Psalms 2:6

2:6 “I myself ¹  have installed ²  my king

on Zion, my holy hill.”

Psalms 68:15-16

68:15 The mountain of Bashan ³  is a towering mountain; ⁴ 

the mountain of Bashan is a mountain with many peaks. ⁵ 

68:16 Why do you look with envy, ⁶  O mountains ⁷  with many peaks,

at the mountain where God has decided to live? ⁸ 

Indeed ⁹  the Lord will live there ¹⁰  permanently!

Psalms 78:68

78:68 He chose the tribe of Judah,

and Mount Zion, which he loves.

Psalms 87:1

Psalm 87 ¹¹ 

Written by the Korahites; a psalm, a song.

87:1 The Lord’s city is in the holy hills. ¹² 

Psalms 123:1

Psalm 123 ¹³ 

A song of ascents. ¹⁴ 

123:1 I look up ¹⁵  toward you,

the one enthroned ¹⁶  in heaven.

Isaiah 2:3

2:3 many peoples will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,

to the temple of the God of Jacob,

so ¹⁷  he can teach us his requirements, ¹⁸ 

and ¹⁹  we can follow his standards.” ²⁰ 

For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; ²¹ 

the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. ²² 

[2:6]  ¹ tn The first person pronoun appears before the first person verbal form for emphasis, reflected in the translation by “myself.”

[2:6]  ² tn Or perhaps “consecrated.”

[68:15]  ³ sn The mountain of Bashan probably refers to Mount Hermon.

[68:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “a mountain of God.” The divine name is probably used here in a superlative sense to depict a very high mountain (“a mountain fit for God,” as it were). Cf. NIV “are majestic mountains”; NRSV “O mighty mountain.”

[68:15]  ⁵ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term, which appears only here in the OT, is uncertain. HALOT 174 s.v. גַּבְנוֹן suggests “many-peaked,” while BDB 148 s.v. גַּבְנִן suggests “rounded summit.”

[68:16]  ⁶ tn The meaning of the Hebrew verb רָצַד (ratsad), translated here “look with envy,” is uncertain; it occurs only here in the OT. See BDB 952-53. A cognate verb occurs in later Aramaic with the meaning “to lie in wait; to watch” (Jastrow 1492 s.v. רְצַד).

[68:16]  ⁷ tn Perhaps the apparent plural form should be read as a singular with enclitic mem (ם; later misinterpreted as a plural ending). The preceding verse has the singular form.

[68:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “[at] the mountain God desires for his dwelling place.” The reference is to Mount Zion/Jerusalem.

[68:16]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew particle אַף (’af) has an emphasizing function here.

[68:16]  ¹⁰ tn The word “there” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[87:1]  ¹¹ sn Psalm 87. The psalmist celebrates the Lord’s presence in Zion and the special status of its citizens.

[87:1]  ¹² tn Heb “his foundation [is] in the hills of holiness.” The expression “his foundation” refers here by metonymy to the Lord’s dwelling place in Zion. The “hills” are the ones surrounding Zion (see Pss 125:2; 133:3).

[123:1]  ¹³ sn Psalm 123. The psalmist, speaking for God’s people, acknowledges his dependence on God in the midst of a crisis.

[123:1]  ¹⁴ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[123:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “I lift my eyes.”

[123:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “sitting.” The Hebrew verb יָשַׁב (yashav) is here used metonymically of “sitting enthroned” (see Pss 9:7; 29:10; 55:19; 102:12).

[2:3]  ¹⁷ tn The prefixed verb form with simple vav (ו) introduces a purpose/result clause after the preceding prefixed verb form (probably to be taken as a cohortative; see IBHS 650 §39.2.2a).

[2:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “his ways.” In this context God’s “ways” are the standards of moral conduct he decrees that people should live by.

[2:3]  ¹⁹ tn The cohortative with vav (ו) after the prefixed verb form indicates the ultimate purpose/goal of their action.

[2:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “walk in his ways.”

[2:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “for out of Zion will go instruction.”

[2:3]  ²² tn Heb “the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”