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

Chapter 3: Methodology• The position of the word in the psalm: the more strategically the word ispositioned in the two psalms, the more significant it is. Key words at thebeginning, end or thematic centre of the psalm are most significant.• The collocation of the word with other words: shared words appearingin groups are more significant than shared words occurring in isolation.For example, if the phrase “workers of iniquity” occurs in both psalms,this is more significant than if the words “workers” and “iniquity” bothoccurred separately.• The context in which the word is used: words used in similar contextsin both psalms are more significant than words used in differentcontexts.3.5.2 Evaluate other kinds of potential links between psalmsIn addition to an exhaustive analysis of shared terminology, other possiblefactors which might have played a role in the editorial decision to juxtaposetwo psalms will be considered. I include four of these factors.• Historical links. If there is reason to believe that the final redactorsbelieved both psalms sprang from the same historical setting, thismight have influenced them to keep the two psalms together.81