Jude
Southwestern Journal of Theology
Volume 58, No. 1 – Fall 2015
Managing Editor: W. Madison Grace II
By Allen P. Ross. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2013. 848 pages. Hardcover, $44.99.
Allen Ross, professor of Old Testament at Beeson Divinity School and well-known author of Introducing Biblical Hebrew (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001), presents a commentary on Psalms 42–89 for pastors and students. This commentary is the second of Ross’s three volumes on Psalms. The first volume contains the introductory material for the multi-volume set. In the second volume Ross assumes the introductory material from the first and begins by analyzing each psalm (Pss 42–89).
Given that pastors are part of his target audience, this review will first describe Ross’s treatment of an often-preached psalm, namely Psalm 51, and then compare his treatment with other recent commentaries so that the contributions Ross makes will be evident.
Ross begins the study of Psalm 51 with the title, “The Necessity of Full Forgiveness” and his translation of the psalm (173–76). The translation is clear and helpful for both those who know Biblical Hebrew and those who do not. For example, Ross makes the causative Hiphil verb of “to hear” apparent in his translation of 51:8 (English), “Cause me to hear joy and gladness” (175). Ross shows how the clauses relate in 51:8 by his translation of the second clause, “that the bones you have crushed may rejoice” (175). Ross’s translation shows that the first clause is the request of the psalmist and the second clause is subordinate to the first. The significance of this perhaps seemingly small point is that the two clauses are not two equal requests, contra several English translations (e.g., NIV, NASB, and ESV). Rather, the psalmist makes one request in the first clause, and the second contains the desired result (190).
Next, the pastor will read the “Composition and Context” section on Psalm 51 in order to understand authorship, literary context, and historical context (176–78). Concerning authorship, Ross finds no good reason to doubt Davidic authorship (176). Ross weaves the literary and historical contexts together throughout the rest of this section. In the overall sense of the psalms, he notes its intensity and calls the psalm, “the most powerful confession of sin in the Psalter” (177). To help the pastor read this powerful confession, Ross makes a few hermeneutical observations. First, since the psalm is most likely connected to David’s sin with Bathsheba, pastors should read 2 Samuel 11–12. Second, since this poetic reflection occurred after the fact, the focus is on the need for forgiveness, not necessarily what the psalmist said in the moment (177). Third, Ross suggests that Christians should be reminded of the New Testament reality of confession of sin (e.g., 1 John 1:9). Fourth, because the psalmist asks for forgiveness and gives details of why he needs it, pastors should recognize Psalm 51 is about the “necessity of forgiveness” (so the above title), rather than a study of confession (178). Fifth, Ross highlights the lament form of the psalm. Ross uses the lament form as the structure for his exegetical outline. His recognition of the lament form also allows him to see that there is no section of confidence in this psalm, though one expects to find it in a typical lament. Ross, however, notes rightly that confidence is evident throughout the psalm, albeit not in a structured way (178).
Following the “Composition and Context” section is the “Exegetical Analysis,” which contains a summary and exegetical outline of the psalm (178–80). Ross makes it clear that pastors should preach the entirety of a psalm—not just their favorite parts. This section serves to help keep the big picture of a psalm in mind. Following the exegetical section is the “Commentary in Expository Form,” in which pastors will spend most of their time.
When preaching, pastors will certainly have to deal with a couple of verses that are prone to misunderstanding. For example, 51:5 (English), “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me,” can be a perplexing verse. Ross places 51:5–6 together as showing the psalmist’s confession. Here, Ross’s Biblical Hebrew acumen shines. He notes the verbs “brought forth” and “conceived” are used emotionally (186). Through the use of these verbs, Ross argues that the psalmist is putting forth his humanity in blunt fashion. What is more, Ross helpfully elucidates the use of the Hebrew preposition (beth) by explaining that the psalmist finds himself born in a state of sin (187). While Ross’s comments on 51:5 are brief, he helps pastors to understand what the verse means and in turn what it does not mean.
A second example of a difficult verse is 51:11b (English), “do not take your Holy Spirit from me.” In his outline, Ross puts this verse into a section called, “petition for renewal,” which covers 51:10–12 (191). Ross’s translation (see above) is very similar to several English translations (e.g., NIV, NASB, and ESV). Anticipating the thoughts of his audience, Ross says that contemporary readers must understand the difference between pre- and post-Pentecost (193). Using Saul as an example, Ross tries to clear up how the Holy Spirit worked within the Old Testament. To be sure, Ross sees a fundamental difference between an Old Testament prayer and a New Testament prayer. When praying Psalm 51, the believer today should only pray this psalm, according to Ross, if he or she means, “do not take me out of your service, O Lord” (193–94).
Finally, after pastors have worked through the translation, outline, and commentary, they come to the “Message and Application” section. In this section, Ross suggests an “expository statement,” which should arise from the text studied. For Psalm 51, his statement is, “Complete cleansing from sin is essential for full and free participation in God’s service” (199). The primary application Ross makes is that believers should be clean spiritually before being able to serve God fully. To be unclean spiritually results in divine discipline. Though believers, even pastors, might resolve themselves to do some action (e.g., teach sinners of forgiveness), this psalm calls believers to live in forgiveness that only comes from the Lord (200).
How does Ross’s commentary on Psalm 51 compare with other recent commentaries? First, Ross provides a message and application section, which proves quite helpful for pastors. Others (e.g., Goldingay and Kraus) do the same, but Ross includes an expository statement. Rare is the commentary on the Psalms that gives an expository statement. Second, Ross, like most other commentators, discusses the lament form of the psalm in order to interpret it. Third, Ross does not use surrounding psalms to help interpret Psalm 51. Other commentators (e.g., VanGemeren, Hossfeld, and Zenger) use compositional and canonical features of the Psalter to interpret the psalms. Fourth, Ross discusses parallelism and how certain lines work within the Psalms. Virtually every commentator does this, though Ross (and Goldingay) do exceptionally well in discussing how analysis of the lines connects to understanding of the lines. In addition to parallelism, Ross analyzes figures of speech constantly. Just in the comments on 51:16–19, for example, Ross labels at least six figures of speech. In noting the figures, as well as their hermeneutical significance, Ross’s commentary stands out. This strength may at the same time be a weakness because pastors might not be aware of these labels for figures of speech (e.g., tapeinosis). However, Ross’s introductory material in the first volume helps explain these labels. Fifth, Ross discusses the significance of the New Testament throughout his commentary. However, to understand how many of the Psalms connect to the New Testament, Ross’s commentary is not the primary one to grab off the shelf.
The above comments should give the reader an idea of what to expect when picking up Ross’s commentary. The way he handles Psalm 51, both in terms of structure of the commentary and his interpretation, is indicative of the way he treats the rest of the psalms throughout the commentary. In sum, if you are preparing to preach the Psalms and you want to study the details while keeping the expository idea of each psalm in mind, Ross’s commentary is one of the finest available.
