Narrative Effect of Book IV of the Hebrew Psalter

The Author: Robert E. Wallace received his Ph.D. in biblical studies from Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He is Assistant Professor of Religion and Director of International Programs at Shorter College in Rome, Georgia.

«Robert E. Wallace continues the work of scholars who study the canonical shape of the Hebrew Psalter by offering a reading of the ‘story’ of Book IV. With careful attention to thematic and lexical ties between the individual psalms of Book IV and between the psalms and relevant texts in other places in the Hebrew Bible, Wallace convincingly demonstrates the place of Book IV in the overall story of the Psalter. His work is an important contribution to the study of the narrative of the Hebrew Psalter.» (Nancy L. deClaissé-Walford, Associate Professor of Old Testament and Biblical Languages and Advisor for the Academic Research Concentration, McAfee School of Theology, Mercer University)«Robert E. Wallace has written an engaging work that is a rare combination of insight and creativity. He offers readers a careful look at the current scholarship surrounding canonical approaches to Book IV of the Psalter. Wallace focuses on the microcanonical connection among the various psalms in Book IV and thus ‘connects the dots’ of the individual psalms. By exploring the implication of analyzing the Psalter as a book rather than as a collection, this book plays a crucial role in the laying out of an agenda for Psalms scholarship in the foreseeable future.» (John S. Vassar, Chair of the Department of Fine Arts, Foreign Language, and Humanities, Louisiana State University, Shreveport)