Ancient Hebrew Poetry

Introduction to the Book of Psalms

    An excellent introduction to the book of Psalms is that of Erich Zenger entitled "Das Buch der Psalmen" in Erich Zenger et al., Einleitung in das Alte Testament (5th ed., Studienbuecher Theologie 1/1; Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2004). One volume of a three volume commentary on the Psalms by Zenger and Frank-Lothar Hossfeld has appeared in English (Psalms 2: A Commentary on Psalms 51-100 [Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2005]).

    The introduction and notes on the Psalms by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler in The Jewish Study Bible (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004) are also excellent.

    The brief introduction I offer is not a mere rehash of the work of others. It will be of interest to seasoned scholars and beginners alike. 

Go to: IntroPsalms.pdf

Introduction to the Book of Job

    One of the things I hoped to do at the recent Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature was pick up a copy of David Clines' volume two of his commentary on Job. Alas, they were out of copies before I arrived at the bookseller's booth.

    The other commentary on Job we are all waiting for is that of Michael V. Fox. The wait may be a little long. In the meantime, Fox has published a programmatic essay entitled "Job the Pious" in ZAW 117 (2005) 351-366.

    In this post, I take issue with a central thesis of the ZAW article. In what sense can it be said that Job is pious? In my view, the claim needs careful qualification. On many other matters Fox and I agree.

   Another question I address is the sense in which Job is a theodicy. Not at all in the usual sense, I argue. The poetry of the book of Job is splendid, of course, and I will post a scansion of a chapter or two, with translation, in the upcoming year.

Go to: IntroJob.pdf

The Rule of Yahweh and His Anointed: Psalm 2

    The hegemony of Yahweh and his anointed over all of Israel and over neighboring petty kingdoms was seldom a reality but always the ideal to which the people of Yahweh and their king aspired. The alternative, well-understood at the time, was constant warfare. Compare Isa 2:2-4.

    The background to Psalm 2 is found in prophetic oracles and in other psalms. In particular, one needs to compare 2 Samuel 7:8-16; 8:1-14; Isa  8:23ab-9:6 (see Hans Wildberger's commentary for background and a translation); 11:1-10, 13-14; 14:28-32; 16:1-5; Amos 9:11-12; and Pss 18, 60; 72, 87, 108, and 110. Further: Jer 30:8, 31:1-6; Ezek 34:23-31; 37:15-28.

    The prosodic hierarchy of twos and threes is like a mold into which the contents of Psalm 2 is poured. But the rhythm of Psalm 2 is remarkably free, with relatively short versets alternating with relatively long versets. Pregnant pauses in conjunction with the shorter versets may very well have characterized the public reading of the psalm.

Go to:
Psalm_2_scansion.pdf
Psalm_2_translation.pdf

The Dynamics of Parallelism in Ancient Hebrew Verse

    Further research on the varieties of parallelism which characterized ancient Hebrew verse is needed. In this post, I outline some issues and discuss hopes for a tagged database that might meet the needs of future researchers.

Go to: Parallelisms_in_ancient_hebrew_verse.pdf