1 Chronicles 6:33

6:33 These are the ones who served along with their sons:

From the Kohathites:

Heman the musician, son of Joel, son of Samuel,

1 Chronicles 6:39

6:39 Serving beside him was his fellow Levite Asaph, ¹  son of Berechiah, son of Shimea,

1 Chronicles 25:6

25:6 All of these were under the supervision of their fathers; they were musicians in the Lord’s temple, playing cymbals and stringed instruments as they served in God’s temple. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the supervision of the king.

Psalms 50:1

Psalm 50 ² 

A psalm by Asaph.

50:1 El, God, the Lord ³  speaks,

and summons the earth to come from the east and west. ⁴ 

Psalms 62:1

Psalm 62 ⁵ 

For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David.

62:1 For God alone I patiently wait; ⁶ 

he is the one who delivers me. ⁷ 

Psalms 88:1

Psalm 88 ⁸ 

A song, a psalm written by the Korahites; for the music director; according to the machalath-leannoth style; ⁹  a well-written song ¹⁰  by Heman the Ezrachite.

88:1 O Lord God who delivers me! ¹¹ 

By day I cry out

and at night I pray before you. ¹² 

¹ tn Heb “and his brother Asaph, the one who stood at his right hand.”

² sn Psalm 50. This psalm takes the form of a covenant lawsuit in which the Lord comes to confront his people in a formal manner (as in Isa 1:2-20). The Lord emphasizes that he places priority on obedience and genuine worship, not empty ritual.

³ sn Israel’s God is here identified with three names: El (אֵל [’el], or “God”), Elohim (אֱלֹהִים [’elohim], or “God”), and Yahweh (יְהוָה [yÿhvah] or “the Lord”). There is an obvious allusion here to Josh 22:22, the only other passage where these three names appear in succession. In that passage the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh declare, “El, God, the Lord! El, God, the Lord! He knows the truth! Israel must also know! If we have rebelled or disobeyed the Lord, don’t spare us today!” In that context the other tribes had accused the trans-Jordanian tribes of breaking God’s covenant by worshiping idols. The trans-Jordanian tribes appealed to “El, God, the Lord” as their witness that they were innocent of the charges brought against them. Ironically here in Ps 50 “El, God, the Lord” accuses his sinful covenant people of violating the covenant and warns that he will not spare them if they persist in their rebellion.

⁴ tn Heb “and calls [the] earth from the sunrise to its going.”

⁵ sn Psalm 62. The psalmist expresses his unwavering confidence in God’s justice and in his ability to protect his people.

⁶ tn Heb “only for God [is] there silence [to] my soul.”

⁷ tn Heb “from him [is] my deliverance.”

⁸ 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.

⁹ 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.

¹⁰ 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.

¹¹ tn Heb “O Lord God of my deliverance.” In light of the content of the psalm, this reference to God as the one who delivers seems overly positive. For this reason some emend the text to אַלֹהַי שִׁוַּעְתִּי (’alohay shivva’tiy, “[O Lord] my God, I cry out”). See v. 13.

¹² tn Heb “[by] day I cry out, in the night before you.”