David and the Psalm Titles

In the Psalm titles, the phrase usually translated “of David” (ledawid) occurs 73 times. Seven of these read “Of David. A Psalm,” while 28 appear in the phrase “a Psalm of David.” Its precise meaning is ambiguous. “David” may refer either to David the individual or a king of the Davidic Dynasty (Jer 30:9; Ezek 34:23–24; 37:24–25; Hos 3:5). The phrase may mean “for David” or “(dedicated) to David.” Or, it may mean “(belonging) to David” in the sense of ownership, either as author of the psalm or royal patron of the songs of the sanctuary at Jerusalem. Alternatively, the phrase may mean “belonging to a Davidic collection,” reflecting the royal patronage of the temple rather than the Levitical collections of Asaph and Korah. However, the Hebrew word for “of” (le) may not denote authorship, since it also appears in the phrase, “to/for the (choir) director/overseer/supervisor.”

Thirteen of these titles also appear in psalms that refer to historical events in David’s life (Pss 3, 7, 18, 34, 51, 52, 54, 56, 57, 59, 60, 63, 142), suggesting that these psalms can be read as composed by him. This hypothesis, however, goes against the claim that these psalms were composed generically to serve recurring liturgical needs. Many of these “Davidic” psalms mention events that occurred after David’s lifetime, such as the construction of the temple (Pss 5:7; 68:29; 138:2) and its courts (Psa 65:4)—though these expressions may simply represent editorial updates of earlier psalms. Some of the historical titles seem to lack correspondence with the contents of their psalms. The title of Psalm 63 points to David’s flight from Saul while “in the desert of Judah” (1 Sam 23–26), but within the psalm, the phrase “the king will rejoice in God” seems out of place regarding Saul. The title of Psalm 59 is a citation of 1 Sam 19:11, which narrates internal political intrigue; however, the scope of the psalm itself is international, as God is implored to “punish all the nations.”

There are also indicators that the psalm titles were added later. The only other occurrences of the Hebrew word menatseah—translated as “director” “overseer,” or “supervisor”—are in Habakkuk 3:19; 2 Chronicles 2:1; 2 Chronicles 2:17; and 2 Chronicles 34:13. This indicates that the psalm titles developed during the postexilic period. Certain musical terms, such as alamoth (Psa 46) and sheminith (Pss 6; 12), occur elsewhere only in 1 Chr 15:20–21—also a postexilic book. Some of the chief Levites named in other psalm titles, namely Heman, Asaph, and Ethan (Pss 50; 73–83; 88; 89) are also referenced in 1 Chronicles 15 (1 Chr 15:19; regarding Korah, see 2 Chr 20:19).

In First Chronicles 16:8–36, David institutes the singing of a psalm, which is a composite of three separate psalms (Pss 105:1–15; 96:1–13; 106:1, 47–48). These psalms evidently originated after David’s lifetime, as the chronicler removed anachronistic references from them. He replaced “his sanctuary” and “into his courts” (Psa 96:6, 8) with the generic “his place” and “before him” (1 Chr 16:27, 29). The citation of Psalm 106 includes Psalm 106:48, which serves as the doxology that closes Book IV of the Psalter and was thus added no earlier than the postexilic period. Close comparison of this wider narrative, in which David brings the ark of the covenant into Jerusalem (1 Chr 13–16), with its parallels in 2 Samuel shows that the chronicler recasts the David of 1–2 Samuel as an exemplar of Jewish piety. Thus, as 1 Chronicles presents David as a model worshiper and a composer of psalms, the psalm titles probably reflect the same mode of reinterpretation, as is probably the case with Psalm 51.

The possibility that David’s deepening association with particular psalms was a postexilic phenomenon finds support when considering the Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation of the ot. The phrase, “of David,” appears as the preface to 85 psalms in the Septuagint (adding Pss 33, 43, 71, 91, 93–99, 104, and Psa 137, though not Pss 122 and 124).

Once the psalms became sacred literature and were incorporated with other scriptures in the exilic and postexilic periods, the psalms “of David” were probably correlated with the David of 1–2 Samuel. As such, some titles invite readers to reinterpret the psalms as “by” David. Since he was “a man after God’s own heart” (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22), his prayers became exemplary for the people of God.

Regardless of whether David authored the psalms bearing his name, the psalms serve as models of prayer and praise for the people of God, making them suitable to all worshipers at all times and places.

Craig C. Broyles