Psalm 106 and Chaos Theory: A Study of Israel’s Covenant Infidelity and Yahweh’s Sovereign Control

Sampson Ndoga

doi:10.25159/2663-6573/14338

Authors

Sampson Ndoga University of Pretoria https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7448-3437

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25159/2663-6573/14338

Keywords:

Chaos, book iv, psalter, historical psalm, redactional arrangement

Abstract

Book IV of the Psalter ends on an anticipative note despite Israel’s chaotic history of serial failures. The psalmist foregrounds Yahweh’s acts of covenantal faithfulness as expressions of perennial divine faithfulness, favour, and forgiveness against Israel’s perpetual disloyalty. By reading Israel’s history through the mathematical conception of chaos as predictable patterns of behaviour managed under the outworking of divine purposes, what seemingly appear as random acts of rebellion become modelling of behaviour that Yahweh always has under control. Starting from Book III which closes on a similar note of despondency by citing the total collapse of the Davidic covenant, Yahweh is not out of sorts as the editors of the Psalter carefully arrange their material to demonstrate the triumph of the divine prerogatives. By duplicating the closures in books III and IV of a history of failures, the redactors show the two constants in the development of the psalm motifs: perennial divine faithfulness despite Israel’s unfaithfulness. Psalm 106 is based on an arrangement to manage the re-reading of this negative history in a way that enables Book IV to not only close on a positive note but also pave the way for Book V to advance the collection towards a climax.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

References

Allen, L.C. 1983. Psalm 101–150. Waco: Word Books.

Anderson, J. E. 2017. “Remembering the Ancestors: Psalms 105 and 106 as Conclusion to Book IV of the Psalter.” Perspectives in Religious Studies 44 (2): 185–96.

Anderson, A. A. 1972. Psalm 73–150. The New Century Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

Bonting, S. L. 2000. “Chaos Theology: A New Creation Theology and its Applications.” The Journal of Faith and Science Exchange 4: 143–59.

Brooke, G. J. 1989. “Psalms 105 and 106 at Qumran.” Revue de Qumran 14 (2): 267–92.

Brueggemann, W. 2018. “Creation Sings to the Trinity: The Great Drama of the Hymn ‘Holy, Holy, Holy’.” The Christian Century 135 (26): 28–31.

Bullock, C. H. 2020. “The Psalter and Intertextuality: Voices Once Heard and Still Speaking.” Presbyterion 46 (1): 24–35.

Ceresko, A. R. 2006. “Endings and Beginnings: Alphabetic Thinking and the Shaping of Psalms 106 and 150.” The Catholic Biblical Quarterly 68 (1): 32–46.

Childs, B. S. 1979. Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.

Clifford, R. S. 2003. Psalms 73–150. Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries. Nashville: Abingdon Press.

Creach, J. F. D. 1998. “The Shape of Book Four of the Psalter and the Shape of Second Isaiah.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 23 (80): 63–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/030908929802308004 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/030908929802308004

Ellington, S. A. 2007. “The Reciprocal Reshaping of History and Experience in the Psalms: Interactions with Pentecostal Testimony.” Journal of Pentecostal Theology 16 (1): 18–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/0966736907083264 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0966736907083264

Estelle, B. D. 2020. “Controlled Chaos: Relevance Theory and Judges 20:29–48.” The Westminster Theological Journal 82 (1): 1–16.

Gärtner, J. 2010. “The Torah in Psalm 106: Interpretations of JHWH’s Saving Act at the Red Sea.” In The composition of the book of Psalms, edited by E. Zenger, 479–88. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters.

Gärtner, J. 2015. “The Historical Psalms: A Study of Psalms 78; 105; 106; 135, and 136 as Key Hermeneutical Texts in the Psalter.” Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel 4 (4): 373–99. https://doi.org/10.1628/219222715X14604539713303 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1628/219222715X14604539713303

Gelston, A. 2010. “Editorial Arrangement in Book IV of the Psalter.” In Genesis, Isaiah, and Psalms: A Festschrift to Honour Professor John Emerton for his Eightieth Birthday, edited by Katherine Dell, Graham Davies, and Yee von Koh, 165–76. Leiden: Brill. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004182318.i-261.33

Gerstenberger, E. S. 2001. Psalms Part 2, Lamentations. FOTL 15. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

Gesenius, W., and S. P. Tregelles. 2003. Gesenius’ Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament Scriptures. Libronix: Electronic Resource.

Ghadiri, M., and R. Krechetnikov. 2021. “Controlling Chaos by the System Size.” Scientific Reports 11 (1): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87233-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87233-8

Gillingham, S. 2015a. “Psalms 105 and 106 and the Participation in History Through Liturgy.” Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel 4 (4): 450–75. https://doi.org/10.1628/219222715X14604539713420 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1628/219222715X14604539713420

Gillingham, S. 2015b. “Psalms 90–106: Book Four and the Covenant with David.” European Judaism 48 (2): 83–101. https://doi.org/10.3167/ej.2015.48.02.12 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3167/ej.2015.48.02.12

Goldingay, J. 2007. Psalms Volume 2: Psalm 42–89. Baker Commentary. Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group.

Gosse, A. 2009. “Abraham and David.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 34 (1): 25–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/0309089209346346 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0309089209346346

Hamilton, V. P. 1999. 1768 פָּלָא. In Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, eds. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., and B. K. Waltke. Libronix: Electronic Resource.

Harman, Allan M. 2014. “The Exodus and the Sinai Covenant in the Book of Psalms.” The Reformed Theological Review 73 (1): 3–27.

Hensley, A. D. 2021. “One Mediator Between God and People: ‘David’ as the Speaker of Psalms 105–106.” The Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 25 (3): 121–47.

Jipp, J. W. 2016. “Evocations of the Calf?: Romans 1:18–2:11 and the Substructure of Psalm 106 (105).” Bulletin for Biblical Research 26 (4): 599–601. https://doi.org/10.2307/26371555 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/26371555

Katz, B. Z. 2015. “The Pentateuch Quoted Intact: Evidence from Ezekiel and Psalms.” Jewish Bible Quarterly 43 (4): 256–62.

Kugler, G. 2014. “The Dual Role of Historiography in Psalm 106: Justifying the Present Distress and Demonstrating the Individual’s Potential Contribution.” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 126 (4): 546–53. https://doi.org/10.1515/zaw-2014-0034 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/zaw-2014-0034

Lucas, A. J. 2010. “Unearthing an Intra-Jewish Interpretive Debate?: Romans 1,18–2,4; Wisdom of Solomon 11–19; and Psalms 105(104)–107(106).” Annali di Storia dell’Esegesi 27 (2): 69–91.

Lucas, A. J. 2015. Evocations of the Calf?: Romans 1:18–2:11 and the Substructure of Psalm 106 (105). Berlin: de Gruyter.

Martin, L. R. 2018. “The Chiastic Structure of Psalm 106.” Old Testament Essays 31 (3) 506–21. https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2018/v31n3a6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2018/v31n3a6

Marttila, M. 2014. “The Figure of Phinehas from Different Perspectives: The Hero of His People in Num 25:6–13, Ps 106:28–31 and Sir 45:23–26.” Journal of Ancient Judaism 5 (1): 2–24. https://doi.org/10.30965/21967954-00501002 DOI: https://doi.org/10.30965/21967954-00501002

Mays, J. L. 1989. Psalms. Interpretation. Louisville: John Knox Press.

McCann Jr, J. C. 1996. Psalms Volume IV. The New Interpreter’s Bible. L. E. Kick (ed). Nashville: Abingdon Press.

Mohar, C. 2022. “Chaos Theory.” Mississippi Review 501 (2): 74–85.

Mournet, K. 2011. “Moses and the Psalms: the Significance of Psalms 90 and 106 Within Book IV of the Masoretic Psalter.” Conversations with the Biblical World 31: 66–79.

Mournet, K. 2012. “Ideal Authorship and Book IV of the Masoretic Psalter.” Conversations with the Biblical World 32: 75–90.

Ndoga, S. S. 2012. “Divine Covenant Faithfulness in the Face of Human Covenant Unfaithfulness.” Testamentum Imperium 3. www.preciousheart.net/ti/2011/index.htm.

Ndoga, S. S. 2014. “Revisiting the Theocratic Agenda of Book 4 of the Psalter.” In The Shape and Shaping of the Book of Psalms: The Current State of Scholarship, edited by N. L. deClaisse-Walford, 147–60. Atlanta: SBL. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt9qh23j.15 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt9qh23j.15

Ndoga, S. S. 2021. “Biblical Pragmatism in the Pandemic Outbreak of Numbers 25:1–18: Towards and Afrocentric Paradigm.” HTS Theological Studies 77 (4): 1–9. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v77i4.6375 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v77i4.6375

Nysse, R. W. 2013. “Retelling the Exodus.” Word and World 33 (2): 157–65.

Oppenheim, A. 2000. “Chaos and Creation.” The Reconstructionist 65 (1): 84–91.

Pajunen, M. 2011. “The Textual Connection between 4Q380 Fragment 1 and Psalm 106.” In The Hebrew Bible in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, edited by Nóra Dávid, Armin Lange, Kristin De Troyer, and Shani Tzoref, 186–202. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. https://doi.org/10.13109/9783666535550.186 DOI: https://doi.org/10.13109/9783666535550.186

Passaro, A. 2006. “Theological Hermeneutics and Historical Motifs in Pss 105–106.” In History and Identity: How Israel’s Later Authors Viewed its Earlier History edited by Nuria Calduch-Benages, Núria Calduch-Benages, Jan Liesen, 43–55. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.

Prothro, J. B. 2017. “Evocations of the Calf?: Romans 1:18–2:11 and the Substructure of Psalm 106 (105).” Religious Studies Review 43 (2): 179. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.13000

Robertson, O. P. 2015. “The Strategic Placement of the ‘Hallelu-Yah’ Psalms within the Psalter.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 58 (2): 265–68.

Smith, K. G., and B. Domeris. 2008. “A Brief History of Psalm Studies.” The Journal of South African Theological Studies 6 (9): 97–122.

Stinson, M. A. 2021. “Turning Tables in Israel’s History: Food Language and Reversals in Psalms 105 and 106.” The Catholic Biblical Quarterly 83 (4): 588–98. https://doi.org/10.1353/cbq.2021.0122 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/cbq.2021.0122

Swale, M. 2019. “Structure, Allusion, Theology, and Contemporary Address in Psalm 106.” Bibliotheca Sacra 176 (704): 400–17.

Swanson, J. 1997. Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Hebrew (Old Testament). Libronix: Electronic Resource.

Tsumura, D. T. 2022. “Chaos and Chaoskampf in the Bible: Is ‘Chaos’ a Suitable Term to Describe Creation or Conflict in the Bible?” In Conversations on Canaanite and Biblical Themes: Creation, Chaos and Monotheism, edited by R. S. Watson and A. H. Curtis, 243–81. Berlin: De Gruyter.

Van der Lugt, P. 2013. Cantos and Strophes in Hebrew Biblical Poetry III. Leiden: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004262799 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004262799

VanGemeren, W. A. 1991. Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Expositor’s Bible Commentary. F.E. Gaebelein (ed). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

Whitaker, R. et al. 1906. The Abridged Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew-English Lexicon of the Old Testament: from A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament by Francis Brown, S.R. Driver and Charles Briggs, based on the lexicon of Wilhelm Gesenius. Libronix: Electronic Resource.

Willhauck, S. 2010. “God’s Stuff: The Constructive Powers of Chaos For Teaching Religion.” Teaching Theology and Religion 13 (1): 64–70. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9647.2009.00576.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9647.2009.00576.x

Wilcock, M. 2001. Psalm 73–150. Bible Speak Today. Leicester: IVP.

Wilson, G. H. 1985. The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter. Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series 76. Chico: Scholars Press.

Wilson, G. H. 1993a. “Understanding the Purposeful Arrangement of Psalms in the Psalter: Pitfalls and Promise.” In The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter, edited by J. C. McCann, 42–51. Sheffield: JSOT Press.

Wilson, G. H. 1993b. “Shaping the Psalter: A Consideration of Editorial Linkage in the Book of Psalms.” In The Shape and Shaping of the Psalter, edited by J. C. McCann, 72–82. Sheffield: JSOT Press.

Wilson, G. H. 2002. Psalms Volume 1: The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

Wilson, L. 2010. “On Psalms 103–106 as a Closure to Book IV of the Psalter.” In The Composition of the Book of Psalms, edited by E. Zenger, 755–66. Leuven: Peeters.