Theopolis Bible Translations 2 Psalms Book Two — TRANSLATION BY James B. Jordan MISSION— Theopolis Institute teaches men and women to lead cultural renewal by renewing the church. Participants in its various programs—its courses, conferences, and publications—will gain competence to read the Bible imaginatively, worship God faithfully, and engage the culture intelligently. CONTACT— a P.O. Box 36476, Birmingham, AL 35236 a theopolisinstitue.com e
[email protected] t @theopolisinstitute Introduction The translation here presented is a work in progress. We hope to get feedback from those who use this material. In this Introduction, we set forth how we are doing this and why. The Structure of the Psalter To begin with, the structure of the Psalter. The book of Psalms as we have it today is not the psalter used at Solomon's Temple, but the completed and reorganized psalter for the Second Temple, the Temple after the exile. This is clear from Psalm 137, which was written at the exile. It is also clear in that psalms by David are found scattered throughout the whole psalter. The psalter used in Solomon's Temple may well have been arranged quite differently, but while that psalter was inspired and authoritative for that time, what we have today is a rearranged and completed psalter, equally inspired and authoritative, as well as final. We don't know whom God inspired to produce the final psalter. We can guess at Ezra, since he was a priest, and much involved with setting up the Second Temple order right after the return from Babylon.