Prayerbook of Christ, Prayerbook of the Church: Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Christological Interpretation of the Psalms
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Concordia Seminary - Saint Louis Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation Concordia Seminary Scholarship 4-24-2017 Prayerbook of Christ, Prayerbook of the Church: Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Christological Interpretation of the Psalms Brad Pribbenow Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.csl.edu/phd Part of the Biblical Studies Commons Recommended Citation Pribbenow, Brad, "Prayerbook of Christ, Prayerbook of the Church: Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Christological Interpretation of the Psalms" (2017). Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation. 39. https://scholar.csl.edu/phd/39 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Concordia Seminary Scholarship at Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PRAYERBOOK OF CHRIST, PRAYERBOOK OF THE CHURCH: DIETRICH BONHOEFFER’S CHRISTOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE PSALMS A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Department of Exegetical Theology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Brad Andrew Pribbenow April 24, 2017 Approved by Timothy Saleska Advisor Erik Herrmann Reader Mark Seifrid Reader © 2017 by Brad A. Pribbenow. All rights reserved. ii S.D.G. iii “I am also still reading the Psalms daily as I have done for years. There is no other book that I know and love as much.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in a personal letter to his parents, Karl and Paula Bonhoeffer, dated May 15, 1943 (DBWE 8:81; DBW 8:72). iv CONTENTS TABLES ....................................................................................................................................... xi PREFACE .................................................................................................................................... xii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ xiv ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................................................... xvi CHRONOLOGY.......................................................................................................................... xx ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................. xxvii INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 1 THE THESIS ........................................................................................................................ 2 THE CURRENT STATUS OF THE QUESTION ............................................................... 2 The Burgeoning Field of Bonhoeffer Scholarship ....................................................... 2 Potential Reasons for Neglect of Bonhoeffer’s Interpretation of the Psalms .............. 5 Overview of the Dissertation ....................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER ONE .......................................................................................................................... 10 BONHOEFFER’S INTERPRETATION OF THE PSALMS IN CONTEXT: AN HISTORICAL SURVEY OF THE CHRISTOLOGICAL EXEGESIS OF THE PSALMS10 PREMODERN CHRISTOLOGICAL EXEGESIS OF THE PSALMS ............................. 10 New Testament Exegesis of the Psalms .................................................................... 10 Early Church Exegesis of the Psalms ........................................................................ 12 Patristic Exegesis of the Psalms ................................................................................ 14 Monastic Exegesis of the Psalms ............................................................................... 20 Scholastic Exegesis of the Psalms ............................................................................. 21 Luther and the Reformation Exegesis of the Psalms ................................................. 25 MODERNITY’S PROBLEM WITH A CHRISTOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF v THE PSALMS .................................................................................................................... 29 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 32 CHAPTER TWO ......................................................................................................................... 34 EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY INFLUENCES: BONHOEFFER DISTINGUISHES HIS EXEGETICAL APPROACH TOWARD THE PSALMS .......................................... 34 THE PLACE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IN EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY BIBLICAL STUDIES ........................................................................................................ 34 Opinion One: The Rejection of the Old Testament ................................................... 35 Opinion Two: The Retention of the Old Testament .................................................. 36 Opinion Three: The Acceptance of the Old Testament ............................................. 37 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 42 BONHOEFFER’S EARLY EXEGETICAL TREATMENT OF THE PSALMS .............. 43 Bonhoeffer’s Early Intellectual and Theological Influences ..................................... 43 Sermon on Psalm 127:1 ............................................................................................. 45 Sermon on Psalm 62:2 ............................................................................................... 46 Bonhoeffer Distinguishes His Own Exegetical Approach ........................................ 47 Sermon on Psalm 98:1 ............................................................................................... 51 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 51 CHAPTER THREE ..................................................................................................................... 54 AN EXAMINATION OF BONHOEFFER’S MATURE CHRISTOLOGICAL EXEGESIS OF THE PSALMS FROM THE PERIOD OF HIS LEADERSHIP IN THE CONFESSING CHURCH BETWEEN 1935–1940 ..................................................................................... 54 INTRODUCTION: A BRIEF REVIEW OF THE CHRISTOLOGICAL EXEGETICAL APPROACHES TOWARD THE PSALMS ...................................................................... 54 Situating Bonhoeffer’s Christological Exegesis of the Psalms within the History of Exegesis ..................................................................................................................... 55 vi THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PRAYER AND THE PSALMS IN BONHOEFFER’S INTERPRETATION .......................................................................................................... 60 The Formative Influence of Bonhoeffer’s Monastic Visits of 1935 .......................... 60 Sermon on Psalm 42 (June 2, 1935) .......................................................................... 62 Lecture: “Christus in den Psalmen” (July 31, 1935) ................................................. 64 Publication: Life Together (1937) .............................................................................. 67 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHRIST THE CRUCIFIED AND THE PSALMS IN BONHOEFFER’S INTERPRETATION ............................................................................ 72 Lecture: “Christus in den Psalmen” (July 31, 1935) ................................................. 73 Sermon: Psalm 58 (July 11, 1937) ............................................................................. 79 Publication: Prayerbook of the Bible (1940) ............................................................. 87 Creation ............................................................................................................ 89 Law ................................................................................................................... 90 The History of Salvation .................................................................................. 91 Messiah ............................................................................................................. 91 The Church ....................................................................................................... 92 Life ................................................................................................................... 92 Suffering ........................................................................................................... 93 Guilt .................................................................................................................. 95 Enemies ............................................................................................................ 96 The End ............................................................................................................ 96 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 97 A Summary of Bonhoeffer’s Mature Christological Interpretation of the Psalms .... 97 Toward a Clearer Definition of Bonhoeffer’s