Table of Contents

List of figures; Acknowledgements; Note on the text; Introduction; Part I. English Metrical Psalmody; 1. 'Very mete to be used of all sortes of people': the 'Sternhold and Hopkins' psalter; 2. 'Out-Sternholding Sternhold': some rival psalters; 3. The Psalms and English poetry I: 'Greece from us these Arts deriv'd': psalms and the English quantitative movement; 4. The Psalms and English Poetry II: 'The highest matter in the noblest forme': psalms and the development of English verse; Part II. Case Studies in Psalm Translation: 5. 'Happy me! O happy sheep!': Renaissance pastoral and Psalm 23; 6. Psalm 51: sin, sacrifice and the 'Sobbes of a Sorrowfull Soule'; 7. Psalm 137: singing the Lord's song in a strange land; Conclusion; Appendix: Psalms 23, 51, and 137 (Coverdale translation); Bibliography; Index.

Promotional Information

This book examines the powerful influence of the biblical Psalms on sixteenth- and seventeenth-century English literature.

About the Author

Hannibal Hamlin is Assistant Professor of English at Ohio State University, Mansfield.

Reviews

'... highly engaging ... will be warmly received by anyone interested in the reception and cultural impact of the Bible.' Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 'Hamlin's book is a valuable first step in the scholarly study of the relationship between psalms and canonical literary culture, and its thoroughness as well as its attention to the formal publication qualities of early modern devotional language are exemplary ...' Reformation '... good-natured ... study of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century psalm translations into English.' MLR