Ernst R. Wendland

Analyzing the Psalms: with Exercises for Bible Students and Translators Ernst R. Wendland 2nd edition

Analyzing the Psalms: With Exercises for Bible Students and Translators

The purpose of this textbook is to introduce Bible students and translators to the basic compositional structure and literary style of Hebrew poetry, especially the lyric-liturgical poetry found in the Book of Psalms. Wendland follows a "discourse analysis" approach--examining different aspects of the poetic texts as an integrated whole. His primary focus is upon the formal features of the psalms, but elements of content (key terms) and function (psalm types or genres) also receive due consideration.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction to the Book of Psalms
1.1 The origin of the word psalms
1.2 A brief history of the Psalter
1.3 The numbering of the psalms
1.4 Text critical issues
1.5 Books and other groupings within the Psalter
1.6 Paired psalms
1.7 Hebrew titles of the psalms
1.8 Why sing a new song to the LORD in your language

2. Categorizing the Psalms According to Genre
2.1 The five major functions
2.2 The five minor functions
2.3 Conclusion: The importance of genre in the study of the Psalms

3. Connected Parallelism: The Internal and External Structure of Paired Lines in the Psalter
3.1 Preparing to study the poetic devices of Hebrew
3.2 The nature of connected parallelism: Internal structure
3.3 The nature of near parallelism: External structure
3.4 A summary of the semantic relations between parallel lines

4. Distant Parallelism: The Marking of Text Boundaries in the Psalter
4.1 How separated parallelism reveals text boundaries
4.2 How convergence and harmony reveal text boundaries
4.3 Summary of the marking functions of separated parallels
4.4 Some extended patterns of parallelism

5. Lower-Level Stylistic Features of Hebrew Poetry
5.1 Repetitive language
5.2 Figurative language
5.3 Rhetorical questions
5.4 Condensed language
5.5 Varied language
5.6 Phonological resonance
5.7 Multifunctional language

6. Content: What the Psalmists Pray and Praise About
6.1 The cast of psalmic participants
6.2 Topics and themes in the Psalter
6.3 Key terms of the Psalter

7. A Ten-Step Method for Analyzing a Complete Psalm

7.1 The ten steps
7.2 Sample analyses of selected psalms

Appendix: Organizing a Biblical Poetry Workshop

Recommended Reading

Index