33:1 You godly ones, shout for joy because of the Lord!
It is appropriate for the morally upright to offer him praise.
33:2 Give thanks to the Lord with the harp!
Sing to him to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument!
33:3 Sing to him a new song! 2
Play skillfully as you shout out your praises to him! 3
33:4 For 4 the Lord’s decrees 5 are just, 6
and everything he does is fair. 7
33:5 The Lord promotes 8 equity and justice;
the Lord’s faithfulness extends throughout the earth. 9
33:6 By the Lord’s decree 10 the heavens were made;
by a mere word from his mouth all the stars in the sky were created. 11
1 sn Psalm 33. In this hymn the psalmist praises the Lord as the sovereign creator and just ruler of the world who protects and vindicates those who fear him.
2 sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the lives of his people in fresh and exciting ways.
3 tn Heb “play skillfully with a loud shout.”
3 sn For the
4 tn Heb “word.” In this context, which depicts the
5 tn Or “upright.”
6 tn Heb “and all his work [is] in faithfulness.”
4 tn Heb “loves.” The verb “loves” is here metonymic; the
5 tn Heb “fills the earth.”
5 tn Heb “word.”
6 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.