1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.
3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,
4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.
5 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.
6 For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD?
7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
8 O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
11 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
12 The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.
13 Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
14 Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.
15 Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.
16 In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
17 For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.
18 For the LORD is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king.
19 Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
20 I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him:
21 With whom my hand shall be established: mine arm also shall strengthen him.
22 The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
23 And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him.
24 But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted.
25 I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.
26 He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.
27 Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.
28 My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him.
29 His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
30 If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments;
31 If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments;
32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.
36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.
37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.
38 But thou hast cast off and abhorred, thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.
39 Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant: thou hast profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.
40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges; thou hast brought his strong holds to ruin.
41 All that pass by the way spoil him: he is a reproach to his neighbours.
42 Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries; thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice.
43 Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword, and hast not made him to stand in the battle.
44 Thou hast made his glory to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground.
45 The days of his youth hast thou shortened: thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.
46 How long, LORD? wilt thou hide thyself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire?
47 Remember how short my time is: wherefore hast thou made all men in vain?
48 What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Selah.
49 Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses, which thou swarest unto David in thy truth?
50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people;
51 Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.
52 Blessed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and Amen.
1 [[Maschil H4905 of Ethan H387 the Ezrahite.]] H250 I will sing H7891 of the mercies H2617 of the LORD H3068 for ever: H5769 with my mouth H6310 will I make known H3045 thy faithfulness H530 to all H1755 generations. H1755
2 For I have said, H559 Mercy H2617 shall be built up H1129 for ever: H5769 thy faithfulness H530 shalt thou establish H3559 in the very heavens. H8064
3 I have made H3772 a covenant H1285 with my chosen, H972 I have sworn H7650 unto David H1732 my servant, H5650
4 Thy seed H2233 will I establish H3559 for H5704 ever, H5769 and build up H1129 thy throne H3678 to all H1755 generations. H1755 Selah. H5542
5 And the heavens H8064 shall praise H3034 thy wonders, H6382 O LORD: H3068 thy faithfulness H530 also in the congregation H6951 of the saints. H6918
6 For who in the heaven H7834 can be compared H6186 unto the LORD? H3068 who among the sons H1121 of the mighty H410 can be likened H1819 unto the LORD? H3068
7 God H410 is greatly H7227 to be feared H6206 in the assembly H5475 of the saints, H6918 and to be had in reverence H3372 of all them that are about H5439 him.
8 O LORD H3068 God H430 of hosts, H6635 who is a strong H2626 LORD H3050 like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness H530 round about H5439 thee?
9 Thou rulest H4910 the raging H1348 of the sea: H3220 when the waves H1530 thereof arise, H7721 thou stillest H7623 them.
10 Thou hast broken H1792 Rahab H7294 in pieces, H1792 as one that is slain; H2491 thou hast scattered H6340 thine enemies H341 with thy strong H5797 arm. H2220
11 The heavens H8064 are thine, the earth H776 also is thine: as for the world H8398 and the fulness H4393 thereof, thou hast founded H3245 them.
12 The north H6828 and the south H3225 thou hast created H1254 them: Tabor H8396 and Hermon H2768 shall rejoice H7442 in thy name. H8034
13 Thou hast a mighty H1369 arm: H2220 strong H5810 is thy hand, H3027 and high H7311 is thy right hand. H3225
14 Justice H6664 and judgment H4941 are the habitation H4349 of thy throne: H3678 mercy H2617 and truth H571 shall go H6923 before thy face. H6440
15 Blessed H835 is the people H5971 that know H3045 the joyful sound: H8643 they shall walk, H1980 O LORD, H3068 in the light H216 of thy countenance. H6440
16 In thy name H8034 shall they rejoice H1523 all the day: H3117 and in thy righteousness H6666 shall they be exalted. H7311
17 For thou art the glory H8597 of their strength: H5797 and in thy favour H7522 our horn H7161 shall be exalted. H7311 H7311
18 For the LORD H3068 is our defence; H4043 and the Holy One H6918 of Israel H3478 is our king. H4428
19 Then thou spakest H1696 in vision H2377 to thy holy one, H2623 and saidst, H559 I have laid H7737 help H5828 upon one that is mighty; H1368 I have exalted H7311 one chosen H977 out of the people. H5971
20 I have found H4672 David H1732 my servant; H5650 with my holy H6944 oil H8081 have I anointed H4886 him:
21 With whom my hand H3027 shall be established: H3559 mine arm H2220 also shall strengthen H553 him.
22 The enemy H341 shall not exact H5378 upon him; nor the son H1121 of wickedness H5766 afflict H6031 him.
23 And I will beat down H3807 his foes H6862 before his face, H6440 and plague H5062 them that hate H8130 him.
24 But my faithfulness H530 and my mercy H2617 shall be with him: and in my name H8034 shall his horn H7161 be exalted. H7311
25 I will set H7760 his hand H3027 also in the sea, H3220 and his right hand H3225 in the rivers. H5104
26 He shall cry H7121 unto me, Thou art my father, H1 my God, H410 and the rock H6697 of my salvation. H3444
27 Also I will make H5414 him my firstborn, H1060 higher H5945 than the kings H4428 of the earth. H776
28 My mercy H2617 will I keep H8104 for him for evermore, H5769 and my covenant H1285 shall stand fast H539 with him.
29 His seed H2233 also will I make H7760 to endure for ever, H5703 and his throne H3678 as the days H3117 of heaven. H8064
30 If his children H1121 forsake H5800 my law, H8451 and walk H3212 not in my judgments; H4941
31 If they break H2490 my statutes, H2708 and keep H8104 not my commandments; H4687
32 Then will I visit H6485 their transgression H6588 with the rod, H7626 and their iniquity H5771 with stripes. H5061
33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness H2617 will I not utterly take H6331 from him, nor suffer my faithfulness H530 to fail. H8266
34 My covenant H1285 will I not break, H2490 nor alter H8138 the thing that is gone out H4161 of my lips. H8193
35 Once H259 have I sworn H7650 by my holiness H6944 that I will not lie H3576 unto David. H1732
36 His seed H2233 shall endure for ever, H5769 and his throne H3678 as the sun H8121 before me.
37 It shall be established H3559 for ever H5769 as the moon, H3394 and as a faithful H539 witness H5707 in heaven. H7834 Selah. H5542
38 But thou hast cast off H2186 and abhorred, H3988 thou hast been wroth H5674 with thine anointed. H4899
39 Thou hast made void H5010 the covenant H1285 of thy servant: H5650 thou hast profaned H2490 his crown H5145 by casting it to the ground. H776
40 Thou hast broken down H6555 all his hedges; H1448 thou hast brought H7760 his strong holds H4013 to ruin. H4288
41 All that pass by H5674 the way H1870 spoil H8155 him: he is a reproach H2781 to his neighbours. H7934
42 Thou hast set up H7311 the right hand H3225 of his adversaries; H6862 thou hast made all his enemies H341 to rejoice. H8055
43 Thou hast also turned H7725 the edge H6697 of his sword, H2719 and hast not made him to stand H6965 in the battle. H4421
44 Thou hast made his glory H2892 to cease, H7673 and cast H4048 his throne H3678 down H4048 to the ground. H776
45 The days H3117 of his youth H5934 hast thou shortened: H7114 thou hast covered H5844 him with shame. H955 Selah. H5542
46 How long, LORD? H3068 wilt thou hide H5641 thyself for ever? H5331 shall thy wrath H2534 burn H1197 like fire? H784
47 Remember H2142 how short H2465 my time is: wherefore hast thou made H1254 all men H1121 H120 in vain? H7723
48 What man H1397 is he that liveth, H2421 and shall not see H7200 death? H4194 shall he deliver H4422 his soul H5315 from the hand H3027 of the grave? H7585 Selah. H5542
49 Lord, H136 where are thy former H7223 lovingkindnesses, H2617 which thou swarest H7650 unto David H1732 in thy truth? H530
50 Remember, H2142 Lord, H136 the reproach H2781 of thy servants; H5650 how I do bear H5375 in my bosom H2436 the reproach of all the mighty H7227 people; H5971
51 Wherewith thine enemies H341 have reproached, H2778 O LORD; H3068 wherewith they have reproached H2778 the footsteps H6119 of thine anointed. H4899
52 Blessed H1288 be the LORD H3068 for evermore. H5769 Amen, H543 and Amen. H543
1 I will sing of the lovingkindness of Jehovah for ever: With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever; Thy faithfulness wilt thou establish in the very heavens.
3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant:
4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, And build up thy throne to all generations. Selah
5 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Jehovah; Thy faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones.
6 For who in the skies can be compared unto Jehovah? Who among the sons of the mighty is like unto Jehovah,
7 A God very terrible in the council of the holy ones, And to be feared above all them that are round about him?
8 O Jehovah God of hosts, Who is a mighty one, like unto thee, O Jehovah? And thy faithfulness is round about thee.
9 Thou rulest the pride of the sea: When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; Thou hast scattered thine enemies with the arm of thy strength.
11 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: The world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
12 The north and the south, thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon rejoice in thy name.
13 Thou hast a mighty arm; Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne: Lovingkindness and truth go before thy face.
15 Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: They walk, O Jehovah, in the light of thy countenance.
16 In thy name do they rejoice all the day; And in thy righteousness are they exalted.
17 For thou art the glory of their strength; And in thy favor our horn shall be exalted.
18 For our shield belongeth unto Jehovah; And our king to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Then thou spakest in vision to thy saints, And saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
20 I have found David my servant; With my holy oil have I anointed him:
21 With whom my hand shall be established; Mine arm also shall strengthen him.
22 The enemy shall not exact from him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
23 And I will beat down his adversaries before him, And smite them that hate him.
24 But my faithfulness and my lovingkindness shall be with him; And in my name shall his horn be exalted.
25 I will set his hand also on the sea, And his right hand on the rivers.
26 He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.
27 I also will make him `my' first-born, The highest of the kings of the earth.
28 My lovingkindness will I keep for him for evermore; And my covenant shall stand fast with him.
29 His seed also will I make to endure for ever, And his throne as the days of heaven.
30 If his children forsake my law, And walk not in mine ordinances;
31 If they break my statutes, And keep not my commandments;
32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes.
33 But my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
34 My covenant will I not break, Nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness: I will not lie unto David:
36 His seed shall endure for ever, And his throne as the sun before me.
37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, And `as' the faithful witness in the sky. Selah
38 But thou hast cast off and rejected, Thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.
39 Thou hast abhorred the covenant of thy servant: Thou hast profaned his crown `by casting it' to the ground.
40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges; Thou hast brought his strongholds to ruin.
41 All that pass by the way rob him: He is become a reproach to his neighbors.
42 Thou hast exalted the right hand of his adversaries; Thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice.
43 Yea, thou turnest back the edge of his sword, And hast not made him to stand in the battle.
44 Thou hast made his brightness to cease, And cast his throne down to the ground.
45 The days of his youth hast thou shortened: Thou hast covered him with shame. Selah
46 How long, O Jehovah? wilt thou hide thyself for ever? `How long' shall thy wrath burn like fire?
47 Oh remember how short my time is: For what vanity hast thou created all the children of men!
48 What man is he that shall live and not see death, That shall deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah
49 Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses, Which thou swarest unto David in thy faithfulness?
50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants; How I do bear in my bosom `the reproach of' all the mighty peoples,
51 Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O Jehovah, Wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.
52 Blessed be Jehovah for evermore. Amen, and Amen. Psalm 90 A Prayer of Moses the man of God.
1 An instruction, by Ethan the Ezrahite. Of the kind acts of Jehovah, to the age I sing, To all generations I make known Thy faithfulness with my mouth,
2 For I said, `To the age is kindness built, The heavens! Thou dost establish Thy faithfulness in them.'
3 I have made a covenant for My chosen, I have sworn to David My servant:
4 `Even to the age do I establish thy seed, And have built to generation and generation thy throne. Selah.
5 and the heavens confess Thy wonders, O Jehovah, Thy faithfulness also `is' in an assembly of holy ones.
6 For who in the sky, Compareth himself to Jehovah? Is like to Jehovah among sons of the mighty?
7 God is very terrible, In the secret counsel of His holy ones, And fearful over all surrounding Him.
8 O Jehovah, God of Hosts, Who `is' like Thee -- a strong Jah? And Thy faithfulness `is' round about Thee.
9 Thou `art' ruler over the pride of the sea, In the lifting up of its billows Thou dost restrain them.
10 Thou hast bruised Rahab, as one wounded. With the arm of Thy strength Thou hast scattered Thine enemies.
11 Thine `are' the heavens -- the earth also `is' Thine, The habitable world and its fulness, Thou hast founded them.
12 North and south Thou hast appointed them, Tabor and Hermon in Thy name do sing.
13 Thou hast an arm with might, Strong is Thy hand -- high Thy right hand.
14 Righteousness and judgment `Are' the fixed place of Thy throne, Kindness and truth go before Thy face.
15 O the happiness of the people knowing the shout, O Jehovah, in the light of Thy face they walk habitually.
16 In Thy name they rejoice all the day, And in Thy righteousness they are exalted,
17 For the beauty of their strength `art' Thou, And in Thy good will is our horn exalted,
18 For of Jehovah `is' our shield, And of the Holy One of Israel our king.
19 Then Thou hast spoken in vision, To Thy saint, yea, Thou sayest, I have placed help upon a mighty one, Exalted a chosen one out of the people,
20 I have found David My servant, With My holy oil I have anointed him.
21 With whom My hand is established, My arm also doth strengthen him.
22 An enemy exacteth not upon him, And a son of perverseness afflicteth him not.
23 And I have beaten down before him his adversaries, And those hating him I plague,
24 And My faithfulness and kindness `are' with him, And in My name is his horn exalted.
25 And I have set on the sea his hand, And on the rivers his right hand.
26 He proclaimeth me: `Thou `art' my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.'
27 I also first-born do appoint him, Highest of the kings of the earth.
28 To the age I keep for him My kindness, And My covenant `is' stedfast with him.
29 And I have set his seed for ever, And his throne as the days of the heavens.
30 If his sons forsake My law, And in My judgments do not walk;
31 If My statutes they pollute, And My commands do not keep,
32 I have looked after with a rod their transgression, And with strokes their iniquity,
33 And My kindness I break not from him, Nor do I deal falsely in My faithfulness.
34 I profane not My covenant, And that which is going forth from My lips I change not.
35 Once I have sworn by My holiness, I lie not to David,
36 His seed is to the age, And his throne `is' as the sun before Me,
37 As the moon it is established -- to the age, And the witness in the sky is stedfast. Selah.
38 And Thou, Thou hast cast off, and dost reject, Thou hast shown Thyself wroth With Thine anointed,
39 Hast rejected the covenant of Thy servant, Thou hast polluted to the earth his crown,
40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges, Thou hast made his fenced places a ruin.
41 Spoiled him have all passing by the way, He hath been a reproach to his neighbours,
42 Thou hast exalted the right hand of his adversaries, Thou hast caused all his enemies to rejoice.
43 Also -- Thou turnest back the sharpness of his sword, And hast not established him in battle,
44 Hast caused `him' to cease from his brightness, And his throne to the earth hast cast down.
45 Thou hast shortened the days of his youth, Hast covered him over `with' shame. Selah.
46 Till when, O Jehovah, art Thou hidden? For ever doth Thy fury burn as fire?
47 Remember, I pray Thee, what `is' life-time? Wherefore in vain hast Thou created All the sons of men?
48 Who `is' the man that liveth, and doth not see death? He delivereth his soul from the hand of Sheol. Selah.
49 Where `are' Thy former kindnesses, O Lord. Thou hast sworn to David in Thy faithfulness,
50 Remember, O Lord, the reproach of Thy servants, I have borne in my bosom all the strivings of the peoples,
51 Wherewith Thine enemies reproached, O Jehovah, Wherewith they have reproached The steps of Thine anointed.
52 Blessed `is' Jehovah to the age. Amen, and amen!
1 {An instruction. Of Ethan the Ezrahite.} I will sing of the loving-kindness of Jehovah for ever; with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness from generation to generation.
2 For I said, Loving-kindness shall be built up for ever; in the very heavens wilt thou establish thy faithfulness.
3 I have made a covenant with mine elect, I have sworn unto David my servant:
4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne from generation to generation. Selah.
5 And the heavens shall celebrate thy wonders, O Jehovah, and thy faithfulness in the congregation of the saints.
6 For who in the heaven can be compared to Jehovah? [who] among the sons of the mighty shall be likened to Jehovah?
7 ùGod is greatly to be feared in the council of the saints, and terrible for all that are round about him.
8 Jehovah, God of hosts, who is like unto thee, the strong Jah? And thy faithfulness is round about thee.
9 *Thou* rulest the pride of the sea: when its waves arise, *thou* stillest them.
10 Thou hast crushed Rahab as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with the arm of thy strength.
11 Thine are the heavens, the earth also is thine; the world and its fulness, *thou* hast founded them.
12 The north and the south, *thou* hast created them: Tabor and Hermon triumph in thy name.
13 Thine is the arm of might: strong is thy hand, high is thy right hand.
14 Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of thy throne; loving-kindness and truth go before thy face.
15 Blessed is the people that know the shout of joy: they walk, O Jehovah, in the light of thy countenance.
16 In thy name are they joyful all the day, and in thy righteousness are they exalted.
17 For thou art the glory of their strength; and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.
18 For Jehovah is our shield, and the Holy One of Israel, our king.
19 Then thou spakest in vision of thy Holy One, and saidst, I have laid help upon a mighty one; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
20 I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him:
21 With whom my hand shall be established; and mine arm shall strengthen him.
22 No enemy shall exact upon him, nor the son of wickedness afflict him;
23 But I will beat down his adversaries before his face, and will smite them that hate him.
24 And my faithfulness and my loving-kindness shall be with him, and by my name shall his horn be exalted.
25 And I will set his hand in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.
26 *He* shall call unto me, Thou art my father, my ùGod, and the rock of my salvation;
27 And as to me, I will make him firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
28 My loving-kindness will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him;
29 And I will establish his seed for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
30 If his sons forsake my law, and walk not in mine ordinances;
31 If they profane my statutes, and keep not my commandments:
32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
33 Nevertheless my loving-kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor belie my faithfulness;
34 My covenant will I not profane, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness; I will not lie unto David:
36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me;
37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, and the witness in the sky is firm. Selah.
38 But thou hast rejected and cast off; thou hast been very wroth with thine anointed:
39 Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant; thou hast profaned his crown to the ground:
40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges; thou hast brought his strongholds to ruin.
41 All that pass by the way plunder him; he is become a reproach to his neighbours.
42 Thou hast exalted the right hand of his oppressors; thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice:
43 Yea, thou hast turned back the edge of his sword, and hast not made him stand in the battle.
44 Thou hast made his brightness to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground;
45 The days of his youth hast thou shortened; thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.
46 How long, Jehovah, wilt thou hide thyself for ever? shall thy fury burn like fire?
47 Remember, as regards me, what life is. Wherefore hast thou created all the children of men to be vanity?
48 What man liveth, and shall not see death? Shall he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah.
49 Where, Lord, are thy former loving-kindnesses, [which] thou swarest unto David in thy faithfulness?
50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants -- that I bear in my bosom [that of] all the mighty peoples --
51 Wherewith thine enemies, O Jehovah, have reproached, wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.
52 Blessed be Jehovah for evermore! Amen, and Amen.
1 > I will sing of the loving kindness of Yahweh forever. With my mouth, I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
2 I indeed declare, "Love stands firm forever. You established the heavens. Your faithfulness is in them."
3 "I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David, my servant,
4 'I will establish your seed forever, And build up your throne to all generations.'" Selah.
5 The heavens will praise your wonders, Yahweh; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones.
6 For who in the skies can be compared to Yahweh? Who among the sons of the heavenly beings is like Yahweh,
7 A very awesome God in the council of the holy ones, To be feared above all those who are around him?
8 Yahweh, God of hosts, who is a mighty one, like you? Yah, your faithfulness is around you.
9 You rule the pride of the sea. When its waves rise up, you calm them.
10 You have broken Rahab in pieces, like one of the slain. You have scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.
11 The heavens are yours. The earth also is yours; The world and its fullness. You have founded them.
12 The north and the south, you have created them. Tabor and Hermon rejoice in your name.
13 You have a mighty arm. Your hand is strong, and your right hand is exalted.
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne. Loving kindness and truth go before your face.
15 Blessed are the people who learn to acclaim you. They walk in the light of your presence, Yahweh.
16 In your name they rejoice all day. In your righteousness, they are exalted.
17 For you are the glory of their strength. In your favor, our horn will be exalted.
18 For our shield belongs to Yahweh; Our king to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Then you spoke in vision to your saints, And said, "I have bestowed strength on the warrior. I have exalted a young man from the people.
20 I have found David, my servant. I have anointed him with my holy oil,
21 With whom my hand shall be established. My arm will also strengthen him.
22 No enemy will tax him. No wicked man will oppress him.
23 I will beat down his adversaries before him, And strike those who hate him.
24 But my faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him. In my name, his horn will be exalted.
25 I will set his hand also on the sea, And his right hand on the rivers.
26 He will call to me, 'You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation!'
27 I will also appoint him my firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth.
28 I will keep my loving kindness for him forevermore. My covenant will stand firm with him.
29 I will also make his seed endure forever, And his throne as the days of heaven.
30 If his children forsake my law, And don't walk in my ordinances;
31 If they break my statutes, And don't keep my commandments;
32 Then I will punish their sin with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes.
33 But I will not completely take my loving kindness from him, Nor allow my faithfulness to fail.
34 I will not break my covenant, Nor alter what my lips have uttered.
35 Once have I sworn by my holiness, I will not lie to David.
36 His seed will endure forever, His throne like the sun before me.
37 It will be established forever like the moon, The faithful witness in the sky." Selah.
38 But you have rejected and spurned. You have been angry with your anointed.
39 You have renounced the covenant of your servant. You have defiled his crown in the dust.
40 You have broken down all his hedges. You have brought his strongholds to ruin.
41 All who pass by the way rob him. He has become a reproach to his neighbors.
42 You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries. You have made all of his enemies rejoice.
43 Yes, you turn back the edge of his sword, And haven't supported him in battle.
44 You have ended his splendor, And thrown his throne down to the ground.
45 You have shortened the days of his youth. You have covered him with shame. Selah.
46 How long, Yahweh? Will you hide yourself forever? Will your wrath burn like fire?
47 Remember how short my time is! For what vanity have you created all the children of men!
48 What man is he who shall live and not see death, Who shall deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah.
49 Lord, where are your former loving kindnesses, Which you swore to David in your faithfulness?
50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of your servants, How I bear in my heart the taunts of all the mighty peoples,
51 With which your enemies have mocked, Yahweh, With which they have mocked the footsteps of your anointed one.
52 Blessed be Yahweh forevermore. Amen, and Amen.
1 <Maschil. Of Ethan the Ezrahite.> My song will be of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make his faith clear to all generations.
2 For you have said, Mercy will be made strong for ever; my faith will be unchanging in the heavens.
3 I have made an agreement with the man of my selection, I have made an oath to David my servant;
4 I will make your seed go on for ever, your kingdom will be strong through all generations. (Selah.)
5 In heaven let them give praise for your wonders, O Lord; and your unchanging faith among the saints.
6 For who is there in the heavens in comparison with the Lord? who is like the Lord among the sons of the gods?
7 God is greatly to be feared among the saints, and to be honoured over all those who are about him.
8 O Lord God of armies, who is strong like you, O Jah? and your unchanging faith is round about you.
9 You have rule over the sea in storm; when its waves are troubled, you make them calm.
10 Rahab was crushed by you like one wounded to death; with your strong arm you put to flight all your haters.
11 Yours are the heavens, and the earth is yours; you have made the world, and everything which is in it.
12 You have made the north and the south; Tabor and Hermon are sounding with joy at your name.
13 Yours is an arm of power; strong is your hand and high your right hand.
14 The seat of your kingdom is resting on righteousness and right judging: mercy and good faith come before your face.
15 Happy are the people who have knowledge of the holy cry: the light of your face, O Lord, will be shining on their way.
16 In your name will they have joy all the day: in your righteousness will they be lifted up.
17 For you are the glory of their strength; in your pleasure will our horn be lifted up.
18 For our breastplate is the Lord; and our king is the Holy One of Israel's.
19 Then your voice came to your holy one in a vision, saying, I have put the crown on a strong one, lifting up one taken from among the people.
20 I have made discovery of David my servant; I have put my holy oil on his head.
21 My hand will be his support; my arm will give him strength.
22 The deceit of those who are against him will not overcome him; he will not be troubled by the sons of evil.
23 I will have those who are against him broken before his face, and his haters will be crushed under my blows.
24 But my faith and my mercy will be with him; and in my name will his horn be lifted up.
25 I will put his hand in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.
26 He will say to me, You are my father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.
27 And I will make him the first of my sons, most high over the kings of the earth.
28 I will keep my mercy for him for ever; my agreement with him will not be changed.
29 His seed will keep their place for ever; his kingdom will be eternal, like the heavens.
30 If his children give up my law, and are not ruled by my decisions;
31 If my rules are broken, and my orders are not kept;
32 Then I will send punishment on them for their sin; my rod will be the reward of their evil-doing.
33 But I will not take away my mercy from him, and will not be false to my faith.
34 I will be true to my agreement; the things which have gone out of my lips will not be changed.
35 I have made an oath once by my holy name, that I will not be false to David.
36 His seed will not come to an end for ever; the seat of his kingdom will be like the sun before me.
37 It will be fixed for ever like the moon; and the witness in heaven is true. (Selah.)
38 But you have put him away in disgust; you have been angry with the king of your selection.
39 You have made your agreement with your servant of no effect: you have had no respect for his crown, it has come down even to the earth.
40 All his walls are broken down; you have given his strong towers to destruction.
41 All those who come by take away his goods; he is laughed at by his neighbours.
42 You have given power to the right hand of his haters; you have made glad all those who are against him.
43 His sword is turned back; you have not been his support in the fight.
44 You have put an end to his glory: the seat of his kingdom has been levelled to the earth.
45 You have made him old before his time; he is covered with shame. (Selah.)
46 How long, O Lord, will you Keep yourself for ever from our eyes? how long will your wrath be burning like fire?
47 See how short my time is; why have you made all men for no purpose?
48 What man now living will not see death? will he be able to keep back his soul from the underworld? (Selah.)
49 Lord, where are your earlier mercies? where is the oath which you made to David in unchanging faith?
50 Keep in mind, O Lord, the shame of your servants, and how the bitter words of all the people have come into my heart;
51 The bitter words of your haters, O Lord, shaming the footsteps of your king.
52 Let the Lord be praised for ever. So be it, So be it.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 89
Commentary on Psalms 89 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
Prayer for a Renewal of the Mercies of David
After having recognised the fact that the double inscription of Ps 88 places two irreconcilable statements concerning the origin of that Psalm side by side, we renounce the artifices by which Ethan ( איתן )
(Note: This name איתן is also Phoenician in the form יתן , Itan , Ἰτανός ; ליתן , litan , is Phoenician, and equivalent to לעלם .))
the Ezrahite, of the tribe of Judah (1 Kings 5:11 1 Kings 4:31, 1 Chronicles 2:6), is made to be one and the same person with Ethan (Jeduthun) the son of Kushaiah the Merarite, of the tribe of Levi (1 Chronicles 15:17; 1 Chronicles 6:29-32; 1 Chronicles 6:44-47), the master of the music together with Asaph and Heman, and the chief of the six classes of musicians over whom his six sons were placed as sub-directors (1 Chr. 25).
The collector has placed the Psalms of the two Ezrahites together. Without this relationship of the authors the juxtaposition would also be justified by the reciprocal relation in which the two Psalms stand to one another by their common, striking coincidences with the Book of Job. As to the rest, however, Ps 88 is a purely individual, and Psalms 89 a thoroughly nationally Psalm. Both the poetical character and the situation of the two Psalms are distinct.
The circumstances in which the writer of Psalms 89 finds himself are in most striking contradiction to the promises given to the house of David. He revels in the contents of these promises, and in the majesty and faithfulness of God, and then he pours forth his intense feeling of the great distance between these and the present circumstances in complaints over the afflicted lot of the anointed of God, and prays God to be mindful of His promises, and on the other hand, of the reproach by which at this time His anointed and His people are overwhelmed. The anointed one is not the nation itself (Hitzig), but he who at that time wears the crown. The crown of the king is defiled to the ground; his throne is cast down to the earth; he is become grey-headed before his time, for all the fences of his land are broken through, his fortresses fallen, and his enemies have driven him out of the field, so that reproach and scorn follow him at every step.
There was no occasion for such complaints in the reign of Solomon; but surely in the time of Rehoboam, into the first decade of whose reign Ethan the Ezrahite may have survived king Solomon, who died at the age of sixty. In the fifth year of Rehoboam, Shishak ( שׁישׁק = Σέσογχις = Shishonk I ) , the first Pharaoh of the twenty-second (Bubastic) dynasty, marched against Jerusalem with a large army gathered together out of many nations, conquered the fortified cities of Judah, and spoiled the Temple and Palace, even carrying away with him the golden shields of Solomon - a circumstance which the history bewails in a very especial manner. At that time Shemaiah preached repentance, in the time of the greatest calamity of war; king and princes humbled themselves; and in the midst of judgment Jerusalem accordingly experienced the gracious forbearance of God, and was spared. God did not complete his destruction, and there also again went forth דברים טובים , i.e., (cf. Joshua 23:14; Zechariah 1:13) kindly comforting words from God, in Judah. Such is the narrative in the Book of Kings (1 Kings 14:25-28) and as supplemented by the chronicler (2 Chronicles 12:1-12).
During this very period Psalms 89 took its rise. The young Davidic king, whom loss and disgrace make prematurely old, is Rehoboam, that man of Jewish appearance whom Pharaoh Sheshonk is bringing among other captives before the god Amun in the monumental picture of Karnak, and who bears before him in his embattled ring the words Judhmelek (King of Judah) - one of the finest and most reliable discoveries of Champollion, and one of the greatest triumphs of his system of hieroglyphics.
(Note: Vid., Blau, Sisags Zug gegen Juda , illustrated from the monument in Karnak, Deutsche Morgenländ. Zeitschr . xv. 233-250.)
Ps. 89 stands in kindred relationship not only to Ps 74, but besides Psalms 79:1-13, also to Ps 77-78, all of which glance back to the earliest times in the history of Israel. They are all Asaphic Psalms, partly old Asaphic (Ps 77, Ps 78), partly later ones (Ps 74, Psalms 79:1-13). From this fact we see that the Psalms of Asaph were the favourite models in that school of the four wise men to which the two Ezrahites belong.
The poet, who, as one soon observes, is a חכם (for the very beginning of the Psalm is remarkable and ingenious), begins with the confession of the inviolability of the mercies promised to the house of David, i.e., of the הסדי דוד הנּאמנים , Isaiah 55:3.
(Note: The Vulgate renders: Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo . The second Sunday after Easter takes its name from this rendering.)
God's faithful love towards the house of David, a love faithful to His promises, will he sing without ceasing, and make it known with his mouth, i.e., audibly and publicly (cf. Job 19:16), to the distant posterity. Instead of חסדי , we find here, and also in Lamentations 3:22, חסדי with a not merely slightly closed syllable. The Lamed of לדר ודר is, according to Psalms 103:7; Psalms 145:12, the datival Lamed . With כּי־אמרתּי (lxx, Jerome, contrary to Psalms 89:3 , ὅτι εἶπας ) the poet bases his resolve upon his conviction. נבנה means not so much to be upheld in building, as to be in the course of continuous building (e.g., Job 22:23; Malachi 3:15, of an increasingly prosperous condition). Loving-kindness is for ever (accusative of duration) in the course of continuous building, viz., upon the unshakeable foundation of the promise of grace, inasmuch as it is fulfilled in accordance therewith. It is a building with a most solid foundation, which will not only not fall into ruins, but, adding one stone of fulfilment upon another, will rise ever higher and higher. שׁמים then stands first as casus absol ., and בּהם is, as in Psalms 19:5, a pronoun having a backward reference to it. In the heavens, which are exalted above the rise and fall of things here below, God establishes His faithfulness, so that it stands fast as the sun above the earth, although the condition of things here below seems sometimes to contradict it (cf. Psalms 119:89). Now follow in Psalms 89:4-5 the direct words of God, the sum of the promises given to David and to his seed in 2 Sam. 7, at which the poet arrives more naturally in Psalms 89:20. Here they are strikingly devoid of connection. It is the special substance of the promises that is associated in thought with the “loving-kindness” and “truth” of Psalms 89:3, which is expanded as it were appositionally therein. Hence also אכין and תּכין , וּבניתי and יבּנה correspond to one another. David's seed, by virtue of divine faithfulness, has an eternally sure existence; Jahve builds up David's throne “into generation and generation,” inasmuch as He causes it to rise ever fresh and vigorous, never as that which is growing old and feeble.
At the close of the promises in Psalms 89:4-5 the music is to become forte . And ויודוּ attaches itself to this jubilant Sela . In Psalms 89:6-19 there follows a hymnic description of the exalted majesty of God, more especially of His omnipotence and faithfulness, because the value of the promise is measured by the character of the person who promises. The God of the promise is He who is praised by the heavens and the holy ones above. His way of acting is פלא , of a transcendent, paradoxical, wondrous order, and as such the heavens praise it; it is praised ( יודו , according to Ges. §137, 3) in the assembly of the holy ones, i.e., of the spirits in the other world, the angels (as in Job 5:1; Job 15:15, cf. Deuteronomy 33:2), for He is peerlessly exalted above the heavens and the angels. שׁחק , poetic singular instead of שׁחקים (vid., supra on Psalms 77:18), which is in itself already poetical; and ערך , not, as e.g., in Isaiah 40:18, in the signification to co-ordinate, but in the medial sense: to rank with, be equal to. Concerning בּני אלים , vid., on Psalms 29:1. In the great council (concerning סוד , of both genders, perhaps like כּוס , vid., on Psalms 25:14) of the holy ones also, Jahve is terrible; He towers above all who are about Him (1 Kings 22:19, cf. Daniel 7:10) in terrible majesty. רבּה might, according to Psalms 62:3; Psalms 78:15, be an adverb, but according to the order of the words it may more appropriately be regarded as an adjective; cf. Job 31:34, כּי אערץ המון רבּה , “when I feared the great multitude.” In Psalms 89:9 He is apostrophized with אלהי צבאות as being the One exalted above the heavens and the angels. The question “Who is as Thou?” takes its origin from Exodus 15:11. חסין is not the construct form, but the principal form, like גּביר , ידיד , עויל ,יד , and is a Syriasm; for the verbal stem Syr. hṣan is native to the Aramaic, in which Syr. haṣı̄nā' = שׁדּי . In יהּ , what God is is reduced to the briefest possible expression (vid., Psalms 68:19). In the words, “Thy faithfulness compasseth Thee round about,” the primary thought of the poet again breaks through. Such a God it is who has the faithfulness with which He fulfils all His promises, and the promises given to the house of David also, as His constant surrounding. His glory would only strike one with terror; but the faithfulness which encompasses Him softens the sunlike brilliancy of His glory, and awakens trust in so majestic a Ruler.
At the time of the poet the nation of the house of David was threatened with assault from violent foes; and this fact gives occasion for this picture of God's power in the kingdom of nature. He who rules the raging of the sea, also rules the raging of the sea of the peoples, Psalms 65:8. גּאוּת , a proud rising, here of the sea, like גּאוה in Psalms 46:4. Instead of בּשׂוע , Hitzig pleasantly enough reads בּשׁוא = בּשׁאו from שׁאה ; but שׂוא is also possible so far as language is concerned, either as an infinitive = נשׂוא , Psalms 28:2; Isaiah 1:14 (instead of שׂאת ), or as an infinitival noun, like שׂיא , loftiness, Job 20:6, with a likewise rejected Nun . The formation of the clause favours our taking it as a verb: when its waves rise, Thou stillest them. From the natural sea the poet comes to the sea of the peoples; and in the doings of God at the Red Sea a miraculous subjugation of both seas took place at one and the same time. It is clear from Psalms 74:13-17; Isaiah 51:9, that Egypt is to be understood by Rahab in this passage as in Psalms 87:4. The word signifies first of all impetuosity, violence, then a monster, like “the wild beast of the reed,” Psalms 68:31, i.e., the leviathan or the dragon. דּכּאת is conjugated after the manner of the Lamed He verbs, as in Psalms 44:20. כּחלל is to be understood as describing the event or issue (vid., Psalms 18:43): so that in its fall the proudly defiant kingdom is like one fatally smitten. Thereupon in Psalms 89:12-15 again follows in the same co-ordination first the praise of God drawn from nature, then from history. Jahve's are the heavens and the earth. He is the Creator, and for that very reason the absolute owner, of both. The north and the right hand, i.e., the south, represent the earth in its entire compass from one region of the heavens to the other. Tabor on this side of the Jordan represents the west (cf. Hosea 5:1), and Hermon opposite the east of the Holy Land. Both exult by reason of the name of God; by their fresh, cheerful look they give the impression of joy at the glorious revelation of the divine creative might manifest in themselves. In Psalms 89:14 the praise again enters upon the province of history. “An arm with ( עם ) heroic strength,” says the poet, inasmuch as he distinguishes between the attribute inherent in God and the medium of its manifestation in history. His throne has as its מכון , i.e., its immovable foundation (Proverbs 16:12; Proverbs 25:5), righteousness of action and right, by which all action is regulated, and which is unceasingly realized by means of the action. And mercy and truth wait upon Him. קדּם פּני is not; to go before any one ( הלּך לפני , Ps 85:14), but anticipatingly to present one's self to any one, Psalms 88:14; Psalms 95:2; Micah 6:6. Mercy and truth, these two genii of sacred history (Psalms 43:3), stand before His face like waiting servants watching upon His nod.
The poet has now described what kind of God He is upon whose promise the royal house in Israel depends. Blessed, then, is the people that walks in the light of His countenance. הלּך of a self-assured, stately walk. The words ידעי תּרוּעה are the statement of the ground of the blessing interwoven into the blessing itself: such a people has abundant cause and matter for exultation (cf. Psalms 84:5). תּרוּעה is the festive sound of joy of the mouth (Numbers 23:21), and of trumpets or sackbuts (Psalms 27:6). This confirmation of the blessing is expanded in Psalms 89:17-19. Jahve's שׁם , i.e., revelation or manifestation, becomes to them a ground and object of unceasing joy; by His צדקה , i.e., the rigour with which He binds Himself to the relationship He has entered upon with His people and maintains it, they are exalted above abjectness and insecurity. He is תּפארת עזּמו , the ornament of their strength, i.e., their strength which really becomes an ornament to them. In Psalms 89:18 the poet declares Israel to be this happy people. Pinsker's conjecture, קרנם (following the Targum), destroys the transition to Psalms 89:19, which is formed by Psalms 89:18 . The plural reading of Kimchi and of older editions (e.g., Bomberg's), קרנינוּ , is incompatible with the figure; but it is immaterial whether we read תּרים with the Chethîb (Targum, Jerome), or with the Kerî (lxx, Syriac) תּרוּם .
(Note: Zur Geschichte des Karaismus , pp. קפא and קפב , according to which, reversely, in Joshua 5:1 עברוּ is to be read instead of עברם , and Isaiah 33:2 זרענוּ instead of זרעם , Psalms 12:8 תשמרנּוּ instead of תשמרם , Micah 7:19 חטאתנוּ instead of חטאתם , Job 32:8 תביננּוּ instead of תבינם , Proverbs 25:27 כבודנוּ instead of כבודם (the limiting of our honour brings honour, - an unlikely interpretation of the חקר ).)
מגנּנוּ and מלכּנוּ in Psalms 89:19 are parallel designations of the human king of Israel; מגן as in Ps 47:10, but not in Psalms 84:10. For we are not compelled, with a total disregard of the limits to the possibilities of style (Ew. §310, a ), to render Psalms 89:19 : and the Holy One of Israel, (as to Him, He) is our King (Hitzig), since we do not bring down the Psalm beyond the time of the kings. Israel's shield, Israel's king, the poet says in the holy defiant confidence of faith, is Jahve's, belongs to the Holy One of Israel, i.e., he stands as His own possession under the protection of Jahve, the Holy One, who has taken Israel to Himself for a possession; it is therefore impossible that the Davidic throne should become a prey to any worldly power.
Having thus again come to refer to the king of Israel, the poet now still further unfolds the promise given to the house of David. The present circumstances are a contradiction to it. The prayer to Jahve, for which the way is thus prepared, is for the removal of this contradiction. A long line, extending beyond the measure of the preceding lines, introduces the promises given to David. With אז the respective period of the past is distinctly defined. The intimate friend of Jahve ( חסיד ) is Nathan (1 Chronicles 17:15) or David, according as we translate בחזון “in a vision” or “by means of a vision.” But side by side with the לחסידך we also find the preferable reading לחסידיך , which is followed in the renderings of the lxx, Syriac, Vulgate, Targum, Aquila, Symmachus, and the Quarta, and is adopted by Rashi, Aben-Ezra, and others, and taken up by Heidenheim and Baer. The plural refers to Samuel and Nathan, for the statement brings together what was revealed to these two prophets concerning David. עזר is assistance as a gift, and that, as the designation of the person succoured by it ( שׁוּה על as in Psalms 21:6) with גּבּור shows, aid in battle. בּחוּר (from בּחר = בּגר in the Mishna: to ripen, to be manly or of marriageable age, distinct from בּחיר in Psalms 89:4) is a young man, adolescens : while yet a young man David was raised out of his humble lowly condition (Psalms 78:71) high above the people. When he received the promise (2 Sam. 7) he had been anointed and had attained to the lordship over all Israel. Hence the preterites in Psalms 89:20-21, which are followed by promissory futures from Psalms 89:22 onwards. תּכּון is fut. Niph ., to be established, to prove one's self to be firm, unchangeable (Psalms 78:37), a stronger expression than תּהיה , 1 Samuel 18:12, 1 Samuel 18:14; 2 Samuel 3:10. The Hiph . השּׁיא , derived from נשׁא = נשׁה , to credit (vid., on Isaiah 24:2; Gesenius, Hengstenberg), does not give any suitable sense; it therefore signifies here as elsewhere, “to impose upon, surprise,” with בּ , as in Psalms 55:16 with על . Psalms 89:23 is the echo of 2 Samuel 7:10.
What is promised in Psalms 89:26 is a world-wide dominion, not merely dominion within the compass promised in the primeval times (Genesis 15:18; 2 Chronicles 9:26), in which case it ought to have been said ובנהר (of the Euphrates). Nor does the promise, however, sound so definite and boundless here as in Psalms 72:8, but it is indefinite and universal, without any need for our asking what rivers are intended by נהרות . נתן יד בּ , like שׁלח (in Isaiah 11:14, of a giving and taking possession. With אף־אני (with retreated tone, as in Psalms 119:63, Psalms 119:125) God tells with what He will answer David's filial love. Him who is the latest-born among the sons of Jesse, God makes the first-born ( בּכור from בּכר , to be early, opp . לקשׁ , to be late, vid., Job 2:1-13 :21), and therefore the most favoured of the “sons of the Most High,” Psalms 82:6. And as, according to Deuteronomy 28:1, Israel is to be high ( עליון ) above all nations of the earth, so David, Israel's king, in whom Israel's national glory realizes itself, is made as the high one ( עליון ) with respect to the kings, i.e., above the kings, of the earth. In the person of David his seed is included; and it is that position of honour which, after having been only prelusively realized in David and Solomon, must go on being fulfilled in his seed exactly as the promise runs. The covenant with David is, according to Psalms 89:29, one that shall stand for ever. David is therefore, as Psalms 89:30 affirms, eternal in his seed; God will make David's seed and throne לעד , into eternal, i.e., into such as will abide for ever, like the days of heaven, everlasting. This description of eternal duration is, as also in Sir. 45:15, Bar. 1:11, Taken from Deuteronomy 11:21; the whole of Psalms 89:30 is a poetic reproduction of 2 Samuel 7:16.
Now follows the paraphrase of 2 Samuel 7:14, that the faithlessness of David's line in relation to the covenant shall not interfere with (annul) the faithfulness of God - a thought with which one might very naturally console one's self in the reign of Rehoboam. Because God has placed the house of David in a filial relationship to Himself, He will chastise the apostate members as a father chastises his son; cf. Proverbs 23:13. In 1 Chronicles 17:13 the chronicler omits the words of 2 Samuel 7:14 which there provide against perverted action ( העוות ) on the part of the seed of David; our Psalm proves their originality. But even if, as history shows, this means of chastisement should be ineffectual in the case of individuals, the house of David as such will nevertheless remain ever in a state of favour with Him. In Psalms 89:34 חסדּי לא־אפיר מעמּו corresponds to וחסדּי־לא־יסוּר ממּנּוּ in 2 Samuel 7:15 (lxx, Targum): the fut . Hiph . of פרר is otherwise always אפר ; the conjecture אסיר is therefore natural, yet even the lxx translators ( ου ̓ μὴ διασκεδάσω ) had אפיר before them. שׁקּר בּ as in Psalms 44:18. The covenant with David is sacred with God: He will not profane it ( חלּל , to loose the bonds of sanctity). He will fulfil what has gone forth from His lips, i.e., His vow, according to Deuteronomy 23:24 [23], cf. Numbers 30:3 [2]. One thing hath He sworn to David; not: once = once for all (lxx), for what is introduced by Psalms 89:36 (cf. Psalms 27:4) and follows in Psalms 89:37, Psalms 89:38, is in reality one thing (as in Psalms 62:12, two). He hath sworn it per sanctitatem suam . Thus, and not in sanctuario meo , בּקדשׁי in this passage and Amos 4:2 (cf. on Psalms 60:8) is to be rendered, for elsewhere the expression is בּי , Genesis 22:16; Isaiah 45:23, or בּנפשׁו , Amos 6:8; Jeremiah 51:14, or בּשׁמי , Jeremiah 44:26, or בּימינו , Isaiah 62:8. It is true we do not read any set form of oath in 2 Sam. 7, 1 Chr. 17, but just as Isaiah, Isaiah 54:9, takes the divine promise in Genesis 8:21 as an oath, so the promise so earnestly and most solemnly pledged to David may be accounted by Psalm-poesy (here and in Psalms 132:11), which reproduces the historical matter of fact, as a promise attested with an oath. With אם in Psalms 89:36 God asserts that He will not disappoint David in reference to this one thing, viz., the perpetuity of his throne. This shall stand for ever as the sun and moon; for these, though they may one day undergo a change (Psalms 102:27), shall nevertheless never be destroyed. In the presence of 2 Samuel 7:16 it looks as if Psalms 89:38 ought to be rendered: and as the witness in the clouds shall it (David's throne) be faithful (perpetual). By the witness in the clouds one would then have to understand the rainbow as the celestial memorial and sign of an everlasting covenant. Thus Luther, Geier, Schmid, and others. But neither this rendering, nor the more natural one, “and as the perpetual, faithful witness in the clouds,” is admissible in connection with the absence of the כּ of comparison. Accordingly Hengstenberg, following the example of Jewish expositors, renders: “and the witness in the clouds is perpetual,” viz., the moon, so that the continuance of the Davidic line would be associated with the moon, just as the continuance of the condemned earth is with the rainbow. But in what sense would the moon have the name, without example elsewhere, of witness? Just as the Book of Job was the key to the conclusion of Ps 88, so it is the key to this ambiguous verse of the Psalm before us. It has to be explained according to Job 16:19, where Job says: “Behold in heaven is my witness, and my surety in the heights.” Jahve, the אל נאמן (Deuteronomy 7:9), seals His sworn promise with the words, “and the witness in the sky (ethereal heights) is faithful” (cf. concerning this Waw in connection with asseverations, Ew. §340, c ). Hengstenberg's objection, that Jahve cannot be called His own witness, is disposed of by the fact that עד frequently signifies the person who testifies anything concerning himself; in this sense, in fact, the whole Tôra is called עדוּת ה (the testimony of Jahve).
Now after the poet has turned his thoughts towards the beginnings of the house of David which were so rich in promise, in order that he might find comfort under the sorrowful present, the contrast of the two periods is become all the more sensible to him. With ואתּה in Psalms 89:39 (And Thou - the same who hast promised and affirmed this with an oath) his Psalm takes a new turn, for which reason it might even have been ועתּה . זנח is used just as absolutely here as in Psalms 44:24; Psalms 74:1; Psalms 77:8, so that it does not require any object to be supplied out of Psalms 89:39 . נארתּה in Psalms 89:40 the lxx renders kate'strepsas; it is better rendered in Lamentations 2:7 ἀπετίναξε ; for נאר is synonymous with נער , to shake off, push away, cf. Arabic el - menâ‛ir , the thrusters (with the lance). עבדּך is a vocational name of the king as such. His crown is sacred as being the insignia of a God-bestowed office. God has therefore made the sacred thing vile by casting it to the ground ( חלּל לארץ , as in Psalms 74:17, to cast profaningly to the ground). The primary passage to Psalms 89:41-42, is Psalms 80:13. “His hedges” are all the boundary and protecting fences which the land of the king has; and מבצריו “the fortresses” of his land (in both instances without כל , because matters have not yet come to such a pass).
(Note: In the list of the nations and cities conquered by King Sheshonk I are found even cities of the tribe of Issachar, e.g., Shen - ma - an , Sunem ; vid., Brugsch, Reiseberichte , S. 141-145, and Blau as referred to above.)
In שׁסּהוּ the notions of the king and of the land blend together. עברי־דרך are the hordes of the peoples passing through the land. שׁכניו are the neighbouring peoples that are otherwise liable to pay tribute to the house of David, who sought to take every possible advantage of that weakening of the Davidic kingdom. In Psalms 89:44 we are neither to translate “rock of his sword” (Hengstenberg), nor “O rock” (Olshausen). צוּר does not merely signify rupes , but also from another root ( צוּר , Arab. ṣâr , originally of the grating or shrill noise produced by pressing and squeezing, then more particularly to cut or cut off with pressure, with a sharply set knife or the like) a knife or a blade (cf. English knife, and German kneifen , to nip): God has decreed it that the edge or blade of the sword of the king has been turned back by the enemy, that he has not been able to maintain his ground in battle ( הקמתו with ē instead of ı̂ , as also when the tone is not moved forward, Micah 5:4). In Psalms 89:45 the Mem of מטהרו , after the analogy of Ezekiel 16:41; Ezekiel 34:10, and other passages, is a preposition: cessare fecisti eum a splendore suo . A noun מטּהר = מטהר with Dag. dirimens,