AbstractIt is an indisputable fact that poverty is the greatest known enemy of humankind. The richest one percent of the world's population controls forty percent of the world, and the poorest fifty percent of the population controls a mere one percent of the world wealth. It has also been established that about 68 percent of the Nigerian population live in abject poverty. During the OT period, poor people were present and were well known. This is the reason why there was legislation to protect them. Terminologies for the poor in the OT are both diverse and problematic. The OT writers use most often, the following vocabularies for the poor: אְבִיך, דָל, ﬠנִי, and ﬠנז. These terms with others are used in the book of Psalms. The purpose of this article is to examine the vocabularies relating to the poor in the book of Psalms and how these vocabularies demonstrate to have various meanings that differ from the traditional meaning already recognised by many scholars. It will also examine the terms used for the poor and poverty in Yoruba religion and culture. The understanding of the polysemiotic nature of these terms will help not only in translating properly the book of Psalms, but also in the construction of a theology of Psalms. Understanding the concept of the poor in the OT and Yoruba tradition can also be regarded as a preparation for Christianity in Africa because of the similarities and differences between the two traditions.

AbstractThis paper contends that Ps 12 should be read, as part of the composition Pss 9-14, as a response to and an explication of Prov 30:1-14 by exponents of Wisdom thinking in the Persian period. The suffering of the righteous people in Ps 12 is described as the result of arrogant Jewish and also non-Jewish rulers who use speech as an instrument of deception, fraud, flattery, boasting, and questioning Yahweh's authority in order to oppress and intimidate believers. It is proposed that the historic context of the final form of the text was that of the "piety of the poor," a theology which developed from the need to restore dignity and provide hope to victims of social and religious oppression in the post-exilic era. It would seem that these people sought comfort in the word of Yahweh and that they found vindication for themselves in those sections of the developing "canon" which promised that Yahweh would intervene on behalf of those people who represented true humility and piety.

AbstractThe discipline of Biblical Spirituality makes again explicit what has at times remained only implicit or has at times been overlooked in exegetical practice: that the biblical texts face two ways. On the one hand, the faith-in-historical-context which lead to the biblical texts being created, and on the other hand, the faith-in-historical-context from which these texts have been/are being read, are both important to the discipline of Biblical Spirituality. The Psalms have played a particularly significant role throughout the respective histories of both lived biblical spiritualities and studies in the field of Biblical Spirituality. Specifically as it relates to the suffering of the poor, special attention is paid to Psalm 109: two recent African studies on this Psalm are taken into review, and drawing on all of the above, a new proposal is made for understanding verses 6-20.

AbstractPrior to the 1980s, various theories of poverty have been proposed by psychologists, ranging from, but not limited to, ‘naturalizing perspective’, ‘constitutionally inferior perspective’, or ‘nativist perspective’; to the ‘McClelland approach’ (McClelland  1961 ,  1965 ,  1973 ); to the ‘attribution theory’; and to Lewis’ ( 1975 ) culture of poverty theory. The theories tease out issues of the accumulated environmental deficits and psychiatric disorders, such as depression as well as the lack of ambition and mental drive to achieve success. However, from the 1980s, psychologists returned to the Lewis’ culture of poverty theory. The World Bank Development Report for 2000–2001’s expansion of Sen’s ( 1999 ) theory, which placed emphasis and/as three-pillars on ‘security’, ‘empowerment’ and ‘opportunity’ led for one, among other psychological bodies, the American Psychological Association to consider various conceptualisation of the theories of poverty. The paper tests the psychological theories of poverty against the background of the historical-literary read poetic text of Psalm 72. Does a poetic reading of Psalm 72 bear a psychological meaning when read within the framework of psychological theories of poverty? Firstly, the paper investigates psychological theories of poverty prior to 1980s to the present. Secondly, in a poetically and historically read Psalm 72, the psychological presuppositions are teased out. In the end, the paper submits with caution that when read within the framework of psychological theories of poverty, the poetically read Psalm 72 produces psychological meaning, which contributes value to the reading of Biblical poetic texts. Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications:  The article draws on the discipline of psychology, employing the psychology theories of poverty to read an Old Testament poetic text of Psalm 72. The meaning of Psalm 72 is derived from the psychological reading of the historical-literary critically analysed poetic Hebrew Bible text.

AbstractThis article sets out to investigate how an African liberationist paradigm could be used in South Africa as a theoretical framework that shapes an inquiry into the issue of poverty in the Book of Psalms. The poor in the Davidic collections of psalms (cf. Ps 10; 23, 72; 109) will therefore be examined within the South African context in order to probe the liberating possibilities that the psalms could offer to poor black South Africans, and most importantly when the text is read in dialogue with Tsepo Tshola’s liberationist song Indlala [Starvation]. Firstly, this article discusses an African liberationist paradigm with the view to anchor the reading of psalms within a theoretical framework. Secondly, within that framework, this article uses the song Indlala as a hermeneutical tool to unlock the reality of poverty in South Africa. Thirdly, guided by an African liberationist framework the article teases out th ecategories and voices of the poor in the psalms. In the end, this article argues that the reading of poor in the Psalms, particularly with an African liberationist lens could have liberating implications for poor black South Africans.

AbstractIn this article the popular view that the "voice of the poor" is expressed in the Psalms (the so-called Armenfrömmigkeit) is challenged. Although the psalms contain many references in which a positive concern for the extremely poor are expressed, this is not always the case. Psalm 109 is discussed as an example in which the supplicant identifies with the poor for his own interest. It is argued that the reader of the psalms should not merely accept that all references to the poor in the psalms could (from a hermeneutical perspective) positively be appropriated. "Pleading poverty" to selfishly justify feelings of enmity should be exposed in the psalms - not only for honesty's sake, but also for the sake of the really poor.

AbstractSince the psalms are religious, poetic, existential expressions of life, entailing both extreme joy and intense suffering, it stands to reason that poverty (in its literal sense and otherwise) would receive considerable attention. Focussing on material poverty and challenging the idea of a homogeneous view on poverty (e.g. Armenfrömmigkeit ) in the psalms, the diversity of views on poverty in the psalms is explored. Attention is paid to YHWH or God caring for the poor, the (Israelite) king as champion for the poor, the gods (heavenly assembly) (non)caring for the poor, caring for the poor in Zion theology, God as crusher of the poor and mutual human charity. The article concludes with some remarks regarding the possible present-day appropriation of the views in the psalms. Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article challenges the traditional notion on Armenfrömmigkeit in the psalms. This is important for contexts where identifying with the poor are fed by selfish interest and actually feeds exploitation. It also propounds that various views on poverty exist, demanding creative and contextual applicable measures to combat poverty in the present-day world.

AbstractThe bodily suffering in this psalm can be related to a socio-economic situation of poverty. In addition, it is also closely linked to an experience of distance from God and the community of belonging with its terrible emotional consequences. Although the direction of causality is unclear it would seem that the body breaks down when the solitary self feels alienated from God and from corporate belonging. The description of bodily parts in this psalm therefore contains various layers of meaning beyond the physical, including simultaneously the psychological, social, and spiritual.