Mazmur 33:1

Psalm 33 ¹ 

33:1 You godly ones, shout for joy because of the Lord!

It is appropriate for the morally upright to offer him praise.

Mazmur 33:8-9

33:8 Let the whole earth fear ²  the Lord!

Let all who live in the world stand in awe of him!

33:9 For he spoke, and it ³  came into existence,

he issued the decree, ⁴  and it stood firm.

[33:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 33. In this hymn the psalmist praises the Lord as the sovereign creator and just ruler of the world who protects and vindicates those who fear him.

[33:8]  ² tn In this context “fear” probably means “to demonstrate respect for the Lord’s power and authority by worshiping him and obeying his commandments.”

[33:9]  ³ tn That is, “all the earth” in the first line of v. 8. The apparent antecedent of the masculine subject of the verbs in v. 9 (note וַיֶּהִי [vayyehiy] and וַיַּעֲמֹד [vayya’amod]) is “earth” or “world,” both of which are feminine nouns. However, כָּל (kol, “all”) may be the antecedent, or the apparent lack of agreement may be explained by the collective nature of the nouns involved here (see GKC 463 §145.e).

[33:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “he commanded.”