Mazmur 47:1-9
KonteksFor the music director; by the Korahites; a psalm.
47:1 All you nations, clap your hands!
Shout out to God in celebration! 2
47:2 For the sovereign Lord 3 is awe-inspiring; 4
he is the great king who rules the whole earth! 5
47:3 He subdued nations beneath us 6
and countries 7 under our feet.
47:4 He picked out for us a special land 8
to be a source of pride for 9 Jacob, 10 whom he loves. 11 (Selah)
47:5 God has ascended his throne 12 amid loud shouts; 13
the Lord has ascended his throne amid the blaring of ram’s horns. 14
47:6 Sing to God! Sing!
Sing to our king! Sing!
47:7 For God is king of the whole earth!
Sing a well-written song! 15
47:8 God reigns 16 over the nations!
God sits on his holy throne!
47:9 The nobles of the nations assemble,
along with the people of the God of Abraham, 17
for God has authority over the rulers 18 of the earth.
He is highly exalted! 19
Mazmur 93:1-5
Konteks93:1 The Lord reigns!
He is robed in majesty,
the Lord is robed,
he wears strength around his waist. 21
Indeed, the world is established, it cannot be moved.
93:2 Your throne has been secure from ancient times;
you have always been king. 22
93:3 The waves 23 roar, O Lord,
the waves roar,
the waves roar and crash. 24
93:4 Above the sound of the surging water, 25
and the mighty waves of the sea,
the Lord sits enthroned in majesty. 26
93:5 The rules you set down 27 are completely reliable. 28
Holiness 29 aptly adorns your house, O Lord, forever. 30
Mazmur 96:1--98:9
Konteks96:1 Sing to the Lord a new song! 32
Sing to the Lord, all the earth!
96:2 Sing to the Lord! Praise his name!
Announce every day how he delivers! 33
96:3 Tell the nations about his splendor!
Tell 34 all the nations about his amazing deeds!
96:4 For the Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise;
he is more awesome than all gods. 35
96:5 For all the gods of the nations are worthless, 36
but the Lord made the sky.
96:6 Majestic splendor emanates from him; 37
his sanctuary is firmly established and beautiful. 38
96:7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the nations,
ascribe to the Lord splendor and strength!
96:8 Ascribe to the Lord the splendor he deserves! 39
Bring an offering and enter his courts!
96:9 Worship the Lord in holy attire! 40
Tremble before him, all the earth!
96:10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
The world is established, it cannot be moved.
He judges the nations fairly.”
96:11 Let the sky rejoice, and the earth be happy!
Let the sea and everything in it shout!
96:12 Let the fields and everything in them celebrate!
Then let the trees of the forest shout with joy
96:13 before the Lord, for he comes!
For he comes to judge the earth!
He judges the world fairly, 41
and the nations in accordance with his justice. 42
97:1 The Lord reigns!
Let the earth be happy!
Let the many coastlands rejoice!
97:2 Dark clouds surround him;
equity and justice are the foundation of his throne. 44
97:3 Fire goes before him;
on every side 45 it burns up his enemies.
97:4 His lightning bolts light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
97:5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of the whole earth.
97:6 The sky declares his justice,
and all the nations see his splendor.
97:7 All who worship idols are ashamed,
those who boast about worthless idols.
All the gods bow down before him. 46
97:8 Zion hears and rejoices,
the towns 47 of Judah are happy,
because of your judgments, O Lord.
97:9 For you, O Lord, are the sovereign king 48 over the whole earth;
you are elevated high above all gods.
97:10 You who love the Lord, hate evil!
He protects 49 the lives of his faithful followers;
he delivers them from the power 50 of the wicked.
97:11 The godly bask in the light;
the morally upright experience joy. 51
97:12 You godly ones, rejoice in the Lord!
Give thanks to his holy name. 52
A psalm.
98:1 Sing to the Lord a new song, 54
for he performs 55 amazing deeds!
His right hand and his mighty arm
accomplish deliverance. 56
98:2 The Lord demonstrates his power to deliver; 57
in the sight of the nations he reveals his justice.
98:3 He remains loyal and faithful to the family of Israel. 58
All the ends of the earth see our God deliver us. 59
98:4 Shout out praises to the Lord, all the earth!
Break out in a joyful shout and sing!
98:5 Sing to the Lord accompanied by a harp,
accompanied by a harp and the sound of music!
98:6 With trumpets and the blaring of the ram’s horn,
shout out praises before the king, the Lord!
98:7 Let the sea and everything in it shout,
along with the world and those who live in it!
98:8 Let the rivers clap their hands!
Let the mountains sing in unison
98:9 before the Lord!
For he comes to judge the earth!
He judges the world fairly, 60
and the nations in a just manner.
[47:1] 1 sn Psalm 47. In this hymn the covenant community praises the Lord as the exalted king of the earth who has given them victory over the nations and a land in which to live.
[47:1] 2 tn Heb “Shout to God with [the] sound of a ringing cry!”
[47:2] 3 tn Heb “the
[47:2] 4 tn Or “awesome.” The Niphal participle נוֹרָא (nora’), when used of God in the psalms, focuses on the effect that his royal splendor and powerful deeds have on those witnessing his acts (Pss 66:3, 5; 68:35; 76:7, 12; 89:7; 96:4; 99:3; 111:9). Here it refers to his capacity to fill his defeated foes with terror and his people with fearful respect.
[47:2] 5 tn Heb “a great king over all the earth.”
[47:3] 6 tn On the meaning of the verb דָּבַר (davar, “subdue”), a homonym of דָּבַר (“speak”), see HALOT 209-10 s.v. I דבר. See also Ps 18:47 and 2 Chr 22:10. The preterite form of the verb suggests this is an historical reference and the next verse, which mentions the gift of the land, indicates that the conquest under Joshua is in view.
[47:3] 7 tn Or “peoples” (see Pss 2:1; 7:7; 9:8; 44:2).
[47:4] 8 tn Heb “he chose for us our inheritance.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite (see “subdued” in v. 3).
[47:4] 9 tn Heb “the pride of.” The phrase is appositional to “our inheritance,” indicating that the land is here described as a source of pride to God’s people.
[47:4] 11 sn Jacob whom he loves. The Lord’s covenantal devotion to his people is in view.
[47:5] 12 sn God ascended his throne. In the context of vv. 3-4, which refer to the conquest of the land under Joshua, v. 5 is best understood as referring to an historical event. When the Lord conquered the land and placed his people in it, he assumed a position of kingship, as predicted by Moses (see Exod 15:17-18, as well as Ps 114:1-2). That event is here described metaphorically in terms of a typical coronation ceremony for an earthly king (see 2 Sam 15:10; 2 Kgs 9:13). Verses 1-2, 8-9 focus on God’s continuing kingship, which extends over all nations.
[47:5] 13 tn Heb “God ascended amid a shout.” The words “his throne” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The
[47:5] 14 tn Heb “the
[47:7] 15 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 also occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142. Here, in a context of celebration, the meaning “skillful, well-written” would fit particularly well.
[47:8] 16 tn When a new king was enthroned, his followers would acclaim him king using this enthronement formula (Qal perfect 3ms מָלַךְ, malakh, “to reign,” followed by the name of the king). See 2 Sam 15:10; 1 Kgs 1:11, 13, 18; 2 Kgs 9:13, as well as Isa 52:7. In this context the perfect verbal form is generalizing, but the declaration logically follows the historical reference in v. 5 to the
[47:9] 17 tc The words “along with” do not appear in the MT. However, the LXX has “with,” suggesting that the original text may have read עִם עַם (’im ’am, “along with the people”). In this case the MT is haplographic (the consonantal sequence ayin-mem [עם] being written once instead of twice). Another option is that the LXX is simply and correctly interpreting “people” as an adverbial accusative and supplying the appropriate preposition.
[47:9] 18 tn Heb “for to God [belong] the shields of the earth.” Perhaps the rulers are called “shields” because they are responsible for protecting their people. See Ps 84:9, where the Davidic king is called “our shield,” and perhaps also Hos 4:18.
[47:9] 19 tn The verb עָלָה (’alah, “ascend”) appears once more (see v. 5), though now in the Niphal stem.
[93:1] 20 sn Psalm 93. The psalmist affirms that the
[93:1] 21 sn Strength is compared here to a belt that one wears for support. The Lord’s power undergirds his rule.
[93:2] 22 tn Heb “from antiquity [are] you.” As the context suggests, this refers specifically to God’s royal position, not his personal existence.
[93:3] 23 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] 24 tn Heb “the waves lift up, O
[93:4] 25 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] 26 tn Heb “mighty on high [is] the
[93:5] 27 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] 28 sn The rules you set down. God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.
[93:5] 29 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] 30 tn Heb “for your house holiness is fitting, O
[96:1] 31 sn Psalm 96. The psalmist summons everyone to praise the Lord, the sovereign creator of the world who preserves and promotes justice in the earth.
[96:1] 32 sn A new song is appropriate because the
[96:2] 33 tn Heb “announce from day to day his deliverance.”
[96:3] 34 tn The verb “tell” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
[96:4] 35 tn Or perhaps “and feared by all gods.” See Ps 89:7.
[96:5] 36 tn The Hebrew term אֱלִילִים (’elilim, “worthless”) sounds like אֱלֹהִים (’elohim, “gods”). The sound play draws attention to the statement.
[96:6] 37 tn Heb “majesty and splendor [are] before him.”
[96:6] 38 tn Heb “strength and beauty [are] in his sanctuary.”
[96:8] 39 tn Heb “the splendor of [i.e., “due”] his name.”
[96:9] 40 tn Or “in holy splendor.”
[96:13] 41 tn The verbal forms in v. 13 probably describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, though they may depict in dramatic fashion the outworking of divine judgment or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions, in which case they could be translated “will judge the world.”
[96:13] 42 tn Heb “and the nations with his integrity.”
[97:1] 43 sn Psalm 97. The psalmist depicts the Lord as the sovereign, just king of the world who comes in power to vindicate his people.
[97:2] 44 sn The Lord’s throne symbolizes his kingship.
[97:3] 45 tn Heb “all around.”
[97:7] 46 tn The translation assumes that the prefixed verbal form in the first line is an imperfect (“are ashamed”) and that the ambiguous form in the third line is a perfect (“bow down”) because the psalmist appears to be describing the effect of the
[97:8] 47 tn Heb “daughters.” The term “daughters” refers to the cities of Judah surrounding Zion (see Ps 48:11 and H. Haag, TDOT 2:336).
[97:9] 48 tn Traditionally “Most High.”
[97:10] 49 tn The participle may be verbal, though it might also be understood as substantival and appositional to “the
[97:11] 51 tn Heb “Light is planted for the godly, and for the upright of heart joy.” The translation assumes an emendation of זָרַע (zara’, “planted”) to זָרַח (zara’, “shines”) which collocates more naturally with “light.” “Light” here symbolizes the joy (note the following line) that accompanies deliverance and the outpouring of divine favor.
[97:12] 52 tn Heb “to his holy remembrance.” The Hebrew noun זָכַר (zakhar, “remembrance”) here refers to the name of the
[98:1] 53 sn Psalm 98. The psalmist summons the whole earth to praise God because he reveals his justice and delivers Israel.
[98:1] 54 sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the world as its just king. See Ps 96:1.
[98:1] 55 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 1-3 are understood here as describing characteristic divine activities. Another option is to translate them as present perfects, “has performed…has accomplished deliverance, etc.” referring to completed actions that have continuing results.
[98:1] 56 tn Heb “his right hand delivers for him and his holy arm.” The right hand and arm symbolize his power as a warrior-king (see Isa 52:10). His arm is “holy” in the sense that it is in a category of its own; God’s power is incomparable.
[98:2] 57 tn Heb “makes known his deliverance.”
[98:3] 58 tn Heb “he remembers his loyal love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel.”
[98:3] 59 tn Heb “the deliverance of our God,” with “God” being a subjective genitive (= God delivers).
[98:9] 60 tn The verbal forms in v. 9 probably describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, though they may depict in dramatic fashion the outworking of divine judgment or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions (“will judge…”).
