I. Title And Place In The Canon - Asbury Bible Commentary

Asbury Bible Commentary – I. Title And Place In The Canon

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I. Title And Place In The Canon

A. Title

Following ancient precedent, most English versions of Scripture entitle this anthology of sacred songs “(The) Psalms” (e.g., ASV, RSV, NASB, JB, NEB, NIV) or “The Book of Psalms” (KJV, DV, NAB, NKJV). In the NT Luke uses the titles “The Book of Psalms” (Lk 20:42; Ac 1:20) and “The Psalms” (Lk 24:44), calling each individual composition therein a “psalm” and showing awareness of their numbering in the expression “the second psalm” (Ac 13:33). Luke may reflect the custom of the Greek-speaking Jews of the Diaspora here. Their Scriptures, the Septuagint (LXX), contained these titles, if manuscript evidence from the early Christian era (Vaticanus) attests pre-Christian tradition at this point.

The Greek word psalmos, meaning “a stringed instrument,” “a song sung to stringed accompaniment,” or simply “a song,” stands behind these titles. The LXX translates the Hebrew designation mizmôr (see Ps. 0:5 below), found in the superscription of 57 psalms and apparently taken as characteristic of the majority of the collection. LXX tradition (Alexandrinus) also shows the title psaltērion, “a stringed instrument.” Common Christian reference to “the Psalter” and Luther’s translation reflect this.

Hebrew- or Aramaic-speaking Jews came to call these 150 songs t^ehillîm, “Songs of Praise,” using a special plural form of a word that appears only once in a psalm title (145:1). This use to designate a favorite type of song in the collection (see Ps. 0:9 below) reflects a time when the Psalter had become the “hymnal” of the Jewish worshiping community.

B. Place in the Canon

Jewish tradition universally located the Psalms in the third section of the Hebrew Scriptures called “The Writings” (the K^et̠ûb̠îm), following the Former and Latter Prophets (Genesis-2 Kings and Isaiah-Malachi respectively, excluding Daniel) but placed it variously within those books. Lk 24:44 apparently reflects a tradition (also in the lxx) that placed the Psalms at the head of the Writings. Modern English versions follow a tradition seen also in the Vulgate where Job, Psalms, and Proverbs, in that order, lead the Writings and in which this set of books stands between the Former and Latter Prophets.