Discovery BoxPsalms 72:4-20
Context72:4 He will defend 1 the oppressed among the people;
he will deliver 2 the children 3 of the poor
and crush the oppressor.
72:5 People will fear 4 you 5 as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky,
for generation after generation. 6
72:6 He 7 will descend like rain on the mown grass, 8
like showers that drench 9 the earth. 10
72:7 During his days the godly will flourish; 11
peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky. 12
72:8 May he rule 13 from sea to sea, 14
and from the Euphrates River 15 to the ends of the earth!
72:9 Before him the coastlands 16 will bow down,
and his enemies will lick the dust. 17
72:10 The kings of Tarshish 18 and the coastlands will offer gifts;
the kings of Sheba 19 and Seba 20 will bring tribute.
72:11 All kings will bow down to him;
all nations will serve him.
72:12 For he will rescue the needy 21 when they cry out for help,
and the oppressed 22 who have no defender.
72:13 He will take pity 23 on the poor and needy;
the lives of the needy he will save.
72:14 From harm and violence he will defend them; 24
he will value their lives. 25
72:15 May he live! 26 May they offer him gold from Sheba! 27
May they continually pray for him!
May they pronounce blessings on him all day long! 28
72:16 May there be 29 an abundance 30 of grain in the earth;
on the tops 31 of the mountains may it 32 sway! 33
May its 34 fruit trees 35 flourish 36 like the forests of Lebanon! 37
May its crops 38 be as abundant 39 as the grass of the earth! 40
May his dynasty last as long as the sun remains in the sky! 42
May they use his name when they formulate their blessings! 43
May all nations consider him to be favored by God! 44
72:18 The Lord God, the God of Israel, deserves praise! 45
He alone accomplishes amazing things! 46
72:19 His glorious name deserves praise 47 forevermore!
May his majestic splendor 48 fill the whole earth!
We agree! We agree! 49
72:20 This collection of the prayers of David son of Jesse ends here. 50
Psalms 74:3-8
Context74:3 Hurry and look 51 at the permanent ruins,
and all the damage the enemy has done to the temple! 52
74:4 Your enemies roar 53 in the middle of your sanctuary; 54
they set up their battle flags. 55
74:5 They invade like lumberjacks
swinging their axes in a thick forest. 56
74:6 And now 57 they are tearing down 58 all its engravings 59
74:7 They set your sanctuary on fire;
they desecrate your dwelling place by knocking it to the ground. 62
74:8 They say to themselves, 63
“We will oppress all of them.” 64
They burn down all the places where people worship God in the land. 65
Ezekiel 7:21-22
Context7:21 I will give it to foreigners as loot, to the world’s wicked ones as plunder, and they will desecrate it. 7:22 I will turn my face away from them and they will desecrate my treasured place. 66 Vandals will enter it and desecrate it. 67
[72:4] 1 tn Heb “judge [for].”
[72:4] 2 tn The prefixed verbal form appears to be an imperfect, not a jussive.
[72:5] 4 tn In this context “fear” probably means “to demonstrate respect for the
[72:5] 5 tn God is the addressee (see vv. 1-2).
[72:5] 6 tn Heb “with [the] sun, and before [the] moon [for] a generation, generations.” The rare expression דּוֹר דּוֹרִים (dor dorim, “generation, generations”) occurs only here, in Ps 102:24, and in Isa 51:8.
[72:6] 7 tn That is, the king (see vv. 2, 4).
[72:6] 8 tn The rare term zg refers to a sheep’s fleece in Deut 18:4 and Job 31:20, but to “mown” grass or crops here and in Amos 7:1.
[72:6] 9 tc The form in the Hebrew text appears to be an otherwise unattested noun. Many prefer to emend the form to a verb from the root זָרַף (zaraf). BHS in textual note b on this verse suggests a Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural יַזְרִיפוּ (yazrifu), while HALOT 283 s.v. *זרף prefers a Pilpel perfect, third masculine plural זִרְזְפוּ (zirzÿfu). The translation assumes the latter.
[72:6] 10 sn The imagery of this verse compares the blessings produced by the king’s reign to fructifying rains that cause the crops to grow.
[72:7] 11 tn Heb “sprout up,” like crops. This verse continues the metaphor of rain utilized in v. 6.
[72:7] 12 tn Heb “and [there will be an] abundance of peace until there is no more moon.”
[72:8] 13 tn The prefixed verbal form is a (shortened) jussive form, indicating this is a prayer of blessing.
[72:8] 14 sn From sea to sea. This may mean from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east. See Amos 8:12. The language of this and the following line also appears in Zech 9:10.
[72:8] 15 tn Heb “the river,” a reference to the Euphrates.
[72:9] 16 tn Or “islands.” The term here refers metonymically to those people who dwell in these regions.
[72:9] 17 sn As they bow down before him, it will appear that his enemies are licking the dust.
[72:10] 18 sn Tarshish was a distant western port, the precise location of which is uncertain.
[72:10] 19 sn Sheba was located in Arabia.
[72:10] 20 sn Seba was located in Africa.
[72:12] 21 tn The singular is representative. The typical needy individual here represents the entire group.
[72:12] 22 tn The singular is representative. The typical oppressed individual here represents the entire group.
[72:13] 23 tn The prefixed verb form is best understood as a defectively written imperfect (see Deut 7:16).
[72:14] 24 tn Or “redeem their lives.” The verb “redeem” casts the
[72:14] 25 tn Heb “their blood will be precious in his eyes.”
[72:15] 26 tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. Because the form has the prefixed vav (ו), some subordinate it to what precedes as a purpose/result clause. In this case the representative poor individual might be the subject of this and the following verb, “so that he may live and give to him gold of Sheba.” But the idea of the poor offering gold is incongruous. It is better to take the jussive as a prayer with the king as subject of the verb. (Perhaps the initial vav is dittographic; note the vav at the end of the last form in v. 14.) The statement is probably an abbreviated version of the formula יְחִי הַמֶּלֶךְ (yÿkhiy hammelekh, “may the king live”; see 1 Sam 10:24; 2 Sam 16:16; 1 Kgs 1:25, 34, 39; 2 Kgs 11:12).
[72:15] 27 tn Heb “and he will give to him some gold of Sheba.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one give”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are the tribute bearers in view here.
[72:15] 28 tn As in the preceding line, the prefixed verbal forms are understood as jussives with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one pray…and may one bless”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are in view here.
[72:16] 29 tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. The translation assumes the subject is impersonal (rather than the king).
[72:16] 30 tn The Hebrew noun פִסַּה (pissah; which appears here in the construct form) occurs only here in the OT. Perhaps the noun is related to the verbal root פָּשָׂה (pasah, “to spread,” see BDB 832 s.v.; the root appears as פָּסָה [pasah] in postbiblical Hebrew), which is used in postbiblical Hebrew of the rising sun’s rays spreading over the horizon and a tree’s branches spreading out (see Jastrow 1194 s.v. פסי, פָּסָה, פָּשָׂה). In Ps 72:16 a “spreading of grain” would refer to grain fields extending out over the land. C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs (Psalms [ICC], 2:139) emend the form to סְפִיחַ (sÿfiakh, “second growth”).
[72:16] 31 tn Heb “top” (singular).
[72:16] 32 tn That is, the grain.
[72:16] 33 tn According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the translator’s note at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse.
[72:16] 34 tn The antecedent of the third masculine singular pronominal suffix is unclear. It is unlikely that the antecedent is אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) because this noun is normally grammatically feminine. Perhaps רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “top [of the mountains]”) is the antecedent. Another option is to understand the pronoun as referring to the king, who would then be viewed as an instrument of divine agricultural blessing (see v. 6).
[72:16] 36 tc According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the note on the word “earth” at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse. The present translation takes it with the preceding words, “like Lebanon its fruit” and emends the verb form from וְיָצִיצוּ (vÿyatsitsu; Qal imperfect third masculine plural with prefixed vav, [ו]) to יָצִיץ (yatsits; Qal imperfect third masculine singular). The initial vav is eliminated as dittographic (note the vav on the ending of the preceding form פִּרְיוֹ, piryo, “its/his fruit”) and the vav at the end of the form is placed on the following emended form (see the note on the word “crops”), yielding וַעֲמִיר (va’amir, “and [its] crops”).
[72:16] 37 tn Heb “like Lebanon.”
[72:16] 38 tc The MT has “from the city.” The translation assumes an emendation to עֲמִיר (’amir, “crops”).
[72:16] 39 tn The translation assumes that the verb צוץ (“flourish”) goes with the preceding line. The words “be as abundant” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[72:16] 40 tc The traditional accentuation and vocalization of the MT differ from the text assumed by the present translation. The MT reads as follows: “May there be an abundance of grain in the earth, / and on the tops of the mountains! / May its [or “his”?] fruit [trees?] rustle like [the trees of] Lebanon! / May they flourish from the city, like the grass of the earth!” If one follows the MT, then it would appear that the “fruit” of the third line is a metaphorical reference to the king’s people, who flow out from the cities to populate the land (see line 4). Elsewhere in the OT people are sometimes compared to grass that sprouts up from the land (see v. 7, as well as Isa 27:6; Pss 92:7; 103:15). The translation understands a different poetic structural arrangement and, assuming the emendations mentioned in earlier notes, interprets each line of the verse to be a prayer for agricultural abundance.
[72:17] 41 tn Heb “may his name [be] permanent.” The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect.
[72:17] 42 tn Heb “before the sun may his name increase.” The Kethib (consonantal text) assumes יָנִין (yanin; a Hiphil of the verbal root נִין, nin) or יְנַיֵן (yÿnayen; a Piel form), while the Qere (marginal reading) assumes יִנּוֹן (yinnon; a Niphal form). The verb נִין occurs only here, though a derived noun, meaning “offspring,” appears elsewhere (see Isa 14:22). The verb appears to mean “propagate, increase” (BDB 630 s.v. נוּן, נִין) or “produce shoots, get descendants” (HALOT 696 s.v. נין). In this context this appears to be a prayer for a lasting dynasty that will keep the king’s name and memory alive.
[72:17] 43 tn Heb “may they bless one another by him,” that is, use the king’s name in their blessing formulae because he is a prime example of one blessed by God (for examples of such blessing formulae, see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11). There is some debate on whether the Hitpael form of בָּרַךְ (barakh, “bless”) is reflexive-reciprocal (as assumed in the present translation) or passive. The Hitpael of בָּרַךְ occurs in five other passages, including the hotly debated Gen 22:18 and 26:4. In these two texts one could understand the verb form as passive and translate, “all the nations of the earth will be blessed through your offspring,” or one could take the Hitpael as reflexive or reciprocal and translate, “all the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings [i.e., on themselves or one another] by your offspring.” In the first instance Abraham’s (or Isaac’s) offspring are viewed as a channel of divine blessing. In the second instance they are viewed as a prime example of blessing that will appear as part of the nations’ blessing formulae, but not necessarily as a channel of blessing to the nations. In Deut 29:18 one reads: “When one hears the words of this covenant [or “oath”] and invokes a blessing on himself (Hitpael of בָּרַךְ) in his heart, saying: ‘I will have peace, even though I walk with a rebellious heart.’” In this case the Hitpael is clearly reflexive, as the phrases “in his heart” and “I will have peace” indicate. The Hitpael of בָּרַךְ appears twice in Isaiah 65:16: “The one who invokes a blessing on himself (see Deut 9:18) in the land will invoke that blessing by the God of truth; and the one who makes an oath in the land will make that oath by the God of truth.” A passive nuance does not fit here. The parallel line, which mentions making an oath, suggests that the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ refers here to invoking a blessing. Both pronouncements of blessing and oaths will appeal to God as the one who rewards and judges, respectively. Jer 4:2 states: “If you swear, ‘As surely as the
[72:17] 44 tn Heb “all the nations, may they regard him as happy.” The Piel is used here in a delocutive sense (“regard as”).
[72:18] 45 tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21; 41:13.
[72:18] 46 tn Heb “[the] one who does amazing things by himself.”
[72:19] 47 tn Heb “[be] blessed.”
[72:19] 49 tn Heb “surely and surely” (אָמֵן וְאָמֵן [’amen vÿ’amen], i.e., “Amen and amen”). This is probably a congregational response of agreement to the immediately preceding statement about the propriety of praising God.
[72:20] 50 tn Heb “the prayers of David, son of Jesse, are concluded.” As noted earlier, v. 20 appears to be a remnant of an earlier collection of psalms or an earlier edition of the Psalter. In the present arrangement of the Book of Psalms, not all psalms prior to this are attributed to David (see Pss 1-2, 10, 33, 42-50, 66-67, 71-72) and several psalms attributed to David appear after this (see Pss 86, 101, 103, 108-110, 122, 124, 131, 138-145).
[74:3] 51 tn Heb “lift up your steps to,” which may mean “run, hurry.”
[74:3] 52 tn Heb “everything [the] enemy has damaged in the holy place.”
[74:4] 53 tn This verb is often used of a lion’s roar, so the psalmist may be comparing the enemy to a raging, devouring lion.
[74:4] 54 tn Heb “your meeting place.”
[74:4] 55 tn Heb “they set up their banners [as] banners.” The Hebrew noun אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) here refers to the enemy army’s battle flags and banners (see Num 2:12).
[74:5] 56 tn Heb “it is known like one bringing upwards, in a thicket of wood, axes.” The Babylonian invaders destroyed the woodwork in the temple.
[74:6] 57 tn This is the reading of the Qere (marginal reading). The Kethib (consonantal text) has “and a time.”
[74:6] 58 tn The imperfect verbal form vividly describes the act as underway.
[74:6] 59 tn Heb “its engravings together.”
[74:6] 60 tn This Hebrew noun occurs only here in the OT (see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena [SBLDS], 49-50).
[74:6] 61 tn This Hebrew noun occurs only here in the OT. An Akkadian cognate refers to a “pickaxe” (cf. NEB “hatchet and pick”; NIV “axes and hatchets”; NRSV “hatchets and hammers”).
[74:7] 62 tn Heb “to the ground they desecrate the dwelling place of your name.”
[74:8] 63 tn Heb “in their heart.”
[74:8] 64 tc Heb “[?] altogether.” The Hebrew form נִינָם (ninam) is problematic. It could be understood as the noun נִין (nin, “offspring”) but the statement “their offspring altogether” would make no sense here. C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs (Psalms [ICC], 2:159) emends יָחַד (yakhad, “altogether”) to יָחִיד (yakhid, “alone”) and translate “let their offspring be solitary” (i.e., exiled). Another option is to understand the form as a Qal imperfect first common plural from יָנָה (yanah, “to oppress”) with a third masculine plural pronominal suffix, “we will oppress them.” However, this verb, when used in the finite form, always appears in the Hiphil. Therefore, it is preferable to emend the form to the Hiphil נוֹנֵם (nonem, “we will oppress them”).
[74:8] 65 tn Heb “they burn down all the meeting places of God in the land.”
[7:22] 66 sn My treasured place probably refers to the temple (however, cf. NLT “my treasured land”).
[7:22] 67 sn Since the pronouns “it” are both feminine, they do not refer to the masculine “my treasured place”; instead they probably refer to Jerusalem or the land, both of which are feminine in Hebrew.
