Psalms 81:5

81:5 He decreed it as a regulation in Joseph,

when he attacked the land of Egypt. ¹ 

I heard a voice I did not recognize. ² 

Genesis 42:23

42:23 (Now ³  they did not know that Joseph could understand them, ⁴  for he was speaking through an interpreter.) ⁵ 

¹ tn Heb “in his going out against the land of Egypt.” This apparently refers to the general time period of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. The LXX reads, “from Egypt,” in which case “Joseph” (see the preceding line) would be the subject of the verb, “when he [Joseph = Israel] left Egypt.”

² tn Heb “a lip I did not know, I heard.” Here the term “lip” probably stands for speech or a voice. Apparently the psalmist speaks here and refers to God’s voice, whose speech is recorded in the following verses.

³ tn The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information that is important to the story.

⁴ tn “was listening.” The brothers were not aware that Joseph could understand them as they spoke the preceding words in their native language.

⁵ tn Heb “for [there was] an interpreter between them.” On the meaning of the word here translated “interpreter” see HALOT 590 s.v. מֵלִיץ and M. A. Canney, “The Hebrew melis (Prov IX 12; Gen XLII 2-3),” AJSL 40 (1923/24): 135-37.