Synopsis: Identification of the Royal Psalms by Herman Gunkel indicates
that the history and genre of the Royal Psalms must be distinguished
from the Enthronement Psalms that are written to celebrate Yahweh's
Kingship from those written to celebrate Davidic kingship. In reference
to this, Joachim Becker argues against the presence of messianic Davidic
Psalms in the Old Testament and posits that the initial hope in Davidic
kingship died out during the exilic period and consequently centered
Israelite faith in Yahweh alone. It may thus be concluded that Yahweh's
Kingship effaces the place of the Davidic Messiah. Against this claim,
The Messianic Kingship of Jesus argues that the early Christian use of
Psalm quotations in particular suggest that the Royal and Enthronement
Psalms were viewed as one entity which suggests that Yahweh's reign and
Davidic kingship in Jewish-Christian thinking were not antagonistic but
mutually complementary. Within the synoptic tradition, Matthew's
emphasis on Davidic heritage supports this notion as he applies 'Son of
David' to the 'Son of God' and also 'Son of Man.' Therein lies
'paradoxical tension' in the use of the old Jewish Scripture as early
Christians, on the one hand, sought to preserve their Jewish legacy but,
on the other, creatively employed the Old Testament to support their
christological message and the divine attributes of Jesus expressed in
the Gospel. The entire process of quotation by Matthew generates one of
the major characteristics of Judeo-Christian religiosity; namely, the
manifestation of divine redemptive activity in the history of Israel.
Endorsements: "Dr. Choi identifies a helpful and hitherto unrecognized
stream of Messianic fulfillment which flows from the ancient Psalter.
The work brings to the fore the importance of the Davidic Messianic
figure who had been marked out in the Psalms as the one who ruled on
Yahweh's behalf and how it is used by Matthew to identify the
significance and status of Christ's Lordship. The study enriches our
understanding of the early church's appreciation of her Lord. All who
are interested in early Christology will find this work of interest and
value." -Tom Holland Head of Biblical Research Wales Evangelical School
of Theology Author Biography: Sungho Choi is lecturer of Biblical
Theology and also Chief Administrative Officer at Wales Evangelical
School of Theology, UK.
