b'KERUX COMMENTARIESK erux Commentaries enable pastors and teachers to understand and effectively present the main message in every biblical text. Every volume is written by an expert in biblical exegesis and an experienced homiletician in partnership. The result is a commentary that is focused on biblical insights for biblical teaching, with communication strategies and illustrations that are powerful and engaging.Each volume is divided into distinct preaching segments, in which the authors guide the reader through a well-tested sequence: exegetical analysis, theological focus, and teaching strategy. Based on the text-driven Big Idea preach-ing model, Kerux enhances the readers ability to deliver a message that is biblical, cohesive, and dynamic.EXEGETICALTHEOLOGICALPREACHING/ ANALYSIS FOCUS TEACHING STRATEGY Introduction to the Wisdom PsalmsIntroduction to the Wisdom Psalms Proverbs (Hebrew; cf. NIV) Amen-em-ope (Egyptian; 12001000 B.C.) tecrtmio nRefv eplsaatlomrys(niso a Th uontl ikhea vteh et oCanoararny itief st, htehireGHoed- le o t pbpelcieadu steotah ecye ratlaoinnecaorle-breewresf odried, n w23:4 Do not ruin yourself seeking riches C Work only for necessities rellvelcartiipotnu,r we,hicuht )i sb aencaouthsee rt hteerym inavpoplvliec adbilvei ntoe w moroedig, nl emaviginhgt13h. 174; linesa S b beo uolvde rbteu rrunelidn gb tyo a corrmopwe, tiift ohris g25:2122 Feed your enemy and God wil reward you 2:5 Feed fools until they are ful . . . andcommunication (by whatever means) that is re- th hsidee w) oorfs thipe pceor noflni ctth ea nwdr otnhgesgidoed(twhheo l oissi ningashamed l ta s, wisdom, andisd the wickedchtee dW tios dGoomd Ps slaawlmthse,rthigehrete iosu asawntdeoamch icnhgasr.a Icn-rehaadrgeer . anWd hbaetl iethveisrims tehaantswfhoar tetvheerims opdroerpn- Proverbs (Hebrew; cf. NIV) Ahiqar (Assyrian; eighth century B.C.) teristic in wsthedic.h Some psalms called Torah orsare contrawisdomositional about Gisoeds st on astruareelias nsdti lcle trhtea inca Ise-. 6:15 D 9 Pay back a loan as soon as possible didaactt itch edyodnoo th acvoen tias inso theis s moar nrneveer aolef df will,B proomt I the same for the W m featoucrues. rauetl itGeos dasren necessarily 1 froom w ah adte ibs t nqeuciecskslayry to free yourself1:3 l0ine34sSpare the rod, spoil the child onh oGuogdhs g elanwesr aol rc rineasttirounc toiorn specific communi- institutional church and some individual If you spare the rod, you hate your child 6: line 81 thr Christians. How one reads many texts in the 13 catuimona.n Yetahlle apvseanlm sc ofamll minutnoi ctahtei ocna, tethgororyu gohfP s d e9::2148; cf.h to cosamlmmitmeepnetnsd. sS oomn ep rbeesluiepvpeo,s gdo itnhge oinlo, gtihcaatl20:20 Those who curse parents wil be snufed9: line 137 The gods curse those who do not honorwhich God also reveals himself, with subcate- whatever is true for tin some Ap amrirsoswpoken word never rests, like aA toorryie ssp oofk ethne W riogrhdt )w.thaey , cehvuernc hi.fsptihrietrusa l hraavteh ebl ewener sh e t aurestricted 26:2 out like a light 7; line 98 their parents g ay or Torah (Gods revela- w O Israelr itarnu elitgehrta l,t hfoarts re twuronrsd is a bird, it flies away and neverGods dealings with Israe27:3 A fools anger is heavier than stone or8; line 111 Nothing (even a load of sand or salt) isTHREE MODES OF REVELA to its history, and that not every sandheavier than debt IN THE OLD TESTAMENTTION Scripitaunrse.GOD transfers directly or indirectly tobCeh orins twveh iantThdom is not aboutis ter adnoscfetrrianbaleletmo mphoadseisr nh reeread weirlsl,u wt htoh ilsi He-i tn In the OT espoercaial llayb, iwlitiys. hTho ei so i popto ssittuep odf i ber loLnagm teon at.nouthcherpmsaaljmors geonnreta, isnu cah aesr mProanisice PSALMIST SEER/PROPHET dS c s birffewer eGnot dh wishtoor iisc aall scoo tnhtee xNtsT,Gabood and Father Introduction to the Psalter htee lwleicsteuale rbsuotnt m fo n defi- owicked versus righteous) or didactic (revela- R E S P O N S E R E V E L A T I O N of Jesus the Christ, the unique Son of God. Introduction to the Psalter (Dahood 1970, 3:361456), these are not iden-p ssp itrhietualloyl , awnd ethically(or ignorante wbu wisdom is found not only in thetory word) element, but in terms of structuret Doctrinalcontrolled creationthat the sea is just water, not(those that exalt Yahweh [ ] as king in the past,tical languages. Still, Ugaritic word usage and cient. Hebr or form (Gattung) rbeeselonncge oofaanotihsdero mcl avsesrifise-SAGE Theologically, the way of wisdomlms lessons were communicated ina god, and only their God is truly Lord. present, or future) were dubbed Enthronementgrammatical features offer possible solutions for so-called Wisdom Books (Job, Proverbs, Eccle- cation. The mere p ws sthe Psalter and among th or pericope does not make a psalm wisdomMAN R E F L E C T I O N MAN p psead h iinstheology. Newy language of a culturePsalms by some earlier scholars (e.g., Gunkelsolving some remaining obscurities in Hebrew. Piraosptehse)t b.u Atawlsios dionma tdeex tb iest wofeteenntihdee nritgifihetedousas to its overall purpose or design, e.g.,hruemseanntlGifeo bdy a ps rhoavvidiningg g cralecaior ucoslmy minatenrdvse nfaotr has byethe established literar od. That the words and1998, in toto) because Mesopotamian kings wereMost significant have been the religious (myth-in order to be understo ror Canaanite psalmsreaffirmed as king through a special celebrationological) texts, which contain terminology also t trast being m Psalms 11, 27 (lament), and 34, 36, 105106people (Ps. 1). The faithful will receive whohr ew ciosen adnode st hweh waitc ikse rdi gohrt f ooor ljiushst p aenrdso gne. nAe wrailslye (praise). Wisdom, as a broad category, in theTHEOLOGICAL EMPHASES been promised (Ps. 37). God saves those who ways of OT psalms mir atory and re- ritual or festival, so a similar ritual was assumedused in the OT, especially the Psalms (e.g., Baal in no way minimized the revel ssage of theto have occurred in Israel in light of the contextthe storm god who rides a chariot across the sky, markable and revolutionary me prayers andof these psalms. However, this remains specula- Lotan the sea monster or dragon, and El the an-personOT is often applied to Job, Proverbs, Eccle- trust in his precepts and provisions (Ps. 49). But is rewarded with a successful or blessed life insiastes, and sometimes to Song of Songs,OF THE WISDOM PSALMSIsraelite Psalter. But as poeticient Israelitetion. Therefore, the classification Royal Psalmscient god whom Baal wants to dethrone, with to factioen w. hAoc cdoercdidinegs t laltotmer obne. cWauissed oitm altsrou tihs c d th No psalmist thought about creating doctrinehe does not guhaora anrtee ela aw t rkoeuebpleer-s o arn trda cgaend .a l73). praises composed throughout anc ultural char- is preferred. More recently, attention has beenthe help of three other gods: Death, the Sea, andlife to those w y-flroeweter Pmsas lomf1lo4n:1g e(=v i5ty3 :a1n),d asfoatoisl lisa toionn and reality. ohf eSo haalsle todeoSwointhg whde nis h uen wderrostteo; ohdo wase vuenrc, hYanahgiwnegh. U (nlik)e w thaes laawhbwreehak (ers t oispar rock of safety and a redeemer history, they inevitably bore the c s) of thosepaid to parallels in Ugaritic religious and poeticLotan). The Canaanite words for these three areosper for a season (Psacteristics (perceptions and practice and wor- texts (Keel, 1978, 1997 in toto; for ANE prayerthe same as the Hebrew words in the OT. The to live apart from Gods reve experience-based more than prophetic-basedan Y )times, as the psalmists wrestle withress, per- genres, see Longman, 2005, 4162). language used by Abraham in Canaan (ca. nine-LITERARY GENRE infoWrmea ctioounld a bsaoyu tth taht et hreig Phsta wlmays sh teolp li uves .knowseacnuaraitnyi toefdkeniotiwesin, gY athhawte hhe (is n)o to wffehriemds itchael oheiml (P, yse. t7 h8i)s. anger can burn ship their God in the midst of prog mixedUgaritic Language and Texts teenth century B.C.) would have been similar toC tofw thaordse t whohsoe t wruhsotirnebplexities, and pain in relation to theires andThe Ugaritic language is a Northwest SemiticUgaritic but more similar to other contemporary Wisdom is not cruearsll yi nagaenurem fobre raopfs aplmsa lbmusthow twofteoe tlh ainbok uatb Gouotd G wohdi l(eA olltehne r1 9b8o0o, k4s1 te4a8c)h. o b t eto iso r oedlanteiossn sahnipd a The words of wisdom psalms present Godeah t aht efimt oe ththear tw o n us ho wri tshu hjiesc po pal ec oisu pb adsetda to. nH g asn dh aspviencgifi r ceavlleya ltehdro hexperiences in light of divine promis d thatCanaanite-type language, like Hebrew. SemiticCanaanite dialects.punishment. It has been demonstrate t ecll-ndte. fiOntehde rli ptesraalmry sg seonmreest ismucehs Th loeylalion, and he never tricks or teases peopleuigmhs evlefr bgaeln ceoramllmy uinn incaattiuorn the Israelite and Canaanite traditions were notlanguages are grouped according to similari- Yet, Hebrew poetry was not limited to thel love. His wrath is only for sustained re-a come bpisnael mthsi s thhoarti zhoanvtea l,a e xwpiesrdieonmti acl otrmuptho wneitnht b (Ps. 19). His promises and pronouncements are ins cPluradiesdeoinrLaa mWeisdom classification actuallythe nature of a psalm as response literature. Thefor entertainment. His rule is everlasting.trustworthy and lead to life (Ps. 119). strongly linked, similarities mainly existing onties by regions and compass directions (North,al psalms span both OT and NT, the technical levels of linguistics and stylisticsSouth, East, West). Hebrew is both Semitic andPsalter. Biblic and Miriam (Exod. 15; fifteenth (Avishur, 1994, in toto).Canaanite, included in the category of north- from Moses.) to Marys Magnificat in Luke 74 75Baal and the OT Psalms werewest Semitic. Ugaritic (deciphered from tab- centuryi B.C .p 6e B.C.), followed soon after by the godslets found near Ugarit [Ras Shamra in modern1:4655 (ca otic prophecy (Luke 1:6879). In the ANE, among polytheists,with humans.Syria]) is also northwest Semitic. The UgariticZecharahsetry or possible remnants of com-often at war among themselves orhad devel- language has been important for developingHebrew po may be found from (Mosaic?) In OT times, the Canaanite religiontraditionalnew linguistic theories about Hebrew lexicog- plete psalmsto the apostle John (Rev. 20; first oped to a stage where the older anda youngraphy and syntax as the Canaanite languageGenesis 1:2by A.D.). Thus, the psalms as a chief deity, El, had been ousted by Baal,a coupclosest to biblical (classical) Hebrew of whichto second centur as psalmic poetic expressions upstart, with the help of other gods ina large amount of texts are extant. Althoughliterary form orook of Psalms but are (such as Mot [Death] and Yamm [Sea] and theDahood produced a Hebrew grammar of theare not confined to the bSea Serpent, Lotan). This is why we read aboutPsalter (with Tadeusz Penar) in light of Ugariticlocated throughout Scripture. Baal and not El in the OT. Thus, Baal, the storm god, usurped control of the Canaanite pantheon. The Ugaritic Lotan (= ) and the Hebrew Le-viathan () are cognate in Semitic linguisticsBiblical Chronology of Various Psalms in Scripture(i.e., note the same consonants, L-T-N; t and thTraditional Author Psalm/Poetic Verse Content Location ca. Periodare interchangeable and each language was written originally without vowels; the v in He- re Moses storm at Creation (paralelism) Genesis 1:2b 15th cent. B.C.*brew can also be o at times). Baal means Lord;Canaanite Baal Figurine, Louvmaster. The Hebrew words for G/god are: El*Genesis 1 could rather have originated among postexilic Levites for a Sabbath lesson ) 1446 B.C.(), Eloah (), and the plural ElohimSome scholars find parallels with certainMoses/Miriam Song () of the Sea ( Exodus 15 1420 B.C.(). When used in the pagan pantheon, thepsalms among Mesopotamian mythologyMoses Psalm 90 OT Psalms 1300 B.C.latter term meant gods. When used in connec- OTtexts like hymns and prayers). They Judges 5tion with Yahweh (), the plural indicated the(religiousworship was a significant feature ofDeborah Deborahs Song (greatest God. The Hebrew psalmists counteredargue that(e.g., Kloos, 1986, in toto; see also the Canaanite theologians by claiming YahwehOT religion32968). The OTs Royal Psalms () not Baal () was the Creator, whoHoward, 1999, 3534Kerux Commentaries are written for trained pastors and teachers who (1) speak regularly, (2) have some knowledge of Greek and Hebrew, and (3) spend significant time preparing to preach and teach Gods Word. Each volume offers the following:A detailed introduction and outline Sidebars of pertinent information and historical A summary of all preaching sections with theirbackgroundprimary exegetical, theological, and preaching ideas Appropriate charts and photographsPreaching pointers that join the original historicalA theological focus to passagescontext with our contemporary one A contemporary big idea for every preaching unitInsights from the Hebrew and Greek text Present-day meaning, validity, and applicationA thorough exposition of the text of a main ideakregel.com/academic29'