Mazmur 29:1-2

Psalm 29 ¹ 

A psalm of David.

29:1 Acknowledge the Lord, you heavenly beings, ² 

acknowledge the Lord’s majesty and power! ³ 

29:2 Acknowledge the majesty of the Lord’s reputation! ⁴ 

Worship the Lord in holy attire! ⁵ 

Mazmur 68:32-34

68:32 O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God!

Sing praises to the Lord, (Selah)

68:33 to the one who rides through the sky from ancient times! ⁶ 

Look! He thunders loudly. ⁷ 

68:34 Acknowledge God’s power, ⁸ 

his sovereignty over Israel,

and the power he reveals in the skies! ⁹ 

[29:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 29. In this hymn of praise the psalmist calls upon the heavenly assembly to acknowledge the royal splendor of the Lord. He describes the Lord’s devastating power as revealed in the thunderstorm and affirms that the Lord exerts this awesome might on behalf of his people. In its original context the psalm was a bold polemic against the Canaanite storm god Baal, for it affirms that the Lord is the real king who controls the elements of the storm, contrary to pagan belief. See R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “The Polemic against Baalism in Israel’s Early History and Literature,” BSac 150 (1994): 280-82.

[29:1]  ² tc Heb “sons of gods,” or “sons of God.” Though אֵלִים (’elim) is vocalized as a plural form (“gods”) in the MT, it is likely that the final mem is actually enclitic, rather than a plural marker. In this case one may read “God.” Some, following a Qumran text and the LXX, also propose the phrase occurred in the original text of Deut 32:8.

[29:1]  tn The phrase בְּנֵי אֵלִים (bÿney ’elim, “sons of gods” or “sons of God”) occurs only here and in Ps 89:6 (89:7 HT). In Ps 89 the “sons of gods/God” are also called “the assembly of the holy ones” and “council of the holy ones.” The heavenly assembly, comprised of so-called “angels” and other supernatural beings, appears to be in view. See Job 5:1; 15:15 and Zech 14:5, where these supernatural beings are referred to as “holy ones.” In Canaanite mythological texts the divine council of the high god El is referred to as “the sons of El.” The OT apparently borrows the Canaanite phrase and applies it to the supernatural beings that surround the heavenly throne.

[29:1]  ³ tn Or “ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.”

[29:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name.” The Hebrew term שֵׁם (shem, “name”) refers here to the Lord’s reputation. (The English term “name” is often used the same way.)

[29:2]  ⁵ tn That is, properly dressed for the occasion.

[68:33]  ⁶ tc Heb “to the one who rides through the skies of skies of ancient times.” If the MT is retained, one might translate, “to the one who rides through the ancient skies.” (שְׁמֵי [shÿmey, “skies of”] may be accidentally repeated.) The present translation assumes an emendation to בַּשָּׁמַיִם מִקֶּדֶם (bashamayim miqqedem, “[to the one who rides] through the sky from ancient times”), that is, God has been revealing his power through the storm since ancient times.

[68:33]  ⁷ tn Heb “he gives his voice a strong voice.” In this context God’s “voice” is the thunder that accompanies the rain (see vv. 8-9, as well as Deut 33:26).

[68:34]  ⁸ tn Heb “give strength to God.”

[68:34]  ⁹ sn The language of v. 34 echoes that of Deut 33:26.