TheBibleNet: Psalm 67

Psalms:

Bk 1: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41

Bk 2: 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72

Bk 3: 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89

Bk 4: 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106

Bk 5: 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119a 119b 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132
133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150

Additional Psalms: 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 Samuel Chronicles

Essays: Intro - Music - Form & Language

KJ has added the first verse to the title, shifting thereby the following numbers; hence my brackets.

This Psalm is all about form and structure. The lyric is very basic. It all comes across so cute and simple, it could almost be a Nursery Rhyme, a song written especially for the Youth Service, the special events for Kindergarteners.

And is it significant that this one has 7 verses (title + 7 = 8)? The number seven is usually symbolic.

67:1 LA MENATSE'ACH BIN'GIYNOT MIZMOR SHIR

לַמְנַצֵּח בִּנְגִינֹת מִזְמוֹר שִׁיר

KJ (King James translation): (To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm or Song.) God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.

BN (BibleNet translation): For the Artistic Director. To be sung, with musical accompaniment on strings.

LA MENATSE'ACH: see my note at Psalm 51:1.

See my previous notes on NEGINAH, NEGINAT etc; also on the difference between a MIZMOR and a SHIR and how you can have both, and still call it by a third name, which is Psalm.

67:2 ELOHIM YECHANENU VIYVARCHENU YA'ER PANAV ITANU (SELAH)

אֱלֹהִים יְחָנֵּנוּ וִיבָרְכֵנוּ יָאֵר פָּנָיו אִתָּנוּ סֶלָה

KJ (67:1): as above

BN: Elohim be gracious to us, and bless us. May he cause his face to shine on us. (Selah)

Which came first, this, or the YEVARECHECHA?

A Selah after the opening verse! Presumably the verse is simply an incantatory introduction, offering what follows as a tribute-blessing to the gods - and then what follows will be the string quartet, or however many instruments it may be, interrupted, or voiced-over, at certain times by the remaining verses.

67:3 LADA'AT BA ARETS DARKECHA BE CHOL GOYIM YESHU'ATECHA

לָדַעַת בָּאָרֶץ דַּרְכֶּךָ בְּכָל גּוֹיִם יְשׁוּעָתֶךָ

KJ (67:2): That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.

BN: That your way may be known on Earth, your salvation among all the nations.

67:4 YODUCHA AMIM ELOHIM YODUCHA AMIM KULAM

יוֹדוּךָ עַמִּים אֱלֹהִים יוֹדוּךָ עַמִּים כֻּלָּם

KJ (67:3): Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.

BN: Let the people give thanks to you, Elohim; let the people give thanks to you, every one of them.

67:5 YISMECHU VIY'RANENU LE'UMIM KI TISHPOT AMIM MIYSHOR U LE'UMIM BA ARETS TANCHEM (SELAH)

יִשְׂמְחוּ וִירַנְּנוּ לְאֻמִּים כִּי תִשְׁפֹּט עַמִּים מִישׁוֹר וּלְאֻמִּים בָּאָרֶץ תַּנְחֵם סֶלָה

KJ (67:4): O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.

BN: Let the nations be glad, and sing for joy; {N} for you will judge the people with equity, and lead the nations upon Earth. (Selah)

SELAH: again. Just three verses recited between the last musical break and this one - but we cannot know for how long the music has been playing, or whether, as is highly likely from VIY'RANENU - imagine the modern HAVA NAGILA without hand-clapping and dancing! - choreographed dancing, even a full ballet, may have been accompanying it.

67:6 YODUCHA AMIM ELOHIM YODUCHA AMIM KULAM

יוֹדוּךָ עַמִּים אֱלֹהִים יוֹדוּךָ עַמִּים כֻּלָּם

KJ (67:5): Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.

BN: Let the people give thanks to you, Elohim; let the people give thanks to you, every one of them.

Repeating verse 6, as we today would have a chorus or refrain, and thereby giving us still more inkling as to the kind of music, the kind of dancing - a HORA not a ballet, pop rather than opera. If this is not for the kids' service, it must be for Friday Night Live or Purim or Simchat Torah, happy-clappy and everybody on their feet.

67:7 ERETS NATNAH YEVULAH YEVARCHENU ELOHIM ELOHEYNU

אֶרֶץ נָתְנָה יְבוּלָהּ יְבָרְכֵנוּ אֱלֹהִים אֱלֹהֵינוּ

KJ (67:6): Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.

BN: May the Earth give us a rich harvest; may Elohim, may our gods, bless us.

67:8 YEVARCHENU ELOHIM VE YIYRE'U OTO KOL APHSEY ARETS

יְבָרְכֵנוּ אֱלֹהִים וְיִירְאוּ אֹתוֹ כָּל אַפְסֵי אָרֶץ

KJ (67:7): God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.

BN: May Elohim bless us; and let all the ends of the Earth fear him. {P}

Elohim again, no mention of YHVH.

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Psalms:

Bk 1: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41