Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/67

 PSALMS PSYCHE 59 of the psalmist as deserved, recognizing the committed sin, and praying for pardon ; 6, prophetic psalms, which have reference to a Messianic future. A great difference of opin- ion prevails among exegetical writers as to the number of psalms belonging to this last class, and theologians of the rationalistic school have maintained that a directly predictive character cannot be claimed for a single passage in the Psalms. The collection of psalms seems to have come at once into public use at divine service both as prayers and hymns. The singers who were appointed by David for the service of the sanctuary sang psalms. In the time of Heze- kiah, psalms of David and Asaph are recorded as having been sung at religious solemnities (2 Chron. xxix. 30), and songs of David were also sung in the second temple, after the cap- tivity (Ezra iii. 10). In the Christian church the book of Psalms had likewise from the be- ginning a great importance. Christ himself, after the celebration of the last supper, sang psalms with his disciples; and soon afterward, when on the cross, he used the words of a psalm. Paul and Silas praised God in psalms in the dungeon at Philippi, and Paul exhorts the Ephesians and Philippians to praise the Lord with psalms and spiritual songs. The early Christians used the psalms both in public service and in their private devotions, and the church soon made them a prominent part of the liturgical books, in particular of the brevi- ary. In the Protestant churches the psalms have always been extensively used for congre- gational singing, and some denominations, as the Reformed Presbyterian church, do not al- low in divine service the use of any other re- ligious hymns. On account of the significance which has always been attached to the book of Psalms, it has in modern times called forth a larger number of commentaries than any other Biblical book. Le Long, in his Bibliotheca Sacra (Paris, 1723), enumerates more than 500 commentaries, exclusive of those which form parts of larger works, as well as of the com- mentaries on a part of the book of Psalms. Among the English commentaries the work of Bishop Home has not been superseded for popular use, though its critical value is small. Of more critical worth are: Phillips, "The Psalms in Hebrew, with a Critical, Exegeti- cal, and Philological Commentary" (2 vols., London, 1846); and Browne, "The Book of Psalms, a new Translation, with Introduction and Notes Explanatory and Critical" (2 vols., 2d ed., London, 1870). The exegetical litera- ture of Germany is rich in excellent commen- taries, of which the best known are those by De Wette, Hitzig, Hirzel, Ewald, Hengsten- berg, Delitzsch (new ed., 1867), Hupfeld (4 vols., 1855-'61; new ed. by Eiehm, 1867-'7l), and Moll, Der Psalter (in Lange's Bibelwerlc, 1869-'70). In America new translations have been published by G. R. Noyes, " A new Translation of the Book of Psalms, with an Introduction" (3d ed., 1867); J. A. Alexander, "The Psalms Translated and Explained" (3 vols., 1850); and T. J. Conaut, "A new Ver- sion of the Psalms, and Philological Notes " (in the American ed. of Lange's Bilelwerk, 1872). PSALTERY (Gr. i(>afaj/piov), a stringed musical instrument in use among the ancient Jews, and supposed to have been identical with the nebel mentioned in the Psalms. Burney says it resembled partly the lyre and partly the harp, but according to others it was in shape a trapezium, not unlike the dulcimer. (See DULCIMER.) PSAJOIEMTCS (PsAMMETix III.), the last king of Egypt of the 26th dynasty, succeeded his father Amasis in 526 B. C. He had scarcely begun his reign when Egypt was invaded by Cambyses, king of Persia, who defeated him near Pelusium, shut him up in Memphis, and soon forced him to surrender (525). He was at first spared, but, being suspected of treason- able designs, was condemned to put an end to his life. PSAMMETICHrS. See EGYPT, vol. vi., p. 463. PSKOV, or PleskOT. I. A W. government of European Russia, bordering on St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Tver, Smolensk, Vitebsk, and Livo- nia; area, inclusive of lakes, 17,067 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 775,701. The Valdai hills trav- erse the S. E. part, but the surface is gen- erally level. There are several lakes, the most important of which, Lake Pskov, form- ing the southern part of Lake Peipns, comes within the limits of the province on the N. W. frontier; and in the southeast there are nu- merous marshes. A great part of the coun- try is covered with forests of pine, which yield large quantities of pitch. The principal crops are rye, oats, barley, and pulse. Hemp and flax are cultivated. The only important manufacture is leather, and the inhabitants excel in dressing skins. The population is chiefly of Russian origin, but there are a few of other races, including some Mohamme- dans. II. A city, capital of the government, situated on the left bank of the Velikaya, about 5 m. from its mouth in Lake Pskov, and on the St. Petersburg and Warsaw railway, 165 m. S. S. W. of St. Petersburg; pop. in 1867, 12,981. It is enclosed by a wall 5 m. in cir- cuit, and the Kremlin, or citadel, stands in the centre. It is the seat of a Greek archbishop, whose diocese embraces also the governments of Livonia and Courland, and has a cathedral and about 30 other churches, several of which are in a ruinous condition, three convents, sev- eral schools, and some charitable institutions. There are many tanneries, and a brisk trade is carried on in lumber, hemp and flax. Pskov is very conspicuous in the early history of Russia. It has been often besieged; in 1614 Gustavus Adolphus was obliged to retire from before its walls. PSYCHE (Gr. Tjn>xh breath, or the soul), a character of Greek romance, generally accepted as a personification of the human soul. A cer- tain king, says Apuleius, had three daughters,