On the Religious Experience of The Psalmist and His Relationship with Various People Around Him in Ps 15/16:1-4, According to Jerome’s Translations/Revisions

(Über die religiöse Erfahrung des Psalmisten und seine Beziehungen zu verschiedenen Leuten aus der Umgebung in Ps 15/16,1-4 nach den Übersetzungen/Revisionen von Hieronymus)

Abstract

The analysis made by several exegetes on Psalm 16 (esp. Gianfranco Ravasi) has shown that it reflects a very ancient reality, that could be dating from the period when the people of Israel was cohabitating with the indigenous populations of the land of Canaan. In this article I propose to investigate whether the socio-religious context of the time of St. Jerome has played a role in the elaboration of his translations, of his revisions or even Abridged Commentary to the Psalms. More precisely, whether the works of the Stridonite reflect changes in the perception of God and of the “holy and mighty” of the land, in the motivations of the psalmist’s attachment to God, in the nature of his relationship with those who had clung to God and with those who follow idols.