Psalms and Wisdom Literature Exam 2

-introduction blessing God

-narrative of psalmist’s problem (explanation of problem, recounting of the call to God, experience of deliverance)

-conclusion with reference to thanksgiving

What is the form of an individual thanksgiving psalm?

-ritual contexts where the individual would testify before the worshipping community

What is the historical setting of an individual thanksgiving psalm?

-invocation

-complaint

-petition

-expression of trust

-expression of praise

What is the form of an individual lament psalm?

-originally used in worship services then as devotional prayers to the individual

What is the historical setting of the individual lament psalm?

-penitential psalms (acknowledge sin and ask for mercy)

-imprecatory psalms (ask for vengeance against enemies)

-psalms of trust (expand the expression of trust and may leave out the invocation/complaint/petition)

What are the subgenres for the individual lament psalms?

-invocation

-complaint

-petition

-expression of trust

-expression of praise

What is the form of a communal lament psalm?

-national festivals addressing national calamities like famine and war

What is the historical setting of the communal lament?

-initial call to praise

-reasons for praise (God’s qualities and God’s specific acts on behalf of Israel and the world)

-Concluding reference to praise

What is the form of the hymn praise psalm?

-used in worship, sometimes at religious festivals

What is the historical setting of a hymn praise psalm?

-Zion psalms: focus on Zion/Jerusalem as a way of praising God

-Enthronement psalms

What are the subgenres of a hymn praise psalm?

-references to David the king

-references to the relationship between God and king

-prayers for the king

-description of the king’s justice and piety

What are the content markers of a royal psalm?

-royal/court festivals and occasions

What is the historical setting of the royal psalm?

-phrases such as “The Lord is king”

-summons to rejoice

-descriptions of God’s acts

-references to the divine kingdom

What are the content markers of the enthronement psalms?

-possibly part of ancient enthronement festival

What is the historical setting of the enthronement psalms?

synonymous parallelism

type of parallelism with ABAB structure and paired ideas to enhance meaning

antithetic parallelism

type of parallelism in which the second line contrasts with the first and has ABA1B1 structure

chiasm

type of parallelism in which it has an ABBA structure and is inverted

stairstep or synthetic parallelism

type of parallelism in which the second line completes or expands the idea of the first

inclusio

framing device that is repeated at the beginning and end of the text

word pairs

Frequently paired terms with related meanings (e.g., righteousness and justice)

King David

king that makes Jerusalem the capital and brings the arc of covenant to Jerusalem

Throne of God

What does arc of covenant mean?

-promises great name

-rest from enemies

-everlasting reign

What does God promise David? (messianic promise/Davidic covenant)

King David

Who commits adultery with Bathesheba and orders her husband to be killed so he can marry her instead?

Prophet Nathan

Who comes to King David telling him God is upset and that he committed sin?

-Proverbs

-Song of Songs

-Ecclesiastes

King Solomon is the author of what three biblical wisdom texts?

King Solomon

Who is the son of David?

King Solomon

Who built the first temple of Jerusalem?

wisdom instead of riches or power

What does King Solomon ask God for in 1 Kings 3?

King Solomon

Who is the father of Rehoboam, who split the kingdom of Israel into two?

Solomon/Qoheleth

Who is the speaker in Ecclesiastes?

-Assembler of Gatherer

What does Qoheleth mean?

vapor/breath; something that doesn’t last

What does hebel mean?

attacks traditional wisdom

What does Solomon/Qoeheleth do in Ecclesiastes?

-death is an equalizer

-wisdom cannot achieve its goal (that there isn’t goodness in the world)

-pleasure is a good thing

-God exists but is unknowable

-Fear God

What are the five convictions of Ecclesiastes?

religious/ethical integrity or bold honesty

What does the hebrew word tummah mean from the Book of Job?

book of psalms/praises in hebrew

What does Sefer Tehilim mean?

United Monarchy

period when the twelve tribes of Israel were ruled by King David and King Solomon (one monarch) around 1000 BCE to 922 BCE

Babylonian Exile

period when the southern kingdom of Judah (Jerusalem) falls to Babylon; the Jerusalem Temple is destroyed and the residents are exiled to Babylon

587-586 BCE to 539 BCE

When was the Babylonian Exile?

1000 BCE to 922 BCE

When was the United Monarchy?

-blameless and denotes perfection/completeness

What does the hebrew word tam mean from the Book of Job?

-first collection markers

-technical terms related to use in worship

-historical notes

What are the three types of superscriptions in the book of Psalms?

first collection markers

type of superscription that tells who the psalm was written in the spirit of

historical notes

type of superscription that places the psalm in a particular moment in Israel’s story

Doxology

Short hymn of praise; concludes each book of Psalms

-every psalm has five parts

-praise 1 god among many (political)

-emphasize relationship on many gods

-praise gods in abstract not for specific experiences on deliverance

-praise precedes petition (to get what you want)

What are the differences between the Babylonian and Israelite psalms?

-address/summon

-praise language

-lament/complaint

-petition

-vow of praise

What are the five parts to a Babylonian lament psalm?

divine retribution

the belief that God rewards good and punishes evil

-quotations (exact quote of words from OT)

-allusions (reference OT in some way through ideas)

How do the NT writers incorporate the OT? (psalms)

-quote: Mark 1:2-3 from Isaiah

-allusion: Mark 1:12 alludes to Israelites 40 years in the desert

What are examples of quotes and allusions from Mark?

-psalter: psalm 1 (wisdom)

-book 1: psalm 2 (royal)

What psalm introduces the psalter and which starts book 1 of the psalter?

5 books

-1-41

-42-72

-73-89

-90-106

-107-150

What is the shape of the psalter?

• Books 1–3 (Psalms 1–89):

  • Emphasize Davidic kingship, many psalms are attributed to David.

  • Laments are prominent, expressing crisis and disorientation.

  • Psalm 89 ends with a tone of despair, reflecting on the apparent failure of the Davidic covenant.

• Books 4–5 (Psalms 90–150):

  • Shift away from human kingship to the kingship of God.

  • Psalm 90 (a prayer of Moses); Sinani covenant

  • Book 5 ends with a crescendo of praise: the last five psalms (146–150) are all hymn psalms.

  • Israel survives turmoil and has identity; orient towards future

Explain the shift from books 1-3 to 4-5 in the book of psalms.

-psalm 145; 146-150 concludes psalter

What psalm ends book 5?

-Messiah (hebrew)

-Anointed one (the king)

-Jesus is the fulfillment of the promises made to David by God

-allusions in Mark 1 and Psalm 2

What is Christos greek for?

Psalm 22:18 and Mark 15:24

Psalm 22:7 and Mark 15:29

Psalm 22:8 and Mark 15:30-31

Psalm 22:1 and Mark 34 (quote- My god my god why have you forsaken me)

What are the allusion parallels in Psalm 22 and Mark?

Chapters 1-2

-Satan asks God a wager; why does Job has faith, is it simply because he gets something out of it? Authentic faith shouldn’t be about reward.

-Job goes through first trial and has first response (submits to God); loses all his stuff

-Job goes through second trial and has second response (submits to God). He loses his health Wife says he shouldn’t remain faithful

-Job goes through third trial and loses family and everything else; three friends come and don’t recognize him

What is the prose frame in the beginning of the book of Job?

Chapters 42:7–17: Conclusion

• After God’s speeches and Job’s response, God rebukes Job’s friends for not speaking rightly about Him.

• Job prays for his friends, and they are forgiven.

• Job’s fortunes are restored twofold: he receives more children, wealth, and long life.

• The book ends with Job living a full life, highlighting a return to blessing.

What is the prose frame at the end of the book of Job?

God finally responds to Job, not by answering his questions directly, but through a series of rhetorical questions that emphasize God's sovereignty and the vastness of divine wisdom.

-God is using creation images to show Job doesn’t know anything

-world is crazy and chaotic

-who made the world and cared for it = God

In response, Job acknowledges his limitations and repents “in dust and ashes.” These chapters shift the focus from explaining suffering to trusting God's wisdom and majesty.

What happens in the divine speeches in Job (chs. 38-42:6)?

-adversary

-roams and patrols earth

-asks a wager: “Why does Job have faith?” is it because he gets something from it; authentic faith shouldn’t be about reward

Who is the Satan in the book of Job?

-speaks after Job’s second trial and says “are you still maintaining your integrity?” (tummah)

-tells Job that he’s not being honest with himself, she’s hurt too and once believed good people are rewarded

-says curse God and wakes Job up from his complacency

Who is Job’s wife in the book of Job?

Eliphaz

-Bases his arguments on mystical experience and personal observation.

-emphasizes that human suffering is often the result of sin and that correction is part of God's discipline.

-urges Job to repent and submit to God's instruction

Bildad

- focuses tradition and the justice of God.

-appeals to ancestral wisdom and insists that God does not pervert justice

- seek God with a pure heart, promising restoration

Zophar

-most confrontational

-accuses Job of lying and minimizing his guilt, claiming Job actually deserves worse punishment than he's received.

-stresses divine mystery and justice

Elihu

-Youngest speaker in Job

-speak with divine inspiration

- suffering may be a form of divine communication rather than punishment.

-stresses God's greatness and justice and serves as a bridge to God’s direct speeches; not rebuked by God

What do Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu argue in the book of Job?