Message of the Psalter: An Eschatological Programme in the Book of Psalms, The

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Dec 1999 by Futato, Mark D

The Message of the Psalter: An Eschatological Programme in the Book of Psalms. By David C. Mitchell. JSOTSup 252. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1997, 428 pp., $66.00.

The Message of the Psalter is one of several recent additions to the growing corpus of work that treats the purposeful arrangement of the Book of Psalms. Mitchell is in full accord with those who argue that the Psalter is not a random anthology but is a purposefully edited literary whole. His thesis, however, goes in a different direction from that of others who have attempted to articulate the theological agenda that guided the editorial process.

Mitchell disagrees with current theories on the editorial agenda, which are historical in orientation. In particular, he takes issue with Wilson and McCann, who argue that the Psalter is a call to trust in the Lord alone, given the rejection of the Davidic monarchy (Psalm 89). Mitchell raises several pertinent questions at this point. If there is no longer any interest in the house of David, why does David's name appear in sixteen titles and several psalms in Books 4 and 5? Why do Books 1-3 end on the note of the Lord's apparent failure to keep his promises (Ps 89:35-39 [MT 34-381), if the message of the whole is to trust the Lord? Mitchell also notes that Wilson's theory does not fit with what we know about Israel's attitude toward the house of David at any of the proposed times for the final edition of the Psalter.

Contrary to such a historical orientation, Mitchell argues that the agenda is eschatological. The opening chapter on the history of interpreting the Psalms shows that an eschatological orientation has been the dominant interpretive approach to the Psalms except for the brief period of about 1820-1970. Mitchell examines the Asaph collection and the Psalms of Ascent, arguing that each has an eschatological orientation.

Mitchell then sets this eschatological movement in the context of prophetic eschatology, which can be broadly described in terms of an ingathering of Israel, an alliance of hostile nations that attack Israel, salvation by the Lord, followed by consummate worship of the Lord by Israel and the survivors of the nations. This picture is filled in by the addition of two other motifs, that of the smitten king and an ensuing exile.

The full picture then emerges: the king comes (Psalm 45), Israel is gathered in (Psalm 50), the nations gather for war (Psalms 73-83), the king is cut off (Psalm 89), rescue by the messianic king (Psalm 110), paeans of messianic victory (Psalms 111118), and the ascent of all Israel to celebrate the feast of tabernacles (Psalms 120-134).

Mitchell has certainly moved the discussion of the editorial purpose of the Psalter in the right direction. The idea of an absolute rejection of the Davidic monarchy certainly seems to founder on a text like Psalm 132: "For the sake of David your servant, do not reject your anointed one" (v. 10) and "Here I will make a horn grow for David and set up a lamp for my anointed one" (v. 17). In his commentary, McCann says this psalm is not to be heard messianically but simply articulates "hope for the future of God's people." Such an interpretation seems, however, to distort the obvious meaning of the text by forcing the text to fit a predetermined agenda. Psalm 132 articulates a living hope for the restoration of the house of David and the coming of the anointed one.

Likewise, Ps 118:26 anticipates the coming of someone in the name of the Lord to bring salvation. Based on this text, at the time when the Psalter reached its final form according to Wilson (the first century AD), there was just such an anticipation of "one to come" (Matt 11:3). This one who would come was the king of Israel from the house of David (Matt 21:9; John 12:13).

While Mitchell has moved the discussion in the right direction, he himself acknowledges that more research is needed to substantiate his thesis (p. 301). As he admits, his research has not integrated the Davidic psalms, the Korahite psalms, the Psalms 135-150 or the significance of the Elohistic Psalter. No small task! Though not conclusive, The Message of the Psalter makes a valuable contribution to the ongoing study of the purposeful arrangement of the Psalter, as it points us in the direction of an eschatological agenda for the whole.

Mark D. Futato

Reformed Theological Seminary, Orlando, FL