Mazmur 81:1-16
KonteksFor the music director; according to the gittith style; 2 by Asaph.
81:1 Shout for joy to God, our source of strength!
Shout out to the God of Jacob!
81:2 Sing 3 a song and play the tambourine,
the pleasant sounding harp, and the ten-stringed instrument!
81:3 Sound the ram’s horn on the day of the new moon, 4
and on the day of the full moon when our festival begins. 5
81:4 For observing the festival is a requirement for Israel; 6
it is an ordinance given by the God of Jacob.
81:5 He decreed it as a regulation in Joseph,
when he attacked the land of Egypt. 7
I heard a voice I did not recognize. 8
81:6 It said: 9 “I removed the burden from his shoulder;
his hands were released from holding the basket. 10
81:7 In your distress you called out and I rescued you.
I answered you from a dark thundercloud. 11
I tested you at the waters of Meribah. 12 (Selah)
81:8 I said, 13 ‘Listen, my people!
I will warn 14 you!
O Israel, if only you would obey me! 15
81:9 There must be 16 no other 17 god among you.
You must not worship a foreign god.
81:10 I am the Lord, your God,
the one who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide and I will fill it!’
81:11 But my people did not obey me; 18
Israel did not submit to me. 19
81:12 I gave them over to their stubborn desires; 20
they did what seemed right to them. 21
81:13 If only my people would obey me! 22
If only Israel would keep my commands! 23
81:14 Then I would quickly subdue their enemies,
and attack 24 their adversaries.”
81:15 (May those who hate the Lord 25 cower in fear 26 before him!
May they be permanently humiliated!) 27
81:16 “I would feed Israel the best wheat, 28
and would satisfy your appetite 29 with honey from the rocky cliffs.” 30
Mazmur 88:1-18
KonteksA song, a psalm written by the Korahites; for the music director; according to the machalath-leannoth style; 32 a well-written song 33 by Heman the Ezrachite.
88:1 O Lord God who delivers me! 34
By day I cry out
and at night I pray before you. 35
Pay attention 37 to my cry for help!
88:3 For my life 38 is filled with troubles
and I am ready to enter Sheol. 39
88:4 They treat me like 40 those who descend into the grave. 41
I am like a helpless man, 42
88:5 adrift 43 among the dead,
like corpses lying in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
and who are cut off from your power. 44
88:6 You place me in the lowest regions of the pit, 45
in the dark places, in the watery depths.
88:7 Your anger bears down on me,
and you overwhelm me with all your waves. (Selah)
88:8 You cause those who know me to keep their distance;
you make me an appalling sight to them.
I am trapped and cannot get free. 46
88:9 My eyes grow weak because of oppression.
I call out to you, O Lord, all day long;
I spread out my hands in prayer to you. 47
88:10 Do you accomplish amazing things for the dead?
Do the departed spirits 48 rise up and give you thanks? (Selah)
88:11 Is your loyal love proclaimed in the grave,
or your faithfulness in the place of the dead? 49
88:12 Are your amazing deeds experienced 50 in the dark region, 51
or your deliverance in the land of oblivion? 52
88:13 As for me, I cry out to you, O Lord;
in the morning my prayer confronts you.
88:14 O Lord, why do you reject me,
and pay no attention to me? 53
88:15 I am oppressed and have been on the verge of death since my youth. 54
I have been subjected to your horrors and am numb with pain. 55
88:16 Your anger overwhelms me; 56
your terrors destroy me.
88:17 They surround me like water all day long;
they join forces and encircle me. 57
88:18 You cause my friends and neighbors to keep their distance; 58
those who know me leave me alone in the darkness. 59
Mazmur 92:1--93:5
KonteksA psalm; a song for the Sabbath day.
92:1 It is fitting 61 to thank the Lord,
and to sing praises to your name, O sovereign One! 62
92:2 It is fitting 63 to proclaim your loyal love in the morning,
and your faithfulness during the night,
92:3 to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument and a lyre,
to the accompaniment of the meditative tone of the harp.
92:4 For you, O Lord, have made me happy by your work.
I will sing for joy because of what you have done. 64
92:5 How great are your works, O Lord!
Your plans are very intricate! 65
92:6 The spiritually insensitive do not recognize this;
the fool does not understand this. 66
92:7 When the wicked sprout up like grass,
and all the evildoers glisten, 67
it is so that they may be annihilated. 68
92:8 But you, O Lord, reign 69 forever!
92:9 Indeed, 70 look at your enemies, O Lord!
Indeed, 71 look at how your enemies perish!
All the evildoers are scattered!
92:10 You exalt my horn like that of a wild ox. 72
I am covered 73 with fresh oil.
92:11 I gloat in triumph over those who tried to ambush me; 74
I hear the defeated cries of the evil foes who attacked me. 75
92:12 The godly 76 grow like a palm tree;
they grow high like a cedar in Lebanon. 77
92:13 Planted in the Lord’s house,
they grow in the courts of our God.
92:14 They bear fruit even when they are old;
they are filled with vitality and have many leaves. 78
92:15 So they proclaim that the Lord, my protector,
is just and never unfair. 79
93:1 The Lord reigns!
He is robed in majesty,
the Lord is robed,
he wears strength around his waist. 81
Indeed, the world is established, it cannot be moved.
93:2 Your throne has been secure from ancient times;
you have always been king. 82
93:3 The waves 83 roar, O Lord,
the waves roar,
the waves roar and crash. 84
93:4 Above the sound of the surging water, 85
and the mighty waves of the sea,
the Lord sits enthroned in majesty. 86
[81:1] 1 sn Psalm 81. The psalmist calls God’s people to assemble for a festival and then proclaims God’s message to them. The divine speech (vv. 6-16) recalls how God delivered the people from Egypt, reminds Israel of their rebellious past, expresses God’s desire for his people to obey him, and promises divine protection in exchange for obedience.
[81:1] 2 tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew term הַגִּתִּית (haggittit) is uncertain; it probably refers to a musical style or instrument. See the superscription to Ps 8.
[81:3] 4 tn Heb “at the new moon.”
[81:3] sn New moon festivals were a monthly ritual in Israel (see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 469-70). In this context the New Moon festival of the seventh month, when the Feast of Tabernacles was celebrated (note the reference to a “festival” in the next line), may be in view.
[81:3] 5 tn Heb “at the full moon on the day of our festival.” The Hebrew word כֶּסֶה (keseh) is an alternate spelling of כֶּסֶא (kese’, “full moon”).
[81:3] sn The festival in view is probably the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths), which began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month when the moon was full. See Lev 23:34; Num 29:12.
[81:4] 6 tn Heb “because a statute for Israel [is] it.”
[81:5] 7 tn Heb “in his going out against the land of Egypt.” This apparently refers to the general time period of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. The LXX reads, “from Egypt,” in which case “Joseph” (see the preceding line) would be the subject of the verb, “when he [Joseph = Israel] left Egypt.”
[81:5] 8 tn Heb “a lip I did not know, I heard.” Here the term “lip” probably stands for speech or a voice. Apparently the psalmist speaks here and refers to God’s voice, whose speech is recorded in the following verses.
[81:6] 9 tn The words “It said” are not included in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[81:6] 10 sn I removed the burden. The Lord speaks metaphorically of how he delivered his people from Egyptian bondage. The reference to a basket/burden probably alludes to the hard labor of the Israelites in Egypt, where they had to carry loads of bricks (see Exod 1:14).
[81:7] 11 tn Heb “I answered you in the hidden place of thunder.” This may allude to God’s self-revelation at Mount Sinai, where he appeared in a dark cloud accompanied by thunder (see Exod 19:16).
[81:7] 12 sn The name Meribah means “strife.” Two separate but similar incidents at the place called Meribah are recorded in the Pentateuch (Exod 17:1-7; Num 20:1-13). In both cases the Israelites complained about lack of water and the Lord miraculously provided for them.
[81:8] 13 tn The words “I said” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Verses 8-10 appear to recall what the
[81:8] 14 tn Or perhaps “command.”
[81:8] 15 tn The Hebrew particle אִם (“if”) and following prefixed verbal form here express a wish (GKC 321 §109.b). Note that the apodosis (the “then” clause of the conditional sentence) is suppressed.
[81:9] 16 tn The imperfect verbal forms in v. 9 have a modal function, expressing what is obligatory.
[81:9] 17 tn Heb “different”; “illicit.”
[81:11] 18 tn Heb “did not listen to my voice.”
[81:11] 19 tn The Hebrew expression אָבָה לִי (’avah liy) means “submit to me” (see Deut 13:8).
[81:12] 20 tn Heb “and I sent him away in the stubbornness of their heart.”
[81:12] 21 tn Heb “they walked in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite (“walked”) or a customary imperfect (“were walking”).
[81:13] 22 tn Heb “if only my people were listening to me.” The Hebrew particle לוּ (lu, “if not”) introduces a purely hypothetical or contrary to fact condition (see 2 Sam 18:12).
[81:13] 23 tn Heb “[and if only] Israel would walk in my ways.”
[81:14] 24 tn Heb “turn my hand against.” The idiom “turn the hand against” has the nuance of “strike with the hand, attack” (see Isa 1:25; Ezek 38:12; Amos 1:8; Zech 13:7).
[81:15] 25 tn “Those who hate the
[81:15] 26 tn See Deut 33:29; Ps 66:3 for other uses of the verb כָּחַשׁ (kakhash) in the sense “cower in fear.” In Ps 18:44 the verb seems to carry the nuance “to be weak; to be powerless” (see also Ps 109:24). The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, parallel to the jussive form in the next line.
[81:15] 27 tc Heb “and may their time be forever.” The Hebrew term עִתָּם (’ittam, “their time”) must refer here to the “time” of the demise and humiliation of those who hate the
[81:15] tn The verb form at the beginning of the line is jussive, indicating that this is a prayer. The translation assumes that v. 15 is a parenthetical “curse” offered by the psalmist. Having heard the reference to Israel’s enemies (v. 14), the psalmist inserts this prayer, reminding the Lord that they are God’s enemies as well.
[81:16] 28 tn Heb “and he fed him from the best of the wheat.” The Hebrew text has a third person form of the preterite with a vav (ו) consecutive attached. However, it is preferable, in light of the use of the first person in v. 14 and in the next line, to emend the verb to a first person form and understand the vav as conjunctive, continuing the apodosis of the conditional sentence of vv. 13-14. The third masculine singular pronominal suffix refers to Israel, as in v. 6.
[81:16] sn I would feed. After the parenthetical “curse” in v. 15, the Lord’s speech continues here.
[81:16] 29 tn Heb “you.” The second person singular pronominal suffix refers to Israel, as in vv. 7-10.
[81:16] 30 sn The language in this verse, particularly the references to wheat and honey, is reminiscent of Deut 32:13-14.
[88:1] 31 sn Psalm 88. The psalmist cries out in pain to the Lord, begging him for relief from his intense and constant suffering. The psalmist regards God as the ultimate cause of his distress, but nevertheless clings to God in hope.
[88:1] 32 tn The Hebrew phrase מָחֲלַת לְעַנּוֹת (makhalat lÿ’annot) may mean “illness to afflict.” Perhaps it refers to a particular style of music, a tune title, or a musical instrument. The term מָחֲלַת also appears in the superscription of Ps 53.
[88:1] 33 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.
[88:1] 34 tn Heb “O
[88:1] 35 tn Heb “[by] day I cry out, in the night before you.”
[88:2] 36 tn Heb “may my prayer come before you.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive, indicating the psalmist’s desire or prayer.
[88:2] 37 tn Heb “turn your ear.”
[88:3] 39 tn Heb “and my life approaches Sheol.”
[88:4] 40 tn Heb “I am considered with.”
[88:4] 41 tn Heb “the pit.” The noun בּוֹר (bor, “pit,” “cistern”) is sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead.
[88:4] 42 tn Heb “I am like a man [for whom] there is no help.”
[88:5] 44 tn Heb “from your hand.”
[88:6] 45 tn The noun בּוֹר (bor, “pit,” “cistern”) is sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead. See v. 4.
[88:8] 46 tn Heb “[I am] confined and I cannot go out.”
[88:9] 47 tn Heb “I spread out my hands to you.” Spreading out the hands toward God was a prayer gesture (see Exod 9:29, 33; 1 Kgs 8:22, 38; 2 Chr 6:12-13, 29; Ezra 9:15; Job 11:13; Isa 1:15). The words “in prayer” have been supplied in the translation to clarify this.
[88:10] 48 tn Heb “Rephaim,” a term that refers to those who occupy the land of the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14, 19).
[88:11] 49 tn Heb “in Abaddon,” a name for Sheol. The noun is derived from a verbal root meaning “to perish,” “to die.”
[88:12] 51 tn Heb “darkness,” here a title for Sheol.
[88:12] 52 tn Heb “forgetfulness.” The noun, which occurs only here in the OT, is derived from a verbal root meaning “to forget.”
[88:12] sn The rhetorical questions in vv. 10-12 expect the answer, “Of course not!”
[88:14] 53 tn Heb “[why] do you hide your face from me?”
[88:15] 54 tn Heb “and am dying from youth.”
[88:15] 55 tn Heb “I carry your horrors [?].” The meaning of the Hebrew form אָפוּנָה (’afunah), which occurs only here in the OT, is unclear. It may be an adverb meaning “very much” (BDB 67 s.v.), though some prefer to emend the text to אָפוּגָה (’afugah, “I am numb”) from the verb פוּג (pug; see Pss 38:8; 77:2).
[88:16] 56 tn Heb “passes over me.”
[88:17] 57 tn Heb “they encircle me together.”
[88:18] 58 tn Heb “you cause to be far from me friend and neighbor.”
[88:18] 59 tn Heb “those known by me, darkness.”
[92:1] 60 sn Psalm 92. The psalmist praises God because he defeats the wicked and vindicates his loyal followers.
[92:1] 62 tn Traditionally “O Most High.”
[92:2] 63 tn The words “it is fitting” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Verses 1-3 are actually one long sentence in the Hebrew text, but this has been divided up into two shorter sentences in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.
[92:4] 64 tn Heb “the works of your hands.”
[92:5] 65 tn Heb “very deep [are] your thoughts.” God’s “thoughts” refer here to his moral design of the world, as outlined in vv. 6-15.
[92:6] 66 tn Heb “the brutish man does not know, and the fool does not understand this.” The adjective בַּעַר (ba’ar, “brutish”) refers to spiritual insensitivity, not mere lack of intelligence or reasoning ability (see Pss 49:10; 73:22; Prov 12:1; 30:2, as well as the use of the related verb in Ps 94:8).
[92:7] 68 tn Heb “in order that they might be destroyed permanently.”
[92:7] sn God allows the wicked to prosper temporarily so that he might reveal his justice. When the wicked are annihilated, God demonstrates that wickedness does not pay off.
[92:8] 69 tn Heb “[are elevated] on high.”
[92:10] 72 sn The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “to exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 75:10; 89:24; Lam 2:17).
[92:10] 73 tn The Hebrew verb בָּלַל (balal) usually has the nuance “to mix.” Here it seems to mean “to smear” or “to anoint.” Some emend the form to בַּלֹּתַנִי (ballotaniy; a second person form of the verb with a first person suffix) and read, “you anoint me.”
[92:11] 74 tn Heb “my eye gazes upon those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 56:2. The form שׁוּרָי (shuray) should be emended to שׁוֹרְרָי (shorÿray).
[92:11] 75 tn Heb “those who rise up against me, evil [foes], my ears hear.”
[92:12] 76 tn The singular is used in a representative sense, with the typical godly person being in view.
[92:12] 77 sn The cedars of the Lebanon forest were well-known in ancient Israel for their immense size.
[92:14] 78 tn Heb “they are juicy and fresh.”
[92:15] 79 tn Heb “so that [they] proclaim that upright [is] the
[93:1] 80 sn Psalm 93. The psalmist affirms that the
[93:1] 81 sn Strength is compared here to a belt that one wears for support. The Lord’s power undergirds his rule.
[93:2] 82 tn Heb “from antiquity [are] you.” As the context suggests, this refers specifically to God’s royal position, not his personal existence.
[93:3] 83 tn The Hebrew noun translated “waves” often refers to rivers or streams, but here it appears to refer to the surging waves of the sea (see v. 4, Ps 24:2).
[93:3] 84 tn Heb “the waves lift up, O
[93:4] 85 tn Heb “mighty waters.”
[93:4] sn The surging waters here symbolizes the hostile enemies of God who seek to destroy the order he has established in the world (see Pss 18:17; 29:3; 32:6; 77:20; 144:7; Isa 17:13; Jer 51:55; Ezek 26:19; Hab 3:15). But the Lord is depicted as elevated above and sovereign over these raging waters.
[93:4] 86 tn Heb “mighty on high [is] the
[93:5] 87 tn Traditionally “your testimonies.” The Hebrew noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to the demands of God’s covenant law. See Ps 19:7.
[93:5] 88 sn The rules you set down. God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.
[93:5] 89 sn Holiness refers here to God’s royal transcendence (see vv. 1-4), as well as his moral authority and perfection (see v. 5a).
[93:5] 90 tn Heb “for your house holiness is fitting, O
