Mazmur 144:1--150:6
KonteksBy David.
144:1 The Lord, my protector, 2 deserves praise 3 –
the one who trains my hands for battle, 4
and my fingers for war,
144:2 who loves me 5 and is my stronghold,
my refuge 6 and my deliverer,
my shield and the one in whom I take shelter,
who makes nations submit to me. 7
144:3 O Lord, of what importance is the human race, 8 that you should notice them?
Of what importance is mankind, 9 that you should be concerned about them? 10
144:4 People 11 are like a vapor,
their days like a shadow that disappears. 12
144:5 O Lord, make the sky sink 13 and come down! 14
Touch the mountains and make them smolder! 15
144:6 Hurl lightning bolts and scatter them!
Shoot your arrows and rout them! 16
144:7 Reach down 17 from above!
Grab me and rescue me from the surging water, 18
from the power of foreigners, 19
144:8 who speak lies,
and make false promises. 20
144:9 O God, I will sing a new song to you!
Accompanied by a ten-stringed instrument, I will sing praises to you,
144:10 the one who delivers 21 kings,
and rescued David his servant from a deadly 22 sword.
144:11 Grab me and rescue me from the power of foreigners, 23
who speak lies,
and make false promises. 24
144:12 Then 25 our sons will be like plants,
that quickly grow to full size. 26
Our daughters will be like corner pillars, 27
carved like those in a palace. 28
144:13 Our storehouses 29 will be full,
providing all kinds of food. 30
Our sheep will multiply by the thousands
144:14 Our cattle will be weighted down with produce. 33
No one will break through our walls,
no one will be taken captive,
and there will be no terrified cries in our city squares. 34
144:15 How blessed are the people who experience these things! 35
How blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
A psalm of praise, by David.
145:1 I will extol you, my God, O king!
I will praise your name continually! 37
145:2 Every day I will praise you!
I will praise your name continually! 38
145:3 The Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise!
No one can fathom his greatness! 39
145:4 One generation will praise your deeds to another,
and tell about your mighty acts! 40
145:5 I will focus on your honor and majestic splendor,
and your amazing deeds! 41
145:6 They will proclaim 42 the power of your awesome acts!
I will declare your great deeds!
145:7 They will talk about the fame of your great kindness, 43
and sing about your justice. 44
145:8 The Lord is merciful and compassionate;
he is patient 45 and demonstrates great loyal love. 46
145:9 The Lord is good to all,
and has compassion on all he has made. 47
145:10 All he has made will give thanks to the Lord.
Your loyal followers will praise you.
145:11 They will proclaim the splendor of your kingdom;
they will tell about your power,
145:12 so that mankind 48 might acknowledge your mighty acts,
and the majestic splendor of your kingdom.
145:13 Your kingdom is an eternal kingdom, 49
and your dominion endures through all generations.
145:14 50 The Lord supports all who fall,
and lifts up all who are bent over. 51
145:15 Everything looks to you in anticipation, 52
and you provide them with food on a regular basis. 53
145:16 You open your hand,
and fill every living thing with the food they desire. 54
145:17 The Lord is just in all his actions, 55
and exhibits love in all he does. 56
145:18 The Lord is near all who cry out to him,
all who cry out to him sincerely. 57
145:19 He satisfies the desire 58 of his loyal followers; 59
he hears their cry for help and delivers them.
145:20 The Lord protects those who love him,
but he destroys all the wicked.
145:21 My mouth will praise the Lord. 60
Let all who live 61 praise his holy name forever!
146:1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
146:2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live!
I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist!
146:3 Do not trust in princes,
or in human beings, who cannot deliver! 63
146:4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground;
on that day their plans die. 64
146:5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
146:6 the one who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who remains forever faithful, 65
146:7 vindicates the oppressed, 66
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases the imprisoned.
146:8 The Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord lifts up all who are bent over. 67
The Lord loves the godly.
146:9 The Lord protects those residing outside their native land;
he lifts up the fatherless and the widow, 68
but he opposes the wicked. 69
146:10 The Lord rules forever,
your God, O Zion, throughout the generations to come! 70
Praise the Lord!
147:1 Praise the Lord,
for it is good to sing praises to our God!
Yes, 72 praise is pleasant and appropriate!
147:2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem, 73
and gathers the exiles of Israel.
147:3 He heals 74 the brokenhearted,
and bandages their wounds.
147:4 He counts the number of the stars;
he names all of them.
147:5 Our Lord is great and has awesome power; 75
there is no limit to his wisdom. 76
147:6 The Lord lifts up the oppressed,
but knocks 77 the wicked to the ground.
147:7 Offer to the Lord a song of thanks! 78
Sing praises to our God to the accompaniment of a harp!
147:8 He covers 79 the sky with clouds,
provides the earth with rain,
and causes grass to grow on the hillsides. 80
147:9 He gives food to the animals,
and to the young ravens when they chirp. 81
147:10 He is not enamored with the strength of a horse,
nor is he impressed by the warrior’s strong legs. 82
147:11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers, 83
and in those who wait for his loyal love.
147:12 Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
147:13 For he makes the bars of your gates strong.
He blesses your children 84 within you.
147:14 He 85 brings peace to your territory. 86
He abundantly provides for you 87 the best grain.
147:15 He 88 sends his command through the earth; 89
swiftly his order reaches its destination. 90
147:16 He sends the snow that is white like wool;
he spreads the frost that is white like ashes. 91
147:17 He throws his hailstones 92 like crumbs.
Who can withstand the cold wind he sends? 93
147:18 He then orders it all to melt; 94
he breathes on it, 95 and the water flows.
147:19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,
his statutes and regulations to Israel.
147:20 He has not done so with any other nation;
they are not aware of his regulations.
Praise the Lord!
148:1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the sky!
Praise him in the heavens!
148:2 Praise him, all his angels! 97
Praise him, all his heavenly assembly! 98
148:3 Praise him, O sun and moon!
Praise him, all you shiny stars! 99
148:4 Praise him, O highest heaven,
and you waters above the sky! 100
148:5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he gave the command and they came into existence.
148:6 He established them so they would endure; 101
he issued a decree that will not be revoked. 102
148:7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea creatures and all you ocean depths,
148:8 O fire and hail, snow and clouds, 103
O stormy wind that carries out his orders, 104
148:9 you mountains and all you hills,
you fruit trees and all you cedars,
148:10 you animals and all you cattle,
you creeping things and birds,
148:11 you kings of the earth and all you nations,
you princes and all you leaders 105 on the earth,
148:12 you young men and young women,
you elderly, along with you children!
148:13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty extends over the earth and sky.
148:14 He has made his people victorious, 106
and given all his loyal followers reason to praise –
the Israelites, the people who are close to him. 107
Praise the Lord!
149:1 Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song!
Praise him in the assembly of the godly! 109
149:2 Let Israel rejoice in their Creator!
Let the people 110 of Zion delight in their king! 111
149:3 Let them praise his name with dancing!
Let them sing praises to him to the accompaniment of the tambourine and harp!
149:4 For the Lord takes delight in his people;
he exalts the oppressed by delivering them. 112
149:5 Let the godly rejoice because of their vindication! 113
Let them shout for joy upon their beds! 114
149:6 May they praise God
while they hold a two-edged sword in their hand, 115
149:7 in order to take 116 revenge on the nations,
and punish foreigners.
149:8 They bind 117 their kings in chains,
and their nobles in iron shackles,
149:9 and execute the judgment to which their enemies 118 have been sentenced. 119
All his loyal followers will be vindicated. 120
Praise the Lord!
150:1 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary!
Praise him in the sky, which testifies to his strength! 122
150:2 Praise him for his mighty acts!
Praise him for his surpassing greatness!
150:3 Praise him with the blast of the horn!
Praise him with the lyre and the harp!
150:4 Praise him with the tambourine and with dancing!
Praise him with stringed instruments and the flute!
150:5 Praise him with loud cymbals!
Praise him with clanging cymbals!
150:6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
[144:1] 1 sn Psalm 144. The psalmist expresses his confidence in God, asks for a mighty display of divine intervention in an upcoming battle, and anticipates God’s rich blessings on the nation in the aftermath of military victory.
[144:1] 2 tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The
[144:1] 3 tn Heb “blessed [be] the
[144:1] 4 sn The one who trains my hands for battle. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement (see Ps 18:34). Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.
[144:2] 5 tn Heb “my loyal love,” which is probably an abbreviated form of “the God of my loyal love” (see Ps 59:10, 17).
[144:2] 6 tn Or “my elevated place.”
[144:2] 7 tn Heb “the one who subdues nations beneath me.”
[144:3] 8 tn Heb “What is mankind?” The singular noun אֱנוֹשׁ (’enosh) is used here in a collective sense and refers to the human race. See Ps 8:5.
[144:3] 9 tn Heb “and the son of man.” The phrase “son of man” is used here in a collective sense and refers to human beings. For other uses of the phrase in a collective or representative manner, see Num 23:19; Ps 146:3; Isa 51:12.
[144:3] 10 tn Heb “take account of him.” The two imperfect verbal forms in v. 4 describe God’s characteristic activity.
[144:4] 11 tn Heb “man,” or “mankind.”
[144:4] 12 tn Heb “his days [are] like a shadow that passes away,” that is, like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness. See Ps 102:11.
[144:5] 13 tn The Hebrew verb נָטָה (natah) can carry the sense “to [cause to] bend; to [cause to] bow down.” For example, Gen 49:15 pictures Issachar as a donkey that “bends” its shoulder or back under a burden. Here the
[144:5] 14 tn Heb “so you might come down.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose after the preceding imperative. The same type of construction is utilized in v. 6.
[144:5] 15 tn Heb “so they might smolder.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose after the preceding imperative.
[144:6] 16 sn Arrows and lightning bolts are associated in other texts (see Pss 18:14; 77:17-18; Zech 9:14), as well as in ancient Near Eastern art (see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” [Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983], 187).
[144:7] 17 tn Heb “stretch out your hands.”
[144:7] 18 tn Heb “mighty waters.” The waters of the sea symbolize the psalmist’s powerful foreign enemies, as well as the realm of death they represent (see the next line and Ps 18:16-17).
[144:7] 19 tn Heb “from the hand of the sons of foreignness.”
[144:8] 20 tn Heb “who [with] their mouth speak falsehood, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.” The reference to the “right hand” is probably a metonymy for an oath. When making an oath, one would raise the hand as a solemn gesture. See Exod 6:8; Num 14:30; Deut 32:40. The figure thus represents the making of false oaths (false promises).
[144:10] 21 tn Heb “grants deliverance to.”
[144:11] 23 tn Heb “from the hand of the sons of foreignness.”
[144:11] 24 tn Heb “who [with] their mouth speak falsehood, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.” See v. 8 where the same expression occurs.
[144:12] 25 tn Some consider אֲשֶׁר (’asher) problematic, but here it probably indicates the anticipated consequence of the preceding request. (For other examples of אֲשֶׁר indicating purpose/result, see BDB 83 s.v. and HALOT 99 s.v.) If the psalmist – who appears to be a Davidic king preparing to fight a battle (see vv. 10-11) – is victorious, the whole nation will be spared invasion and defeat (see v. 14) and can flourish. Some prefer to emend the form to אַשְׁרֵי (“how blessed [are our sons]”). A suffixed noun sometimes follows אַשְׁרֵי (’ashrey; see 1 Kgs 10:8; Prov 20:7), but the presence of a comparative element (see “like plants”) after the suffixed noun makes the proposed reading too awkward syntactically.
[144:12] 26 tn Heb “grown up in their youth.” The translation assumes that “grown up” modifies “plants” (just as “carved” modifies “corner pillars” in the second half of the verse). Another option is to take “grown up” as a predicate in relation to “our sons,” in which case one might translate, “they will be strapping youths.”
[144:12] 27 tn The Hebrew noun occurs only here and in Zech 9:15, where it refers to the corners of an altar.
[144:12] 28 tn Heb “carved [in] the pattern of a palace.”
[144:13] 29 tn The Hebrew noun occurs only here.
[144:13] 30 tn Heb “from kind to kind.” Some prefer to emend the text to מָזוֹן עַל מָזוֹן (mazon ’al mazon, “food upon food”).
[144:13] 31 tn Heb “they are innumerable.”
[144:13] 32 tn Heb “in outside places.” Here the term refers to pastures and fields (see Job 5:10; Prov 8:26).
[144:14] 33 tn Heb “weighted down.” This probably refers (1) to the cattle having the produce from the harvest placed on their backs to be transported to the storehouses (see BDB 687 s.v. סָבַל). Other options are (2) to take this as reference to the cattle being pregnant (see HALOT 741 s.v. סבל pu) or (3) to their being well-fed or fattened (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 288).
[144:14] 34 tn Heb “there [will be] no breach, and there [will be] no going out, and there [will be] no crying out in our broad places.”
[144:15] 35 tn Heb “[O] the happiness of the people who [it is] such to them.”
[145:1] 36 sn Psalm 145. The psalmist praises God because he is a just and merciful king who cares for his people.
[145:1] 37 tn Or, hyperbolically, “forever.”
[145:2] 38 tn Or, hyperbolically, “forever.”
[145:3] 39 tn Heb “and concerning his greatness there is no searching.”
[145:4] 40 tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 4 are understood as imperfects, indicating how the psalmist expects his audience to respond to his praise. Another option is to take the forms as jussives, indicating the psalmist’s wish, “may one generation praise…and tell about.”
[145:5] 41 tn Heb “the splendor of the glory of your majesty, and the matters of your amazing deeds I will ponder.”
[145:6] 42 tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as an imperfect, indicating how the psalmist expects his audience to respond to his praise. Another option is to take the forms as a jussive, indicating the psalmist’s wish, “may they proclaim.”
[145:7] 43 tn Heb “the fame of the greatness of your goodness.”
[145:7] 44 tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 7 are understood as imperfects, indicating how the psalmist expects his audience to respond to his praise. Another option is to take the forms as jussives, indicating the psalmist’s wish, “may they talk…and sing.”
[145:8] 45 tn Heb “slow to anger” (see Pss 86:15; 103:8).
[145:8] 46 tn Heb “and great of loyal love” (see Pss 86:15; 103:8).
[145:9] 47 tn Heb “and his compassion is over all his works.”
[145:12] 48 tn Heb “the sons of man.”
[145:13] 49 tn Heb “a kingdom of all ages.”
[145:14] 50 tc Psalm 145 is an acrostic psalm, with each successive verse beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. However, in the traditional Hebrew (Masoretic) text of Psalm 145 there is no verse beginning with the letter nun. One would expect such a verse to appear as the fourteenth verse, between the mem (מ) and samek (ס) verses. Several ancient witnesses, including one medieval Hebrew manuscript, the Qumran scroll from cave 11, the LXX, and the Syriac, supply the missing nun (נ) verse, which reads as follows: “The Lord is reliable in all his words, and faithful in all his deeds.” One might paraphrase this as follows: “The Lord’s words are always reliable; his actions are always faithful.” Scholars are divided as to the originality of this verse. L. C. Allen argues for its inclusion on the basis of structural considerations (Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 294-95), but there is no apparent explanation for why, if original, it would have been accidentally omitted. The psalm may be a partial acrostic, as in Pss 25 and 34 (see M. Dahood, Psalms [AB], 3:335). The glaring omission of the nun line would have invited a later redactor to add such a line.
[145:14] 51 tn Perhaps “discouraged” (see Ps 57:6).
[145:15] 52 tn Heb “the eyes of all wait for you.”
[145:15] 53 tn Heb “and you give to them their food in its season” (see Ps 104:27).
[145:16] 54 tn Heb “[with what they] desire.”
[145:17] 55 tn Heb “in all his ways.”
[145:17] 56 tn Heb “and [is] loving in all his deeds.”
[145:18] 57 tn Heb “in truth.”
[145:19] 58 tn In this context “desire” refers to the followers’ desire to be delivered from wicked enemies.
[145:19] 59 tn Heb “the desire of those who fear him, he does.”
[145:21] 60 tn Heb “the praise of the
[145:21] 61 tn Heb “all flesh.”
[146:1] 62 sn Psalm 146. The psalmist urges his audience not to trust in men, but in the
[146:3] 63 tn Heb “in a son of man, to whom there is no deliverance.”
[146:4] 64 tn Heb “his spirit goes out, it returns to his ground; in that day his plans die.” The singular refers to the representative man mentioned in v. 3b.
[146:6] 65 tn Heb “the one who guards faithfulness forever.”
[146:7] 66 tn Heb “executes justice for the oppressed.”
[146:8] 67 tn Perhaps “discouraged” (see Ps 57:6).
[146:9] 68 sn God is depicted here as a just ruler. In the ancient Near Eastern world a king was responsible for promoting justice, including caring for the weak and vulnerable, epitomized by resident aliens, the fatherless, and widows.
[146:9] 69 tn Heb “he makes the way of the wicked twisted.” The “way of the wicked” probably refers to their course of life (see Prov 4:19; Jer 12:1). God makes their path tortuous in the sense that he makes them pay the harmful consequences of their actions.
[146:10] 70 tn Heb “for a generation and a generation.”
[147:1] 71 sn Psalm 147. The psalmist praises the
[147:2] 73 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[147:3] 74 tn Heb “the one who heals.”
[147:5] 75 tn Heb “and great of strength.”
[147:5] 76 tn Heb “to his wisdom there is no counting.”
[147:6] 77 tn Heb “brings down.”
[147:7] 78 tn Heb “sing to the
[147:8] 79 tn Heb “the one who covers.”
[147:9] 81 tn Heb “which cry out.”
[147:10] 82 tn Heb “he does not desire the strength of the horse, he does not take delight in the legs of the man.” Here “the horse” refers to the war horse used by ancient Near Eastern chariot forces, and “the man” refers to the warrior whose muscular legs epitomize his strength.
[147:11] 83 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[147:13] 84 tn Heb “your sons.”
[147:14] 85 tn Heb “the one who.”
[147:14] 86 tn Heb “he makes your boundary peace.”
[147:14] 87 tn Heb “satisfies you with.”
[147:15] 88 tn Heb “the one who.”
[147:15] 89 tn Heb “the one who sends his word, the earth.” The Hebrew term אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) is an adverbial accusative; one must supply a preposition before it (such as “through” or “to”) in the English translation.
[147:15] 90 tn Heb “swiftly his word runs.”
[147:16] 91 tn Heb “the one who gives snow like wool, frost like ashes he scatters.”
[147:17] 93 tn Heb “Before his cold, who can stand?”
[147:18] 94 tn Heb “he sends his word and melts them.”
[147:18] 95 tn Heb “he blows his breath.”
[148:1] 96 sn Psalm 148. The psalmist calls upon all creation to praise the Lord, for he is the creator and sovereign king of the world.
[148:2] 97 tn Or “heavenly messengers.”
[148:2] 98 tn Heb “all his host.”
[148:3] 99 tn Heb “stars of light.”
[148:4] 100 sn The “water” mentioned here corresponds to the “waters above” mentioned in Gen 1:7. See also Ps 104:3. For a discussion of the picture envisioned by the psalmist, see L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 47.
[148:6] 101 tn Or “forever and ever.”
[148:6] 102 tn Heb “and it will not pass away.”
[148:8] 103 tn In Ps 119:83 the noun refers to “smoke,” but here, where the elements of nature are addressed, the clouds, which resemble smoke, are probably in view.
[148:8] 104 tn Heb “[that] does his word.”
[148:14] 106 tn Heb “and he lifted up a horn for his people.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 75:10; 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17). Another option is to take the “horn” as a symbol for the Davidic king, through whom the
[148:14] 107 tn “[there is] praise for all his loyal followers, to the sons of Israel, the people near him.” Here “praise” stands by metonymy for the victory that prompts it.
[149:1] 108 sn Psalm 149. The psalmist calls upon God’s people to praise him because he is just and avenges them.
[149:1] 109 tn Heb “his praise in the assembly of the godly ones.”
[149:2] 111 sn The
[149:4] 112 tn Heb “he honors the oppressed [with] deliverance.”
[149:5] 113 tn Heb “in glory.” Here “glory” probably refers to the “honor” that belongs to the
[149:5] 114 tn The significance of the reference to “beds” is unclear. Perhaps the point is that they should rejoice at all times, even when falling asleep or awaking.
[149:6] 115 tn Heb “[May] praises of God [be] in their throat, and a two-edged sword in their hand.”
[149:9] 118 tn Heb “they”; the referent (the enemies of the people of God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[149:9] 119 tn Heb “to do against them judgment [that] is written.”
[149:9] 120 tn Heb “it is honor for all his godly ones.” The judgment of the oppressive kings will bring vindication and honor to God’s people (see vv. 4-5).
[150:1] 121 sn Psalm 150. The Psalter concludes with a resounding call for praise from everything that has breath.
