Smith DTh Thesis (final).pdf - South African Theological Seminary

Chapter 5: Concatenation in Psalms 3-85.2 The relationships between Psalms 4 and 5Even a cursory scan of commentaries shows that most scholars sense thatPsalm 5 is somehow related to Psalm 4. Conservative commentators (e.g.,Kidner 1973; Phillips 1988; Motyer 1994; Wilcock 2001; Smith 1996; Lane2006) who hold to Davidic authorship tend to see an historical link, postulatingthat David wrote both psalms in response to the same event in his life (theperiod surrounding Absalom’s rebellion is the most popular suggestion as towhich event it was). Critical commentators (e.g., Briggs and Briggs 1906;Weiser 1962; Craigie 1998; Goldingay 2006), on the other hand, generallyregard the link as cultic in nature—alternating psalms for use at the eveningsacrifice (Psalm 4) and the morning sacrifice (Psalm 5). Although it isplausible that (a) David wrote both psalms in response to a similar situationand/or (b) they were later used in morning and evening worship, a closeanalysis of both psalms suggests that neither of these considerationsprovided the primary rationale for their juxtaposition in the Psalter.196