«Gracious and Merciful is Yhwh.» (Psalm 145:8): The Quotation of Exodus 34:6 in Psalm 145 and Its Role in the Holistic Design of the Psalter
Psalm 145 is very important in relation to its position and content in the Book of Psalms as a whole: it concludes the last Davidic collection, and introduces the concluding Hallel (Ps 146-150). As such it is often taken to function as a special seam, a hinge between the body of the Psalter and its...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Studium Biblicum Franciscanum
[2017]
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| In: |
Liber annuus
Year: 2017, Volume: 67, Pages: 29-50 |
| IxTheo Classification: | HB Old Testament |
| Further subjects: | B
Bible. Psalmen 145,8
B Bible. Psalmen 145 B Bible. Exodus 34,6 B Citation |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | Psalm 145 is very important in relation to its position and content in the Book of Psalms as a whole: it concludes the last Davidic collection, and introduces the concluding Hallel (Ps 146-150). As such it is often taken to function as a special seam, a hinge between the body of the Psalter and its concluding doxology. In v. 8, Psalm 145 quotes the 'Divine Attribute Formula' from Ex 34:6-7. It seems that is not by chance that Psalm 145 cites this fundamental article of faith; the result is that it establishes an intertextual dialogue between the Psalm and Exodus 32-34. The hermeneutical effect is that the theological perspective underlying the golden calf narrative is recovered: Yhwh is a God whose gracious and compassionate love is capable of offering the hope of a new future to a stiff-necked people and also to all the peoples of the earth, calling them to share the covenantal love of the compassionate God of Israel. However, Psalm 145 is a Davidic Psalm, so here it is David and not Moses who is recalling the divine attributes revealed at Sinai. Indeed, all three Psalms in the Psalter which explicitly quote Ex 34:6 (Ps 86; 103; 145) are Davidic. My proposal is that Ex 34:6 functions in binding the Psalter into a canonical unity: the role of the Davidic king is to establish the kingdom of Yhwh on the earth, confident in His gracious character. |
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| ISSN: | 0081-8933 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (Jerusalem), Liber annuus
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1484/J.LA.4.2019003 |