Psalms 48:8-14

48:8 We heard about God’s mighty deeds, now we have seen them, ¹ 

in the city of the Lord, the invincible Warrior, ² 

in the city of our God.

God makes it permanently secure. ³  (Selah)

48:9 We reflect on your loyal love, O God,

within your temple.

48:10 The praise you receive as far away as the ends of the earth

is worthy of your reputation, O God. ⁴ 

You execute justice! ⁵ 

48:11 Mount Zion rejoices;

the towns ⁶  of Judah are happy, ⁷ 

because of your acts of judgment. ⁸ 

48:12 Walk around ⁹  Zion! Encircle it!

Count its towers!

48:13 Consider its defenses! ¹⁰ 

Walk through ¹¹  its fortresses,

so you can tell the next generation about it! ¹² 

48:14 For God, our God, is our defender forever! ¹³ 

He guides ¹⁴  us! ¹⁵ 

[48:8]  ¹ tn Heb “As we have heard, so we have seen.” The community had heard about God’s mighty deeds in the nation’s history. Having personally witnessed his saving power with their own eyes, they could now affirm that the tradition was not exaggerated or inaccurate.

[48:8]  ² tn Heb “the Lord of hosts.” The title “Lord of hosts” here pictures the Lord as a mighty warrior-king who leads armies into battle (see Pss 24:10; 46:7, 11).

[48:8]  ³ tn Or “God makes it secure forever.” The imperfect highlights the characteristic nature of the generalizing statement.

[48:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “like your name, O God, so [is] your praise to the ends of the earth.” Here “name” refers to God’s reputation and revealed character.

[48:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “your right hand is full of justice.” The “right hand” suggests activity and power.

[48:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “daughters.” The reference is to the cities of Judah surrounding Zion (see Ps 97:8 and H. Haag, TDOT 2:336).

[48:11]  ⁷ tn The prefixed verbal forms are understood as generalizing imperfects. (For other examples of an imperfect followed by causal לְמַעַן [lÿma’an], see Ps 23:3; Isa 49:7; 55:5.) Another option is to interpret the forms as jussives, “Let Mount Zion rejoice! Let the towns of Judah be happy!” (cf. NASB, NRSV; note the imperatives in vv. 12-13.)

[48:11]  ⁸ sn These acts of judgment are described in vv. 4-7.

[48:12]  ⁹ tn The verb forms in vv. 12-13 are plural; the entire Judahite community is addressed.

[48:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “set your heart to its rampart.”

[48:13]  ¹¹ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word translated “walk through,” which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. Cf. NEB “pass…in review”; NIV “view.”

[48:13]  ¹² sn The city’s towers, defenses, and fortresses are outward reminders and tangible symbols of the divine protection the city enjoys.

[48:14]  ¹³ tn Heb “for this is God, our God, forever and ever.” “This” might be paraphrased, “this protector described and praised in the preceding verses.”

[48:14]  ¹⁴ tn The imperfect highlights the characteristic nature of the generalizing statement.

[48:14]  ¹⁵ tn In the Hebrew text the psalm ends with the words עַל־מוּת (’al-mut, “upon [unto?] dying”), which make little, if any, sense. M. Dahood (Psalms [AB], 1:293) proposes an otherwise unattested plural form עֹלָמוֹת (’olamot; from עוֹלָם, ’olam, “eternity”). This would provide a nice parallel to עוֹלָם וָעֶד (’olam va’ed, “forever”) in the preceding line, but elsewhere the plural of עוֹלָם appears as עֹלָמִים (’olamim). It is preferable to understand the phrase as a musical direction of some sort (see עַל־מוּת [’al-mut] in the superscription of Ps 9) or to emend the text to עַל־עֲלָמוֹת (’al-’alamot, “according to the alamoth style”; see the heading of Ps 46). In either case it should be understood as belonging with the superscription of the following psalm.