Psalm 9 → 22
Reasoning: 8128 Output: 7334 Total: 15462
Argument
Below are ways to argue that Psalm 22 is intentionally written to “follow on” from Psalm 9—stylistically, formally, lexically, thematically, and in terms of Israelite cultic life. I weight rarer words, identical forms, and exact roots more heavily, as requested. 1) Framing and form - Shared superscriptional profile: Both are “lamnatzeach … mizmor leDavid.” That already places them in the same performance stream and authorial persona. - Shared psalmic movement: Each psalm moves from personal experience to public proclamation and then to the nations. In Ps 9 the speaker’s thanksgiving expands to YHWH’s universal judgment (vv. 8–9, 20–21). In Ps 22 the individual lament resolves into public praise (vv. 23–27) and ends with worldwide worship (vv. 28–32). - Vow-and-payment logic: Ps 9 contains the vow to recount and praise in Zion’s gates after rescue from “the gates of death” (9:14–15). Ps 22 contains the formal payment of the vow in the assembly and the connected thank-offering meal: “From you is my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will pay before those who fear him. The poor shall eat and be satisfied” (22:26–27). This is the classic todah sequence in Israelite life: vow in distress → deliverance → public praise and a communal meal where the needy eat. 2) High‑value lexical hooks (identical forms or distinctive collocations) - אספרה (1cs cohortative “I will recount”): exact form in Ps 9:2, 9:15; Ps 22:23. In 9 it is pledge and program; in 22 it is explicitly fulfilled: “I will recount your name to my brothers.” - יושב + X (rare “enthroned-on/in” collocations): • Ps 9:8, 12: “YHWH sits enthroned forever,” “YHWH, enthroned in Zion” • Ps 22:4: “You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel” The repeated participle יושב used this way is uncommon and strongly binds the two psalms’ enthronement setting. - שערי מות vs עפר מות: • Ps 9:14: “lift me up from the gates of death” • Ps 22:16: “to the dust of death you lay me” Matching “X of death” noun phrases are rare and create a tight death–deliverance thread from 9 into 22. - דורש (seek) and knowing/declaring the Name: • Ps 9:11: “Those who know your name will trust in you; for you have not abandoned those who seek you (דורשיך)” • Ps 22:23, 27: “I will recount your name …” and “Let those who seek him (דורשיו) praise YHWH” 9 asserts a principle about “seekers” and the “name”; 22 enacts it by making the name known and gathering the seekers to praise. - עזב (abandon): • Ps 9:11: “you have not abandoned (לא עזבת) those who seek you” • Ps 22:2: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (למה עזבתני) The tension is deliberate; 22 tests the claim of 9:11 and then resolves it in 22:25 (“he did not despise … he did not hide his face … he heard”). - עני/ענוים (“afflicted/poor”) and their cry: • Ps 9:13, 19: “He did not forget the cry of the afflicted (צעקת ענו/עני); the hope of the poor will not perish forever” • Ps 22:25–27: “He did not despise the affliction of the afflicted … when he cried to him, he heard … The afflicted will eat and be satisfied” This is as close to a line-by-line fulfillment as one gets: the claim of 9 is verified, then concretized as a table for the poor in 22. - הגיד/נגד (declare): • Ps 9:12: “Declare among the peoples his deeds” • Ps 22:32: “They will come and declare his righteousness to a people yet to be born” Same verb, same public-declaration dynamic; 22 completes the mission 9 set in motion. - זכר (remember): • Ps 9:13: “The one who seeks blood remembers (זכר)” • Ps 22:28: “All the ends of the earth will remember (יזכרו) and turn to YHWH” In 9, YHWH remembers; in 22, all the earth remembers—expanding the remembrance from divine forensic memory to global covenantal memory. 3) Thematic continuities and resolutions - From courtroom to kingship: Ps 9 emphasizes forensic rule—“He established his throne for judgment … He will judge the world in righteousness; He will judge the peoples” (9:8–9). Ps 22 resolves that judicial theme into explicit kingship: “For the kingship is YHWH’s; He rules the nations” (22:29). Judge on the throne in 9 becomes acknowledged King of the nations in 22. - Nations trajectory: Ps 9 calls for the nations to be judged and to learn their mortality (9:20–21), and commands proclamation “among the peoples” (9:12). Ps 22 shows the outcome: “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to YHWH; all the families of the nations will bow before you” (22:28–29). - Distress-to-praise arc: Ps 9 prays for rescue from death so the psalmist can praise “in the gates of daughter Zion” (9:14–15). Ps 22 narrates the brink-of-death experience in visceral detail (22:12–21) and culminates in public praise “in the midst of the assembly … in the great congregation” with vows paid and a communal feast (22:23–27). It is the promised scene from Ps 9, enacted. - Cry and hearing: Ps 9 promises that YHWH “does not forget the cry” (9:13) and that the poor will not be forgotten forever (9:19). Ps 22 begins with apparent non‑hearing (22:2–3), then asserts that YHWH did hear (22:25), confirming Ps 9’s theology. - Return (שוב) trajectories: • Ps 9:4: enemies “turn back” (בשוב אויבי אחור) • Ps 9:18: the wicked “return to Sheol” (ישובו רשעים לשאולה) • Ps 22:28: “All the ends of the earth will return (וישובו) to YHWH” One root (שוב) frames two destinies: enemies return to death (Ps 9), the nations return to God (Ps 22). 4) Cultic-historical fit (life-cycle of a todah/thank-offering) - Ps 9 contains the vow and intent to proclaim at Zion after deliverance from mortal peril (9:14–15). This is precisely the scenario that issues in a thank-offering. - Ps 22 explicitly contains vow language and payment (“נדרי אשלם”) and the connected meal where the poor eat and are satisfied (22:26–27). That perfectly matches the sacrificial practice of a todah shelamim, in which meat was shared with worshipers and the needy. Thus, Psalm 22 reads as the liturgical fulfillment of Psalm 9’s vow. 5) Additional, lower-level lexical and conceptual ties - ישועה: 9:15 “בישועתך” vs 22:2 “מישועתי”—same noun, different pronominal frames (your salvation/my salvation), bracketing the experience from God’s side and the sufferer’s side. - צדק/צדקה: 9:5, 9:9 stress judgment “in righteousness”; 22:32 ends with proclaiming “his righteousness.” Forensic righteousness (Ps 9) is publicly proclaimed as God’s character (Ps 22). - Assembly/public sphere: 9:12, 15 emphasize proclamation in Zion and among the peoples; 22:23, 26 emphasize the congregation/assembly as the locus of praise, including “those who fear him,” matching 9’s public exhortations. - Death realm imagery: 9:14 “gates of death” and 9:18 “Sheol” set the death horizon; 22:16 “dust of death” and 22:30 “all who go down to the dust” keep the same horizon but turn it into a stage for universal bowing to YHWH. 6) Why this constitutes a logical sequence - Psalm 9 states the theological program: YHWH, enthroned in Zion, judges righteously; he does not abandon seekers; he remembers the afflicted; raise me from death so I can proclaim you; let the nations learn they are mortal. - Psalm 22 dramatizes and completes that program: a paradigmatic afflicted one (עני) experiences near-death, is heard and delivered; the vowed praise is paid in the assembly; the afflicted (ענוים) are fed; and the horizon broadens until “all the families of the nations” worship because “the kingship is YHWH’s.” - The repeated rare forms and collocations (אספרה; יושב + complement; שערי/עפר מות; דורש + שם; עזב; הגיד/נגד) show deliberate lexical stitching between the two compositions, while the cultic pattern (vow → deliverance → public praise/meal) provides the lived sequence. In short: Psalm 22 reads like the narrative, cultic, and international fulfillment of the claims and vows announced in Psalm 9. The lexical hooks (especially identical forms and rare collocations) plus the vow/thank-offering sequence and the move from judgment over the nations to their worship form a coherent argument that Psalm 22 “logically follows” Psalm 9.
Evaluation
Score: 7.0
Evaluated at: 2025-12-03T04:19:12 (UTC)
Evaluator model: gpt-5
Evaluator version: v2
Reasoning: 3200 Output: 8162 Total: 11362
Checklist
- Has verse refs: Yes
- Factual error detected: No
- Only generic motifs: No
- Counterargument considered: Yes
- LXX/MT numbering acknowledged: No
Vocabulary specificity: 5.0 / 10
Multiple precise lexical ties (אספרה; יושב+X; דורשיו; עזב) and vow→payment arc plausibly link 9→22. But superscriptions are common, motifs widespread, Ps 9–10 acrostic pairing weakens sequence. No errors; no caps.
Prompt
Consider Psalm 9 and Psalm 22 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 22 logically follows on from Psalm 9? Consider stylistic similarities, similarities of form, similarities of vocab or ideas, shared roots (if you're doing the search in Hebrew), connections to sequences of events common in ancient Israelite life, mythology or history shared by the two psalms.
Rarer words are more significant than commoner words. Identical forms are more significant than similar forms. The same word class is more significant than different word classes formed from the same root. Identical roots are more significant than suppletive roots.
Psalm 9:
Psalm 9
1. לַ֭מְנַצֵּחַ
עַלְמ֥וּת
לַבֵּ֗ן
מִזְמ֥וֹר
לְדָוִֽד׃
2. אוֹדֶ֣ה
יְ֭הוָה
בְּכָל־
לִבִּ֑י
אֲ֝סַפְּרָ֗ה
כָּל־
נִפְלְאוֹתֶֽיךָ׃
3. אֶשְׂמְחָ֣ה
וְאֶעֶלְצָ֣ה
בָ֑ךְ
אֲזַמְּרָ֖ה
שִׁמְךָ֣
עֶלְיֽוֹן׃
4. בְּשׁוּב־
אוֹיְבַ֥י
אָח֑וֹר
יִכָּשְׁל֥וּ
וְ֝יֹאבְד֗וּ
מִפָּנֶֽיךָ׃
5. כִּֽי־
עָ֭שִׂיתָ
מִשְׁפָּטִ֣י
וְדִינִ֑י
יָשַׁ֥בְתָּ
לְ֝כִסֵּ֗א
שׁוֹפֵ֥ט
צֶֽדֶק׃
6. גָּעַ֣רְתָּ
ג֭וֹיִם
אִבַּ֣דְתָּ
רָשָׁ֑ע
שְׁמָ֥ם
מָ֝חִ֗יתָ
לְעוֹלָ֥ם
וָעֶֽד׃
7. הָֽאוֹיֵ֨ב ׀
תַּ֥מּוּ
חֳרָב֗וֹת
לָ֫נֶ֥צַח
וְעָרִ֥ים
נָתַ֑שְׁתָּ
אָבַ֖ד
זִכְרָ֣ם
הֵֽמָּה׃
8. וַֽ֭יהוָה
לְעוֹלָ֣ם
יֵשֵׁ֑ב
כּוֹנֵ֖ן
לַמִּשְׁפָּ֣ט
כִּסְאֽוֹ׃
9. וְה֗וּא
יִשְׁפֹּֽט־
תֵּבֵ֥ל
בְּצֶ֑דֶק
יָדִ֥ין
לְ֝אֻמִּ֗ים
בְּמֵישָֽׁtרִים׃
10. וִ֘יהִ֤י
יְהוָ֣ה
מִשְׂגָּ֣ב
לַדָּ֑ךְ
מִ֝שְׂגָּ֗ב
לְעִתּ֥וֹת
בַּצָּרָֽה׃
11. וְיִבְטְח֣וּ
בְ֭ךָ
יוֹדְעֵ֣י
שְׁמֶ֑ךָ
כִּ֤י
לֹֽא־
עָזַ֖בְתָּ
דֹרְשֶׁ֣יךָ
יְהוָֽה׃
12. זַמְּר֗וּ
לַ֭יהוָה
יֹשֵׁ֣ב
צִיּ֑וֹן
הַגִּ֥ידוּ
בָ֝עַמִּ֗ים
עֲלִֽילוֹתָֽיו׃
13. כִּֽי־
דֹרֵ֣שׁ
דָּ֭מִים
אוֹתָ֣ם
זָכָ֑ר
לֹֽא־
שָׁ֝כַ֗ח
צַעֲקַ֥ת
עניים
עֲנָוִֽים׃
14. חָֽנְנֵ֬נִי
יְהוָ֗ה
רְאֵ֣ה
עָ֭נְיִי
מִשֹּׂנְאָ֑י
מְ֝רוֹמְמִ֗י
מִשַּׁ֥עֲרֵי
מָֽוֶת׃
15. לְמַ֥עַן
אֲסַפְּרָ֗ה
כָּֽל־
תְּהִלָּ֫תֶ֥יךָ
בְּשַֽׁעֲרֵ֥י
בַת־
צִיּ֑וֹן
אָ֝גִ֗ילָה
בִּישׁוּעָתֶֽךָ׃
16. טָבְע֣וּ
ג֭וֹיִם
בְּשַׁ֣חַת
עָשׂ֑וּ
בְּרֶֽשֶׁת־
ז֥וּ
טָ֝מָ֗נוּ
נִלְכְּדָ֥ה
רַגְלָֽם׃
17. נ֤וֹדַ֨ע ׀
יְהוָה֮
מִשְׁפָּ֢ט
עָ֫שָׂ֥ה
בְּפֹ֣עַל
כַּ֭פָּיו
נוֹקֵ֣שׁ
רָשָׁ֑ע
הִגָּי֥וֹן
סֶֽלָה׃
18. יָשׁ֣וּבוּ
רְשָׁעִ֣ים
לִשְׁא֑וֹלָה
כָּל־
גּ֝וֹיִ֗ם
שְׁכֵחֵ֥י
אֱלֹהִֽים׃
19. כִּ֤י
לֹ֣א
לָ֭נֶצַח
יִשָּׁכַ֣ח
אֶבְי֑וֹן
תִּקְוַ֥ת
ענוים
עֲ֝נִיִּ֗ים
תֹּאבַ֥ד
לָעַֽד׃
20. קוּמָ֣ה
יְ֭הוָה
אַל־
יָעֹ֣ז
אֱנ֑וֹשׁ
יִשָּׁפְט֥וּ
ג֝וֹיִ֗ם
עַל־
פָּנֶֽיךָ׃
21. שִׁ֘יתָ֤ה
יְהוָ֨ה ׀
מוֹרָ֗ה
לָ֫הֶ֥ם
יֵדְע֥וּ
גוֹיִ֑ם
אֱנ֖וֹשׁ
הֵ֣מָּה
סֶּֽלָה׃
Psalm 22:
Psalm 22
1. לַ֭מְנַצֵּחַ
עַל־
אַיֶּ֥לֶת
הַשַּׁ֗חַר
מִזְמ֥וֹר
לְדָוִֽד׃
2. אֵלִ֣י
אֵ֭לִי
לָמָ֣ה
עֲזַבְתָּ֑נִי
רָח֥וֹק
מִֽ֝ישׁוּעָתִ֗י
דִּבְרֵ֥י
שַׁאֲגָתִֽי׃
3. אֱֽלֹהַ֗י
אֶקְרָ֣א
י֭וֹמָם
וְלֹ֣א
תַעֲנֶ֑ה
וְ֝לַ֗יְלָה
וְֽלֹא־
דֽוּמִיָּ֥ה
לִֽי׃
4. וְאַתָּ֥ה
קָד֑וֹשׁ
י֝וֹשֵׁ֗ב
תְּהִלּ֥וֹת
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
5. בְּ֭ךָ
בָּטְח֣וּ
אֲבֹתֵ֑ינוּ
בָּ֝טְח֗וּ
וַֽתְּפַלְּטֵֽמוֹ׃
6. אֵלֶ֣יךָ
זָעֲק֣וּ
וְנִמְלָ֑טוּ
בְּךָ֖
בָטְח֣וּ
וְלֹא־
בֽוֹשׁוּ׃
7. וְאָנֹכִ֣י
תוֹלַ֣עַת
וְלֹא־
אִ֑ישׁ
חֶרְפַּ֥ת
אָ֝דָ֗ם
וּבְז֥וּי
עָֽם׃
8. כָּל־
רֹ֭אַי
יַלְעִ֣גוּ
לִ֑י
יַפְטִ֥ירוּ
בְ֝שָׂפָ֗ה
יָנִ֥יעוּ
רֹֽאשׁ׃
9. גֹּ֣ל
אֶל־
יְהוָ֣ה
יְפַלְּטֵ֑הוּ
יַ֝צִּילֵ֗הוּ
כִּ֘י
חָ֥פֵֽץ
בּֽוֹ׃
10. כִּֽי־
אַתָּ֣ה
גֹחִ֣י
מִבָּ֑טֶן
מַ֝בְטִיחִ֗י
עַל־
שְׁדֵ֥י
אִמִּֽי׃
11. עָ֭לֶיךָ
הָשְׁלַ֣כְתִּי
מֵרָ֑חֶם
מִבֶּ֥טֶן
אִ֝מִּ֗י
אֵ֣לִי
אָֽתָּה׃
12. אַל־
תִּרְחַ֣ק
מִ֭מֶּנִּי
כִּי־
צָרָ֣ה
קְרוֹבָ֑ה
כִּי־
אֵ֥ין
עוֹזֵֽר׃
13. סְ֭בָבוּנִי
פָּרִ֣ים
רַבִּ֑ים
אַבִּירֵ֖י
בָשָׁ֣ן
כִּתְּרֽוּנִי׃
14. פָּצ֣וּ
עָלַ֣י
פִּיהֶ֑ם
אַ֝רְיֵ֗ה
טֹרֵ֥ף
וְשֹׁאֵֽג׃
15. כַּמַּ֥יִם
נִשְׁפַּכְתִּי֮
וְהִתְפָּֽרְד֗וּ
כָּֽל־
עַצְמ֫וֹתָ֥י
הָיָ֣ה
לִ֭בִּי
כַּדּוֹנָ֑ג
נָ֝מֵ֗ס
בְּת֣וֹךְ
מֵעָֽי׃
16. יָ֘בֵ֤שׁ
כַּחֶ֨רֶשׂ ׀
כֹּחִ֗י
וּ֭לְשׁוֹנִי
מֻדְבָּ֣ק
מַלְקוֹחָ֑י
וְֽלַעֲפַר־
מָ֥וֶת
תִּשְׁפְּתֵֽנִי׃
17. כִּ֥י
סְבָב֗וּנִי
כְּלָ֫בִ֥ים
עֲדַ֣ת
מְ֭רֵעִים
הִקִּיפ֑וּנִי
כָּ֝אֲרִ֗י
יָדַ֥י
וְרַגְלָֽי׃
18. אֲסַפֵּ֥ר
כָּל־
עַצְמוֹתָ֑י
הֵ֥מָּה
יַ֝בִּ֗יטוּ
יִרְאוּ־
בִֽי׃
19. יְחַלְּק֣וּ
בְגָדַ֣י
לָהֶ֑ם
וְעַל־
לְ֝בוּשִׁ֗י
יַפִּ֥ילוּ
גוֹרָֽל׃
20. וְאַתָּ֣ה
יְ֭הוָה
אַל־
תִּרְחָ֑ק
אֱ֝יָלוּתִ֗י
לְעֶזְרָ֥תִי
חֽוּשָׁה׃
21. הַצִּ֣ילָה
מֵחֶ֣רֶב
נַפְשִׁ֑י
מִיַּד־
כֶּ֝֗לֶב
יְחִידָתִֽי׃
22. ה֭וֹשִׁיעֵנִי
מִפִּ֣י
אַרְיֵ֑ה
וּמִקַּרְנֵ֖י
רֵמִ֣ים
עֲנִיתָֽנִי׃
23. אֲסַפְּרָ֣ה
שִׁמְךָ֣
לְאֶחָ֑י
בְּת֖וֹךְ
קָהָ֣ל
אֲהַלְלֶֽךָּ׃
24. יִרְאֵ֤י
יְהוָ֨ה ׀
הַֽלְל֗וּהוּ
כָּל־
זֶ֣רַע
יַעֲקֹ֣ב
כַּבְּד֑וּהוּ
וְג֥וּרוּ
מִ֝מֶּ֗נּוּ
כָּל־
זֶ֥רַע
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
25. כִּ֤י
לֹֽא־
בָזָ֨ה
וְלֹ֪א
שִׁקַּ֡ץ
עֱנ֬וּת
עָנִ֗י
וְלֹא־
הִסְתִּ֣יר
פָּנָ֣יו
מִמֶּ֑נּוּ
וּֽבְשַׁוְּע֖וֹ
אֵלָ֣יו
שָׁמֵֽעַ׃
26. מֵ֥אִתְּךָ֗
תְּֽהִלָּ֫תִ֥י
בְּקָהָ֥ל
רָ֑ב
נְדָרַ֥י
אֲ֝שַׁלֵּ֗ם
נֶ֣גֶד
יְרֵאָֽיו׃
27. יֹאכְל֬וּ
עֲנָוִ֨ים ׀
וְיִשְׂבָּ֗עוּ
יְהַֽלְל֣וּ
יְ֭הוָה
דֹּ֣רְשָׁ֑יו
יְחִ֖י
לְבַבְכֶ֣ם
לָעַֽד׃
28. יִזְכְּר֤וּ ׀
וְיָשֻׁ֣בוּ
אֶל־
יְ֭הוָה
כָּל־
אַפְסֵי־
אָ֑רֶץ
וְיִֽשְׁתַּחֲו֥וּ
לְ֝פָנֶ֗יךָ
כָּֽל־
מִשְׁפְּח֥וֹת
גּוֹיִֽם׃
29. כִּ֣י
לַ֭יהוָה
הַמְּלוּכָ֑ה
וּ֝מֹשֵׁ֗ל
בַּגּוֹיִֽם׃
30. אָכְל֬וּ
וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲוּ֨וּ ׀
כָּֽל־
דִּשְׁנֵי־
אֶ֗רֶץ
לְפָנָ֣יו
יִ֭כְרְעוּ
כָּל־
יוֹרְדֵ֣י
עָפָ֑ר
וְ֝נַפְשׁ֗וֹ
לֹ֣א
חִיָּֽה׃
31. זֶ֥רַע
יַֽעַבְדֶ֑נּוּ
יְסֻפַּ֖ר
לַֽאדֹנָ֣י
לַדּֽוֹר׃
32. יָ֭בֹאוּ
וְיַגִּ֣ידוּ
צִדְקָת֑וֹ
לְעַ֥ם
נ֝וֹלָ֗ד
כִּ֣י
עָשָֽׂה׃