,
"Deux documents inedits du Desert de
Juda,"
Bib 38 (19.57):246.
5John M. Allegro,
ies
in the
1968),
p. 45.
6Y.
Yadin, "Expedition D." IEJ
11 (1961):40.
91
82 Jsxl rvmzm "A Psalm of Asaph"
83 Jsxl rvmzm ryw "A Song, A Psalm of Asaph"
84 tytgh
lf Hcnml "To the Chief Musician
rmzm
Hrq ynbl (upon Gittith, A
Psalm for
the
Sons of Korah) "
85 Hrq-ynbl
Hcnml "To the Chief Musician, A
rvmzm Psalm
for the Sons of
Korah"
1Y. Yadin,
"The Excavation of Masada--l963/1934,
Preliminary
Report," IEJ 15 (1965):104. Only
the English
translations of the
titles are given by Yadin.
APPENDIX B
Possible
Meanings of l;
Combined with a
Proper Name1
1. "On (or: about)
N.N."
2. "For
N.N.;" "composed for N.N. (by someone else)"
3.
Something is intended to be used "on behalf (for benefit)
of N.N. "
4.
"Belonging to N.N.," that is to say, to the property or
the inheritance of N.N. or to what
tradition has
preserved concerning him
5.
"At the disposal of N.N." The source and original
intention of the matter in question are not given
6. Lamed auctoris, "(a work) of N.N."
7.
"In the manner (style) of," and characterizes the work
as "composed in the manner of N.N."
1Taken from L. A.
F. LeMat, Textual Criticism and
Exegesis of
Psalm XXXVI
(
1957), p. 34.
92
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WORKS CITED
Albright,
William Foxwell. Archaeology and the
Religion of
Allegro,
the
Press, 1968.
Anderson,
A. A. The Book of Psalms, vol. 1. In
New Century
Bible. Edited by Ronald E. Clements, 1972.
The Apocrypha,
an American Translation. Translated by Edgar
J. Goodspeed.
Archer,
Gleason L. A Survey of Old Testament
Introduction.
Avigad,
N. "The Priest of Dor."
25 (1975):101-105.
Barth,
Christoph. Introduction to the Psalms.
Charles Scribner's Sons, 1966.
Biblical Literature
33 (1914): 198-200.
Bloemendaal,
William. The Headings of the Psalms in
the
Braude,
William G., trans. The Midrash on Psalms,
2 vols.
In Yale Judaica Series 13. Edited by
Leon Nemoy.
Briggs,
Charles Augustus, and Briggs, Emilie Grace. A
Critical and Exegetical Commentary on
the Book of
Psalms, vol. 1. ICC.
Edited by C. A. Briggs, et al.
Brown,
Francis; Driver, S. R.; and Briggs, C. A.; editors.
A
Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament
Bruce,
F. F. "The Earliest Old Testament Interpretation."
in The
Witness of Tradition. In vol. 17 of
Oudtestamentische
Studien.
1962:41-52.
93
94
Bullock,
C. Hassell. An Introduction to the Old
Testament
Poetic Books.
Buss,
Martin J. "The Psalms of Asaph and Korah." Journal
of Biblical Literature
82 (December 1963): 382-92.
Buttenwieser,
Moses. The Psalms, Chronologically Treated,
with a New Translation. Prolegomenon
by Nahum M.
Sarna. In The Library of Biblical
Studies. Edited
by Harry M. Orlinsky.
House, Inc., 1969.
Callan,
Charles J. The Psalms.
Wagner, Inc., 1944.
Calvin,
John. Commentary on the Book of Psalms,
vol. 2.
Translated by James Anderson.
Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1949.
Cheyne,
Thomas Kelley. The Origin and Religious
Contents of
the Psalter.
&
Childs,
Brevard S. "Psalm Titles and Midrashic Exegesis."
Journal of Semitic
Studies 16 (Autumn 1971): 137-50.
Cohen.
A. The Psalms. In Soncino Books of
the Bible.
Edited by A. Cohen.
Cross,
Frank Moore, Jr. The Ancient Library of
Modern Biblical Studies. Garden City,
Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1958.
Dalgish,
Edward R. Psalm Fifty-One in the Light of
Ancient
Near Eastern Patternism.
Davis,
John J. "The Psalms, Studies in the Hebrew Text."
Class Syllabus, Grace Theological Seminary, 1977.
Delitzsch,
F. Psalms, 3 vols. in 1. Translated
by Francis
Reprint ed.,
ing
DeWette.
"Introduction to the Psalms." Translated by J.
Torrey. The Biblical Repository 3 (July 1833): 445-
518.
Drijvers,
Pius. The Psalms, Their Structure and
Meaning.
95
Driver,
Godfrey R. Introduction to The New
English Biblee,
The Old Testament. n.p.:
1970.
Driver,
S. R. An Introduction to the Literature
of the Old
Testament. (1897);
reprint ed.,
World Publishing Co., 1956.
Eerdmans,
B. D. The Hebrew Book of Psalms. In
vol. 4 of
Oudtestamentische Studien. Edited by
P. A. H.
De Boer.
Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1947.
Eiselen,
Frederick Carl. The Psalms and Other
Sacred
Writings.
1918.
Eissfeldt,
Otto. The Old Testament an Introduction.
Trans-
lated by Peter R. Ackroyd.
Row, 1965.
Encyclopaedia
Judaica.
S.v. "Psalms, Book of," by Nahum M.
Sarna.
Feinberg,
Charles Lee. "The Date of the Psalms." Biblio-
theca Sacra
104 (October-December 1947): 426-40.
World 36-37
(1910-1911): 176-92, 252-67, 323-28,
395-406, 47-58, 128-36, 189-98.
Gesenius,
William. Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar.
Edited and
enlarged by
revised from the twenty-eighth German
edition by A. E.
Cowley.
Glueck,
J. J. "Some Remarks on the Introductory Notes of the
Psalms." In Studies on the Psalms. In Die Ou
Testamentiese Werkgereenskap in
Suid-Afrika.
Potchefstroom: Pro Rege-Pens Beperk, 1963.
Gordon,
Cyrus H. Ugaritic Textbook. In
Analecta Orientalia
38.
Goshen-Gottstein,
M. H. "The Psalms Scroll (11QPsa); A
Problem of Canon and Text." In
vol. 5 of Textus.
Edited by
Press, The
Graesser,
Carl Jr. "The Seal of Elijah." Bulletin
of the
American Schools of Oriental Research 220 (December
1975): 63-66.
96
Green,
W. Henry. "The Titles of the Psalms." Methodist
Review
72 (July 1890): 489-506.
Harris,
R. Laird. Inspiration and Canonicity of
the Bible.
_________.
"Psalms." In vol. 2 of The
Biblical Expositor.
Edited by Carl F. H. Henry.
Holman Company, 1960.
Harrison,
R. K. Introduction to the Old Testament.
Grand
Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1969.
Heltzer,
M. "Some North-west Semitic Epigraphic Gleanings
from the XI-VI Centuries b.C." Istituto Universi-
tario Orientale
31 (1971): 183-97.
Hillers,
Delbert R. "A Study of Psalm 148,” Catholic Bib-
lical Quarterly 40
(July 1978):323-34.
Holladay,
William L. A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic
Lexicon
of the Old Testament.
Publishing
International
Standard Bible Encyclopaedia. S.v. "Psalms,
Book of," by John Richard Sampey.
Josephus,
Flavius. The Works of Flavius Josephus.
Trans-
lated by William Whiston. Vol. 2:
Antiquities of
the Jews I--VIII.
1974.
Kidner,
Derek. Psalms 1-72. In The Tyndale
Old Testament
Commentaries. Edited by D. J. Wiseman.
Downers
Grove,
_________.
Psalms 73-150. In The Tyndale Old
Testament
Commentaries. Edited by D. J. Wiseman.
Downers
Grove,
Kimhi,
David. The Commentary of Rabbi David
Kimhi on Psalms
CXX-CL. Edited and
translated by Joshua Baker and
Ernest W. Nicholson.
Press, 197:3.
Kirkpatrick,
A. F., ed. The Book of Psalms, Book I. In The
J. J. S. Perowne.
Press, 1897.
Kitchen,
K. A. Ancient Orient and Old Testament.
Downers
Grove,
97
________.
"The Old Testament in Its Context: 3 From Joshua
to Solomon." Theological Students' Fellowship
Bulletin
61 (Autumn 1971): 5-14.
Kooij,
Arie Van Der. "On the Place of Origin of the Old
Greek of Psalms." Vetus Testamentum 33 (January
1983): 67-74.
Langdon,
Stephen. Sumerian Liturgies and Psalms.
Phila-
delphia: Published by the
LaSor,
William Sanford; Hubbard, David Allan; Bush, Frederic
Wm. Old Testament Survey.
B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982.
Leupold,
H. C. Exposition of the Psalms.
Baker Book House, 1959.
LeMat,
L. A. F. Textual Criticism and Exegesis
of Psalm
XXXVI.
May,
Herbert Gordon. "’ ‘
of the Psalms." The American Journal of Semitic
Languages and Literatures 58
(January-October 1941): 70-83.
________.
"Seal of Elamar." The American
Journal of
Semitic Languages and Literatures 52 (April 1936):
197-99.
Milik, J. T. "Deux documents inedits du Desert de
Juda."
Biblica
38 (1957): 245-68.
Miller,
J. Maxwell. "The Korahites of
Catholic Biblical
Quarterly 32 (January 1970): 58-68.
Miller,
Patrick D. "Psalms and Inscriptions." In Congress
Volume. Supplements to
Vetus Testamentum 32.
Mowinckel,
Sigmund. The Psalms in Israel's Worship,
2 vols.
in 1. Translated by D. R. Ap-Thomas.
Abingdon, 1962.
Murray,
Thomas Chalmers. The Origin and Growth of
the Psalms.
Nestle,
E. B. "The Titles of the Psalms."
The Expository
Times
23 (May 1912):383-84.
Neubauer,
Ad. "The Authorship and the Titles of the Psalms
According to Early Jewish Authorities."
In vol. 2
of Studia
Biblica et Ecclesiastica. Edited by S. R.
Driver, et al.
98
The
New Bible Dictionary. S.v. "Mahol," by J. G. G.
Norman.
Oesterley,
W. 0. E. A Fresh Approach to the Psalms.
Ivor Nicolson and Watson, 1937.
_________. The Psalms.
Perowne,
J. J. Stewart. The Book of Psalms, 2
vols. in 1.
4th ed.
reprint ed.,
House, 1976.
Pietersma,
Albert. "David in the Greek Psalms." Vetus
Testamentum
30 (April 1980): 213-26.
Ploeg,
J. Van Der. "Fragments d'un manuscrit de psaumes de
Qumran (11QPsb)." Revue
Biblique 74 (1967): 408-12.
Pritchard, James B., ed. Ancient
Near Eastern Texts
Relating to the Old Testament. 3rd ed. with
supple-
ment.
1969.
Rahlfs,
Alfred, ed. Septuaginta. 9th ed., 2
vols.
Rogerson,
J. W., and McKay, J. W. Psalms 1-50.
In the
et al.
Bradbury, Agnew & Co., 1911.
Sabourin,
Leopold. The Psalms: Their Origin and
Meaning.
Sanders,
J. A. The
_________.
"Pre-Masoretic Psalter Texts." The
Catholic, Bib-
lical Quarterly 27
(April 1965):114-23.
_________. The Psalms Scroll of
Discoveries in the
at the Clarendon Press, 1965.
Sarna,
Nahum M. Prolegomenon to The Psalms,
Chronologically
Treated, with a New Translation, by Moses
Buttenwieser. In The Library of
Biblical Studies.
Edited by Harry M. Orlinsky.
ing House, Inc., 1969.
99
_________.
"The Psalm Superscriptions and the Guilds." In
Studies
in Jewish Religions and Intellectual History.
Edited by Siegfried Stein and Raphael
Loewe.
Sawyer,
John F. A. "An Analysis of the Context and Meaning
of the Psalm-Headings." Transactions of the
26-38.
Skehan,
Patrick W. "The Biblical Scrolls from
the Text of the Old Testament." The Biblical
Archaeologist
28 (September 1965): 87-100.
________.
"A Note on Ps. 34,1." The
Catholic Biblical
Quarterly 14
(July 1952): 226.
________.
"A Psalm Manuscript from
Catholic Biblical Quarterly
26 (July 1964): 313-122.
________.
"The
Volume
du congres supplements to Vetus
Testamentum
4.
Slomovic,
Elieser. "Toward an Understanding of the Forma-
tion of Historical Titles in the Book
of Psalms."
Zeitschrift
für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
91 (1979): 350-80.
Smith,
J. M. Powis. The Psalms Translated.
Smith,
Roderick V. "'The Titles in the Psalms." M. Div.
Thesis, Grace Theological Seminary, 1974.
Spurgeon,
C. H. The Treasury of David, 3 vols.
Reprint. ed.
Taylor,
Bernard C. "The Psalms with Their Superscriptions."
Hebraica 1
(April, 1884): 26-31.
Terrien,
Samuel. The Psalms and Their Meaning for
Today.
Thirtle,
James William. Old Testament Problems.
Henry Frowde, 1907.
________.
The Titles of the Psalms.
1904.
100
Toy,
C. H. "On the Asaph-Psalms." Journal
of the Exegeti-
cal Society
6 (1886): 73-85.
Tur-Sinai,
N. H. "The Literary Character of the Book of
Psalms." Oudtestamentische Studien 8.
E. J. Brill, 1950: 263-81.
Unger,
Merrill F. Unger's Commentary on the Old
Testament,
2 vols.
Waltke,
Bruce K. "The Textual Criticism of the Old Testa-
ment." In vol. 1 of The Expositor's Bible Commen-
tary. Edited by Frank
E. Gaebelein.
Zondervan Publishing House, 1979.
Weiser,
Arthur. The Psalms. Translated by
Herbert Hartwell.
In The Old Testament Library. Edited
by G. Ernest
Wright, et al.
1962.
Wilson,
Clifford. "The Bible Was Right After All: Part II-
David and the Critics" Bible and Spade 1 (Spring
1972): 51-54.
Wilson,
R. D. "The Headings of the Psalms." The
Theological Review 24 (January
1926, July 1926): 1-
37; 353-95.
_______.
A Scientific Investigation of the Old
Testament.
Revised by Edward J. Young.
1959.
Würthwein,
Ernst. The Text of the Old Testament.
Trans-
lated by Erroll F. Rhodes.
Ltd., 1979.
Yadin,
Y. "The Excavation of
Report."
_________.
"Expedition D."
(1961):36-52.
Zondervan
Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible. S.v. "Psalms,
Book of," by J. B. Payne.
Please report any
errors to Ted Hildebrandt:
|| Pope Shenouda || Father Matta || Bishop Mattaous || Fr. Tadros Malaty || Bishop Moussa || Bishop Alexander || Habib Gerguis || Bishop Angealos || Metropolitan Bishoy ||
|| The Orthodox Faith (Dogma) || Family and Youth || Sermons || Bible Study || Devotional || Spirituals || Fasts & Feasts || Coptics || Religious Education || Monasticism || Seasons || Missiology || Ethics || Ecumenical Relations || Church Music || Pentecost || Miscellaneous || Saints || Church History || Pope Shenouda || Patrology || Canon Law || Lent || Pastoral Theology || Father Matta || Bibles || Iconography || Liturgics || Orthodox Biblical topics || Orthodox articles || St Chrysostom ||
|| Bible Study || Biblical topics || Bibles || Orthodox Bible Study || Coptic Bible Study || King James Version || New King James Version || Scripture Nuggets || Index of the Parables and Metaphors of Jesus || Index of the Miracles of Jesus || Index of Doctrines || Index of Charts || Index of Maps || Index of Topical Essays || Index of Word Studies || Colored Maps || Index of Biblical names Notes || Old Testament activities for Sunday School kids || New Testament activities for Sunday School kids || Bible Illustrations || Bible short notes|| Pope Shenouda || Father Matta || Bishop Mattaous || Fr. Tadros Malaty || Bishop Moussa || Bishop Alexander || Habib Gerguis || Bishop Angealos || Metropolitan Bishoy ||
|| Prayer of the First Hour || Third Hour || Sixth Hour || Ninth Hour || Vespers (Eleventh Hour) || Compline (Twelfth Hour) || The First Watch of the midnight prayers || The Second Watch of the midnight prayers || The Third Watch of the midnight prayers || The Prayer of the Veil || Various Prayers from the Agbia || Synaxarium