Psalm 49-52, horizon of understanding of the Miserere

Abstract

The research on the Psalter of the last decades has tried to combine in an inseparable way the exegesis of the psalms and that of the Psalter. In this article Psalms 49-52 are studied under the influence of this research, in order to widen our understanding of the well-known Psalm 51 and its principal theme, mercy. We propose an itinerary which firstly enables us to state that the wisdom tonality of the psalms close to Psalm 51 broadens its horizon of comprehension. This is so especially if we take into account the interesting relationship between mercy and wisdom, which: both last forever, consist in the greatest wealth, and provide the human being with a happy life. In addition, our itinerary enables us to state that the sequence of the studied psalms and its gradual understanding offers its readers the possibility of going deeper in the meaning of reconciliation; particularly if we take into account the relationship between reconciliation and the separation from the unjust as well as the approximation to the just.