W. Creighton Marlowe and Charles H. Savelle Jr. <i>Psalms Volume 1: The Wisdom Psalms</i>

In this first volume of three, Marlowe and Savelle lay the foundation for what to expect from the Kerux commentaries covering the psalter. Building on ideas from form and genre criticism, the authors carve the psalter into three pieces–Wisdom Psalms, Lament Psalms, and Praise Psalms (pp. 46–47); this work addresses the first theme with subsequent volumes covering the latter two themes.After the front matter and an overview of psalms examined within the work, the book begins with an introduction to the psalter. Here, the authors express the presuppositions that lead to the series’ design. The authors write in their discussion about the nature of inspiration of the psalter, “this means that later, especially much later, editorial activity was not performed under divine inspiration so that there is nothing authoritative about the external order of the biblical books or the internal arrangement of chapters” (p. 31). In the same section, they also pen, “the superscripts, however accurate in terms of faithfully maintaining a tradition, were the result of human invention and ingenuity” (p. 31). With these ideas in place (and after other introductory issues explained), the psalter is categorized into genre types (pp. 40–46). Based on these divisions, the authors develop their multivolume structure.Though the reader can easily follow the authors’ thoughts on the structure of the mini-series, Marlowe and Savelle include an accurate sentence that at minimum exposes the weakness of their approach, “unfortunately, some of the psalms in the OT psalter have a mixed character; that is, they now (after editing or redactions) exist as a single psalm that originally were two” (p. 46). One sentence (the latter of the quote) seems like an insufficient explanation for a reality that undercuts the design of the three volumes.Nonetheless, the introduction moves along to a helpful section expounding the theological themes and keywords as well as a guide to the practical theology found within the psalter. The theological themes are succinct yet rich. The practical theology is pragmatic while being scripturally rooted.The second main section of the book begins the narrowed study on the identified Wisdom Psalms. In this second specific introduction, the information seemed similar to that presented in the general introduction. However, the authors included additional information as to how these psalms relate to other wisdom literature and ANE comparable literature.Encompassing more than half of the book, the final section of the work eclipses the others in terms of volume and scope (pp. 80–217). In this third section, the authors begin working through each of the identified psalms; they divide them into two groups—(1) Wisdom Psalms about God’s Ways/Righteousness—Pss 1, 15, 37, 49, 73, 78, 127, 128, 133, 145 and (2) Wisdom Psalms about God’s Word/Revelation—Pss 19, 91, 111, 112, 119. Each chapter begins with a summary of the psalm under consideration that includes major items most helpful in preaching. From there, readers will find a treatment of the literary structure and themes, exegetical commentary (interacting with both MT and LXX), theological foci, preaching and teaching strategies, and possible discussion questions. These elements are interspersed with breakout blurbs containing relevant information in fields too varied to be described.These chapters provide a deep well from which preachers and teachers can draw. The exegetical material is clear and, even though the authors often interact with Greek and Hebrew, it is written in such a way that a reader untrained in the biblical languages would still be able to easily follow the conversation. What is more, the preaching helps move the reader seamlessly from exegesis to exposition in a way that is both creative and consistent with the text. Each chapter contains useful illustrations and applications.Though reservations about the overall Psalms mini-series structure have been recorded, the individual treatment of the chapters within the psalter are recommendable for readers of a variety of educational backgrounds. In a church setting, this volume could be used by lay teachers or pastors. In an academic setting, this book would best be used by undergraduates as a model of how to work well from exegesis to exposition.