Mazmur 68:15-16

68:15 The mountain of Bashan ¹  is a towering mountain; ² 

the mountain of Bashan is a mountain with many peaks. ³ 

68:16 Why do you look with envy, ⁴  O mountains ⁵  with many peaks,

at the mountain where God has decided to live? ⁶ 

Indeed ⁷  the Lord will live there ⁸  permanently!

Mazmur 78:68-69

78:68 He chose the tribe of Judah,

and Mount Zion, which he loves.

78:69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above; ⁹ 

as secure as the earth, which he established permanently. ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 132:13-14

132:13 Certainly ¹¹  the Lord has chosen Zion;

he decided to make it his home. ¹² 

132:14 He said, ¹³  “This will be my resting place forever;

I will live here, for I have chosen it. ¹⁴ 

[68:15]  ¹ sn The mountain of Bashan probably refers to Mount Hermon.

[68:15]  ² tn Heb “a mountain of God.” The divine name is probably used here in a superlative sense to depict a very high mountain (“a mountain fit for God,” as it were). Cf. NIV “are majestic mountains”; NRSV “O mighty mountain.”

[68:15]  ³ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term, which appears only here in the OT, is uncertain. HALOT 174 s.v. גַּבְנוֹן suggests “many-peaked,” while BDB 148 s.v. גַּבְנִן suggests “rounded summit.”

[68:16]  ⁴ tn The meaning of the Hebrew verb רָצַד (ratsad), translated here “look with envy,” is uncertain; it occurs only here in the OT. See BDB 952-53. A cognate verb occurs in later Aramaic with the meaning “to lie in wait; to watch” (Jastrow 1492 s.v. רְצַד).

[68:16]  ⁵ tn Perhaps the apparent plural form should be read as a singular with enclitic mem (ם; later misinterpreted as a plural ending). The preceding verse has the singular form.

[68:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “[at] the mountain God desires for his dwelling place.” The reference is to Mount Zion/Jerusalem.

[68:16]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew particle אַף (’af) has an emphasizing function here.

[68:16]  ⁸ tn The word “there” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[78:69]  ⁹ tc Heb “and he built like the exalting [ones] his sanctuary.” The phrase כְּמוֹ־רָמִים (kÿmo-ramim, “like the exalting [ones]”) is a poetic form of the comparative preposition followed by a participial form of the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”). The text should be emended to כִּמְרֹמִים (kimromim, “like the [heavenly] heights”). See Ps 148:1, where “heights” refers to the heavens above.

[78:69]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “like the earth, [which] he established permanently.” The feminine singular suffix on the Hebrew verb יָסַד (yasad, “to establish”) refers to the grammatically feminine noun “earth.”

[132:13]  ¹¹ tn Or “for.”

[132:13]  ¹² tn Heb “he desired it for his dwelling place.”

[132:14]  ¹³ tn The words “he said” are added in the translation to clarify that what follows are the Lord’s words.

[132:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “for I desired it.”