¹tn Or “forever.”
²tn Heb “to a generation and a generation I will make known your faithfulness with my mouth.”
³tn Heb “built.”
⁴sn You set up your faithfulness. This may allude to the Lord’s heavenly throne, which symbolizes his just rule and from which the Lord decrees his unconditional promises (see vv. 8, 14).
⁵tn The words “the Lord said” are supplied in the translation for clarification. It is clear that the words of vv. 3-4 are spoken by the Lord, in contrast to vv. 1-2, which are spoken by the psalmist.
⁶tn Heb “forever I will establish your offspring.”
⁷tn Heb “and I will build to a generation and a generation your throne.”
⁸tn As the following context makes clear, the personified “heavens” here stand by metonymy for the angelic beings that surround God’s heavenly throne.
⁹tn Heb “in the assembly of the holy ones.” The phrase “holy ones” sometimes refers to God’s people (Ps 34:9) or to their priestly leaders (2 Chr 35:3), but here it refers to God’s heavenly assembly and the angels that surround his throne (see vv. 6-7).
¹⁰tn Heb “sons of gods”; or “sons of God.” Though <yla is vocalized as a plural form (“gods”) in the Hebrew text, it is likely that the final mem is actually enclitic rather than a plural marker. In this case one may read “God.” Some, following a Qumran text and the LXX, also propose the phrase occurred in the original text of Deut 32:8. The phrase <yla ynb (“sons of gods” or “sons of God”) occurs only here and in Ps 29:1. Since the “sons of gods/God” are here associated with “the assembly of the holy ones” and “council of the holy ones,” the heavenly assembly (comprised of so-called “angels” and other supernatural beings) appears to be in view. See Job 5:1; 15:15 and Zech 14:5, where these supernatural beings are referred to as “holy ones.” In Canaanite mythological texts the divine council of the high god El is called “the sons of El.” The OT apparently borrows the Canaanite phrase and applies it to the supernatural beings that surround the Lord’s heavenly throne.
¹¹tn Heb “feared.”
¹²tn Heb “in the great assembly of the holy ones.”
¹³tn Or perhaps “feared by.”
¹⁴tn Traditionally “God of hosts.” The title here pictures the Lord as enthroned in the midst of the angelic hosts of heaven.
¹⁵tn Heb “the majesty of the sea.”
¹⁶tn Heb “rise up.”
¹⁷tn Heb “Rahab.” The name “Rahab” means “proud one.” Since it is sometimes used of Egypt (see Ps 87:4; Isa 30:7), the passage may allude to the exodus. However, the name is also used of the sea (or the mythological sea creature) which symbolizes the disruptive forces of the world that seek to replace order with chaos (see Job 9:13; 26:12). Isa 51:9 appears to combine the mythological and historical referents. The association of Rahab with the sea in Ps 89 (see v. 9) suggests that the name carries symbolic force in this context. In this case the passage may allude to creation (see vv. 11-12), when God overcame the great deep and brought order out of chaos.
¹⁸tn Heb “like one fatally wounded.”
¹⁹tn Heb “the world and its fullness, you established them.”
²⁰sn Tabor and Hermon were two of the most prominent mountains in Palestine.
²¹sn The Lord’s arm, hand, and right hand all symbolize his activities, especially his exploits in war.
²²tn Heb “is lifted up.” The idiom “the right hand is lifted up” refers to victorious military deeds (see Pss 89:42; 118:16).
²³sn The Lord’s throne symbolizes his kingship.
²⁴tn Heb “are in front of your face.” The idiom can mean “confront” (Ps 17:13) or “meet, enter the presence of” (Ps 95:2).
²⁵tn Heb “who know the shout.” “Shout” here refers to the shouts of the Lord’s worshipers (see Pss 27:6; 33:3; 47:5).
²⁶tn Heb “in the light of your face they walk.” The idiom “light of your face” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19; Dan 9:17).
²⁷tn Heb “are lifted up.”
²⁸tn Heb “for the splendor of their strength [is] you.”
²⁹tn Heb “you lift up our horn,” or if one follows the marginal reading (Qere), “our horn is lifted up.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 75:10; 89:24; 92:10; Lam 2:17).
³⁰tn The phrase “our shield” refers metaphorically to the Davidic king, who, as God’s vice-regent, was the human protector of the people. Note the parallelism with “our king" here and with “your anointed one” in Ps 84:9.
³¹tn Or “Holy One of Israel.”
sn Sovereign Ruler. The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” The Lord’s holiness is first and foremost his transcendent sovereignty as the ruler of the world. He is “set apart” from the world over which he rules. At the same time his holiness encompasses his moral authority, which derives from his royal position. As king he has the right to dictate to his subjects how they are to live; indeed his very own character sets the standard for proper behavior. See the notes on Isa 6:3.
³²tn The pronoun “you” refers to the Lord, who is addressed here. The quotation that follows further develops the announcement of vv. 3-4.
³³tc Many medieval mss read the singular here, “your faithful follower.” In this case the statement refers directly to Nathan’s oracle to David (see 2 Sam 7:17).
³⁴tn Heb “I have placed help upon a warrior.”
³⁵tn Or perhaps “a chosen one.”
³⁶tn The words “as king” are supplied in the translation for clarification, indicating that a royal anointing is in view.
³⁷tn Heb “with whom my hand will be firm.”
³⁸tn Heb “an enemy will not exact tribute.” The imperfect is understood in a modal sense, indicating capability or potential.
³⁹tn The translation understands the Hiphil of avn in the sense of “act as a creditor.” This may allude to the practice of a conqueror forcing his subjects to pay tribute in exchange for “protection.” Another option is to take the verb from a homonymic verbal root meaning “to deceive,” “to trick.” Still another option is to emend the form to aC*y], a Qal imperfect from acn (“rise up”) and to translate, “an enemy will not rise up against him” (see M. Dahood, Psalms, 2:317).
⁴⁰tn Heb “and a son of violence will not oppress him.” The imperfect is understood in a modal sense, indicating capability or potential. The reference to a “son of violence” echoes the language of God’s promise to David in 2 Sam 7:10 (see also 1 Chr 17:9).
⁴¹tn Heb “and my faithfulness and my loyal love [will be] with him.”
⁴²tn Heb “and by my name his horn will be lifted up.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 75:10; 92:10; Lam 2:17).
⁴³tn Some identify “the sea” as the Mediterranean and “the rivers” as the Euphrates and its tributaries. However, it is more likely that “the sea” and “the rivers” are symbols for hostile powers that oppose God and the king (see v. 9, as well as Ps 93:3-4).
⁴⁴sn You are my father. The Davidic king was viewed as God’s “son” (see 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 2:7). The idiom reflects ancient Near Eastern adoption language associated with covenants of grant, by which a lord would reward a faithful subject by elevating him to special status, referred to as “sonship.” Like a son, the faithful subject received an “inheritance,” viewed as an unconditional, eternal gift. Such gifts usually took the form of land and/or an enduring dynasty. See M. Weinfeld, “The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,” JAOS 90 (1970): 184-203, for general discussion and some striking extra-biblical parallels.
⁴⁵tn Heb “the rocky summit of my deliverance.”
⁴⁶sn The firstborn son typically had special status and received special privileges.
⁴⁷tn Heb “forever I will keep for him my loyal love and will make my covenant secure for him.”
⁴⁸tn Heb “and I will set in place forever his offspring.”
⁴⁹tn Heb “and his throne like the days of the heavens.”
⁵⁰tn Or “desecrate.”
⁵¹tn Heb “I will punish with a club their rebellion.”
sn Despite the harsh image of beating…with a club, the language reflects a father-son relationship (see v. 30; 2 Sam 7:14). According to Proverbs, a fb#v@ (“club”) was sometimes utilized to administer corporal punishment to rebellious children (see Prov 13:24; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15).
⁵²tn Heb “with blows their sin.”
⁵³tn Heb “break”; “make ineffectual.” Some prefer to emend rypa (the Hiphil of rrp, “to break”) to rysa (the Hiphil of rws, “to turn aside”), a verb that appears in 2 Sam 7:15.
⁵⁴tn Heb “and I will not deal falsely with my faithfulness.”
⁵⁵tn Or “desecrate.”
⁵⁶tn Heb “and what proceeds out of my lips I will not alter.”
⁵⁷tn Or “lie to.”
⁵⁸tn Heb “his offspring forever will be.”
⁵⁹tn Heb “and his throne like the sun before me.”
⁶⁰tn Heb “like the moon it will be established forever.”
⁶¹tn Heb “and a witness in the sky, secure.” Scholars have offered a variety of opinions as to the identity of the “witness” referred to here, none of which is very convincing. It is preferable to join duw to <lwu in the preceding line and translate the commonly attested phrase duw <lwu (“forever”). In this case one may translate the second line, “[it] will be secure like the skies.” Another option (the one reflected in the present translation) is to take du as a rare noun meaning “throne” or “dais.” This noun is attested in Ugaritic; see, for example, CTA 16 vi 22-23, where ksi (= ask), “throne,” and `d (= du), “dais,” appear as synonyms in the poetic parallelism (see J. C. L. Gibson, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 91). Emending qjvb (“in the heavens”) to qjvk (“like the heavens”)—bet/kaf confusion is widely attested—one can then read, “[his] throne like the heavens [is] firm/stable.” Verse 29 refers to the enduring nature of the heavens, while Job 37:18 speaks of God spreading out the heavens (<yqjv) and compares their strength to a bronze mirror. Ps 89:29 uses the term <ymv (“skies”) which frequently appears in parallelism to <yqjv; see BDB 1007.
⁶²tn The Hebrew construction (conjunction + pronoun, followed by the verb) draws attention to the contrast between what follows and what precedes.
⁶³tn Heb “your anointed one.” The Hebrew phrase ijyvm (“your anointed one”) refers here to the Davidic king (see Pss 2:2; 18:50; 20:6; 28:8; 84:9; 132:10, 17).
⁶⁴tn The Hebrew verb appears only here and in Lam 2:7 (see HALOT 658).
⁶⁵tn Heb “the covenant of your servant.”
⁶⁶tn Heb “you dishonor [or “desecrate”] on the ground his crown.”
⁶⁷tn The king here represents the land and cities over which he rules.
⁶⁸tn Heb “all the passersby on the road.”
⁶⁹tn Heb “you have lifted up the right hand of his adversaries.” The idiom “the right hand is lifted up” refers to victorious military deeds (see Pss 89:13; 118:16).
⁷⁰tn The perfect verbal form predominates in vv. 38-45. The use of the imperfect in this one instance may be for rhetorical effect. The psalmist briefly lapses into dramatic mode, describing the king’s military defeat as if it were happening before his very eyes.
⁷¹tc Heb “you turn back, rocky summit, his sword.” The Hebrew term rwx (“rocky summit”) makes no sense here, unless it is a divine title understood as vocative, “you turn back, O Rocky Summit, his sword.” Some emend the form to rx (“flint”) on the basis of Josh 5:2, which uses the phrase <yrx twbrj (“flint knives”). The noun rx (“flint”) can then be taken as “flint-like edge,” indicating the sharpness of the sword (see BDB 866). Others emend the form to rjwa (“backward”) or to rxm (“from the adversary”). The present translation reflects the latter, assuming an original reading wbrj rxm byvt, which was corrupted to wbrj rx byvt by virtual haplography (confusion of bet/mem is well-attested) with rx (“adversary”) then being misinterpreted as rwx in the later tradition.
⁷²tn Heb “and you have not caused him to stand in the battle.”
⁷³tc The Hebrew text appears to read, “you have brought to an end from his splendor,” but the form wrhfm should be slightly emended (the daghesh should be removed from the tet) and read simply “his splendor” (the initial mem is not the preposition, but a nominal prefix). See HALOT 573-74.
⁷⁴tn The Hebrew verb rgm occurs only here and perhaps in Ezek 21:17 (see HALOT 546).
⁷⁵tn Heb “the days of his youth” (see as well Job 33:25).
⁷⁶tn Heb “How long, O Lord, will hide yourself forever?”
⁷⁷tn Heb “remember me, what is [my] lifespan.” The Hebrew term dl#j# is also used of one’s lifespan in Ps 39:5. Because the Hebrew text is so awkward here, some prefer to emend it to read yna ldj hm (“[remember] how transient [that is, “short-lived”] I am”; see Ps 39:4).
⁷⁸tn Heb “For what emptiness do you create all the sons of mankind?” In this context the term awv refers to mankind’s mortal nature and the brevity of life (see vv. 45, 48).
⁷⁹tn Heb “Who [is] the man [who] can live and not see death, [who] can deliver his life from the hand of Sheol?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “No one!”
⁸⁰sn The Lord’s faithful deeds are also mentioned in Pss 17:7 and 25:6.
⁸¹tc Many medieval Hebrew mss read here hwhy, “the Lord.”
⁸²tn Heb “[which] you swore on oath to David by your faithfulness.”
⁸³tc Many medieval Hebrew mss read here hwhy, “the Lord.”
⁸⁴tn Heb “remember, O sovereign Master, the taunt against your servants.” Many medieval Hebrew mss read the singular here, “your servant” (that is, the psalmist).
⁸⁵tn Heb “my lifting up in my arms [or “against my chest”] all of the many, peoples.” The term <ybr (“many”) makes no apparent sense here. For this reason some emend the text to yb@r] (“attacks by”), a defectively written plural construct form of byr (“dispute; quarrel”).
⁸⁶tn Heb “[by] which your enemies, O Lord, taunt, [by] which they taunt [at] the heels of your anointed one.”
⁸⁷sn The final verse of Ps 89, v. 52, is a conclusion to this third “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the first, second and fourth “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 41:13; 72:18-19; 106:48, respectively).
⁸⁸tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21.
⁸⁹tn Heb “surely and surely” (/m@a*w+ /m@a*, i.e., “Amen and amen”). This is probably a congregational response to the immediately preceding statement about the propriety of praising God; thus it has been translated “We agree! We agree!”
⁹⁰sn Psalm 90. In this communal lament the worship leader affirms that the eternal God and creator of the world has always been Israel’s protector. But God also causes men, who are as transient as grass, to die, and in his fierce anger he decimates his covenant community, whose brief lives are filled with suffering and end in weakness. The community asks for wisdom, the restoration of God’s favor, a fresh revelation of his power, and his blessing upon their labors.