Journal: Southern Baptist Journal of Theology
Volume: SBJT 25:3 (Fall 2021)
Article: The Royal Orientation Of The Psalms: “O Lord, Save The King!”
Author: Bruce K. Waltke

SBJT 25:3 (Fall 2021) p. 169

The Royal Orientation Of The Psalms: “O Lord, Save The King!”1

Bruce K. Waltke

and

Fred G. Zaspel

Bruce K. Waltke (ThD, PhD) is Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He has taught at various institutions and is the author of a wide variety of books and articles, especially in connection with Hebrew and Old Testament studies. The Evangelical Book Publishers awarded his Commentary on Genesis (Zondervan Academic, 2001) and his An Old Testament Theology (Zondervan Academic, 2007) their golden medallion as the best book of the year in which they were published. His The Psalms as Christian Worship: A Historical Commentary (Eerdmans, 2010) and The Psalms as Christian Lament: A Historical Commentary (Eerdmans, 2014), and The Psalms as Christian Praise: A Historical Commentary (Eerdmans, 2019) were co-authored with James M. Houston.

Fred G. Zaspel (PhD) is one of the pastors of Reformed Baptist Church in Franconia, Pennsylvania. He is also the executive editor of Books At a Glance and adjunct professor of Christian Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky. He is the author of several books, chapters, and articles, including The Theology of B. B. Warfield: A Systematic Summary (Crossway, 2010).

The Psalter’s Royal Orientation

One very important upshot of approaching the Psalter redemptive-historically is the royal orientation of the Psalter. By “royal orientation” we mean that the king is the central figure. Fundamentally, the Psalms are both by and about the king. The Psalter can be thought of as a royal hymnbook, and its individual psalms have the house of David as its subject matter and point of

SBJT 25:3 (Fall 2021) p. 170

reference. Obviously, not all the psalms are about the king; many are about Israel without reference to the king. This is especially true in the fourth and fifth books (e.g., 90, 93, 113, 114, 115). But ideally, Israel is to be ruled by the king. According to D. M. Carr, “the education of scribes in the biblical world was designed to train in them royal values and national culture.”2 But “it was the king, not the scribe, who embodied the fullest ideal of humanity.”You must have a subscription and be logged in to read the entire article.
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