Körperbilder in den Psalmen

Body images are a central element in the imagery of the Psalms. Using Psalm 22 as an example, Dörte Bester explains the significance of individual body images and their function in the procedure of prayer. After a text-critical, compositional and a literary analysis of Psalm 22, in which the author also deals with the »praying speaker« as a subject of the Psalm, the author focuses on an interpretation of the Psalm in which the emphasis is placed on the statements which refer to the body. Further Old Testament texts, in particular from Job and the Psalter, are used to add an additional dimension to these body images. The author shows that those processes which determine the dynamics of lamentation and supplication, praise and gratitude are depicted on the body of the »praying speaker.«