A Voice Without End: The Role of David in Psalms 3–14. By Andrew C. Witt

Abstract

Growing interest in theological or canonical interpretation à la Brevard Childs has proven especially fruitful in recent scholarship for understanding the complex literary history of the Psalter and its relationship to other texts in the Hebrew Bible. The latest addition in this area is Andrew Witt’s A Voice Without End: The Role of David in Psalms 3–14, which explores how the superscriptions attributing the first section of psalms to David can guide our reading of these texts not only individually but as a group. From the very beginning, Witt rejects the theory that the so-called ‘Davidic psalms’ are meant to give a glimpse into the heart of the David portrayed in the book of Samuel, even when linked to a specific biographical story or scene. Instead, he proposes that with the addition of the superscriptions, an editor of the Psalms was attempting to shape their own Davidic persona, which acts as a guide instructing the later reader how to pray these texts. This is a refreshing proposal which handles well both the obvious diachronic development of the Psalms and the incongruency in certain places between individual psalms and linked narrative accounts in Samuel. Witt also takes seriously the literary sophistication of the editor, which is apparent from his consideration of the whole unit of Psalms 3–14 together, their interrelations, and wordplay.