Discuss your thoughts on the reliability of the inscriptions of the Psalms (e.g., "to the choirmaster, set to the gittith, a psalm of David, etc"). To what extent should they be taken seriously? Do you believe them to be inspired or possibly inspired? Why or why not? To what extent can they be used with regard to Scripture (i.e., as one searches for truth)?

Answer the Above Discussion. (MINIMUM OF 500 WORDS) Then Write your reflections from the classmate post by selecting an idea from the reading, describing your thoughts and feelings about it and why you agree. (MINIMUM OF 250 WORDS)

CLASSMATE’S POST

My thoughts on the inscriptions are they should be taken at face value. Meaning, I presume the inscriptions are instructions (or statements of fact) concerning the Psalms. If it says 'to the choir master', 'for the leader', that is what it is. I assume that there is/was a designated head who was responsible for recitation of the Psalm. It is quite possible that at one time, these Psalms were a part of regular worship and service.

As to what extent should they be taken seriously? I suppose they should be taken as serious as any other portion of the Bible you choose (or choose not) to take seriously. The Samaritan Bible only holds the Pentateuch as canon, so it is possible the Psalms were/are something more specific to some Hebrews, not Israel as a whole. As for me, I tend to think that anything that can uplift and inspire is inherently good.

Do I believe them inspired? Of course they're inspired. I do not think that G-d came down and specifically instructed the writing of each one, but there is clearly more going on with them than 'I got bored so I wrote this'. Critics might point to findings in Ugarit and say they were plagiarized. After all, there are so many similarities in Hebrew and Ugaritic poetry, between the language itself, the parallelisms used, and even descriptions of G-d being like those attributed to El or Baal.

I say they could have a common origin. To use an analogy, I like old Irish reels and jigs. I also like Blue Grass. When I hear older Blue Grass, I can pick up on the influence of the Irish music. But Blue Grass is its own thing, and I don't think it 'plagiarized' the Irish tunes. Like the similarities between Ugaritic and Hebrew poetry, it draws on a common source (which some see as Canaanite). I came across an article (which I attached because I don't remember where I found it and there is no author listed) that brings up a few good points disputing this, and leads me (as the reader) to believe that the reason there are so many similarities in the poetry is because the Ugaritic tablets (which come after the wars described in Akkadian in el Amarna) are being written by a new population, the Ebiru that conquered the region. In other words, the reason the poetry is similar is because it was written by the same peoples.

In regard to Scripture, I would say it is written that G-d spoke everything into being. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and while the Psalmist is not G-d, we can see their praises as a form of creation with spoken word.

REFERENCES

https://blog.obitel-minsk.com/2020/07/the-bible-and-the-ugaritic-literature.html (Links to an external site.)

http://www.theology.edu/ugarbib.htm

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