THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
sense of the whole. One must be prepared to find as various religious presentations as in general are found in the Old Testament itself. Eras like that of the times of the early kings, that of the prophetic teachings, and that of the reign of the law and dealing with sacrifice, find their representative expressions here. Alongside this is the fact that in any one period individual feelings find vent in different tones. If one selects the doctrine of God as the chief point of interest, one finds him spoken of as a war deity or a storm god (Pss. xviii., xxix., xxiv.), and as an eternal and omnipresent being (Pss. xc, cxxxix.); as the God whose dearest love is the broken and bruised heart, and as the one again who wishes no offering, or, once more, as the God who gave the law, meditation upon which day and night brings the highest praise to the pious (Pss. 1., li., L). Between these different conceptions lie centuries of development. Similarly if the test be the ideal of piety, of a religious and ethical ideal of life, the results show not only a varied expression but one which embodies diverse individual experience. In Ps. i. true piety consists in meditation on the law day and night; and since this psalm heads the Psalter, and, so to speak, sets forth the program of the collection, this ideal has been taken as that for which the Psalter stands. Such a tendency does, indeed, appear in the Psalter (Pss. xix. 7 sqq., cxix.), and sets forth the ideal of the learned in the law. Hand in hand with this ideal is that which expresses joy in the Temple, " A day in thy courts is better than a thousand." In the hours of celebration of the Temple services the pious experiences the blessing of mystic nearness to his God. Yet this latter ideal is older than that which finds essential piety in contemplation of the law. But one can not fit the whole Psalter into this measure. Psalms which express delight in the Temple and in sacrifice are offset by those which protest against an overvaluation of sacrifice and cult. Alongside of emphasis upon cult is found the simple ideal of a religious and ethical course of life (Ps. xxiv. 4).
With the ideals of piety and of a pure course of life goes step by step the consciousness of sin. In the Psalter may be found the confidence of a person in his own integrity and piety (Ps. xxvi. 11), or who hopes for salvation because of his rectitude
(xxv. 21), or who speaks of sin from
2. Ideas of the standpoint of ceremonial piety
Sin and (xix. 12 sqq.). In Ps. xxv. 7, 18, the'
Eschatology. poet speaks almost vivaciously of his
sins, but they are the sins of his youth for which he dares to bespeak forgiveness. He knows nothing of such a thought as that he is an unworthy servant, who after the Pauline type of expression is to be penitent and rely on faith (cf. also Ps. xix. 7 sqq.) ; two things alone can trouble him, ignorance and pride. But this is by no means the only view of piety found in the Psalter, as is seen on reading Pss. xxxii., li., which show not a superficial idea of sin, but a consciousness which is felt in the inmost self, which treat not of sacrifice, performance, or priests. Forgiveness of sin results from piety and righteousness — to the righteous only does it come, from it the wicked are excluded. Ps. li. makes forgiveness the correlative of renewal of
heart, and reminds of the characteristic teaching of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. A similar state of things is found when one considers the eschatological and Messianic ideas. From the simple glorification of the king of Israel, who is exalted even by the heathen as God's son, is only a step to the thought that God will give the victory to his anointed on Zion over all his foes even to the end of the world. Such thoughts are in evidence in psalms like ii., ex., which reveal the trend of expectation during the historic kingdom. Similarly the beginnings of eschatology also reach back into early days, but it is continually unfolded, particularly after the exile. From the hope for the simple triumph of the king over his foes developed a transcendental expectation, assuming cosmical and eternal proportions. Indeed, the farther worldly expectations sank into the impossible, the more glowing became the hopes of a future glory, involving therein the world- judgment, after which was to come the kingdom of Yahweh, enduring forever (cf. Pss. i., v., vii., ix., xxii., xlvi., lxxxii., xcvii., and others). And a clear distinction is possible between the portrayal of the Messiah in the canonical psalms and in the Psalms of Solomon.
(R. KlTTEL.) Bibliography: The books named under Hebrew Language and Literature are to be noted for the poetry of the Psalms, and for introduction the works on Biblical introduction (Driver, Konig, Cornill, and others) and on O. T. theology (e.g., Sehultz). Questions of introduction are generally treated with more or less fulness in the commentaries; special works are: C. Ehrt, Abfassungszeit und Abschluss des Psalters, zur Prufung der Frage nach Makkabiierpsalmen, Leipsic, 1869-, C. Bruston, Du texte primitif des Psaumes, Paris, 1873; J. F. Thrupp, Introduction to Study and Use of the Psalms, 2 vols., London, 1879; Messio, De la chronologie des Psaumes, Paris, 1886; J. Forbes, The Book of Psalms, Edinburgh, 1888; W. Alexander, Witness of the Psalms to Christ and Christianity, London, 1890; T. K. Cheyne, The Book of Psalms, ib. 1888; idem, Origin and Religious Content of the Psalter, ib. 1891; W. Stark, in ZATW, xxii (1892), 91-151 (on the titles) ; W. T. Davison, Praises of Israel, London, 1893 (one of the " good little books"); W. T. Dawson, The Praises of Israel, ib. 1893; T. C. Murray, Origin and Growth of the Psalms, New York, 1894; Jakob, in ZATW, xxvi (1896), 265-291, xxvii (1897), 49-80, 263-279; J. K. Zenner, Die Chorgesange im . Psalmen, Freiburg, 1896; H. Roy, Die Volksgemeinde und die Gemeinde der Frommen im Psalter, Gnadau, 1897; J. Koberle, Die Tempelsanger im A. T ., Erlangen, 1899; J. Wellhausen, Skizzen und Vorarbeiten, vi. 163-187, Berlin, 1899; H. Grimme, Psalmenprobleme, Freiburg in Switzerland, 1902; Matthes, in ZATW. xxxii (1902), 65-82; J. Achelis, Der religionsgeschichtliche Gehalt der Psalmen, Berlin, 1904; F. W. Mozley, Psalter of the Church; the Septuagint Psalms compared with the Hebrew, New York, 1905; J. Gurnhill, Companion to the Psalter, 2d ed., ib. 1907; J. McNaugher, The Psalms in Worship, Pittsburg, 1907; J. W. Thirtle, O. T Problems; critical Studies in the Psalms and Isaiah, Oxford, 1907; F. A. Gasquet and E. Bishop, The Bosworth Psalter, New York, 1909; DB, iv. 145-162; EB, iii. 3921-67; JE, x. 241-250; Vigouroux, Dictionnaire, fasc. xxxiii. 803-838; DCB, ii. 450-455.
On the " I " of the Psalms consult: Smend, in ZATW, . xviii (1888), 49-147; Schuurmanns-Steckhoven, in ZATW, xix (1889), 131 sqq.; G. Beer, Individual- und Gemeindepsalmen, Marburg, 1894; F. Coblenz, Ueber das betende Ich in den Psalmen, Frankfort, 1897; D. Leimdorfer, Das Psalter-Ego, ib. 1898; I. Engert, Der betende Gerechte der Psalmen, Wiirzburg, 1902.
Of commentaries the best is by C. A. and Emilie Grace Briggs, 2 vols., New York, 1906. Among the numerous others the following, devotional or critical, may be noted : J. Calvin, Eng. transl., 5 vols., Edinburgh, 1845-49; J. G. Vaihinger, Stuttgart, 1845; H. Olshausen, Konigsberg, 1853; W. M. L. De Wette, Heidelberg, 1856; A. de Mes-