Review in: Pacifica 2003 16: 318
Review door: Antony F.
Campbell, S.J.Gevonden op: http://paa.sagepub.com/content/16/3/318.full.pdf+html
SAMUEL
TERRIEN, ThePsalms: Strophic Structure and Theological Commentary. Eerdmans
Critical Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. ISBN 0802826059. Pp. 900.
Rrp. US$95.00.
Psalms
commentaries in English are not exactly an endangered species, but they are not
abundant either. In the last couple of decades, one might note
Craigie-Allen-Tate (Word, 3 vols), Dahood (AB, 3 vols), Kraus (CC, 3
vols), Gerstenberger (FOTL, 2 vols), and Mays (1 vol.). In English,
one-volume commentaries are rare. This one comes from Samuel Terrien
(1911-2001), one of the towering figures of biblical scholarship's past,
professor over the years at Union Theological Seminary in New York. The
teachers he acknowledges are a roll call of the great names of French exegesis:
Lods, Dhorme, Virolleaud, Dussaud, and the Dominican friars of the Ecole
Biblique (Jerusalem). The publishers describe the volume as a "monumental
work"; they are probably right.
There
is a 65-page Introduction covering, among other things, the ecumenicity of the
psalms, their ancient Near Eastern background and their origins, issues of
growth, text, music, and strophic structure, as well as the questions of
literary genres, theology, and relationship to the Newer Testament. Terrien's
immense learning is evident. His writing remains accessible; documentation is
kept to the footnotes. The major issues of recent psalm research are canvassed.
It is
done with sensitivity and sympathy; it is done with remarkably balanced
judgement.
As
Terrien notes, given their diversity, the 150 psalms "do not lend themselves
easily to theological synthesis". This is a commentary in which theology
plays a major role and the headings from the Introduction are worth noting:
God's presence and absence - the creator of nature - the sovereign of history -
the judge of the enemies – the protector of the poor and healer of the sick -
the master of wisdom – the Lord of life - theology and doxology.
Before
some selective sampling, it may be helpful to highlight the aims of the book.
Terrien points to three tasks for the interpreter: (i) to clarify obscurities
and elucidate theological significance; (ii) to analyse strophic structure;
(iii) to discover a link between the psalms' archaic language and the
intellectual demands of modern thinking and spirituality. I believe users will
find that Terrien has performed these tasks with remarkable ability.
The
book offers Terrien's own translation, not he says as "fluid and poetic"
as Coverdale (1535) or "the King James masters" (1611) but aiming at
an accuracy not available then. The work is addressed to both scholars and
general readers. With this in mind, notes of textual criticism etc. have been
reduced to a minimum. The bibliographies are extensive, useful to readers
interested in specific aspects of translation or interpretation. Terrien is
gifted with frankness and honesty:
The tone of certain psalms, it is well known, repulses the
sensibility of our age. Let one recall the poverty and oppression endured, and the
violence of wars. This might explain, without excusing, the terror, the
despair, and at times the spirit of vengeance in which some of the poets
wallowed.... Beyond the coarseness of individual or corporate cries for
avenging, there may be an equilibrium between justice and compassionate
humaneness.
Sampling
from 150 psalms, in a book of over 900 pages, has to be inadequate. Here,
however, are a few examples. On psalm 1: "Those who go the Lord's way will
find an equilibrium between egocentricity and the ability to love neighbors and
even enemies." "Psalm 2 reflects the theology of the great prophets.
God is enthroned, but he is not immutable. Divine passion for righteousness
threatens but also seeks to convert." On psalm 15: "Whoever has received
the invitation of a Bedouin nomadic chief in the semidesertic regions of the
Near East will appreciate and understand the theological metaphor of the divine
hospitality .... It may be benevolent and even prodigal, but it does not encourage
triviality." Psalm 22: "A theology of God's 'forsakenness' is never
far from an anthropology of man's dereliction." Psalm 23: "It is not
generally observed that the representation of God as a shepherd calls for a
comparison between human nature and ovine obstinacy, with limited intelligence
and a propensity to panic." Psalm 51: "The psalmist seems to have
discovered the depth of his own shame at the very moment when he remembered
that God loved him as a mother loves the fruit of her womb." Psalm 89:
"A national calamity hit the elected people, from the elected king to an
anointed king who has become the suffering servant of the Lord. No charge of
iniquity, transgression, or sin justifies his fate." Psalm 104: ''The
acquaintance of the psalmist with both the prayer of an Egyptian thinker - and
a Hebrew wise man – can hardly be doubted. Like the poet of Job, this poet is
an international seeker of God in world culture." Psalm 137: "This is
one of the most beautiful poems of the Psalter, yet it ends with a monstrous imprecation."
"Psalm 150 is sunk in ancient mythology, but its truth may survive its
obsoleteness as the roots of its faith grow even more solidly anchored in the
age of global humanity."
There
is an index of subjects and one of scripture and other ancient sources. At
$(US)95, the book is not cheap; in this day and age, what is? It is
without question worthwhile; of how many things can that be said in this day
and age?
Antony F. Campbell S.J.,
Jesuit Theological College,
Parkville, Victoria 3052.
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