Luther's Works, Vol. 10: Lectures on Psalms

Luther's Works #10

by Martin Luther, Herbert J. A. Bouman (Translator), Hilton C. Oswald (Editor)

Luther’s The American Edition, published by Concordia and Fortress Press between 1955 and 1986, comprises fifty-five volumes. These are a selection representing only about a third of Luther’s works in the Latin and German of the standard Weimar Edition, not including the German Bible. On October 22, 1512, the faculty of the still newborn University of Wittenberg welcomed an ominous new colleague to its body. Martin Luther was taken under the wing of none other than the vicar general of the German Augustinian Johann von Staupitz. Luther quickly advanced in honor and prestige. Once settled down and committed to university life, Luther took up his new lifework with enthusiasm. Before a year had passed, the Chronicle of Johann Oldecorp “At this same time [1513] M. Luther began to lecture on the Psalter of David. He was very busy with this and had many hearers.” The lectures were indeed given in the traditional fashion, but there was something new in them nevertheless, something that was talked about then and that drew “many hearers.” Even the modern reader of Luther’s notes for these lectures can hardly escape noticing that the message, compared with that of other contemporary lectures, reveals greater individual involvement in the message being expounded. The prime emphasis is constantly on Christ as the center of the whole Psalter. The lecturer is dealing not with idle academic definitions but with the issues of life and salvation that affect the speaker and hearer directly and personally. This is where Luther’s theology begins, and so these First Lectures on the Psalms (1—75) are often called initia theologiae Lutheri.

Genres: Reference

496 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 1974

About the author

Martin Luther (1483-1546) was a German monk, theologian, university professor and church reformer whose ideas inspired the Protestant Reformation and changed the course of Western civilization.

Luther's theology challenged the authority of the papacy by holding that the Bible is the only infallible source of religious authority and that all baptized Christians under Jesus are a spiritual priesthood. According to Luther, salvation was a free gift of God, received only by true repentance and faith in Jesus as the Messiah, a faith given by God and unmediated by the church.

Luther's confrontation with Charles V at the Diet of Worms over freedom of conscience in 1521 and his refusal to submit to the authority of the Emperor resulted in his being declared an outlaw of the state as he had been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. Because of the perceived unity of the medieval Church with the secular rulers of western Europe, the widespread acceptance of Luther's doctrines and popular vindication of his thinking on individual liberties were both phenomenal and unprecedented.

His translation of the Bible into the vernacular, making it more accessible to ordinary people, had a tremendous political impact on the church and on German culture. It furthered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation of the English King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of congregational singing within Christianity. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage within Protestantism.

Much scholarly debate has concentrated on Luther's writings about the Jews. His statements that Jews' homes should be destroyed, their synagogues burned, money confiscated and liberty curtailed were revived and used in propaganda by the Nazis in 1933–45. As a result of this and his revolutionary theological views, his legacy remains controversial.

Reviews

[Glenn Crouch · Rating 3 out of 5]

My journey through Luther's works continued. Many of my colleagues as well as in books I have read, have highly praised Luther's look at the Psalms - so maybe I ventured into this volume with too much expectation? The next is also on Psalms, so maybe some of my views might change in several weeks once I've completed that.

Anyway, I think it should be emphasised that though this is the 10th Volume, it is also some of Luther's earliest work, So one should not expected his theology to be as developed as in later works - and given that - it is valuable to see that at this early stage Luther is so focused on the Cross and the Church.

This is in no way like a modern commentary - rather it is more a collection of notes and thoughts on various Psalms. Whilst they are listed in numerical order (this volume covering 1 through 75) it is not exhaustive - with quite a few Psalms omitted. Likewise the coverage is not uniform. Some Psalms have a handful of paragraphs, others quited detailed analysis - and this is not to do with the length of the Psalm.

I still struggle with the allegorical approach to Scripture, and whilst Luther does try and ensure that all allegories are tied to New Testament Theology, he was definitely more allegorical in his earlier writings. There seems to be very little interest in the Psalms original setting - rather the Psalms are seen as being more prophetic than worship / lament / praise etc. From what I can tell this is not uncommon in the early 16th Century.

Sadly what is also not uncommon in that time period, is how often negative sentiments in the Psalms are seen as being addressed to the Jew (though sometimes to the Turk and others). I feel that later in life, Luther would have used these passages to focus on the sin in our lives. But I did find this uncomfortable at times to say the least.

There are also heaps of gems - and the concluding notes on studying scripture are excellent, for example: "That is to say, Scripture is not in our power nor in the ability of our mind. Therefore in its study we must in no way rely on our understanding, but we must become humble and pray that He may bring that understanding to us, since it is not given except to those who are bowed down and humble."

So I continue to enjoy my travels through Luther's Works - and whilst this volume hasn't been as enjoyable as previous ones, it was still quite worthwhile :)

[Neil White · Rating 2 out of 5]

It helps to know that this is incredibly early in Luther's career. This is his first teaching, a couple years before the theology that will lead to the reformation will come together. If you are reading to understand the way Luther will come to read scripture it will not be helpful or if you are reading to understand the Psalms it will be of very little use. Unlike later Luther where he prefers the literal reading these lectures are dominated by tropological and allegorical readings common to the time of Luther and previous. You can see his Christocentric lens emerging but here Luther tries to make all the Psalms fit with either prefiguring Jesus or as an explanation of current church theology. Like much of the theology of the time it is exceptionally harsh to the Jewish people. If you read it as a historical document to understand the evolution of Luther's thought it is helpful but for understanding either the Psalms, which the lectures are about, or Luther's developed theology of way of reading scripture it is not.