Psalms 68:15

68:15 The mountain of Bashan ¹  is a towering mountain; ² 

the mountain of Bashan is a mountain with many peaks. ³ 

Psalms 2:6

2:6 “I myself ⁴  have installed ⁵  my king

on Zion, my holy hill.”

Psalms 78:54

78:54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,

to this mountainous land ⁶  which his right hand ⁷  acquired.

Psalms 43:3

43:3 Reveal ⁸  your light ⁹  and your faithfulness!

They will lead me, ¹⁰ 

they will escort ¹¹  me back to your holy hill, ¹² 

and to the place where you live. ¹³ 

Psalms 48:1

Psalm 48 ¹⁴ 

A song, a psalm by the Korahites.

48:1 The Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise

in the city of our God, ¹⁵  his holy hill.

Psalms 48:11

48:11 Mount Zion rejoices;

the towns ¹⁶  of Judah are happy, ¹⁷ 

because of your acts of judgment. ¹⁸ 

Psalms 74:2

74:2 Remember your people ¹⁹  whom you acquired in ancient times,

whom you rescued ²⁰  so they could be your very own nation, ²¹ 

as well as Mount Zion, where you dwell!

Psalms 78:68

78:68 He chose the tribe of Judah,

and Mount Zion, which he loves.

Psalms 48:2

48:2 It is lofty and pleasing to look at, ²² 

a source of joy to the whole earth. ²³ 

Mount Zion resembles the peaks of Zaphon; ²⁴ 

it is the city of the great king.

[68:15]  ¹ sn The mountain of Bashan probably refers to Mount Hermon.

[68:15]  ² 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]  ³ 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.”

[2:6]  ⁴ tn The first person pronoun appears before the first person verbal form for emphasis, reflected in the translation by “myself.”

[2:6]  ⁵ tn Or perhaps “consecrated.”

[78:54]  ⁷ tn Heb “this mountain.” The whole land of Canaan seems to be referred to here. In Exod 15:17 the promised land is called the “mountain of your [i.e., God’s] inheritance.”

[78:54]  ⁸ tn The “right hand” here symbolizes God’s military strength (see v. 55).

[43:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “send.”

[43:3]  ¹¹ sn God’s deliverance is compared here to a light which will lead the psalmist back home to the Lord’s temple. Divine deliverance will in turn demonstrate the Lord’s faithfulness to his people.

[43:3]  ¹² tn Or “may they lead me.” The prefixed verbal forms here and in the next line may be taken as jussives.

[43:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “bring.”

[43:3]  ¹⁴ sn In this context the Lord’s holy hill is Zion/Jerusalem. See Isa 66:20; Joel 2:1; 3:17; Zech 8:3; Pss 2:6; 15:1; 48:1; 87:1; Dan 9:16.

[43:3]  ¹⁵ tn Or “to your dwelling place[s].” The plural form of the noun may indicate degree or quality; this is the Lord’s special dwelling place (see Pss 46:4; 84:1; 132:5, 7).

[48:1]  ¹³ sn Psalm 48. This so-called “Song of Zion” celebrates the greatness and glory of the Lord’s dwelling place, Jerusalem. His presence in the city elevates it above all others and assures its security.

[48:1]  ¹⁴ sn The city of our God is Jerusalem, which is also referred to here as “his holy hill,” that is, Zion (see v. 2, as well as Isa 66:20; Joel 2:1; 3:17; Zech 8:3; Pss 2:6; 15:1; 43:3; 87:1; Dan 9:16).

[48:11]  ¹⁶ 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]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ sn These acts of judgment are described in vv. 4-7.

[74:2]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “your assembly,” which pictures God’s people as an assembled community.

[74:2]  ²⁰ tn Heb “redeemed.” The verb “redeem” casts God in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis (see Ps 19:14).

[74:2]  ²¹ tn Heb “the tribe of your inheritance” (see Jer 10:16; 51:19).

[48:2]  ²² tn Heb “beautiful of height.” The Hebrew term נוֹף (nof, “height”) is a genitive of specification after the qualitative noun “beautiful.” The idea seems to be that Mount Zion, because of its lofty appearance, is pleasing to the sight.

[48:2]  ²³ sn A source of joy to the whole earth. The language is hyperbolic. Zion, as the dwelling place of the universal king, is pictured as the world’s capital. The prophets anticipated this idealized picture becoming a reality in the eschaton (see Isa 2:1-4).

[48:2]  ²⁴ tn Heb “Mount Zion, the peaks of Zaphon.” Like all the preceding phrases in v. 2, both phrases are appositional to “city of our God, his holy hill” in v. 1, suggesting an identification in the poet’s mind between Mount Zion and Zaphon. “Zaphon” usually refers to the “north” in a general sense (see Pss 89:12; 107:3), but here, where it is collocated with “peaks,” it refers specifically to Mount Zaphon, located in the vicinity of ancient Ugarit and viewed as the mountain where the gods assembled (see Isa 14:13). By alluding to West Semitic mythology in this way, the psalm affirms that Mount Zion is the real divine mountain, for it is here that the Lord God of Israel lives and rules over the nations. See P. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 353, and T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 103.