Three persons of this name are known in the Old Testament.
1. A Levite and eminent musician who, together with Heman and Jeduthan, was appointed by David "for the ministry of prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres and cymbals" (1 Chron 25:1). Nor was Asaph the lone musical talent in the family for his sons were also appointed, under his supervision, "who prophsied under the king's supervision" (v2), and this seems to have continued on through many generations for Ezr 2:41 reports that 128 of their descendents returned from exile in the late 6th Cent BC to contine their family's contribution to the service of the Lord; there were there in full force to celebrate the laying of the temple's foundation (Ezr 3:10). Indeed, we have a collection of psalms attributed to them in the Psalter and designated as A psalm of Asaph (Psm 50; 73-83; this latter collection opening Book 3 of the Psalter). Whether 'Asaph' in this case implies composition by the father or is a collective name for compositions by various members of the family is unknown, though, as pointed out by Delitzsch, they do share a number of distinguishing features as a collection. These include: 1) preference for 'Elohim as the name for God, 2) the presence of a strong prophetic element (God often speaks directly in these psalms), 3) Jospeh and his tribe seem to be a favoured character in their psalms, mentioned 4x (77:15; 78:67; 80:2; 81:5) out of the 14 attributed to them, and 4) the image of the Lord as Shepherd and Israel as hid flock, mentioned five times (74:1; 77:20; 78:52; 79:13; 80:1).
2. The "father" of Joah "the recorder" during the reign of Hezekiah who was sent as one of the party to meet the Assyrian officials who had come to Jerusalem to seek Hezekiah's surrender, c.710 BC. We know nothing else about him.
3. A "keeper of the king's forest" mentioned in one of Nehemiah's requests to King Artaxerxes when he prepared to return to Jerusalem to help restore the city: "And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?" (Neh 2:8). We too know nothing about this person.
©ALBERITH
240720lch