b'KERUX COMMENTARIESK erux Commentaries enable pastors and teachers to understand and effectively present the main message in every biblical text. Every volume is written by an expert in biblical exegesis and an experienced homiletician in partnership. The result is a commentary that is focused on biblical insights for biblical teaching, with communication strategies and illustrations that are powerful and engaging.Each volume is divided into distinct preaching segments, in which the authors guide the reader through a well-tested sequence: exegetical analysis, theological focus, and teaching strategy. Based on the text-driven Big Idea preach-ing model, Kerux enhances the readers ability to deliver a message that is biblical, cohesive, and dynamic.EXEGETICALTHEOLOGICALPREACHING/ ANALYSIS FOCUS TEACHING STRATEGY Introduction to the Wisdom PsalmsIntroduction to the Wisdom Psalms Proverbs (Hebrew; cf. NIV) Amen-em-ope (Egyptian; 12001000 B.C.) tecrtmio nRefv eplsaatlomrys(niso a Th uontli khea vteh et oCanoarrayn itief st, htehireGHoed- le o t pbpelcieadu steotha ecye ratlaoinnecaorle-breewresf odried, n w23:4 Do not ruin yourself seeking riches Ch. 7; linesWork only for necessities revelation, whicht ) isb eacnaouthsee rt hteerym inavpoplvliec adbilvei ntoe weo uolvde brteu rrunleidn gb tyomoorrmopwe, tiift ohris roedig, nl emaviginhgt2:5 aeshedam foeodls until they are ful c criupntiucraet,i obnu (wbsy,wwhisadtoevmer,amneda tnesa)c thhiantg iss . rIen-t idee w) oorfs thipe pceorn oflni ctth ea nwdr otnhgesgidoed(wthheo l oissi ning25:2122 Feed your enemy and God wil reward you 1314 F. . . andalolm Sm b h a c glated to Gods la shthe Wisdom Psalms, therete iosu aswanisdd othmecwhiacrkaecd-cehaadreger . anWd hbaetl iethveisrims ethaantswfhoar tetvheerims opdreorpn- Proverbs (Hebrew; cf. NIV) Ahiqar (Assyrian; eighth century B.C.) terrei sctoicn itnra wstheidc.h tohme er igphsalms called Torah orra S ositionadl sa bporoumt Gisoeds sto n aIsturareeliasn sdti lcl etrhtea inca I sse-. 6:15 D 9 Pay back a loan as soon as possible didact itch edyodnoo th acvoen tiasi nso theismwaisndnoemroffe aftoucrues. r o n sm ffroom w ah adte ibstnqeuciecskslayry to free yourself1:3 0line3s4W m Bauetl iGteos ioanrea ln cthurecchessaanridly sthomeea inedio thael13:24; cf.If you spare the rod, you hate your child 6: line 81 Spare the rod, spoil the child onh Gatogdhs g leanwesr aol rc rineasttriounc toior nssp eocri firecv ceoamlemd uwnilil-,inhsrtiitsutitans. How one reads many texts in the vridu19:18 thartiooun. Yet all psalms fall into the categoryC m ec of P deepnetnsd. sS oonm ep rbeesluiepvpeo,s gdo itnhge oinlo, gtihcaatlwhhuimcha nG otodahlesoav reenvea cosmalmmsit 20:20 Those who curse parents wil be snufed9: line 137 The gods curse those who do not honor closm hmimusneilcf,a twioitnh,stuhbrocautgeh- whatever is true for Israel is true out like a light their parents g ay or Torah (Gods revela- w inr aslo, mfoertoorryie ssp oofk ethne W rioghrdt) w.O26:2 A misspoken word never rests, like a7; line 98 A word is a bird, it flies away and neverthaey , cehvuernc hif.sptirhietrusa l hraavteh ebr etehna nt aluitgshttr icttheadte27:3 sparrow8; line 111 returns THREE MODES OF REVELATION Gd diestaolirnyg, sa wdi ththa Its rnaeolt wveerreyrSecrsiptitaunrse.A fools anger is heavier than stone orh IN THE OLD TESTAMENT too itss h n esandNeoatvhiienrg t h(eavne nd eab ltoad of sand or salt) istransfers directly or indirectly to ChriGOD The doctrinal emphasis hererae dweirlsl , bweh oon l iwveh iantin In the OT especially, wisdom is not aboutbelong to another major genre, such as PraisePSALMIST SEER/PROPHET isi fftrearnesnfte rhaibslteo rtioc aml ocdoenrtne xts,Gaboodu atn th Fisa tHhee-r Introduction to the Psalterdal but moral ability. The opposite ofor Lament. Such psalms contain a sermonicb dthtee lwleicsteu apnet rsbounti ssp itrhietu foish incoaltl ys tudpefiid-(o R E S P O N S E R E V E L A T I O N ofr eJwes uGso tdh ew Choh riiss atl, stoh eth uen NiqTue Son of God. Introduction to the Psalter (Dahood 1970, 3:361456), these are not iden-or ignor alloyl , awndho et t wriyc kweodr vde) resluesm reignhtt, ebouut si)n o tre drmidsa cotfi cst (rruecvteulrae- controlled creationthat the sea is just water, not(those that exalt Yahweh [ ] as king in the past,tical languages. Still, Ugaritic word usage and co t only,Einc ctlhee-o(G presence of an otihsdero mcl avsesrifise-SAGE Doctrinal the way of wisdom psalms ) belong to as ie-ncta.l lHede bWreiwsd owmis dBoomo kissf(oJoubn,d P nroov earmbsong thecar tifoonr.m The amtteurnegnot make aw wisdomMAN MAN Theologically, ated ina god, and only their God is truly Lord. present, or future) were dubbed Enthronementgrammatical features offer possible solutions for theology. New lessons werel communic culturePsalms by some earlier scholars (e.g., Gunkelsolving some remaining obscurities in Hebrew. the established literary anguage of as and1998, in toto) because Mesopotamian kings wereMost significant have been the religious (myth-siastes) but also in the Psalter and or pericope doespsalmpresent God as having graciously intervened in in order to be understood. That the word salmsreaffirmed as king through a special celebrationological) texts, which contain terminology also P e as to its overall purpose or design, e.g.,R E F L E C T I O Nthreo pchonettsra. sAtbweiisndgo mma tdeex tb eist woefteenntihdee nritgifihtedo buys Psalms 11, 27 (lament), and 34, 36, 105106heuompalen(lPifse.b1y) . pThroev ifdaiinthgf culle wari lcl ormecmeivaen dwsh faotr h haissways of OT psalms mirror Canaanite p re- ritual or festival, so a similar ritual was assumedused in the OT, especially the Psalms (e.g., Baalpin no way minimized the revelatory andtheto have occurred in Israel in light of the contextthe storm god who rides a chariot across the sky, o d or foolish person. A wise(praise). God saves those who per rwsoisneadnode st hweh waitc ikse rcicgehsts fourljours tb alensds egden leifrea lilny OiaTs tiess ,oWisdaopmpli, eadstao b J rooba,d craotveegrobrsy,,Einc ctlhee-THEOLOGICAL EMPHASES tis rewarded with a su s ftnendsometimes toP of Songs,OF THE WISDOM PSALMS breuesntipnr hoims ipsreedc e(pPtss.a3n7d). prorouvbilsei-o onrst(rPasg.e 4d9y)-. fBreuetmarkable and revolutionary message ofandof these psalms. However, this remains specula- Lotan the sea monster or dragon, and El the an-Israelite Psalter. But as poetic prayerstion. Therefore, the classification Royal Psalmscient god whom Baal wants to dethrone,a withSonghe does not guarantee a tpraises composed throughout ancient Israeliteis preferred. More recently, attention has beenthe help of three other gods: Death, the Sea, and t or Pmsas lomf1lo4n:1g e(=v i5ty3 :a1n),d asfoatoils fias cotnioen w. hAoc cdoercdidinegs t o altsrou tihs c d Nhoe pns halem wisrtote; howe thought vaebro, utY achrewaetihng ( doc)t rwinaes lal e btore tahkoesreswtoh op raores plaewrfkoere paerte ohf eS laltotmer obne. cWauissed oitmhaalsle to thdeoSwointhg wifw sse aasnodnca(Pns a. l7lo3w).history, they inevitably bore the cultural char- paid to parallels in Ugaritic religious and poeticLotan). The Canaanite words for these three are acteristics (perceptions and practices) of thosetexts (Keel, 1978, 1997 in toto; for ANE prayerthe same as the Hebrew words in the OT. The to live apart from Gods revelation and reality. i ore than prophetic-basedand is understood as uhwncehha n( gin)g .o Uffnelriekdetthhee Y fety and a redeemer LITERARY GENRE enxfpoerrmieantcioen-b aabsoeud tm tahte t hreig Phsta wlmays sh teolp li uves .knowCeacnuaraitnyi toefdkeniotiwesin, gY athat he is not whimsicaloaf thhwoeshew(ho )t rius satrinoc hki mof,syae. t7 h8i)s. anger can burn times, as the psalmists wrestle with and,wor- genres, see Longman, 2005, 4162). language used by Abraham in Canaan (ca. nine-ship their God in the midst of progress mi per- Ugaritic Language and Texts teenth century B.C.) would have been similar to We could say th s toward those who rebel (Psplexities, and pain in relation to theiresxedThe Ugaritic language is a Northwest SemiticUgaritic but more similar to other contemporary Wisdom is not really a genre for a psalm buthow to feel about God while other books teachor subject to a coup dtat. Hisopsalms present God at o o o w relationshidp as hTh rervdesa loefd w hthaht efimt oe ththeart wecllc-udresfi ine dalintuermarbye gr eonfr epss saulmchs us he opws atlom ths inthk aatb huavt eG ad(Aisldleonm 1 9c8o0m, 4p1on4e8n)t. loiytahllhoivse peoisp lwe raist hb iass oend lyo nfo rg souosdtnaienses da rne- avien gwisidmosmelfr bgaeln ceoramllmy uinn incaattiuorneexperiences in light of divine promis dandCanaanite-type language, like Hebrew. SemiticCanaanite dialects.punishment. It has been demonstrate thatn Th w . Ha c and specifiics apllryo mthirsoeusg ahn dve pronouncements are the Israelite and Canaanite traditions were notlanguages are grouped according to similari- Yet, Hebrew poetry was not limited to the ins cPluradiesdeoinrLaa mWeisndt.o Omt hcelar spssifiaclmatsi osnom ae thoem nbaitnuer eth oisfah porsiazlomn atasl r, eesxppoenriseen ltiitaelr tartuutrhe .w Thithe boerl lieonnt,e arntadi nhme ennetv. eHr tisr icrkusl eo ri st eaesveesr lpasetoinplge. f (rcttuimalelys t Puss. t1w9o).r Hthy and lead to life (Ps. 119). strongly linked, similarities mainly existing onties by regions and compass directions (North,al psalms span both OT and NT, thei technical levels of linguistics and stylisticsSouth, East, West). Hebrew is both Semitic andPsalter. Biblic and Miriam (Exod. 15; fifteenth (Avshur, 1994, in toto).Canaanite, included in the category of north- from Moses.) to Marys Magnificat in Luke 74 75withwerewest Semitic. Ugaritic (deciphered from tab- centuryi B.C .p 6e B.C.), followed soon after by theBaal and the OT Psalms godslets found near Ugarit [Ras Shamra in modern1:4655 (ca otic prophecy (Luke 1:6879). InANE, among polytheists, thehumans.Syria]) is also northwest Semitic. The UgariticZecharahsetry or possible remnants of com-often at war among themselves orhad devel- language has been important for developingHebrew po may be found from (Mosaic?) In OT times, the Canaanite religiontraditionalnew linguistic theories about Hebrew lexicog- plete psalmsto the apostle John (Rev. 20; first oped to a stage where the older anda youngraphy and syntax as the Canaanite languageGenesis 1:2by A.D.). Thus, the psalms as a chief deity, El, had been ousted by Baal,a coupclosest to biblical (classical) Hebrew of whichto second centur as psalmic poetic expressions upstart, with the help of other gods ina large amount of texts are extant. Althoughliterary form orook of Psalms but are (such as Mot [Death] and Yamm [Sea] and theDahood produced a Hebrew grammar of theare not confined to the bSea Serpent, Lotan). This is why we read aboutPsalter (with Tadeusz Penar) in light of Ugariticlocated throughout Scripture. Baal and not El in the OT. Thus, Baal, the storm god, usurped control of the Canaanite pantheon. The Ugaritic Lotan (= ) and the Hebrew Le-viathan () are cognate in Semitic linguisticsBiblical Chronology of Various Psalms in Scripture(i.e., note the same consonants, L-T-N; t and thPsalm/Poetic Verse Content Location ca. Periodare interchangeable and each language wasTraditional Authorwritten originally without vowels; the v in He- re Moses storm at Creation (paralelism) Genesis 1:2b 15th cent. B.C.*brew can also be o at times). Baal means Lord;Canaanite Baal Figurine, Louvmaster. The Hebrew words for G/god are: El*Genesis 1 could rather have originated among postexilic Levites for a Sabbath lesson ) 1446 B.C.(), Eloah (), and the plural ElohimSome scholars find parallels with certainMoses/Miriam Song () of the Sea ( Exodus 15 1420 B.C.(). When used in the pagan pantheon, theOT psalms among Mesopotamian mythologyMoses Psalm 90 OT Psalms 1300 B.C.tion with Yahweh (), the plural indicated the(religiousworship was a significant feature ofDeborah Deborahs Song ( For more information latter term meant gods. When used in connec- texts like hymns and prayers). TheyJudges 5greatest God. The Hebrew psalmists counteredargue that(e.g., Kloos, 1986, in toto; see also the Canaanite theologians by claiming YahwehOT religion32968). The OTs Royal Psalms () not Baal () was the Creator, whoHoward, 1999,on the series, please visit 3534 KeruxCommentaries.com.Kerux Commentaries are written for trained pastors and teachers who 1.) speak regularly, 2.) have some knowledge of Greek and Hebrew, and 3.) spend significant time preparing to preach and teach Gods Word. Each volume offers the following:A detailed introduction and outline Sidebars of pertinent information and historical A summary of all preaching sections with theirbackgroundprimary exegetical, theological, and preaching ideas Appropriate charts and photographsPreaching pointers that join the original historicalA theological focus to passagescontext with our contemporary one A contemporary big idea for every preaching unitInsights from the Hebrew and Greek text Present-day meaning, validity, and applicationA thorough exposition of the text of a main ideakregel.com/academic21'