Hosea 2

Hosea 2

1. And the number of the children of Israel will be[1] as the sand of the sea, which can neither be measured nor counted. In the place where[2] they were called[3] “You are not my People,” they will be called “Sons of the Living God.”[4] 2. Then the children of Judah and the children of Israel will be gathered together, and they will designate a single leader and they will rise up from the earth,[5] for great shall be the day of Jezreel. 3. Call your brothers, “My people,” and your sisters, “Compassion.” 4. Make an accusation against your mother. Contend that[6] she is not my wife, and I am not her husband, for she must remove harlotry from her face,[7] and adultery from between her breasts; 5.  Lest I stripped her naked and leave her as in the day of her birth. I will make her like the desert, I will make her like the dry earth, I will cause her to die of thirst. 6. And I will not show compassion to her children, for they are prostituting children; 7. For their mother[8] has played the harlot. The one who conceived them has acted shamefully, for she thought, “Let me follow after my lovers, who have given my bread and water, my wool and linen, my oil and drink. 8. Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns, and I will wall her up,[9] and she will not find her paths. 9. When she pursues her lovers she will not get close to them, and when she seeks them she will not find them.[10] Then she will say, “Let me go and return to my original husband, for it was better then than now.” 10. And she does not know that it was I who gave her the grain and the new wine and the oil, and I showered her with silver and gold,[11] which they used to make Baal. 11. Therefore I will go back and take my grain in its time, my new wine in the appointed time, and I will rescue my wool and linen which was intended [12] to cover her nakedness. 12. And now I will uncover her shamelessness to the eyes of her lovers, and none will be able to rescue her from my hand. 13. And I will put an end to all her rejoicing, her festival, her new moon, and her sabbath, and every appointed assembly.[13] 14. And I will desolate her vine and her fig tree, which she said, “They are my wages[14] which my lovers gave to me.” But I will make them as a forest,[15] and the beasts of the field will devour them. 15. Then I will punish her for the days of Baalim,[16] to whom she burnt incense,[17] When she adorned herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot. Oracle of Yhwh: 16. Therefore behold, it is I who will entice her and bring her into the wilderness, and I will speak tenderly to her. 17. And I will give her a vineyard from there and the Valley of Achor as a doorway of hope, and she will respond there as in the days of her youth, and as the day of her ascent from the land of Egypt. 18. And in that day—oracle of Yhwh—you will call me[18] “My Husband,” and you will no longer call me “My Baal.” 19. And I will remove the names of the Baalim from her mouth, and they will no longer be mentioned by name. 20. And I will cut a covenant with them[19] in that day; with the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky and the crawling things of the earth. But the bow and sword and weapons of war[20] I will destroy from the earth, and I will lay them down in safety. 21. I will betroth you to me forever; and I will betroth you to me in righteousness and justice, and in mercy and compassion.[21] 22. And I will betroth you to me in truth and you will know Yhwh. 23. I it will happen in that day that I will respond—Oracle of Yhwh—I will respond to the heavens and they will respond to the earth. 24. And the earth will respond to the grain, and to the wine, and to the oil, and they will respond to Jezreel. 25. And I will sow her in the earth for me, and I will have compassion on Lo Ruhama. And I will say to Lo Ammi, “You are my people,” and they will say, “My God!”

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[1] The Greek has the perfect: “number of the children of Israel was. . .”

[2] This phrase is not the equivalent of תחת אשׁר, and so does seem to refer to an actual location.

[3] We would expect קרא instead of the niphal of אמר. This is literally “it will be said to them.” The same verb is used in v. 3 to mean “call.”

[4] A rare reference to humans as “sons of God.” The terminology may allude to the בני אלהים used elsewhere, but it is not related to that technical vernacular.

[5] There may be some intentional ambiguity between a rising up in the sense of the resurrection of the nation from the dust, and a rising up in the sense of their growing in prominence over the nations of the earth.

[6] The כי is a relative particle, identifying the substance of the ריב as an accusation of marital infidelity.

[7] The possessive pronoun is found in Aleppo, but in Leningrad the qamets is absent from the final /h/.

[8] We have a switch here from the second masculine plural pronominal suffix in v. 4 to the third masculine plural (“your mother” – “their mother”).

[9] Literally, “I will wall up her wall.”

[10] The pronoun here is omitted in the Hebrew but found in the Greek and Syriac.

[11] The verb “showered” seems only to govern the word “silver,” but both “silver and gold” are intended as objects of the verb “give,” and so are more easily understood when combined.

[12] I restore a sense of intention, although it is not present in the Hebrew. The other option is to read the infinitive as complementary to “and I will take,” which creates a favorable outcome for a verse meant to criticize. The next verse also states that Yhwh will uncover her shamelessness.

[13] We find here a progression of nouns from a wide temporal context to a narrow one (yearly festivals – monthly festivals – weekly festivals) framed by more general terms associated with those nouns which also move from general to specific (rejoicing – festivals).

[14] The normal term for a prostitutes wages is אתנן. This may be an attempt to mark the harlotry of Hosea’s wife as non-conventional, or it may be harmonizing, phonetically, with תאנתה and אמרה.

[15] G has “witness,” metathesizing the ayin and the yod and mistaking the resh for a dalet.

[16] Literally, “I will punish the days of Baalim because of her.”

[17] This verb is in the hiphil in MT, but the piel is likely intended.

[18] Here we have קרא rather than אמר, as in vv. 1 and 3. I amend to תקראי to read תקרא לי.

[19] The author moves from the third feminine singular to the third masculine plural. Likely the subject has returned to the “sons of Israel” from v. 1.

[20] Literally just “war,” but the sense seems to be instruments of war and not just war itself.

[21] The last noun uses the abstract plural, while the first three are singular.

Angels and Gods at Qumran

In Michael Heiser’s 2004 doctoral dissertation on the divine council (DC) he argues that the ideologies and terms associated with the DC in Second Temple Jewish literature were not a departure from, or redefinition of, those of the pre-exilic DC. Specifically, he takes issue with the conclusion that the gods and sons of God of the early literature are understood as angels in the Second Temple literature. Here are some representative comments:

First, if the divine council had ceased to exist in Israelite religion by the end of the exile, how does one account for the roughly q75 references in the Qumran material to multiple אלהים and בני) אלים)? How are explicit references to the “divine council/council of El” (עדת אל) and the “council of the gods” (עדת אל/אלוהים or סוד אלים/אלוהים) in these same texts to be understood? Why are these exact phrases understood as referring to polytheistic leanings in pre-exilic canonical literature, but redefined after the exile? Moreover, how can the presumed downgrading of the pre-exilic gods of the divine council to servant angels account for a Second Temple heavenly hierarchy that retained the worldview of territorial control by divine beings?

A tagged computed search of the Dead Sea Scrolls database reveals there are no lines from any Qumran text where a “deity class” term (בני] אלים/אלהים]) for a member of the heavenly host overlaps with the word מלאכים. In fact, there are only eleven instances in the entire Qumran corpus where בני] אלים/אלוהים] and מלאכים occur within fifty words of each other.

First, I disagree that we should expect to find the two sets of terms parallel to each other in order to conclude they are being used synonymously. Heiser seems to agree, since at a later point in his dissertation he argues that Yhwh need not be explicitly identified with the מלאך יהוה in order for the latter’s nature as an extension of Yhwh’s identity to be determined. He states (62, n. 307):

By the time of Judg 2:1-4 in the story of Israel’s journey, it is abundantly clear to the audience who the angel represents by virtue of the implication of Exod 23:20-23, that the angel had been guiding Israel since leaving Egypt. In such “late” accounts, there was no need of identification. Indeed, the reader knows who this being represents from his first appearance in the canonical story . . .

In other words, the identification has been established, so subsequent texts have no need to reassert it. I suggest that the identification of the מלאכים with the אלוהים/בני אלים had also already been established by the time of the Dead Sea Scrolls. First, Hosea 12:4-5 uses the terms מלאך and אלהים in parallel, as does Gen 48:15-16. This was a recognition that the מלאכים were taxonomically divine. Judges 13 gives us an apparent reference to the מלאך יהוה as אלהים, although given the utter lack of any reference in the Hebrew Bible to the lethal nature of seeing angels, the מלאך יהוה is much more likely an interpolation where the text originally referred exclusively to God himself.

In the Septuagint the phrase בני אלהים is often translated αγγελοι θεου (Gen 6:2; Deut 32:8-9; Job 1:6; 2:1), showing the identification of the two. In LXX Deut 32:43 the “angels of God” are parallel to the “sons of God” in a text that originally referred simply to “all the gods.” This identification likely preceded the actual translation of the Septuagint. Later texts show awareness and acceptance of this identification, even at Qumran. See, for example, 4Q180.7-8, where the tradition of the בני אלהים and their procreation with human women from Gen 6:2 is described as only involving עזזאל והמלאכים, “Azazel and the angels.” 1 En 6:1 and Jub 5:1-11 manifest the same interpretation of the בני אלהים as angels. In later Jewish tradition Deut 32:8 is thought to refer to angels. See 1 En 20:5 and Daniel 10:13-20, for example.

For these reasons, I have to disagree with Michael that the divine council had undergone no significant evolution by the Second Temple Period. I agree with him that monotheism is not an innovation found in Deutero-Isaiah, but I contend that the above identification of the gods and sons of Gods with angels represents the definitive move toward monotheism as it is understood today. That monotheism is not the rejection of the existence of any divine beings besides Yhwh, but the understanding that other beings described as divinity in the Bible are ontologically inferior underlings confined to the angelic taxonomy.

Thoughts?

Psalm 2

Psalm 2

1. Why do the nations conspire,[1] and the peoples collude[2] in vain?

2. The kings of the earth marshal themselves,[3] and rulers take counsel together against[4] Yhwh and against his anointed.[5]

3. “Let us tear their[6] bonds to shreds, and let us cast their cords far from us.”

4. He who sits enthroned in the heavens laughs, the[7] Lord[8] mocks[9] them.

5. Then he shall[10] speak to them in his anger, and in his fury he will terrify them.

6. “I have anointed[11] my king on Zion, my holy mountain.”[12]

7. Let me[13] proclaim the statute[14] of Yhwh. He said to me, “You are my son, it is I who has begotten you this day.

8. “Ask of me, and I will give the nations to you as an inheritance,[15] and the ends of the earth as a possession.”[16]

9. You shall break them with a staff of iron; as a potter’s vessel[17] you shall smash them.[18]

10. Now then, O kings, be wise; be warned,[19] O judges of the earth.

11. Serve Yhwh in fear;[20] kiss his feet with trembling.[21]

12. Lest he become angry and you lose the way,[22] for his wrath kindles quickly. Happy are all who seek refuge in him![23]

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[1] Ps 55:15 and 64:3 have nominal forms of רגש in parallel with סוד.

[2] Literally, “whisper,” but the sense of plotting is clear from the object and the parallels elsewhere in the Psalms.

[3] The sense of marshaling forces is supported by the context of the verse.

[4] The remainder of this verse seems to be an explanatory gloss.

[5] The Greek attests to סֶלָה at the end of this verse.

[6] This and the following pronominal suffices are an archaized 3^rd masculine plural form (מו-).

[7] The Greek and Syriac include a conjunction at the beginning of this clause.

[8] Several Hebrew manuscripts have the Tetragrammaton here.

[9] I read this as an iterative. He continually mocks the impotence of those who plot against him.

[10] The adverb marks the imperfects in this verse as futures.

[11] Two possible roots could underlie this verb: סכך or נסך. The former means “to weave” and the latter “to pour out.” The former would be a niphal, and would indicate the king was formed somehow on the mountain. Few scholars prefer this reading. The latter root is more likely. The verb is vocalized as a qal in MT, but may be a niphal, which would indicate consecration or anointing. Several commentators prefer a passive reading of the verb, following the Greek, making the speaker the king rather than God.

[12] Literally, “the mountain of my holiness.”

[13] The verb is morphologically cohortative.

[14] The Syriac adds a first person singular pronominal suffix.

[15] Literally, “I will give the nations as your inheritance.”

[16] Literally, “as your inheritance,” but the possessive sense has already been used as the object of the verb. It would sound redundant to apply it to the second accusative when the gapped verb already has it.

[17] Some Greek manuscripts and the Syriac have the plural “vessels.”

[18] A good example of inverse parallelism, or chiasmus. The verb leads in the first cola, but terminates the second. The objects are then framed by the verbal action.

[19] One Hebrew manuscript and G add “all the” before “judges of the earth.”

[20] One Hebrew manuscript reads, “in joy.”

[21] This translation moves וגילו to the end of the first phrase of v. 12, combining it with בר. Without this reconstruction the translation “rejoice in trembling” makes little sense, as does the following “kiss the son,” with the Aramaism בר.

[22] This provides a nice parallel to the contrast at the end of the last chapter.

[23] This provides a nice inclusio to the first verse of the previous chapter.



Psalm 1

Psalm 1

1. Happy is the one who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,[1] nor stands in the way of sinners, nor dwells in the session of scoffers.

2. For it is in the Torah of Yhwh that he rejoices;[2] and with his Torah[3] he meditates[4] day and night.[5]

3. And he will be as a tree planted by streams of water,[6] which gives its fruit in its time, and whose leaves do not whither [and all the he does is made to prosper].[7]

4. Not so the wicked—not at all[8]—for they are as the chaff which is blown by the wind.

5. For this reason the wicked cannot stand in judgment, nor the sinners in the congregation[9] of the righteous.

6. For Yhwh knows the path of the righteous,[10] but the way of the wicked is lost.[11]

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[1] The verb עמד with דרך is peculiar given the fact that הלך is far more commonly associated with דרך in the sense of comportment. The Syriac, in fact, transposes the two nouns.

[2] The front loading emphasizes the object, which is more fully expressed with this English construction.

[3] Some question the repetition of “Torah” in the second cola and prefer to read “statues,” or something similar, but the repetition serves to emphasize even more the primacy of the Torah in the Psalmist’s mind.

[4] The verb actually denotes murmuring, which evokes the image of the individual reading meditatively to himself under his breath.

[5] “Day and night” here operates as a merism. Put another way, he is perpetually meditating on the Torah.

[6] This is almost identical to Jer 17:8. Verse 7 in Jeremiah, however, begins with “blessed” rather than the less liturgical “happy.” Jeremiah is likely earlier.

[7] The phrase is brackets is metrically peculiar and seems to be an explanatory gloss based on Joshua 1:8

[8] This emphatic interjection is found in the Greek, and it balances out the meter of the verse quite nicely.

[9] The Greek has “council,” reading בעצת.

[10] צדיקים appears twice in succession, as does דרך, supporting MT’s repetition of תורה above.

[11] This is generally translated “leads to destruction,” but the contrast with Yhwh’s awareness of the path of the righteous is more fully realized by translating the verb as a reference to the path of the wicked being lost.

1 Chronicles 14

1 Chronicles 14

1. And Hiram,[1] king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar timber and stone masons[2] and carpenters, to build for him a house. 2. So David knew that Yahweh had established him as king over Israel, for his kingdom had been exalted on account of his people Israel. 3. And David took more wives in Jerusalem and David bore more sons and daughters. 4. These are the names of the offspring which were his in Jerusalem: Shamua and Shovav, Nathan and Shlomo. 5. And he chose Elishua and Eliphalet. 6. And Nogah and Nepheg, and Yaphia. 7. And Elishama and Beelyada and Eliphalet. 8. And the Philistines heard that David had been anointed[3] as king over all Israel and all the Philistines came up to confront David; and David heard and went out before them.[4] 9. And the Philistines came and spread out[5] over the valley of Rephaim. 10.  And David asked God, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines; and will you deliver them into my hand?” And Yahweh said to him, “Go up, and I will deliver them into your hand.” 11.  So they went up to Baal-Perazim, and David struck them there. And David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand like the breaking forth of waters.” For that reason they called the name of that place Baal-Perazim. 12.  So they left their gods[6] there and David said that they should burn them with fire. 13.  And the Philistines again came up[7] and spread out[8] over the valley.[9] 14.  And David asked God[10] again, and God said to him, “Do not go up after them,[11] but surround them from above[12] and engage them in front of the Bacas. 15.  “And when you hear the sound of marching[13] at the summit of the Bacas, then you shall go out in battle, for God will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” 16.  So David did what God commanded him, and he[14] struck the camp of the Philistines from Gibeon to Gazra. 17.  And the name of David spread forth into all the lands, and Yahweh sent fear upon all the nations.

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[1] The Qere in MT reads Huram, but the LXX, S, V, Q, and 2 Sam 5:11 all read Hiram. I follow the majority, although the original name may have had the nominative case ending and no pronominal suffix (thus Huram).

[2] Literally, “craftsmen of wall.”

[3] 2 Sam 5:17 reads, “they had anointed,” although the Greek reads the same as here.

[4] LXX reads, “went out to meet them,” following more closely the sense of the previous verb. S, V, and 2 Sam 5:17 read, “went down to the stronghold.” David’s going out before them does not fit well with his subsequent encounter with God, where he asks whether or not he should go up against the Philistines.

[5] The verb is probably not פשׁט, which denotes a raid or an attack. 2 Sam 5:18 has the niphal of נטשׁ, “to spread over,” which is the retroversion of the Greek in Samuel and here. The shin and the tet were likely metathesized, and the nun was, as a result, confused for pe.

[6] 2 Sam 5:21 and Tg. Read, “their idols.” LXX 2 Sam 5:21 follows the reading above, however.

[7] Here I follow the reading in 2 Sam 5:22. The MT above has “and again,” followed by פשׁט in the wayiqqtol.

[8] The same verb confusion occurs here as in the earlier verse.

[9] G, S, and 2 Samuel have the full “Valley of Rephaim.”

[10] 2 Sam 5:23 has, “asked Yhwh,” and in the response has only “and he said to him.”

[11] Some here insert “go up before them.” It is thought to have dropped out due to haplography.

[12] 2 Sam 5:23 reads, “behind them.”

[13] The Greek here and at 2 Sam 5:24 has “the shaking.”

[14] Most witnesses have this verb in the singular.

Ruth 2: Translation and Notes

Ruth 2

1. Now Naomi had a relative[1] through her husband, a man of renown[2] from the household of Elimelek, and his name was Boaz. 2. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go[3] to the fields to glean[4] the grain after someone in whose sight I might find favor.”[5] And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” 3. And she set out and came to glean in the fields after the harvesters; and by her luck she happened[6] upon a portion of the field which belonged to Boaz, who was from the family of Elimelek. 4. And right then Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, “May Yahweh be with you,” and they said to him, “May Yahweh bless you.” 5. And Boaz said to his servant[7] who was set over the harvesters, “To whom does this young woman belong?” 6. And the servant who was set over the harvesters[8] answered and said, “The woman is a Moabite who returned with Naomi from the plateau[9] of Moab. 7. And she said, ‘Let me glean so that I may gather the sheaves after the harvesters.’ So she came and she has been standing from the morning until now, and she has not rested in the field at all.[10] 8. And Boaz said to Ruth, “Did you not hear, my daughter? Do not go to glean[11] in another field or[12] leave this one, but stay here close to my servant women. 9. “Keep[13] your eyes on the field which they are reaping and go after them. Have I not commanded my servants not to touch you? If you get thirsty then you may go to the vessels and drink from whatever the servants draw.”[14] 10. And she fell upon her face and bowed down to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found so much favor in your eyes that you acknowledge me[15] when I am a foreigner?”[16] 11. And Boaz answered and said to her, “What you did with your mother in law after her husband died was recounted to me in full: that you left your father and your mother and the land of your ancestry and went to a people you did not know, three days ago. 12. “May Yahweh recompense your deeds, and may your wages be full from Yahweh, the God of Israel, under whose wing you came to take refuge.” 13. And she said, “May I continue to find favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me, and you have touched the heart of your handmaid though I am not one of your handmaids.” 14. And Boaz said to her[17] at lunchtime, “Come here and eat of the bread, and dip a piece in the vinegar.” So she sat next to the reapers and he got grain[18] for her, and she ate until she was full, and she left some.[19] 15. And she got up to glean, and Boaz ordered his servants, saying, “She will also glean among the standing sheaves, so don’t get on her case.[20] 16. And you will also take out from the reaped sheaves to leave for her to glean, and don’t rebuke her.” 17. And she gleaned in the field until the evening. And she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18. So she picked it up[21] and came to the city and showed her mother-in-law what she had gleaned. Then she took out and gave to her what she left after she was full. 19. And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today, and where did you work? Blessed be the one who acknowledged you!” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she worked. And she said, “The name of the man with whom I worked today is Boaz.”[22] 20. And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by Yahweh, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead.” And Naomi said to her, “There is a man near to us who may redeem us.” 21. And Ruth the Moabitess said, “He also said to me, ‘You shall stay close to my servants until they finish my entire harvest.’” 22. And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, for you to go out with his maidservants so that they don’t harm you in another field.” 23. So she stayed close to Boaz’s maidservants to glean until the end of the barley harvest and the wheat harvest. And she stayed with her mother-in-law.

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[1] Q and several Hebrew manuscripts (39 Kennicott manuscripts, to be precise) have מודע. Ruth 3:2 has a form of the same, and LXX uses the same word for both.

[2] Based on the use of the term in Judg 6:12, 1 Kgs 11:28, and 1 Sam 9:1.

[3] Some prefer to read this as declarative, but Naomi’s response seems to me to indicate a cohortative reading is to be preferred.

[4] Second cohortative, but with waw-consecutive, indicating a purpose clause.

[5] Interpreting the imperfect modally.

[6] Literally the Hebrew reads, “And it happened her chance.”

[7] The author uses נער, which is grouped in the subsequent narrative with a number of forms of the noun in reference to Ruth as well as other male and female servants.

[8] Not in the Syriac.

[9] Based on the second of two forms of this noun: שדי.

[10] Based on the Greek. The Hebrew has, literally, “this her rest the house a few.” ביתה is likely the result of dittography after שבתה. Beyond this, however, the relationship between MT and LXX is unknown.

[11] The verb appears here in the qal, although it appears in the eleven other occurrences in the chapter in the piel.

[12] גם is used here.

[13] No verb appears in MT for this clause, but the sense is not hard to determine.

[14] Paragogic nuns all over this verse.

[15] Infinitive construct. The lamed indicates a sense of result or purpose.

[16] The first verb of this final clause must be slightly nuanced to fit, but the clause plays creatively off the repetition of the kaph, nun, yod, and resh: להכירני ואנכי נכריה.

[17] There is no mappiq in the /h/.

[18] This is the only occurrence of the verb צבט in the Hebrew Bible. In other Semitic languages it is used to mean “pick up” or “seize.”

[19] The Hebrew in this verse is remarkably terse, showing either archaizing or genuine antiquity.

[20] Literally, “don’t humiliate her.”

[21] There is no object for this verb in the Hebrew.

[22] A redundant verse which is remedied in the Greek.

Psalm 29: Translation and Notes

My Hebrew exam next month will require translation and textual/grammatical/syntactical notes on a number of seen and unseen texts. In preparing for the seen texts, I’m going to post a translation with notes on a different chapter we’ve covered over the last three terms. Today’s chapter will be Psalm 29. I’ll give my translation and then some notes.

Psalm 29

1. A psalm of David:
Ascribe to Yhwh, O sons of El,[1]^{, [2]}
Ascribe to Yhwh glory and strength.
2.  Ascribe to Yhwh the glory of his name,
Bow down to Yhwh in holy majesty.[3]
3. The voice of Yhwh is upon the waters,
The God of glory thunders,
Yhwh is upon the great waters.
4. The voice of Yhwh is powerful,[4]
The voice of Yhwh is magisterial.[5]
5. The voice of Yhwh breaks cedars,
Yhwh shatters the cedars of Lebanon.[6]
6. He makes Lebanon leap like a calf,
And Siryon like a young ox.
7. The voice of Yhwh rakes flames of fire.[7]
8. The voice of Yhwh shakes the wilderness,
And[8] Yhwh shakes the wilderness of Qadesh.
9. The voice[9] of Yhwh causes oaks[10] to shake,
He strips the forest bare,
And in his temple, all[11] say “Glory!”
10. Yhwh sits enthroned[12] above the flood,[13]
And Yhwh sits enthroned as king forever.[14]
11. May Yhwh give strength to his people,
May Yhwh bless his people with peace![15]

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[1] אלים can be understood either as the plural of אל or the singular with the enclitic mem. The former reading could be translated “sons of the gods,” or “divine sons,” indicating a class of being rather than a filial relationship. The phrase is likely analogous to the Ugaritic epithet bn ’ilm, which is used in contexts that indicate a singular reading. “Divine sons” is also more likely with אלהים.

[2] G adds “give to the Lord young rams.” Some Hebrew manuscripts have אילים in agreement.

[3] G has “in his holy court.”

[4] Literally, “in power.”

[5] Literally, “in majesty.” This is very simple and straightforward A-B/A-B parallelism.

[6] The first cola has the qal participle of שבר. The second has a piel imperfect verb in the waw-consecutive. The poetry thus moves from general to specific and creates a more intense verbal idea.

[7] This line only contains one cola, but v. 3 contains 3. BHS suggests the middle cola in v. 3 belongs at the beginning of this verse.

[8] The copula is likely in the Vorlage of G and S.

[9] “The voice of Yhwh” appears seven times in this chapter. The parallels with Syro-Palestinian storm god imagery is striking. Each occurrence is related to weather phenomena, and a famous hymn to Baal mentions his “seven thunders and lightnings.”

[10] The MT vocalizes the word as if it were “deer,” but considering the parallel to יערות, “oaks” is more likely. The vocalization is all that changes. The feminine plural is unexpected, but the same is true of יערות (see Ezek 34:25; 39:10).

[11] There is a third masculine singular pronominal suffix here, but I leave it untranslated.

[12] Given the parallel with מלך and with El’s enthronement over the waters in the Ugaritic literature, ישב here is likely used in the sense of “sit enthroned.”

[13] This is the only occurrence of מבול outside of the Flood narrative. The verse seems to parallel El’s abode at the head of the waters in the Ugaritic texts.

[14] The two colas of this verse pivot on the same verb in an inverse parallelism. It appears once in the perfect and once in the imperfect waw-consecutive.

[15] The final word of this verse, בשלום, is similar in form to the final word of the previous verse (לעולם), although the vowel progression is reversed.