Abstract
A tradition-historical analysis of Psalm 55. The text of Psalm 55 will be remembered for its musical setting by Felix Mendelsohn and others and also for the fact that it is one of the most difficult psalms to analyse. A tradition-historical analysis of the traditions and history of the poem confinns the unique and independent character of the text. The content of the psalm is characterised by vague allusions to well-known salvational and historical traditions as well as the psalm's characteristic fonnulations. Themes from the primeval history and desert wanderings of Israel are identifiable. Moreover, tenninology with a socalled priestly background, reflect the psalm's cultic setting and junction, while a theme from the Zion tradition is also evident. Prophetic language is evident in both legal concepts and tenninology which expresses guilt. Relationships with wisdom texts are also evident. This article is an attempt to identify and detennine the function of the above-mentioned traditionsgeschichtliche themes in order to gain a better understanding of the text.
Highlights
Despite the complexity of Psalm 55 and the difficulty of interpreting it, which gained the poem the description of a "vielfach dunkles Gedicht"l.this psalm provides the interpreter with the enjoyment of its several musical settings and the challenge of discovering the various dimer..sions of its meaning.Being part of both the so-called Elohist [43-89] and the Davidic collection [51-70], the psalm is a description of the human experience in which the endangered and desolate ·'1" finds comfort in the anticipation that God will respond to the appeal of the distressed righteous person
The text is characterised by vague allusions to and themes from well-known Old Testament traditions as well as Sondeifonne and the psalmist's characteristic formulations
3b stones rolling from a mountain and coals thrown from a security wall (Ps 21:11; 140:10;·2 Sam 15:4) are visualised; 5b refers to the heart, locus of several aspects of man's life in the Old Testament; in 6 the wearing of a garment is assumed (Ezek 7:18); 7 contains a comparison with a dove (Song of Songs 1:5; Is 38:14); in 8 the desert is mentioned (Jer 9:1); in 9 a raging wind or tempest (Ps 83:16, Am 1:14) and a shelter; in 11, guards (Songs of Songs 3:3) on the city walls
Summary
Despite the complexity of Psalm 55 and the difficulty of interpreting it, which gained the poem the description of a "vielfach dunkles Gedicht"l. It contains several form-critical elements, including petitions and prayer [2,3], descriptive complaints (3c-6, IOb-15c, 21-22), wishes to flee [7,8,9], pleas and wishes for destruction (lOa, 16) elements of GewijJheit der ErhOrung (17-22, 24ab), a hymnical theme (20a), promises of salvation and doom [23] and confession of trust (24c) These elements, each with its own function and emphasis, raise the question whether the complaint/lament or the prayer should be emphasised in the classification of the psalm's literary genre. God's deliverance of the righteous, and condemnation of the "men of blood and fraud" is emphasised before, confirmation of trust or confession of faith is expressed
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