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

Chapter 2: History of Psalms Studiesin 1975, (b) the Korahite Psalms in 1982, (c) the Prayers of David (Pss 51-72)in 1990, (d) the Psalms of Asaph (Pss 50, 73-78 and 82-83), (e) the Songs ofAscents (Pss 120-134) in 1997 and (f) Book V (Pss 107-150) in 1998.Although his work remained primarily form-critical in approach, not exploringin detail the literary relationship between psalms in a corpus, he was amongthe first modern scholars to call for psalms to be studied in corpi rather than inisolation, asserting that “it is entirely proper to begin the study of the Psalterwith the expectation that it will be an ordered and not an assorted collection;or, at the very least, that it will contain elements that were rationally ordered”(Goulder 1982:8).Four of Goulder’s works were major monographs published in the JSOTSupplement Series. He recognised that various groups of psalms (e.g.,Korahite, Asaphite, Songs of Ascents) belonged together and sought tounderstand their relationships in terms of historical and cultic factors.Assuming that their liturgical use accounted for their arrangement, he studiedcorpi of psalms in an attempt to understand their cultic Sitze im Leben.Goulder’s first monograph in the JSOT Supplement Series, The Psalms of theSons of Korah (1982), equated “the sons of Korah” with the priesthood of Danin the northern kingdom of Israel. He argued that the Korahite psalms wereused in the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles at the royal shrine in Dan.48