Template:StoryBehindPage
From Psalms: Layer by Layer
About the Story Behind Layer
The Story Behind the Psalm shows how each part of the psalm fits together into a single coherent whole. Whereas most semantic analysis focuses on discrete parts of a text such as the meaning of a word or phrase, Story Behind the Psalm considers the meaning of larger units of discourse, including the entire psalm.
The goal of this layer is to reconstruct and visualise a mental representation of the text as the earliest hearers/readers might have conceptualised it. We start by identifying the propositional content of each clause in the psalm, and then we identify relevant assumptions implied by each of the propositions. During this process, we also identify and analyse metaphorical language (“imagery”). Finally, we try to see how all of the propositions and assumptions fit together to form a coherent mental representation. The main tool we use for structuring the propositions and assumptions is a story triangle, which visualises the rise and fall of tension within a semantic unit. Although story triangles are traditionally used to analyse stories in the literary sense of the word, we use them at this layer to analyse “stories” in the cognitive sense of the word—i.e., a story as a sequence of propositions and assumptions that has tension.
Summary Triangle
The story triangle below summarises the story of the whole psalm. We use the same colour scheme as in Participant Analysis. The star icon along the edge of the story-triangle indicates the point of the story in which the psalm itself (as a speech event) takes place. We also include a theme at the bottom of the story. The theme is the main message conveyed by the story-behind. (For more information, click "Story Triangle Legend" below.)
Background ideas
Following are the common-ground assumptionsCommon-ground assumptions include information shared by the speaker and hearers. In our analysis, we mainly use this category for Biblical/Ancient Near Eastern background. which are the most helpful for making sense of the psalm.
- The continuation of the created order, seen most clearly in the continuous succession of days and nights (cf. Gen 8:22), is a testimony to God's honor and skill.
- This rhythm of day and night is governed by the movements of the sun, moon, and stars, which God created and placed in the sky (Gen 1:16-18).
- The sun is closely associated with righteousness and law (cf. Mal 3:20; IQ27 I:6–7; see Sarna 1965).
- YHWH's instruction is like the sun.
- Coming into contact with YHWH's glory and perfection leads a person to recognize their own sinfulness (cf. Isa 6).
Background situation
The background situation is the series of events leading up to the time in which the psalm is spoken. These are taken from the story triangle – whatever lies to the left of the star icon.
Expanded Paraphrase
The expanded paraphrase seeks to capture the implicit information within the text and make it explicit for readers today. It is based on the CBC translation and uses italic text to provide the most salient background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences.
(For more information, click "Expanded Paraphrase Legend" below.)
Story Triangles
(Click diagram to enlarge)
Assumptions Table
(Click diagram to enlarge)
Psalm 19/Notes/Grammar.V. 6b.450159
| Sun-Warrior (Ps 19:6b) | ||
| Input 1: Sun | Input 2: Warrior | |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | Rises in the morning | Wakes up (Joel 4:9; Ps 78:65) and goes out to fight (Isa 42:13; Jer 46:9). |
| Activity | Goes across the entire world in a single day | Capable of amazing physical feats (2 Sam 23:8ff), including running long distances without going off course (Joel 2:7; cf. Job 16:14) |
| Potential for harm | Potentially deadly to those who are unsheltered (cf. Isa. 49:10; Jon. 4:8; Ps. 121:6) | Fierce (Jer 20:11; Ezek 32:12) and deadly to the unprotected |
| Weapons | Intense light and heat (cf. v. 7c) | Sword (Zech 10:5; Ps 45:4), bow (1 Sam 2:4; Isa 21:17; Jer 5:16; 50:9; Ps 120:4; 127:4), shield (2 Sam 1:22; Jer 46:9; Nah 2:4; Song 4:4) |
| Victory | Overcomes the darkness | Defeats his enemies and wins victory (cf. Jer 14:9; Zeph 3:17). |
| Emotional association | The rising of the sun causes people to rejoice (cf. Mal 3:20; Hymn to Egyptian sun god in COS 1.27; COS 1.25; cf. Sarna 1965, 174) | Terror for the warrior's enemies and joy for the warrior's people (cf. Zech 10:7); the warrior himself is sometimes joyful (Zech 10:7; Zeph 3:17; sometimes the association with joy is related to the association with wine, cf. Zech 10:7; Ps 78:65) |
| Blend | The warrior-sun
| |
| Implicatures |
| |
| Figure Prominence | MEDIUM This figure is explicitly marked as a simile and is, therefore, high in prominence. At the same time, however, the image is not sustained or developed. Instead, it is immediately transformed in v. 6b to another, related image: the sun as a warrior. | |
Psalm 19/Notes/Lexical.V. 15.930336
| Psalmist-Sacrifice (Ps 19:14-15) | ||
| Input 1: Psalmist | Input 2: Sacrifice | |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | to please YHWH (cf. v. 15, specifically with his words and thoughts which are a synecdoche for his whole person) | to be acceptable before YHWH, to be pleasing to him (cf. Lev 1:3 לִרְצֹנ֖וֹ לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה) |
| Requirement | must live according to YHWH's covenant instruction | must conform to YHWH's law |
| must be morally blameless, with profound moral uprightness and integrity (SDBH entry for תָּמִים) if he is to be pleasing to YHWH (cf. Ps 15:1-2) | must be blameless (תָּמִים), i.e., without physical defect, if it is to be acceptable (cf. Lev 22:21—תָּמִ֤ים יִֽהְיֶה֙ לְרָצ֔וֹן כָּל־מ֖וּם לֹ֥א יִהְיֶה־בּֽוֹ) | |
| Blend | The living sacrifice
| |
| Implicatures |
| |
| Figure Prominence | MEDIUM The sacrifice imagery is subtle and the coherence of the psalm is not greatly affected if it goes unnoticed or untranslated. At the same time, the imagery probably would have been unmistakable to the earliest readers; the phrase הָיָה לְרָצוֹן לִפְנֵי יְהוָה clearly evokes the notion of sacrifice, and so does (in hindsight) the word אֵיתָם (v. 14b), which is a key word in the psalm—the root תמם forms an inclusio around the second half of the psalm (see poetic structure). The sacrificial imagery is thus sustained throughout vv. 14-15. It also connects these verses to the cultic language used in the previous verse (שְׁגִיאוֹת). | |
Psalm 19/Notes/Lexical.V. 2.731315
| The Sky Declaring God's Honor (vv. 2-5) | ||
| Input 1: Sky | Input 2: Poet | |
|---|---|---|
| Topic described | The sky (specifically the continuation of the created order which is observable in the sky) shows God's honor (cf. v. 2). | Poets can declare (ספר) the honor of YHWH (cf. Ps 9:2) or the honor of a king (cf. Ps 45:2). |
| Means | The sky communicates through the continued sequence of day and night (cf. v. 3). | Poets communicate rhythmically, generally through song. |
| Skill level | The sky is beautiful and awe-inspiring (cf. Ps 8). | Poets communicate with skill (e.g., prosody, alliteration, word play, images, etc.). |
| Audience | Everyone can see the sky (cf. v. 5ab). | Poets recite to an audience. |
| Blend | Sky acting as a poet
| |
| Implicatures |
| |
| Figure Prominence | HIGH. Personification itself, which is very common in Hebrew poetry, is low in prominence. The image here, however, which is sustained and developed across several verses (vv. 2-5), grows to a point of high prominence. It contributes to the theme of speech which is key to understanding the psalm. The psalm begins with the glorious speech of the sky (vv. 2-7), moves on to discuss the perfect speech of YHWH's Word (vv. 8-11), and closes with the inglorious and imperfect speech of YHWH's servant (vv. 12-15). Thus, the personification of the sky as a poet not only contributes to the poem's liveliness and beauty, it also contributes to the main theme of the psalm. | |
Psalm 19/Notes/Lexical.V. 6.777054
| Sun-Bridegroom (Ps 19:6a) | ||
| Input 1: Sun | Input 2: Bridegroom | |
|---|---|---|
| Motion | Rises in the east and sets in the west | Exits his honeymoon-tent (חֻפָּה) in the morning (v. 6a, cf. Joel 2:16) and returns in the evening |
| Appearance | Radiant, beautiful (cf. Song 6:10, where a beautiful bride is compared to the sun), perhaps wearing light as splendid clothing (cf. Ps 104:2) (cf. association of sun with תְּפְאֶרֶת in Isa 60:19-20) | Dressed in fine clothes, including a turban (פְּאֵר cf. Isa 61:10) |
| Emotional association | The rising of the sun causes people to rejoice (cf. Mal 3:20; Hymn to Egyptian sun god in COS 1.27; COS 1.25; cf. Sarna 1965, 174) | Bridegrooms are joyful (e.g., מְשׂוֹשׂ חָתָן in Isa 62:5; Jer 7:34; 16:9; 33:11), and the joyful occasion of their marriage brings joy to others (cf. SDBH: often associated with joy) |
| Blend | The bridegroom-sun
| |
| Implicatures |
| |
| Figure Prominence | MEDIUM This figure is explicitly marked as a simile and is, therefore, relatively high in prominence. At the same time, however, the image is not sustained or developed. Instead, it is immediately transformed in v. 6b to another, related image: the sun as a warrior. | |
Psalm 19/Notes/Lexical.V. 8.425320
| Instruction-Sun (Ps 19:8-11) | ||
| Input 1: YHWH's covenant instruction | Input 2: Sun | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Given by YHWH | Created by YHWH (Gen 1:16) |
| Purpose | To teach Israel how to live as YHWH's people; to illuminate the paths of life (cf. Ps 119:105) | To illuminate the earth (Gen 1:15) |
| To distinguish YHWH's people from the nations (cf. Exod 19:5-6; Lev 20:24; 1 Kgs 8:53 [הבדיל]) | To separate (להבדיל) day from night (Gen 1:14) | |
| To be the means by which YHWH rules over his people; to govern the behavior of his people | To rule the day (Gen 1:16) | |
| Attributes | Perfect (v. 8a); flawless (בָּרָה v. 9b) | Flawless/bright (בָּרָה֙ כַּֽחַמָּ֔ה) (Song 6:10) |
| True (אֱמֶת v. 10b) and, therefore, reliable (נֶאֱמָנָה v. 8b) | Faithful to rise every morning and, therefore, a reliable witness to the continuation of the created order (cf. Gen 8:22; Ps 89:37-38) | |
| Just (v. 9a); righteous (v. 10b) | A symbol of righteousness and justice (cf. Mal 3:20; IQ27 I:6–7; the Hammurabi stele; cf. Sarna 1965, 173). | |
| Pure (טְהוֹרָה v. 10a) | Associated with the pure (טְהוֹרָה) (cf. טֹהַר in Exod 24:10; טְהָרוֹ in Ps 89:45; cf. Eaton 1968) | |
| Benefits | Restores life (v. 8a) | Gives and restores life (cf. Mal 3:20; the Great Hymn to the Aten in COS 1.28; cf. Sarna 1965, 173). |
| Makes wise (v. 8b) | Associated with the gift of wisdom (cf. the Shamash Hymn in COS 1.1117), perhaps insofar as wisdom is associated with light | |
| Causes to rejoice (v. 9a) | Causes to rejoice (cf. Mal 3:20; Hymn to Egyptian sun god in COS 1.27; COS 1.25; cf. Sarna 1965, 174) | |
| Gives light to eyes (v. 9b), i.e., brings spiritual refreshment | Gives light to eyes | |
| Potential dangers | Brings a curse on Israel if they do not keep it (cf. Deut 28:15-68 | Strikes (הכה) people who are unprotected (Isa. 49:10; Jon. 4:8; Ps. 121:6) |
| Temporal duration | Enduring forever (v. 10a) | Enduring forever (cf. Ps 89:37) |
| Blend | YHWH's sun-like covenant instruction
| |
| Implicatures |
| |
| Figure Prominence | HIGH In one sense, the image is subtle and low in prominence, because the psalm never explicitly compares YHWH's instruction to the sun. However, by putting the description of YHWH's instruction (vv. 8-10) immediately after the description of the sun (vv. 5c-7) and by using terms to describe YHWH's instruction which are also appropriate to the sun, the psalm strongly encourages a comparison between the sun and YHWH's instruction. Indeed, it is the recognition of this implicit comparison that unlocks the meaning of the whole psalm (see the Story Behind triangles, where the main parts of the psalm are linked by the assumption YHWH's instruction is like the sun). | |
Bibliography
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Footnotes
- ↑ Common-ground assumptions include information shared by the speaker and hearers. In our analysis, we mainly use this category for Biblical/ANE background - beliefs and practices that were widespread at this time and place. This is the background information necessary for understanding propositions that do not readily make sense to those who are so far removed from the culture in which the proposition was originally expressed.
- ↑ Local-ground assumptions are those propositions which are necessarily true if the text is true. They include both presuppositions and entailments. Presuppositions are those implicit propositions which are assumed to be true by an explicit proposition. Entailments are those propositions which are necessarily true if a proposition is true.
- ↑ Whereas local-ground assumptions are inferences which are necessarily true if the text is true, play-ground assumptions are those inferences which might be true if the text is true.