After reading book 2 of Saint Augustine's On Christian Teaching, I realized that the psalms could be interpreted in a very different light. I'm not sure if it was Augustine's intent, but after reading the philosophy section beginning on pg. 59 (premises, conclusions, etc.), one could read the psalms from a philosophical point of view--that is, consider the work from a non-Christian standpoint that focuses on the validity of the psalms, their history, and the overall effectiveness of their prose. I don't think that was his intent, though, but it was something I noticed after having taking a philosophy course that focused on the existence of a God.
One thing St. Augustine brought up that I found very interesting, was his defense of different translations of religious works (including the psalms). He states that the accuracy of translating from Latin to Hebrew/Greek is not so important as the full effect of the work. The wording can be varied as long as the intent stays true to the original. Keeping that in mind, my interpretation of the psalms is a bit more open because I know that something had to be lost in translation or that the translator chose to use a certain word instead of another. If I read the psalms in that way, I don't take the prose as literally and can focus more on the message. I think that approach is much more helpful in understanding the psalms as a whole and I can take away more relevant information instead of getting stuck on a certain passage because its wording was questionable.
Here's some more information about Saint Augustine:
I like the title Elise! As for the translation, I also think that there is very likely something lost in translation. I almost wish that I could read hebrew so that I could understand them fully. it is interesting to see what St. Augustine points out as mistakes. Perhaps there could be more that we have not noticed yet. finding them could change he psalms dramatically.
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