Analyzing the Psalms, 2nd Edition

by Ernst R. Wendland

Analyzing the With Exercises for Bible Students and Translators The purpose of this textbook is to introduce Bible students and translators to the basic compositional structure and literary style of Hebrew poetry, especially the lyric-liturgical poetry found in the Book of Psalms. Wendland follows a "discourse analysis" approach--examining different aspects of the poetic texts as an integrated whole. His primary focus is upon the formal features of the psalms, but elements of content (key terms) and function (psalm types or genres) also receive due consideration. TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction to the Book of Psalms
1.1 The origin of the word psalms
1.2 A brief history of the Psalter
1.3 The numbering of the psalms
1.4 Text critical issues
1.5 Books and other groupings within the Psalter
1.6 Paired psalms
1.7 Hebrew titles of the psalms
1.8 Why sing a new song to the LORD in your language

2. Categorizing the Psalms According to Genre
2.1 The five major functions
2.2 The five minor functions
2.3 The importance of genre in the study of the Psalms

3. Connected The Internal and External Structure of Paired Lines in the Psalter
3.1 Preparing to study the poetic devices of Hebrew
3.2 The nature of connected Internal structure
3.3 The nature of near External structure
3.4 A summary of the semantic relations between parallel lines

4. Distant The Marking of Text Boundaries in the Psalter
4.1 How separated parallelism reveals text boundaries
4.2 How convergence and harmony reveal text boundaries
4.3 Summary of the marking functions of separated parallels
4.4 Some extended patterns of parallelism

5. Lower-Level Stylistic Features of Hebrew Poetry
5.1 Repetitive language
5.2 Figurative language
5.3 Rhetorical questions
5.4 Condensed language
5.5 Varied language
5.6 Phonological resonance
5.7 Multifunctional language

6. What the Psalmists Pray and Praise About
6.1 The cast of psalmic participants
6.2 Topics and themes in the Psalter
6.3 Key terms of the Psalter

7. A Ten-Step Method for Analyzing a Complete Psalm

7.1 The ten steps
7.2 Sample analyses of selected psalms

Organizing a Biblical Poetry Workshop

Recommended Reading

Index

258 pages, Paperback

First published May 11, 2012

About the author

Dr. Ernst R. Wendland is an American academic, theologian, translator and specialist in Biblical languages as well as African languages & literature who has primarily lived and worked in Africa.

Professor Wendland earned a B.A. in Biblical Languages from Northwestern College (Wisconsin), an M.A. in Linguistics and a Ph.D. in African Languages and Literature from the University of Wisconsin, and a Master of Sacred Theology from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary. He has lived in Zambia since 1962 and has been an instructor at Lusaka Lutheran Seminary since 1968. A former United Bible Societies Translation Consultant in Zambia, he serves (since 1999) as Professor Extraordinary in the Department of Ancient Studies at Stellenbosch University (South Africa), a dissertation examiner in Zambian languages for the University of Zambia’s Department of Literature and Languages, and as Adjunct Professor (thesis supervisor/examiner) at South African Theological Seminary and several other universities. He is on the editorial review board of a number of academic journals. His research interests include various aspects of Bible translation as well as structural, stylistic, poetic, and rhetorical studies in biblical texts and/or the Bantu languages of South-Central Africa. He maintains a website of publications and related resources at: https://sun.academia.edu/EWENDLAND.

Professor Wendland is the son of the late Pastor Ernst H. Wendland, who was a well-known Lutheran missionary in Africa.