Cover -- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS -- ABSTRACT -- TABLE OF CONTENTS -- PART I PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS -- A. Introduction: The Theme of the Rock -- B. History of Scholarship: The Rock Metaphor -- C. Plan of the Present Investigation -- PART II METAPHOR OF THE ROCK IN THE HEBREW BIBLE -- CHAPTER 1 -- A. The Metaphor -- B. The Metaphor of the Rock: An Application (Deut 32,4) -- 1. Close Reading of the Metaphorical Utterance in Deut 32,4 -- 2. Reading Deut 32,4 in Context -- C. Evaluation and Conclusion of the Metaphor Theory -- D. The Rock In the Hebrew Bible: rwc Word Field -- a. vymlx ("Flint") -- b. !ba ("Stone") -- c. h[bg ("Hill") -- d. rh ("Mountain") -- e. [ls ("Crag/Cliff/Rock") -- f. hdwcm ("Place difficult to approach") -- g. jlpm ("Place of escape") -- h. hsx ("Seek refuge") -- i. !gm ("Shield") -- j. !rq ("Horn") -- k. bgfm ("Secure height") -- 1. Physical Representation of the Word rwc -- 2. Word field of rwc - Related Words -- E. Functions of rwc Word Field Members -- 1. Confessio Laudis185 (Bekenntnis des Lobes): Confession of Praise -- 2. Confessio Vitae (Bekenntnis des Lebens): Confession of Life -- 3. Confessio Fidei (Bekenntnis des Glaubens): Confession of Faith/Trust -- F. God as Rock: Provenance of the Metaphor -- G. rwc and [ls and Their LXX Rendering -- H. The Metaphor of the Rock in the Documents of Qumran -- CHAPTER 2 THE "ROCK" IN THE ISRAELITE PSALMIC TRADITIONS -- A. Display of Rock Occurrences in the Hebrew Bible -- 1. Occurrences of rwc in the Hebrew Bible -- 2. Occurrences of [ls in the Hebrew Bible -- 3. The Results of rwc Occurrences -- 4. The Results of [ls Occurrences -- 5. Results of the Occurrences of 'Rock/Crag' (rwc +[ls) in the HebrewBible -- B. God as Rock in the Books of the Psalter -- 1. God as Rock - In Individual Lament and Thanksgiving -- 2. God as Rock - In the Typical Narrative Genres.

3. God as Rock - At the Beginning or End of a Psalm -- 4. God as Rock - Psalms are Paired -- 5. God as Rock - In the Psalms is Frequently a Possessive Noun -- 6. God as Rock - In Statements of Incomparability -- PART III ROCK TEXT ANALYSIS IN THE PSALTER -- CHAPTER 1 -- A. The Choice Of The "Rock" As Central Metaphor In The Psalter -- B. Rock Metaphor in The I Book of Psalms: An Exegetical Anaysis -- C. Pss 18 And 19: A Paired Introduction To 'God As Rock' In The Psalter -- PSALM 18,2[3].31[32].46[47] THE BEGINNING OF 'GOD AS ROCK' IN THE PSALTER -- A. Ps 18: Preliminary Observations - Structure and Genre -- B. Ps 18=2 Sam 22: An Excurse -- C. The Leitwort rwc ("Rock") in Ps 18: Unity of the Psalm -- D. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 18,2[3].31[32].46[47] -- 1. Close Reading of Ps 18,2[3]: Divine Appellatives -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 18,31[32]: Incomparable Rock -- 3. Close Reading of Ps 18,46[47]: Bārūk Sentence -- PSALM 19,14[15] O LORD, MY ROCK AND MY REDEEMER -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 19,14[15] -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 19,14[15] -- 3. God as rwc and lawg: Ps 19,14[15] -- C. Reading Pss 18 and 19 in Context: Centrality of Rock in the First Book -- D. Placement of Pss 18 and 19 -- PSALM 28,1-2 MY ROCK, BE NOT DEAF TO ME -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 28,1 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 28,1-2 -- 3. Reading Ps 28,1 in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 28 -- PSALM 31,2b[3b].3a[4a] BE A ROCK OF REFUGE FOR ME…MY ROCK AND MY FORTRESS -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 31, 2-3[3-4] -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 31,2-3[3-4] -- 3. Close Reading of Ps 31,3 [4].

4. Reading Ps 31,2-3[3-4] in Context -- 5. Placement of Ps 31 -- C. "God As Rock" In The I Book of Psalms -- CHAPTER 2 -- PSALM 42,9[10] I SAY TO GOD, MY ROCK -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 42,9[10] -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 42,9[10] -- 3. Reading Ps 42,9[10] in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 42 -- PSALM 62,2[3].6[7].7[8] HE ONLY IS MY ROCK AND MY SALVATION -- A. Preleminary Observations: Structure, Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 62,2[3].6[7].7[8] -- 1. Text and Transaltion -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 62,2[3].6[7].7[8] -- a. Meaning and Significance of a in Ps 62 -- b. Close Reading of Ps 62,2[3].6[7].7[8] -- 3. Reading of Ps 62,2[3].6[7].7[8] in Context -- a. Wisdom Context of vv. 8-12[9-13] -- 4. Placement of Ps 62 -- PSALM 71,3 BE TO ME A ROCK OF REFUGE -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 71,3 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 71,3 -- 3. Reading Ps 71,3 in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 71 -- C. "God as Rock" in the II Book of Psalms -- CHAPTER 3 -- PSALM 73,26 GOD IS THE ROCK OF MY HEART AND MY PORTION FOREVER -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 73,26 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 73,26 -- 3. Reading Ps 73,26 in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 73 -- PSALM 78,35 THEY REMEMBERED THAT GOD WAS THEIR ROCK -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 78,35 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 78,35 -- 3. Reading of Ps 78,35 in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 78 -- PSALM 89,26[27] MY FATHER, MY GOD, AND THE ROCK OF MY SALVATION! -- A. Preliminary Observations - Structure and Genre.

B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 89,26[27] -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 89,26[27] -- 3. Reading Ps 89,26[27] in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 89 -- C. "God as Rock" in the III Book of Psalms -- D. "Temple markers" in Korahite and Asaphite Psalms -- CHAPTER 4 -- PSALM 92,15[16] HE IS MY ROCK, AND THERE IS NO UNRIGHTEOUSNESS IN HIM -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 92,15[16] -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 92,15[16] -- 3. Reading Ps 92,15[16] in Context -- 4. Placement of Ps 92 -- PSALM 94,22 MY GOD THE ROCK OF MY REFUGE -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 94,22 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 94,22 -- 3. Reading of Ps 94,22 in Context -- PSALM 95,1 MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE TO THE ROCK OF OUR SALVATION -- A. Preliminary Observations: Structure and Genre -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 95,1 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 95,1 -- 3. Reading Ps 95,1 in Context -- 4. Placement of Pss 92 -- 94 and 95 -- C. Transition from Ps 89,26[27] to Pss 92,15[16] -- 94,22 -- and Ps 95,1 -- D. "God as Rock" in the IV Book of Psalms -- CHAPTER 5 -- PSALM 144,1 BLESSED BE THE LORD, MY ROCK -- A. Preliminary Observations: Genre and Structure -- B. Metaphorical Meaning and Usage of Ps 144,1 -- 1. Text and Translation -- 2. Close Reading of Ps 144,1 -- 3. Reading of Ps 144,1 in the Context -- C. Journeying with "God as Rock" Metaphor through the Psalms -- CONCLUDING REMARKS -- A. Centrality of Rock Metaphor in the Psalter -- B. 'God as Rock' in the Psalter: A Tabellic View -- 1. 'God as Rock': Placement of Verses in the Psalms -- 2. 'God as Rock': Placement of Psalms in the Five Books.

3. 'God as Rock': Its Inauguration, Culmination and Descension in the Psalter -- 4. Miscellaneous -- C. The Tradition-Historical Background of the Metaphor -- D. Speaking of God in Human Language -- 1. Righteous -- 2. Levitical Singers -- 3. Chasidim -- ABBREVIATIONS -- BIBLIOGRAPHY.