All these points are strikingly appropriate to the Hasmona-an rule in its latter daj's, and to the Sa/iducean party. On the other hand, the dis- tinctive Pharisaic doctrines and aspirations are maintained and cherislied by the psalmist. The ideal of a theocracy, the hope of a Messiah, the expectation of a retribution, and the views ex- pressed about free will, are all of them just such as the Pharisees are known to have held.
T. CO.N'TKNTS OF THE PSALMS. —
Ps 1. Deals shortly with the sin and ponishment of Jerusalem.
2. The siege of Jerusalem ; the sins which led
to it; the death of the besieger; the justice of God.
3. A contrast between the righteous and the
sinner.
4. A deac ription and denunciation of the ' men-
pleasers' {arBpuTrdpfffKoi).
5. God's mercy to the righteous.
6. The fearlessness of the righteous.
7. A prayer for God's chastening.
8. The sins of Israel, and their punishment : o
prater for restoration.
9. Ood's justice and man's free will.
10. The blessedness of alUiction.
11. The restoration of Israel. This psalm coin-
cides larfjely with Baruch 5, which seems to be derived from it.
12. The deceitful tongue : its deeds and its
punishment.
13. The preservation of the righteous and the
destruction of the sinner.
14. God's faithfulness to the righteous; the
sinner's insecurity.
16. The deliverance of the righteous ; the
sinner's fall. 18. Confession of sin ; praise for deliverance ; and prayer for future guidance.
17. The kingship of God ; the overthrow of
David's throne ; the kingdom of the Messiah.
18. God's love to Israel ; anticipations of
Messiah's rule ; praise of God as the Lord of the heavens. This last portion ends abruptly, and seems not connected with the rest of the psalm. It may possibly be a fragment of a 19th psalm. The most important of these psalms are 2. 4. 8. 11. 17. 18.
vi. Me.s.sianicTeachino.— The Messiah of these psalms is figured as a king of the seed of David, who is to appear in God's good time to drive out the Koinans (Goitiks) and Saildiicces {sinncr.i), to restore the dispersed tribes and renew the glories of Jerusalem and its temple, and subdue and convert
the Gentiles. He will reign in holiness and justice, not bj' force of arms. lie is anointed (xp'oris) king and priest, but he is not divine.
The new features in this description are mainly two. (1) Messiah is a person. Excluding Dn 7 as of disputed interpretation, we have this point plainly stated for the lirst lime in the literature of Palestine. The oldest portion of Sib. Orac, which comes from Egj'pt, has a somewhat similar descrip- tion of a coming king (iii. 652 ff.). (2) The epithet XP'<rT6s is here lirst applied to him.
We may see in this presentation of Messiah a result of the brilliant victories of the Maccabees, which had reawakened in the popular mind the hope of a Jewish monarchy. But this is only part of the truth.
A designation of Messiah which appears in these psalms, and elsewhere only in La 4-'* and Lk 2", is XP'-"'''^^ KvpLos. A probable view of it is that, as in Lamentations, it is a faulty rendering, and should be x- xvpiov.
The interest and importance of these psalms is very considerable. Thej' throw much light on the aims and thoughts of the Pharisees of our Lord's time ; they mark an important stage in the de- velopment of the Messianic idea ; and they illus- trate in very many points the diction of the NT and of the LXX.
In literarj' merit they do not stand very high. The longer psalms are the best ; the shorter ones are like centos from the Davidic psalter. Still we gain a favourable impression of tlie author : while he is a strong and unsjiai Ing partisan, he is clearly also a pious and humble-minded man.
LiTERATURB, — A list o( editious aud notices will be found in Ryle and James's edition ; since the date of that, Gebhardt's aa well as tile C'anib. text have appeared (see above), and also a pamphlet by Krankenberg (Die Datierwi'j dcr Ps. .S'o/., Uicssen, ltj9(i), and a German version by Prof. Kittel in Kautzsch's Apokr. v.. I'seudepigr. d. AT. M. K. JAIIES.
PSALTERY. — A stringed instrument of music, described in art. MusiC in vol. iii. p. 459'". The Gr. i/'dWeii', to harp, gave x/'uXtt^s a harjjer, and \pa.\Ti]piov a harp (used in the widest sense). The LXX uses \j/a\Tripiof as the tr. of five Ileb. words — (1) iV.:} Gn 4-1 (EV ' harp '), Ps 49* (EV ' harp ') 81» 1493 (EV ' harp '), Ezk 2G^^ (EV ' harp ') ; (2) ^^} or h^i Neh 12", Ps 33= 57» 92' 108* 1449 ISO^, Is 5'" (AV 'viol,' RV 'lute'); (3) nj-:} Is SS^" (EV ' stringed instruments ') ; (4) ['"injc^ or piojp? Dn 35. 7. 10. JB . (5) ^i, Job 2112 (EV 'timbrel'). From tpaXHjpiov was formed Lat. psalteriuiti, from which (through Old Fr. psalterie) came Eng. ' psaltery.' The spelling in Chaucer (following the middle- Eng. pronun.) is sautrye, as Millcres Tale, 27 — ' And al above ther lay a pay sautrye, On which he made a nightes inclodye So Bwetely, that al the chambre rong.'