Out of the Depths: The Psalms Speak for Us Today [Paperback]

Bernhard W. Anderson (Author), Roy Steven Bishop (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0664258328 | ISBN-13: 978-0664258320 | Edition: Revised and Exp

In this revision of his classic text, Bernhard Anderson takes into account recent developments in psalm study as well as advances in scholarship. Still faithful to his earlier commitment to form-critical approach, Anderson revises every chapter and adds three new ones: on the style and poetry of the psalms, on the penitential psalms, and on reading the book of psalms as a whole.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bernhard W. Anderson was Professor of Old Testament Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey. A noted educator, author, and biblical scholar, Anderson is perhaps best known for his textbook, Understanding the Old Testament, which set records in sales for a book in that field and is read in translation around the world.

Roy Steven Bishop is a former Lecturer at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts. He has also served as a minister for churches in Texas and Massachusetts.

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; Revised and Exp edition (May 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664258328
• ISBN-13: 978-0664258320
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #249,562 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What the psalmists Felt, November 14, 2000

By 

A. Gilmore (Lancing, West Sussex) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Out of the Depths: The Psalms Speak for Us Today (Paperback)

A re-issue of an earlier edition, up-dating the study of the psalms with new developments and emphases and entirely new chapters on the poetry of the psalms, the penitential psalms and reading the psalms as whole. Not so much a book about the psalms as a guide through them and requiring a reading of the psalm prior to the commentary.

An opening chapter traces the development of the psalms in Jewish and Christian worship. A chapter on Poetry of Praise and Prayer puts the psalms against the wider background of similar expressions in Israel's neighbours in the ancient near east but never loses sight of the fact that Israel's God was always a Deliverer before he was a creator.

Anderson avoids on the one hand the temptation to fasten on particular verses and `relate them' to contemporary experience and on the other the danger of losing the reader in a mass of theory as to their origin. Instead he digs into the emotions of the psalmist in such a way as to enable the reader to identify with him and find in the experience of the psalmist a helpful and stimulating reflection of himself.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deepen Your Appreciation of the Psalms, January 7, 2004

By 

wvano "wvano" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Out of the Depths: The Psalms Speak for Us Today (Paperback)

This popular, recently revised introduction to the Psalter breathes life into the dusty taxonomy of form criticism by explaining the structure, purpose, and meaning of the various types of psalms in a readable, ecumenically sensitive manner.

Anderson and Bishop are particularly adept at interpreting the psalms in their original historical and theological contexts while at the same time highlighting their relevancy to current issues. For example, the psalms of praise are related both to the formative experience of the Exodus and to modern environmental concerns. Each type of psalm is thoroughly explained, but insightful, in-depth analyses of well-known individual psalms (e.g., Ps. 2, 23, 121) are also provided.

Though the authors write from a Christian perspective, they do not find direct, unwitting references to Jesus in every verse. Rather, they fully respect that these hymns were and remain Israel's prayers. They do maintain, however, that the psalms depict aspects of a single shared story about humankind and God, a story which Christians believe culminates in Jesus Christ.

As a further benefit, appendixes list all the psalms by type and the psalms quoted in the New Testament, which quotes the Psalter more than any other book of the Hebrew scriptures.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Be sure you purchase the edition you're looking for., January 28, 2006

By 

D. Wilson (Covina, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Out of the Depths: The Psalms Speak for Us Today (Paperback)

There is the 2000 edition, the only one written by Bernhard W. Anderson with Steven Bishop, which is listed as:

Paperback: 249 pages

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; Rev&Expand edition (May 1, 2000)

Language: English

ISBN: 0664258328

There is a 1984 edition:

Paperback: 254 pages

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Pr; Rev&Expndd edition (February 1, 1984)

Language: English

ISBN: 0664245048

There is a 1974 edition:

Unknown Binding: 198 pages

Publisher: Westminster Press (January 1, 1974)

Language: English

ISBN: 0664249817

And, just to add to the confusion, when I ordered the 2000 edition I was sent a 1970 edition, which comes from a completely different publisher: Joint Commission on Education and Cultivation, Board of Missions, United Methodist Church, New York, NY (with no ISBN). So apparently there are four editions.