The Social Audience of Prayer

Lament psalms are often imagined as private cries to God. Yet many laments are also directed outward—toward friends, foes, and entire communities. The Social Audience of Prayer reveals how the psalmist’s words reach beyond the divine to demand recognition, solidarity, and change from a human audience as well.

W. Derek Suderman offers the first sustained study of the social audience in lament psalms, showing how laments consistently engage both God and society. Through close rhetorical analysis, he uncovers shifts in address that highlight the psalmist’s strategies for confronting enemies, rallying supporters, and provoking divine action. Individual lament psalms emerge here as multifaceted performances that intertwine theological appeal and social persuasion. Suderman situates this insight within a broader canonical framework, examining how psalm superscriptions, the book of Job, and the passion narrative in the Gospel of Mark extend and reshape the social dynamics of lament.

By foregrounding its human audience, The Social Audience of Prayer reframes how scholars understand lament as genre and practice. Suderman demonstrates that laments are not merely vertical cries between an individual and God but complex rhetorical acts that engage God and community together. This study makes a methodological and theological contribution to Psalms research, offering new tools for rhetorical criticism and canonical interpretation. It will interest biblical scholars, theologians, students of Hebrew poetry, and readers seeking to understand how ancient prayers functioned as public, relational acts of faith.

“Suderman’s monograph is a significant contribution to psalm studies. Expanding on his earlier work, he offers a compelling, book-length argument for considering not just the speaker in a psalm but also the audience being addressed. His analysis of jussive verbs is especially insightful, showing how they engage a broader social context indirectly. Rich in exegetical depth, this study is thought-provoking and well worth your attention.”—Andrew C. Witt, author of A Voice Without End: The Role of David in Psalms 3–14

“Suderman takes us beyond form and rhetorical criticism of the Psalms to explore the interpretive function of attention to social audience. This is a compelling account of largely neglected changes of voice and address. Many Psalms are shown to address both God and others, and not all others are ‘enemies.’ The hermeneutical focus on ‘overhearing’ is particularly valuable. Well written and strongly engaged with the best recent Psalms scholarship, this is an excellent study.”—Richard S. Briggs, author of The Lord is My Shepherd: Psalm 23 for the Life of the Church

W. Derek Suderman is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Theological Studies at Conrad Grebel University College at the University of Waterloo. He is also an Associate Member of the Graduate Centre for Theological Studies at the Toronto School of Theology.