Evocating Contexts: Experiencing Psalm 88 in Three Settings (original) (raw)
Related papers
Drowning in the Depths of Darkness: A Multi-Dimensional Consideration of Psalm 88
NOTE: see "Papers" for published version. Psalm 88, described by Walter Brueggemann as “an embarrassment to conventional faith,” is the darkest of laments in the Psalter, moving slowly and steadily from “Yahweh” to “darkness” without a glimmer of hope. This enigma has puzzled interpreters of various schools, with some so “embarrassed” that they go to great lengths to explain away the obvious weight of gloom and despair —a move which destroys the powerful potential of this prayer. Employing a multi-dimensional approach with elements of rhetorical, form, and canonical criticism, I approach the Psalm in three movements. The resulting exegesis evinces a consistent darkness running through the whole, separating the Psalm from its formal companions and relating closely to its placement in the Psalter at the close of Book III. Reflections on appropriation further relate the content of the Psalm to the experience of Christ in Gethsemane and to personal piety and pastoral counseling in the face of depression. The gospel power of this darkest of Psalms is found not in squelching its voice, but in affirming its realistic portrait of the dark night of the soul.
Psalm 88 within its Contexts (Historical, Literary, Canonical, Modern, and Psychological)
Scriptura, 2023
Psalm 88, considered ‘the darkest psalm’, is often avoided by ‘the average reader of Scripture’ and considered ‘outside of normative theology’ by many scholars. The big problem is that the lamenter accuses God of breaking the covenant, and God does not answer the lamenter. The psalm ends without resolution. Moreover, the complainant claims to be innocent, thereby raising the issue of a person suffering unjustly (before an all-powerful, loving God). Biblical texts like this force us to look wider and deeper, to gain an understanding of the text’s message and its role within the canon. In this paper, the wider view is considered by studying the psalm within five contexts – historical, literary, canonical, within the modern world, and in the light of a psychological theory. The first has little to offer (of certainty) but the literary view highlights key themes. The canonical view shows how it critiques Ps 1, gives a climax to Book III (with Ps 89) and prepares for Book IV, and connects with Job and Jesus. The modern context brings new insights: the reality of the Holocaust has prompted deep searching and an adjustment of theological thinking by several scholars. And the psychological perspective (from the fact that the psalmist does not experience the identity disintegration usual in such situations) highlights the crux of the psalm – his covenant relationship with YHWH as the most important, and only, element that holds in such extreme times. In essence, the psalm (in context) shows us that innocent people suffer, but God is not unjust. However, sufferers should protest and their pain should be acknowledged as truth. Moreover, meaning should not be squeezed out of suffering, for humanity’s inability to comprehend fully is a reality. Nevertheless, the psalm gives space and permission for sufferers to safely protest, with a fellow-sufferer.
Drowning in the Depths of Darkness: A Consideration of Psalm 88 with a New Translation
Canadian Theological Review, 2012
Psalm 88, described by Walter Brueggemann as “an embarrassment to conventional faith,” is the darkest of laments in the Psalter, moving slowly and steadily from “Yahweh” to “darkness,” seemingly without a glimmer of hope. This enigma has puzzled interpreters of various schools, with some seemingly so embarrassed that they go to great lengths to explain away the obvious weight of gloom and despair—a move that destroys the powerful potential of this prayer. Employing a multi-dimensional approach with elements of rhetorical, form, and canonical criticism, I approach the psalm in three movements. The resulting exegesis evinces a consistent darkness running through the whole, separating the psalm from its formal companions and relating closely to its placement in the Psalter at the close of Book III. Reflections on appropriation further relate the content of the psalm to the experience of Christ in Gethsemane and to personal piety and pastoral counselling in the face of depression. The gospel power of this darkest of psalms is found not in squelching its voice but in affirming its realistic portrait of the dark night of the soul.
Under review, 2022
Psalm 88 is considered to be one of the most difficult portions of Scripture to interpret, with its message of “darkness” and depression. Various theories have tried to shed light on the psalm’s message, and to reconcile it with the character of YHWH seen in other biblical texts. Towards this end, some scholars suggest that the critical element is its historical context and an understanding of how the psalm was used in the ANE. Others study the literary (and rhetorical) features within the poem; this is also extended to assess its message within Book III of the Psalter, within the Psalter as a whole, and then canonically, within the Old Testament and the whole Bible. More recently, biblical texts are also explored in the light of the modern reader’s context. In this regard, a psychological hermeneutic of Ps 88 is evaluated. This paper does not claim to present the “long-sought-after” solution for the paradox of Ps 88, but it does show how reading a psalm within various contexts can be helpful. Moreover, such an approach offers insight for many different contemporary readers, each within their own personal contexts. By holding the various interpretations in tension, a richer, wider, and deeper understanding will ensue.
The Psalms contain some of the most uninhibited and volatile expressions of emotion in all of the Bible. This is perhaps seen most sharply in the psalms of lament, of which Psalm 88 stands as the one of the most emotive and agonizing examples in the genre. Psalm 88 is a hopeless exception among the laments in which the psalmist does not end with a confident turn to the ‘Thou’, but rather lingers in his solitude and anguish. Other psalms - such as 39 and 143 - may lack resolution, but none end as bleakly as 88. Given that this psalm stands as such a unique entry in the Psalter, it will be valuable to look more closely at its theological message. This essay will suggest that its unresolved and unanswered suffering provides an important model of a faithful sufferer who continues to cry to God though he feels abandoned by him.
Carey Psalms Conference, 2024
“Your terrors strike and flood with doubt, and darkness is my friend.” Can you remember singing words like these with your congregation in a worship service? Not likely! The significant lacunae in contemporary worship songs which “dive into the pool of sustained lament” spurred us to commission, arrange and share “You Are the God Who Saves Me”, a contemporary lament covering the theological and emotional terrain of Psalm 88. Using an interdisciplinary approach, this paper presents a reception-historical study of the theology and praxis of turning the notoriously dark words of Psalm 88 into a congregational worship song, and presents qualitative feedback from Christians who engaged with it personally and corporately amidst global and personal trials.
An Unrecognized Voice: Intra-textual and Intertextual Perspectives on Psalm 81
Psalm 81 constitutes an Exodus psalm in which YHWH speaks directly to his people, admonishing them against worshipping foreign gods. As an incentive to obedience, YHWH recalls the punishments he inflicted against Israel's forefathers for disobeying this injunction, and promises blessings to those who obey him. In addition to the original meaning intended by the psalmist, Psalm 81 bears additional meanings and serves additional functions depending on the contexts in which it appears. Thus the individual meaning of the composition differs from the meaning it adopts within the complex of its neighbors, Psalms 80 and 82. Similarly, its function alters again when read together with its related intertexts. The present study constitutes a threefold literary reading of Psalm 81 that explores the changes in Psalm 81's meaning from its reading as an individual text, to its reading in light of the aforementioned contexts. Even though the present paper adopts a synchronic approach to intertextuality, it nevertheless raises the probability of either the psalmist or the authors of Psalm 81's intertexts purposefully reinterpreting their sources.
A contextual and intertextual reading of Psalm 118
Old Testament essays, 2003
It is a sine qua non of biblical scholarship that texts should never be interpreted in isolation. Curiously enough ever since the rise of critical biblical scholarship this key aspect of the exegetical process has been largely ignored in the exegesis of the Book of Psalms. Nowhere is this shortcoming better illustrated than in the arbitrary allocation of a social and historical background to virtually any psalm. In this paper the shortcomings of this atomistic approach is illustrated by referring to a specific psalm, namely Psalm 118. A short overview of various interpretational perspectives on Psalm 118 in commentaries and other studies is given. It is argued that a contextual and intertextual reading of Psalm 118 will act as a counterbalance to arbitrary decisions on the interpretation of the psalm. It is the interplay between intra- and intertextual data that guides the exegete towards reconstructing an extratextual context for the poem.