Psalms 8:1

Psalm 8 ¹ 

For the music director, according to the gittith style; ²  a psalm of David.

8:1 O Lord, our Lord, ³ 

how magnificent ⁴  is your reputation ⁵  throughout the earth!

You reveal your majesty in the heavens above! ⁶ 

Psalms 19:1

Psalm 19 ⁷ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; ⁸ 

the sky displays his handiwork. ⁹ 

Psalms 63:2-3

63:2 Yes, ¹⁰  in the sanctuary I have seen you, ¹¹ 

and witnessed ¹²  your power and splendor.

63:3 Because ¹³  experiencing ¹⁴  your loyal love is better than life itself,

my lips will praise you.

Psalms 93:1

Psalm 93 ¹⁵ 

93:1 The Lord reigns!

He is robed in majesty,

the Lord is robed,

he wears strength around his waist. ¹⁶ 

Indeed, the world is established, it cannot be moved.

Psalms 104:1

Psalm 104 ¹⁷ 

104:1 Praise the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, you are magnificent. ¹⁸ 

You are robed in splendor and majesty.

Hebrews 1:3

1:3 The Son is ¹⁹  the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, ²⁰  and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ²¹ 

Hebrews 1:2

1:2 in these last days he has spoken to us in a son, ²²  whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he created the world. ²³ 

Hebrews 1:1

Introduction: God Has Spoken Fully and Finally in His Son

1:1 After God spoke long ago ²⁴  in various portions ²⁵  and in various ways ²⁶  to our ancestors ²⁷  through the prophets,

Hebrews 1:1

Introduction: God Has Spoken Fully and Finally in His Son

1:1 After God spoke long ago ²⁸  in various portions ²⁹  and in various ways ³⁰  to our ancestors ³¹  through the prophets,

[8:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 8. In this hymn to the sovereign creator, the psalmist praises God’s majesty and marvels that God has given mankind dominion over the created order.

[8:1]  ² tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew term הגתית is uncertain; it probably refers to a musical style or type of instrument.

[8:1]  ³ tn The plural form of the title emphasizes the Lord’s absolute sovereignty.

[8:1]  ⁴ tn Or “awesome”; or “majestic.”

[8:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “name,” which here stands metonymically for God’s reputation.

[8:1]  ⁶ tc Heb “which, give, your majesty on the heavens.” The verb form תְּנָה (tÿnah; an imperative?) is corrupt. The form should be emended to a second masculine singular perfect (נָתַתָּה, natatah) or imperfect (תִתֵן, titen) form. The introductory אֲשֶׁר (’asher, “which”) can be taken as a relative pronoun (“you who”) or as a causal conjunction (“because”). One may literally translate, “you who [or “because you”] place your majesty upon the heavens.” For other uses of the phrase “place majesty upon” see Num 27:20 and 1 Chr 29:25.

[19:1]  ⁷ sn Psalm 19. The psalmist praises God for his self-revelation in the heavens and in the Mosaic law. The psalmist concludes with a prayer, asking the Lord to keep him from sinning and to approve of his thoughts and words.

[19:1]  ⁸ sn God’s glory refers here to his royal majesty and power.

[19:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “and the work of his hands the sky declares.” The participles emphasize the ongoing testimony of the heavens/sky.

[63:2]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew particle כֵּן (ken) is used here to stress the following affirmation (see Josh 2:4).

[63:2]  ¹¹ tn The perfect verbal form is understood here as referring to a past experience which the psalmist desires to be repeated. Another option is to take the perfect as indicating the psalmist’s certitude that he will again stand in God’s presence in the sanctuary. In this case one can translate, “I will see you.”

[63:2]  ¹² tn Heb “seeing.” The preposition with the infinitive construct here indicates an accompanying circumstance.

[63:3]  ¹³ tn This line is understood as giving the basis for the praise promised in the following line. Another option is to take the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) as asseverative/emphasizing, “Indeed, your loyal love is better” (cf. NEB, which leaves the particle untranslated).

[63:3]  ¹⁴ tn The word “experiencing” is supplied in the translation for clarification. The psalmist does not speak here of divine loyal love in some abstract sense, but of loyal love revealed and experienced.

[93:1]  ¹⁵ sn Psalm 93. The psalmist affirms that the Lord is the king of the universe who preserves order and suppresses the destructive forces in the world.

[93:1]  ¹⁶ sn Strength is compared here to a belt that one wears for support. The Lord’s power undergirds his rule.

[104:1]  ¹⁷ sn Psalm 104. The psalmist praises God as the ruler of the world who sustains all life.

[104:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “very great.”

[1:3]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “who being…and sustaining.” Heb 1:1-4 form one skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments to correspond to contemporary English usage, which does not allow for sentences of this length and complexity.

[1:3]  ²⁰ tn Grk “by the word of his power.”

[1:3]  ²¹ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1, quoted often in Hebrews.

[1:2]  ²² tn The Greek puts an emphasis on the quality of God’s final revelation. As such, it is more than an indefinite notion (“a son”) though less than a definite one (“the son”), for this final revelation is not just through any son of God, nor is the emphasis specifically on the person himself. Rather, the focus here is on the nature of the vehicle of God’s revelation: He is no mere spokesman (or prophet) for God, nor is he merely a heavenly messenger (or angel); instead, this final revelation comes through one who is intimately acquainted with the heavenly Father in a way that only a family member could be. There is, however, no exact equivalent in English (“in son” is hardly good English style).

[1:2]  ²³ tn Grk “the ages.” The temporal (ages) came to be used of the spatial (what exists in those time periods). See Heb 11:3 for the same usage.

[1:1]  ²⁴ tn Or “spoke formerly.”

[1:1]  ²⁵ tn Or “parts.” The idea is that God’s previous revelation came in many parts and was therefore fragmentary or partial (L&N 63.19), in comparison with the final and complete revelation contained in God’s Son. However, some interpret πολυμερῶς (polumerw") in Heb 1:1 to mean “on many different occasions” and would thus translate “many times” (L&N 67.11). This is the option followed by the NIV: “at many times and in various ways.” Finally, this word is also understood to refer to the different manners in which something may be done, and would then be translated “in many different ways” (L&N 89.81). In this last case, the two words πολυμερῶς and πολυτρόπως (polutropw") mutually reinforce one another (“in many and various ways,” NRSV).

[1:1]  ²⁶ tn These two phrases are emphasized in Greek by being placed at the beginning of the sentence and by alliteration.

[1:1]  ²⁷ tn Grk “to the fathers.”

[1:1]  ²⁸ tn Or “spoke formerly.”

[1:1]  ²⁹ tn Or “parts.” The idea is that God’s previous revelation came in many parts and was therefore fragmentary or partial (L&N 63.19), in comparison with the final and complete revelation contained in God’s Son. However, some interpret πολυμερῶς (polumerw") in Heb 1:1 to mean “on many different occasions” and would thus translate “many times” (L&N 67.11). This is the option followed by the NIV: “at many times and in various ways.” Finally, this word is also understood to refer to the different manners in which something may be done, and would then be translated “in many different ways” (L&N 89.81). In this last case, the two words πολυμερῶς and πολυτρόπως (polutropw") mutually reinforce one another (“in many and various ways,” NRSV).

[1:1]  ³⁰ tn These two phrases are emphasized in Greek by being placed at the beginning of the sentence and by alliteration.

[1:1]  ³¹ tn Grk “to the fathers.”