Botha, Philippus JacobusWeber, Beat, 1955-2009-03-272009-03-272008Botha, PJ & Weber, B 2008 ‘‘Killing Them Softly with this Song …’ : the literary structure of Psalm 3 and its psalmic and davidic contexts. Part II : a contextual and intertextual interpretation of Psalm 3’, Old Testament Essays, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 273-297. [http://www.journals.co.za/ej/ejour_oldtest.html]1010-9919http://hdl.handle.net/2263/9368In this article, the second in a series of two on Ps 3, the contribution which its immediate literary context and its heading makes to the interpretation of Ps 3 is discussed. It seems that Ps 3 is connected to its immediate neighbours, Pss 1-2 on the one hand, and Pss 4-14 on the other, with the help of key-words and shared motifs. The heading draws attention to intertextual connections it has with the narrative of Absalom’s revolt in 2 Sam 15-19 and with David’s song of triumph in 2 Sam 22, and through this last mentioned text also with the rest of the Psalter. Ps 3 can consequently be viewed as part of the ‘overture’ of the Psalter consisting of Pss 1-3, but simultaneously as the first exemplaric prayer of David which he formulated under difficult circumstances. The connections with 2 Sam 22 also suggest that the psalm can only be properly understood from the perspective of David’s victory over ‘all’ his enemies.enOld Testament Society of South AfricaPsalm 3Literary contextIntertextual connectionsBible -- O.T. -- Psalms -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.Article