For the music director; by the Korahites; according to the alamoth style; 2 a song.
46:1 God is our strong refuge; 3
he is truly our helper in times of trouble. 4
50:7 But the sovereign Lord helps me,
so I am not humiliated.
For that reason I am steadfastly resolved; 5
I know I will not be put to shame.
50:8 The one who vindicates me is close by.
Who dares to argue with me? Let us confront each other! 6
Who is my accuser? 7 Let him challenge me! 8
50:9 Look, the sovereign Lord helps me.
Who dares to condemn me?
Look, all of them will wear out like clothes;
a moth will eat away at them.
1 sn Psalm 46. In this so-called “Song Of Zion” God’s people confidently affirm that they are secure because the great warrior-king dwells within Jerusalem and protects it from the nations that cause such chaos in the earth. A refrain (vv. 7, 11) concludes the song’s two major sections.
2 sn The meaning of the Hebrew term עֲלָמוֹת (alamoth, which means “young women”) is uncertain; perhaps it refers to a particular style of music. Cf. 1 Chr 15:20.
3 tn Heb “our refuge and strength,” which is probably a hendiadys meaning “our strong refuge” (see Ps 71:7). Another option is to translate, “our refuge and source of strength.”
4 tn Heb “a helper in times of trouble he is found [to be] greatly.” The perfect verbal form has a generalizing function here. The adverb מְאֹד (mÿ’od, “greatly”) has an emphasizing function.
5 tn Heb “Therefore I set my face like flint.”
6 tn Heb “Let us stand together!”
7 tn Heb “Who is the master of my judgment?”
8 tn Heb “let him approach me”; NAB, NIV “Let him confront me.”
9 tc Some important
10 sn A quotation from Ps 118:6.