PSALMS (Heb. Tehillim, Songs' of Praise, or TOlloth, Prayers; Jerome, Liter 11/pnom rum), the well-known canonical book generally ascribed to David. The single hymns contained in the book are variously designated either as "Prayer" (Tenn), as "Praise" Crehillah), or from some special characteristic, " Song" (Shin), or a song of deeper mean ing, (Michtam), "Instruction" (Maskil), or a dithyrambic poem (Shigayon). Respecting the general contents of the book, it may be said that it comprises, in the forum of pious lyrics, written for and on behalf of the congregation. the quintessence of the dogmatical. ethical, historical, and theocratical portions of the Old Testament. The divine essence sad qualities, providence and its guidance—especially of Israel—the rule of the universe. the natme of the human heart and its relations to God and his revelation, the blessings of the theocratic commuitity: these and similar reflections form the themes of its ever varying modes. A certain more spiritual conception of the ordinances of the Pentateuch is visible throughout, and although the strictest adherence to these is enjoined, yet their deeper meaning is impressed more strongly still. Used as a liturgical hymn-book in the temple, it has been bodily received for the same purpose in the Christian church; and certain additional hymns which occur in the Greek and Syriac Psalter have not been sanctioned by the authority of the general church. There are, in all. 150 canonical hymns or psalms, which, after the model of the Pentateuch. have been divided into five books—thus: i.—xli.; xlii.-1xxii.; lxxiii.-1xxxix.; xe.—cvi. ; and evii.—el. The Syriac. the LXX.. and the Vulgate versions differ in some respects in their counting. The authorized version. however, follows strictly the Masoretic Jewish text, except with regard to the numbering of the verses; for while the latter includes the superscriptions among the verses, the former does not reckon those. This division into five books is as it is traditional, also the most natural; and the doxologies at the ends of psalms xli., lxxii., lxxxix., and cvi., further mark authoritatively the respective ends of the special divisions. A further division, or rather classification, has been attempted according to time contents; but, considering the constantly changing variety of morals and sentiments of manner and contents which these songs exhibit, it is a most precarious one.
Time Psalms have generally—thirty-four only excepted—superscriptions more or less expressive of the contents of the special hymn, and sometimes with, sometimes without. the name of an author. I? some, certain notes, referring to the musical and liturgical part, are added, which are far from being quite clear now, e.g., " On the octave," "For the chief musician," " On Machalath "(illness?), "In the time of death to the son," " The hind of Aurora," "Lilies," "Dumb dove of the far ones," etc. One of the greatest puzzles is the word Selair, which occurs several times at the end, or in the middle of some psalms, and which the LXX. render Diapsalma, "Interlude," but about the real signification of which, numerous yet very unsatisfactory suggestions have been made at various times. Thus, it has been identified with amen, hallelujah, piano, etc. So much
seems certain, that it was a kind of catchword or sign for the performers. These head ings belong very probably to the individual poets themselves, and not to the collectors, as has been surmised.
The authorship of the Psalms is ascribed by the headings of the various chapters as follows: Psalm xe.—one of the most ancient in form and contents—is attributed to " Moses, the man of God." Seventy-three psalms are inscribed with David's name; two with Solomon's; twelve with that of Asaph, the Levite and singer, of which five, how ever, belong to the times of Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and the beginning of the Baby lonian exile respectively. Eleven psalms go under the name of the sons of Korab, or the Korahites—a family of singers descended fromthe Levite Borah, known front the Pen tateuch. Their head at the time of David was Reman. Part of these psalms belongs to the time of David; others, to that of Solomon, and others are of an uncertain later period. Respecting the psalm inscribed "Prayer of Moses," there seems, indeed, to be no valid reason' against its authenticity; it is quite worthy of the great legislator, and to a certain extent similar to other compositions of which he is reasonably regarded as the author. The numerous body of psalms attributed to David, manifest (those at least which can fairly be believed to be his work) a vivid and profound feeling and rare poetical gifts. The singer abandons himself entirely to whatever feeling of joy or grief, repentance or revenge, piety or despair, sweeps over his soul. This also accounts to a certain extent for the violent manner in which he calls down at times the vengeance of God upon the heads of his adversaries; while at others, he humbles himself to the dust on account of his own iniquities. On his style and manner, we cannot enlarge here; suffice it to add, that his lyrics have deservedly been counted among the gems of all human literature for well nigh 3,000 years—quite apart from their sacred liturgical character. Asaph's psalms show their author to have been a didactic poet of high order; but. as we said before, many of those ascribed to him belorig to poets later than the schism, and even posterior to the exile. The Korahite hymns, although all more or less fraught with the same depth of feeling, the same conciseness, the same grandeur and lyrical exaltation, exhibit signs of being written partly during the time of Solomon, or even during the exile. Of anonymous psalms, some may fairly be added to the number of those that issued from the hand of the royal singer himself; others, however, belong to the post-exilian times. Some of these (the hallelujahs, for instance, or the Songs of Degrees") were, in all probability, pilgrim-songs, chanted during the ascent to the sanctuary. Whether other psalms belong to the Maccabean period or not—a question hotly dispnted—we cannot discuss here.