This volume is the result of a symposium held at Baylor University in May of 2006, entitled "Baylor University Symposium on the Psalms." The participants were carefully selected to represent the diversity of approaches currently employed in the study of the Psalter. Although a number of volumes in print offer the reader introductory information related to the Psalter, perhaps even noting various methodological approaches, very few actually "model" the diversity of such approaches. This volume exposes readers to the variety of approaches as practiced by leading scholars in the field.

The NIV Application Commentary helps you communicate and apply biblical text effectively in today's context. To bring the ancient messages of the Bible into today's world, each passage is treated in three sections: Original Meaning. Concise exegesis to help readers understand the original meaning of the biblical text in its historical, literary, and cultural context. Bridging Contexts. A bridge between the world of the Bible and the world of today, built by discerning what is timeless in the timely pages of the Bible. Contemporary Significance. This section identifies comparable situations to those faced in the Bible and explores relevant application of the biblical messages. The author alerts the readers of problems they may encounter when seeking to apply the passage and helps them think through the issues involved. This unique, award-winning commentary is the ideal resource for today's preachers, teachers, and serious students of the Bible, giving them the tools, ideas, and insights they need to communicate God's Word with the same powerful impact it had when it was first written.

The Psalter as Witness considers the complexity of the Psalms as well as their role in bearing witness to the theological claims that comprise Israel's traditions. While no single volume can readily capture the full range of the Psalter's theology, these chapters provide rich reflection on significant themes in selected psalms, in collections of psalms, and even across the structure of the Psalter itself. The result of the Baylor-Bonn symposium, The Psalter as Witness employs the full array of methodological approaches to the Psalms practiced in both Germany and North America. The Psalter as Witness thus effectively mirrors the theological, thematic, and generic intricacies of the Psalms in the myriad ways interpreters read the Psalter. The Psalms here become a window into the central, life-giving commitments of Israel in its call to justice and mercy, its practice of ethics and politics, and its worship and life with God.