A Christian reading of Psalm 119: an exploration of Torah as God's self-revelation using a Trinitarian hermeneutic

Abstract

In this thesis I aim at a contemporary Christian reading of Psalm 119 which is in continuity with the New Testament and the Fathers, that is, a Trinitarian reading of an Old Testament text. I demonstrate that a Christian reading of the Old Testament reflects the reality that Christ is the origin and goal of God’s revealing and reconciling work for creation.

In order to explore the nature and the theological legitimacy of such a Christocentric reading of the Old Testament I investigate in chapter one the New Testament writers’ vision of Christ witnessed to in the Old Testament using Ps 110:1 as a case study. Through the use of this text Jesus Christ is presented as unique mediator, being fully divine and fully human. Humanity is invited to share in the divine Sonship of Christ and is thus brought into fellowship with the Father through the Spirit. I then ask the question: how does the New Testament view of the unique and central role of Christ impact a Christian reading of Holy Scripture? Chapter Two considers the Christian doctrine of revelation; the nature and function of Scripture within this doctrine of revelation; the nature of a Christian reading of Scripture within this doctrine of revelation; and the nature of participation in Christ. The section on participation in Christ particularly focuses on the role of law or command and its central place in this participation. These observations lead us to our conclusion that a Christian reading is founded on and oriented towards participation in Christ. Chapter Two therefore focuses in general on a theological understanding of a Christian reading which is both Christ-centred and Trinitarian. In this sense, a truly Christological reading must be Christocentric. Chapters three and four provide case studies of the ways in which two prominent theologians of the Christian tradition, Hilary of Poitiers and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, have applied a Christocentric hermeneutic to their reading of Ps 119. Hilary is chosen as an exemplary pre-modern reader of Scripture. He used expressly Trinitarian language in his interpretation of the Old Testament. His approach to Old Testament interpretation appears to be very close to that of the New Testament writers. Bonhoeffer provides an example of a modern reader who is unpersuaded of the widespread claim that Christological (and therefore Christocentric) readings of the Old Testament can no longer be justified in the light of modernity. Bonhoeffer's understanding of Christ in the Psalms, and of the relation of Jesus and the law, exhibits continuity with important pre-modern exegetes and yet is all the more interesting for its historical context in Nazi Germany. Chapter Five represents the culmination of my exploration of what it might mean to recover a Trinitarian and Christocentric reading of the Old Testament which is in continuity with the New Testament and the Church Fathers. It presents a contemporary attempt at a Christological or Christocentric reading of the Old Testament: this chapter is my own Christian reading of Ps 119:1-8 focused on participation in Christ.