The Social Setting of Book II of the Psalter

Abstract

Book II of Psalter is particularly provoking. This chapter argues that Korah psalms in Book presuppose a series of public rituals, each of which might be expected to occupy most of a day. This suggests that social setting of Psalms 42-49 is of a national festival lasting a number of days, perhaps with Tabernacles as the Feast (1 Kgs 8:2). The chapter then makes inferences from David psalms, both their general ascription to David and their particular structure; they, too, are an ordered collection of public psalms, not personal laments and thanksgivings. It draws argument together, as implying given places and times. It was remembered that David psalms were responses to individual episodes in David's life, but notion of a sequence was forgotten. Editors sometimes included historical notes in headings. Such guesses were not always wrong. Keywords: David psalms; Korah psalms; Psalter; social setting of Psalms