PsALM 73 As rInG COMPOsITIOn 27 reference to be found. In contrast, both main verbs in v. 3 are in the first person. In this respect, v. 3 seems to show a closer grammatical connection with the first person references of v. 2 than with vv. 4-12. As for the yk that begins v. 3, while I am in basic agreement with Illman that, in this psalm, yk functions as a structural marker for sec- tion beginnings, further differentiation is called for when considering the various occurrences of the particle. After all, both v. 3 and v. 4 be- gin with yk, and not even Illman would argue that v. 3 constitutes a section in itself with v. 4 indicating the beginning of a new section. Looking at the four occurrences of yk within the psalm, one notices that in v. 21 and v. 27 the yk is most likely asseverative rather than causal 38. For, in both cases, what immediately precedes yk is not caused by what follows. Thus, just as God’s despising the wicked in v. 20 is not caused by the psalmist’s bitterness or his regret of it (vv. 21-22), so God’s being the psalmist’s strength and portion in v. 26 is likewise not caused by the destruction of those far from God (v. 27). Instead, since both these occurrences of yk seem to signal a certain log- ical disjunction from what precedes, the particle is likely used in these cases to emphatically mark the transition into a new thought unit. In contrast, the yk in v. 3 seems clearly causal, as most recognise that the psalmist’s near fall in v. 2 is in fact caused by his envy of the prosperity of the wicked (v. 3) 39. since a causal yk, in disclosing the cause of what precedes, is logically conjunctive rather than disjunctive, the yk in v. 3 thus seems to link the verse with what precedes in v. 2 40. As for the yk in v. 4, while some take it as causal, an asseverative nuance is equally possible 41. This is especially so since the cause of the psalmist’s envy has already been disclosed in v. 3, such that the entire section (vv. 4-12) introduced by yk in v. 4 is best viewed as 38 The yk in v. 21 can also be understood temporally as “when”. see M. DAhOOD, Psalms II: 51–100: Introduction, Translation, and notes (AB 17; new York 1974) 186, and h. IrsIGLer, Psalm 73 — Monolog eines Weisen (Arbeiten zu Text und sprache im Alten Testament, 20; st. Ottilien 1984) 167. 39 WeIser, Psalms, 509; AnDersOn, Book of Psalms, 530; h.-J. KrAus, Psalms 60–150, 87; MAYs, Psalms, 241. 40 IrsIGLer, Psalm 73, 167. 41 WeIser, Psalms, 505; DAhOOD, Psalms II, 186; MArTens, “Psalm 73”, 16; KrAus, Psalms 60–150, 82; TATe, Psalms 51–100; 226, 233-234; various english translations such as nAs, nKJ, rsv, esv, all take the yk in v. 4 as causal. But IrsIGLer, Psalm 73, 167, and hOssFeLD – ZenGer, Psalms, 221, take it as asseverative.