The Book of Psalms: Composition and Reception (Supplements to Vetus Testamentum)

Whoever studies the book of Psalms more closely no doubt senses the fascination and the depth of human experience that radiates from its single poetic texts and at the same time from the composition as a whole. Thus, it is not surprising that the Psalms have been received and commented on up to now. Volume 99 of Supplements to Vetus Testamentum and at the same time the fourth volume of Formation and Interpretation of Old Testament Literature to be reviewed here marks a sort of stock-taking that s hould serve to identify the issues and concerns that belong generally to the study of the Psalms in the early years of a new millennium, as well as the emphases to be found in the present engagement of those issues by scholars in the field (1). Th erefore, a wide range of contributorsfrom Europe, North America, Asia, and Africawere selected, whereas such a collection of essays never ever can be exhaustive, as the two editors, Peter W. Flint and Patrick D. Miller Jr., concede. Be that as it may, the two editorsassisted by Aaron Brunell and Ryan Robertssucceeded in assembling essays by scholars whose listed names read just as the crŁme de la crŁme of those scholars who dedicate their research mainly to the Psalms. Generally, the volume is divided up into five parts with twenty-seven essays, each with an individual bibliography of its own at the end. [Full Review]