Mazmur 33:6

33:6 By the Lord’s decree ¹  the heavens were made;

by a mere word from his mouth all the stars in the sky were created. ² 

Mazmur 87:6

87:6 The Lord writes in the census book of the nations, ³ 

“This one was born there.” ⁴  (Selah)

[33:6]  ¹ tn Heb “word.”

[33:6]  ² tn Heb “and by the breath of his mouth all their host.” The words “were created” are added in the translation for stylistic reasons; they are understood by ellipsis (note “were made” in the preceding line). The description is consistent with Gen 1:16, which indicates that God spoke the heavenly luminaries into existence.

[87:6]  ³ tn Heb “the Lord records in the writing of the nations.”

[87:6]  ⁴ tn As noted in v. 4, the translation assumes a contrast between “there” (the various foreign lands) and “in her” (Zion). In contrast to foreigners, the citizens of Zion have special status because of their birthplace (v. 5). In this case vv. 4 and 6 form a structural frame around v. 5.