60:4 banner. See note on SS 2:4 .

60:4 banner. See note on SS 2:4 .

cobra . . . charmer. There are magical incantations in ancient Near Eastern texts for warding off lethal attacks from a snake. One Mesopotamian text describes “serpents that cannot be conjured.” In a Ugaritic text, 12 gods are summoned to offer formulas to a charmer (Ugaritic mlhs = Hebrew mlhs) for neutralizing the poison (Ugaritic hmt = Hebrew hmh) of a snake (Ugaritic hhs = Hebrew hhs). The first 11 charms are ineffective. See note on .

The metaphor is an attempt to equate the fool/wicked, who will not listen, with a cobra (a term found in both Egyptian and Ugaritic texts) who pays no attention to the snake charmer. Both cause pain and suffering even though it is unreasonable behavior. Although snakes do not have hands to cover their ears (an internal organ), the issue here has to do with unnatural, perverse actions. Along this line, the Egyptian “Instructions of Ankhsheshonq” notes that there is no point in trying to instruct a fool, who will not listen and will hate you for attempting to teach him something. Similarly, the “Instructions of Amenemope” caution that the words of fools are more dangerous than storm winds.

dip their feet in the blood of the wicked. The poetic imagery is relatively subdued for the violent rhetoric that can be found in ancient Near Eastern culture. One might compare, e.g., the graphic nature of descriptions found in Assyrian royal inscriptions (see notes on ; ). In a Ugaritic text, Anat wades through the blood and gore of her slain enemies. The graphic imagery reflects that these are authentic prayers of people who deeply desire God’s justice to be visited on the wicked. God is willing to hear such outbursts even though, ideally, moderation, mercy and forgiveness would be commendable. The psalmist nonetheless leaves vengeance to God. Examples such as this also remind us that these psalms were not designed to be model prayers for us to draw on (though we may sometimes find them useful in that way). When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, he did not just direct them to the book of Psalms.

, dogs. See notes on ; .

quaking. The metaphor of an earthquake can describe any kind of catastrophe or social upheaval, here a military disaster (see note on ).

wine . . . stagger. See note on .

banner. See note on .

The list of places in this prophecy name the regions under the sovereign control of Yahweh—either his agents in battle, if Israel, or his enemies whom he will defeat if they are foreign nations. Shechem was an important city in the north-central hill country of Israel, associated with patriarchal wanderings and worship (; ; ), and the place of covenant renewal for the Israelites when they settled the land under Joshua (). Since it was closely tied with Israel’s presence in the land and the covenant with Yahweh, it serves here as a central reference point for Yahweh’s possession of the land. Across the Jordan River from Shechem was Sukkoth, a city also associated with Jacob () and located near the valley of the Jabbok River. It was conquered by Joshua and given to the tribe of Gad, who settled in the Transjordan (). Gilead is another name for this same region, and Manasseh is the tribe whose allotment included Shechem. Therefore, these first four geographic references are actually two, and they encompass the northern hill country on the west of the Jordan and the Transjordan on the east. Being just north of Moab and Edom, this region of Israel is appropriate in Yahweh’s claim of possession and challenge to these foreign nations. Ephraim’s tribal region was just south of Manasseh on the west side of the Jordan River, and Judah was the southernmost part of the land. The major foreign threat to Ephraim and Judah was the Mediterranean coastal region of the Philistines to the west. Thus, the list in this prophecy names the majority of the Israelite territories and their most immediate foreign enemies. The specific application of this prophecy is against Edom, east of the Dead Sea (see v. ; see also ).

spoken from his sanctuary. The verses that follow quote a prophetic speech given at the tabernacle or temple (see note on ). The contents of this speech may allude to a historical context described in the psalm’s title, or it may be a generic prophecy of victory listing typical enemies of Israel. Its reuse in demonstrates this possibility.

helmet. The Israelite tribes named are God’s weapons, hence agents, in the war against hostile foreigners. scepter. Particularly appropriate to describe Judah, since this tribe was the source of the ruling dynasty of David ().

Moab is my washbasin. May be a reference to Moab’s proximity to the Dead Sea, but certainly denotes the subjugation of that nation by Yahweh (repeated in ). They are forced into servanthood, being placed in a position where they must wash the feet of their master (cf. ). The container referred to here is usually used for cooking, but is a multipurpose pot/basin that comes in various sizes. Washbasins were typically used for ritual washing or ritual bathing. Washbasins occur in lists of fine gifts in the Amarna tablets. Despite these general comments, the precise imagery here is obscure. on Edom I toss my sandal. Sandals were the ordinary footwear in the ancient Near East, but they were also a symbolic item of clothing. This may have been due to the fact that land was purchased based on whatever size triangle of land someone could walk off in an hour, a day, a week or a month (). Land was surveyed in triangles, and a benchmark was constructed of fieldstones to serve as a boundary marker (). Since they walked off the land in sandals, the sandals became the movable title to that land. Casting a sandal is a symbolic, legal gesture employed in those situations where a levir refuses to accept his responsibility to a widow. She in turn removes his sandal, the symbol of ownership and inheritance, and casts it at him. This signifies his loss of inheritance rights to the lands of his relative (; ). Land transfers in the Nuzi tablets also involved replacing the old owner’s foot on the land with that of the new owner. In this instance in the Psalms, God aggressively casts a sandal onto Edom as a gesture of conquest or the assumption of ownership of that nation’s lands.

ends of the earth. This expression might refer to the earth’s boundary with the underworld, a brush with death similar to the thought of (see the articles “

tent . . . wings. The reference to God’s “tent” brings to mind the winged cherubim of the tabernacle and temple (see notes on ; ). However, the imagery points beyond this to the metaphor of God’s protective embrace (see note on ).

, vows. See notes on , ; ; ; ; see also the article “

curse. Unlike modern, western culture where a “curse” is nothing more than profanity, in the ancient world curses were taken very seriously (). The reason is that a curse invoked a god to bring catastrophe or death upon another person. Even Israelites believed in the reality of other supernatural beings (“gods”; see note on ) who would be fully capable of affecting the well-being of humans when invoked by a curse. In Mesopotamia and Ugarit, prayers and rituals were written to ward off potential injury from enemies who may have cursed the worshiper, especially through the agency of a sorcerer.

breath. See notes on ; . highborn. As in , this Hebrew term (beney ish) functions as both a euphemism for the wealthy and powerful as well as a generic term for all men of influence. Both Egyptian and Babylonian texts contain similar expressions for this class of individuals. Babylonian texts, e.g., regularly make the distinction between “a gentleman” and an “ungentlemanly person”—contrasting those who were sophisticated, cultured and refined by virtue of their standing in society with those who were not.

I have seen you. While only priests enjoyed access to the inside of the sanctuary, the outer court was beautifully adorned with images of cherubs (in the tabernacle, at least), majestic pillars and an ever-burning altar that represented God’s presence and consumed the sacrifices offered after God had answered prayer (see notes on ; ). In addition to the inspiring splendor of temple worship, the metaphor of “seeing God” means that the worshiper has experienced God’s favor (see notes on ; [“meet with God”]), an experience in the past that gives the psalmist hope in present distress.

shadow of your wings. See note on .

depths of the earth. See the articles “

food for jackals. Lack of a proper burial meant dismemberment by wild scavengers, which, in the common thought of the ancient world, left no peace for the disembodied spirit (see notes on ; ; ).

tongues. See note on .

snares. See notes on ; .

vows. See notes on , ; ; ; ; see also the article “

courts. See note on ; see also notes on ; .

seas . . . nations. See notes on ; .

grasslands of the wilderness. An image of fertility even in the desert. During the rainy season, the desert does support a growth of annuals and wildflowers.

refined. See note on .

offerings . . . vows . . . sacrifice. See notes on , ; ; ; ; see also the article “

face shine on us. This verse echoes the priestly blessing in . Rather than “peace” (), v.  wishes for God’s deliverance of his people to be recognized by all the nations of the earth. The metaphor of the face shining in blessing is found in Ugaritic texts (see note on ) and in Akkadian texts. An example of the latter is from a twelfth-century BC boundary marker invoking blessing upon the Babylonian king Nebuchadrezzar I to be indicated by the radiant shining face of his god Enlil.

rides on the clouds. In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, Baal is regularly referred to as the “rider of the clouds.” References can be found in both the Baal Cycle and in the Aqhat Legend. This image of power over the winds and weather stands as another example of the psalmists using descriptions of the gods that were familiar in other cultures. In doing so they are asserting Yahweh’s control over nature and nations (; )—a control elsewhere attributed to other gods.

sets the lonely in families. The Egyptian tale of the Eloquent Peasant provides a model for this set of responsibilities to the weak. The king in this Middle Kingdom wisdom piece is called the father to the orphan and the “mother to the motherless.” describes laws dealing with justice for the vulnerable (see note on ). also examines the plight of the one who is isolated, lonely and neglected. leads out the prisoners. In the ancient Near East, the freeing of prisoners (from debtors’ prison) as an act of justice often occurred in the first or second year of a new king’s reign (and then periodically after that). For example, King Ammisaduqa of the Old Babylonian period (seventeenth century BC) cancelled economic debts on behalf of Shamash. Thus, the “jubilee” in this case was primarily concerning those in debt (for either financial or legal reasons), and for the freeing of debt-slaves (see notes on , ). Unlike Israel, this Babylonian edict was entirely at the whim of the monarch, and there is no evidence that it was divinely sanctioned. Historically, a proclamation of freedom is recorded by the last king of Judah, Zedekiah (). For these and other characteristics of a just king’s reign, see note on ; see also the articles “

the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver. There is no clear consensus on the meaning attached to a dove “sheathed with silver” and “feathers with shining gold.” Some consider it a reference to the battle standards of the fleeing kings, which were topped by a dove, the symbol of the Canaanite goddess Astarte. Others see it as a reference to Israel (see other bird images in ; ).

Zalmon. Because of the parallel in v.  with Bashan, it is unlikely that Mount Zalmon in this psalm is the same as the mountain mentioned in near Shechem. Zalmon means “dark” or “black” and could refer to a peak shrouded in clouds. It would also require more elevation to serve as a snow-covered eminence.

Mount Bashan. The Bashan region, northeast of Galilee, is a fertile plateau about 2,000 feet (610 meters) in elevation. It is surrounded by extinct volcanic peaks and rolling hills with sufficient forestland to complement its cattle-raising economy (; ; ; see note on ). rugged mountain. Probably refers to the hard to climb, basaltic hills in the Bashan area.

mountain where God chooses to reign. See notes on ; .

When you ascended on high, you took many captives . . . gifts. Like the victorious Saul in , the triumphant Yahweh is accompanied by a procession of prisoners, loot and tribute payments. A similar image can be found in the Assyrian annals of Sennacherib, who claims to have taken over 200,000 prisoners from Judah, along with their animals and other plunder. The major deities of the ancient Near East were associated with high places, so for Yahweh to “ascend” would be to return to his holy mountain (), just as Baal used Mount Zaphon as his divine base of operations in the Ugaritic and Canaanite traditions (see note on ).

your feet may wade in the blood of your foes. The poetic language attached to battle reports can at times be rather grisly. This is certainly the case with this phrase (also used in ). The similar image of wading through the blood of one’s enemies is also found in the Ugaritic Baal Cycle. There the goddess gleefully slaughtered whole armies, and she “waded knee-deep in the warriors’ blood.”

procession . . . into the sanctuary. The New Year’s festival (Akitu) in ancient Babylon included a procession in which the image of the god Marduk was paraded along a “sacred highway” through the streets of the city. The god was guided by the king (“taken by the hand”) up to the Esagila temple, where the image resided during the year. It was not the normal practice for this sort of procession to take place in Jerusalem, since Yahweh could not be represented by an image. However, the ark of the covenant, which functioned as an icon of God’s power and presence, was brought into the city by king David and placed within the tabernacle (), and this is what may be celebrated in this psalm.

beast among the reeds. Probably refers to the hippopotamus or the crocodile. Both were major hazards along the shores of the Nile River in Egypt. The tomb paintings from Beni Hasan include a number of scenes in which fishermen work while a crocodile lurks in the reeds nearby, or in which papyrus boats are used to hunt this dangerous reptile. Politically, the image is most likely a reference to Egypt.

rides across the highest heavens. See note on v. .

waters. Deep water was symbolic for any catastrophe of life (vv. ; see note on ).

foreigner to my own family. Scorn from close relatives and friends is a stereotypical theme in individual laments, expressing the depth of anguish (see note on ). Though even today we would feel the weight of such estrangement, it is greatly multiplied in cultures in which a person’s identity is bound up in their place and role in the clan.

fast. See note on .

sackcloth. See the article “

I am scorned. The Israelites believed that if God were to be considered just, rewards and punishments in this life would be proportional to the righteousness or wickedness of the individual. See the article “

gall. In some contexts, this word refers to poison (e.g., snake venom in ), whereas on other occasions it refers to something bitter. This would match the parallel with “vinegar.” In the former usage it could lead to almost certain death, while in the latter usage it may be understood as some kind of sedative. Presumably, the fast of mourning (v. ) would be broken with food brought to the sufferer by comforters (e.g., ). In this case, however, instead of comfort and nourishment, the mourner receives just the opposite—poison (compare Amos’s charge that justice has been transformed into poison in ).

blotted out of the book of life. The metaphor of divine scribal activity is known in Mesopotamia, usually in expressions of hope that the deity would inscribe one’s name for long life in a heavenly tablet. In the Sumerian Hymn to Nungal, the goddess discusses her justice as she punishes the wicked and brings mercy to those who deserve it. She claims to hold in her hands the tablets of life, on which she writes down the names of the just. Here, the psalmist wishes the opposite for his enemies (see the article “

horns and hooves. Indicates a full-grown bull (cf. ), an expensive sacrificial animal, which is ritually pure according to the Holiness Code (i.e., ; see also ).

This psalm parallels the wording of (see the article “Repeated Psalms”).

sign. The use of the Hebrew term mopet is indicative of an extraordinary event that serves as a sign of God’s power, and in this case judgment or punishment (compare the curses in ). This technical term appears often in the narrative of the plagues in Egypt (e.g., [“wonders]; [“wonders”]), and is used to signal a coming event (, ). The term does not necessarily designate something supernatural as opposed to natural (i.e., a “miracle”). In the ancient world, people did not consider anything truly “natural”—God was involved in everything and therefore “miracle” was a meaningless designation.

depths of the earth. See the articles “

harp . . . lyre. See the articles “

There is a good deal of evidence to indicate that in the civilizations of ancient Mesopotamia kingship was viewed as a gift from the gods. The prologue to the Code of Hammurapi contains a statement that the king has been proclaimed “the shepherd” by the god Enlil, and that it is his task to “cause justice to prevail in the land.” During the Akitu New Year’s festival, the king was reinvested with his powers of office. This would have included a great procession and mass celebration. The Ur III texts from about 2000 BC contain hymns composed for these occasions, celebrating the coronation of king Ur-Nammu. These compositions contain a set of statements that chronicle the stages of the investiture ritual, including the “pressing of the holy scepter” into the king’s hand. These verses are to be sung by or for the king, proclaiming his god-given duties as lawgiver and the constructor of canals that bring fertility to the land. There is an answering litany by the priests containing the king’s titles and affirming him as “king of Ur.” ◆

Investiture scene from Mari.

Kim Walton. The Louvre.

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Woven together throughout are the themes of justice, peace and domestic prosperity. In the prologue to the Code of Hammurapi, and especially in the epilogue, the king boasts that his just rule also brings peace and prosperity to the cities of his realm. Immediately following the prayer for justice in “Ashurbanipal’s Coronation Hymn,” the priest asks that the king’s dominion might also be characterized by prosperity (abundance of grain; cf. v. ) and “peace” (Assyrian salimu is akin to the Hebrew salom in v.  [NIV “prosperity”]).

Injustice resulted in social chaos (see note on ). In Egyptian thought, the execution of justice by the king expels chaos from creation, bringing harmony and order to the land. Thus, in both Mesopotamia and Egypt, people set their hope on the king for justice and prosperity. In Egypt, this revolved around a pharaoh who participated in the company of the gods and mediated divine blessing to humanity, but this hope never focused beyond the currently living king, except very late in Egyptian history (c. 300 BC), when expectations arose among some that a king would arise to restore the former glory of Egypt. Similarly, Mesopotamians did not conceive of a future king who would usher in an ideal age. People considered only their contemporary king as the agent of the gods who ideally maintained a prosperous social order. In contrast, in the OT one finds a progressively developing theme of hope for a future, worldwide kingdom ruled by a Davidic king on behalf of Yahweh.

defend the afflicted. Care for the weak members of society is the practical test of a just and good government throughout the ancient Near East, as claimed by Hammurapi (see note on ; see also the article “Coronation Hymns in the Ancient Near East”). In the Ugaritic Kirta epic, King Kirta is rebuked for failure to “pursue the widow’s case,” “take up the wretched’s claim,” “expel the poor’s oppressor” and “feed the orphan.” In the Egyptian “Teaching for Merikare,” the king is exhorted, “Do justice, then you endure on earth; / Calm the weeper, don’t oppress the widow.”

May he endure. Along with the hope for justice and prosperity, anticipates a long reign. This strikes another parallel with “Ashurbanipal’s Coronation Hymn,” in which the priest prays that the god Assur would “lengthen your days and years.” as long as the sun . . . moon. These metaphors of an enduring reign are common in royal literature (see note on ). A Phoenician royal servant named Azatiwata wished his good name to be remembered “forever like the name of the sun and the moon” (cf. v. ; ).

May he be like rain. In an agriculturally based society, rain is essential to a prosperous economy. “Ashurbanipal’s Coronation Hymn” asks that in his years there may be constant rain from the heavens. In , the king himself is likened to these precious waters that bring life to the earth. This theme occurs again in v. , where prayer is offered for abundant grain, like the vegetation that flourishes on the well-watered mountains of Lebanon.

from sea to sea. Frequently in poetry, the author uses two extremes to express the totality of everything in between (a figure of speech called “merism”). In royal literature, it was used to stress the unlimited extent of a king’s dominion over geographic space and time. There may be an allusion in this verse to the geographic perspective of the ancient Near East that the earth was surrounded by the sea (see note on ). Thus, “sea to sea” meant across the entire world. the River. Here it may refer to the Euphrates River (cf. ); but if a more universal view is intended, it could be understood as synonymous with the “sea” (i.e., the cosmic ocean viewed as a current of water, like a river, encircling the earth; see the article “

desert tribes. Desert bands created havoc even for the mighty Assyrian Empire, necessitating repeated campaigns against them in order to keep trade routes open. This text is generally emended from the Hebrew tsiyyim (“desert dweller”) to tsarayw (“his foes”). If the original reading is retained, then it could relate back to the use of “Cush” (the desert region of Ethiopia) in as a geographic term for the “ends of the earth” and thus follow the coronation promise in v. .

Tarshish . . . Sheba and Seba. In order to indicate the extent of the king’s power, rulers from throughout the world come to him with gifts. Thus, Tarshish, associated with the islands and nations in the western Mediterranean, represents all points to the west (see notes on ; ). Sheba is identified with southern Arabia (Yemen) and the Sabean kingdom (see note on ). Sheba’s location is still disputed, although some place it in Ethiopia or along the northwest Arabian incense road ().

It is standard in ancient Near Eastern literature to portray the king as lawgiver (cf. ) and defender of the weak (an attribute of God in ). The Egyptian tale of the “Eloquent Peasant” states that the king’s duty is to “father the orphan.” The coronation hymn of the Ur III king Ur-Nammu describes him as the “sustainer of Ur.” In the prologue of the Code of Hammurapi, Hammurapi of Babylon is given the task by the gods to “promote the welfare of the people” and “cause justice to prevail in the land,” so that “the strong might not oppress the weak.” In all of these we can see that the rhetoric related to kingship in Israel follows similar lines to that found throughout the ancient Near East.

Long may he live! “Ashurbanipal’s Coronation Hymn” asks the deities to give the king a long reign. Stereotypical interjections were used in Egyptian inscriptions, asking life for the king (e.g., “given life, duration, dominion, may he live like Re”). Length of life for a just king meant enduring peace and a good life for his people. gold from Sheba. While there are gold resources on the Arabian peninsula (the most likely location of Sheba), the maritime trade that took place in the Red Sea would have channeled some of the famous gold resources of Nubia (south of Egypt) through Sheba (). Gold was customarily part of the tribute paid to great kings (see and Sennacherib’s corresponding record of this tribute).

heaven . . . earth. A common figure of speech called a “merism” occurs when two opposites are mentioned to express the whole. The pairing of the words “heaven” and “earth” is common in the OT (e.g., ; ; ; ; ), but a parallel using the pairing of “lips” and “tongue” appears in the Baal Cycle, when the god of death, Mot, threatens to swallow Baal by opening his mouth so wide that one lip touches heaven and the other touches earth, and the tongue touches the stars. In this verse, “heaven” and “earth” are paired to suggest that the wicked have extended their ownership (and power) to control everything.

take me into glory. The NIV’s inclusion of the word “into” is totally interpretive, not being found in the Hebrew text. The concept of God “taking” a person as a reference to saving his life can be seen clearly in , where the NIV translates the same phrase as “took hold of me.” The word “glory” is never used in Hebrew as a synonym for heaven, and here refers to an “honorable” resolution to the psalmist’s crisis. His difficulties have brought him shame because suffering was considered a sign of sin and God’s displeasure (see the articles “

In Mesopotamia, the destruction of a holy city and its temple and the anticipation or hope for its rebuilding gave rise to hymns called “city laments,” which bear similarity to ; (see also the articles “

Lamentation over the ruins of Ur, c. 1800 BC.

Mbzt/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

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sheep of your pasture. This is a common metaphor in city laments. The deity is like a shepherd who has dwelt in a hut (i.e., the temple) within the sheepfold (i.e., the city). Abandonment of the city is tantamount to abandoning the people, who are like sheep (cf. ).

where you dwelt. In Sumerian city laments, it is only after a deity has abandoned his or her city that it is vulnerable to attack. See note on ; see also the articles “

destruction . . . brought on the sanctuary. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (586 BC), described in , lies at the heart of this psalm. While there are no extra-Biblical descriptions of this event, the Babylonian Chronicle does record the capture of Jerusalem and the deportation of the king of Judah (Jehoiachin) 11 years earlier in 597 BC (), at which time the temple treasures were plundered.

standards. The Hebrew word can refer to a military banner with insignia to distinguish different troop units (see note on ; see also note on , where a different Hebrew word is used for the same object). Because these insignia bore symbols of foreign gods, raising them at the site of the temple was particularly sacrilegious (cf. v. ).

smashed . . . with their axes. The Lament Over the Destruction of Ur draws on the same image one might expect of such destruction: into the temple “big copper axes chewed.” Other lines describe the fires that consumed buildings and people alike. These graphic images stir deep feelings for the tragedy. carved paneling. It is difficult to determine whether this refers to carved panels in the temple or to engravings on some of the bronze or gold pieces connected to the temple. What is clear is that the intricate artwork that embellished this temple (as many others in the ancient world) was being ruthlessly destroyed.

every place where God was worshiped. It is not likely the psalmist would lament the destruction of illegitimate places of worship, whether within the temple complex or at various sites throughout the land (; ). Perhaps these were simply special meeting places for prayer. In cities and villages of the ancient Near East, local shrines other than central, regional temple complexes accommodated the needs of the common people. Even at times when orthodox worship prevailed in Jerusalem, one might expect multiple gathering places that did not necessarily provide for sacrifices or other unauthorized rituals in competition with the Jerusalem temple. Unfortunately, the only places for religious gathering that would leave a clear trace in the archaeological record are those with illicit features such as altars or figurines.

In order to underscore the power of God to intervene if he so chooses, the psalmist alludes to a well-known myth in the ancient Near East about the triumph of a god over the sea serpent. The closest neighbors to ancient Israel that preserved this myth were the Canaanites, whose religion is best represented by the texts from Ugarit (c. 1300 BC). In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, Baal defeats the sea-god Yamm (Ugaritic ym = Hebrew yam, “sea”) and thereby earns the title “king” together with the right to a palace-temple (see the article “

The use of the Baal Cycle as an analogy to illustrate the power of Yahweh can be found in other OT passages. Isaiah describes Yahweh’s final victory over evil in terms of slaying “Leviathan . . . the monster [taninim] of the sea” (). To describe the serpent, Isaiah also uses the same two adjectives that are used in the Ugaritic Baal Cycle: “fleeing” / “gliding” (Hebrew brh) and “twisting” / “coiling” (Hebrew qltn). and refer to Leviathan, and equates the sea (yam) with the monster (tannin). Other Biblical texts combine allusions to this myth with another name for the sea monster: “Rahab” (; ; ; ). The name “Rahab” is used as a derogatory name for Egypt (; ). Isaiah, e.g., explicitly associated the exodus with Yahweh’s victory over the sea monster, Rahab (), suggesting a connection with the parting of the Red Sea. Probably, the psalmist’s use of this mythic imagery in connection with God’s salvation “from long ago” () also alludes in part to the exodus deliverance. However, the mention of the sun and moon, the emergence of land, and the seasons in (for “ever-flowing rivers” in , see note on ) suggests that the psalmist has in mind the molding of all creation as a demonstration of God’s supreme power. While the Baal Cycle does not connect Baal’s triumph with creation, similar images in Egypt and Mesopotamia do. The Egyptian wisdom text called the “Teaching for Merikare” speaks of the well-being of mankind, tended by the god who created sky and earth and “subdued the water monster.”

Cylinder seal depicts seven-headed monster with flames coming off its back. This is representative of some of the chaos monsters of the Ancient Near East.

Courtesy of the Oriental Institute Museum

The Egyptian sun-god, on his sailing journey each night across the waters of the underworld, defeats a serpent who is threatening the order of creation and therefore the potential for afterlife. One Mesopotamian account of creation features the god Marduk rising to kingship through his defeat of the ocean-goddess (cf. ). Another Mesopotamian text advances the reputation of the god Nergal by reporting his battle against an ocean dragon.

Other evidence for shared knowledge of the Baal Cycle in Mesopotamia includes a prophetic text from Mari (c. 1800 BC), which reports a speech of the god Adad (i.e., Baal) who “fought with the Sea” (cf. ). Numerous iconographical images from Mesopotamia of battles between a god and a multiheaded dragon have survived. In Akkadian literature there is a creature named bashmu that is described as having six tongues and seven mouths. In one text bashmu is named alongside other fabulous creatures, including one with two heads and one with seven heads. The latter is also pictured on a cylinder seal. This seal shows four of the heads hanging limp while the battle continues with the remaining three. In , the creature is a mere plaything of Yahweh (see note there).

All of this demonstrates that even though God was revealing himself to Israel as very different from the gods of the ancient world, he did not hesitate to use similar metaphors and images to do so. His own activity is described in these culturally embedded ways and makes reference to known mythology to engage the Israelite audience through familiar ideas. However, for Yahweh, imagery of defeating chaos creatures constitutes literary allusions rather than cosmic history. Yahweh did not have to battle chaos creatures in order to bring order to the cosmos. Finally, it should be noted that these chaos creatures are not inherently evil, so this is not a battle of good versus evil. These accounts instead reflect Yahweh’s triumph of bringing order in the face of nonorder or disorder. ◆

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split open the sea. There is nothing in this psalm to suggest that reference is being made to the dividing of the Red Sea. The context concerns instead the cosmic battle with the sea that is referred to many times in Psalms. The Hebrew verb used here is used only here in this form, making precision somewhat difficult. If splitting is intended, it may be parallel to Marduk’s splitting of Tiamat (sea) that is recounted in Enuma Elish. Others have translated it as a reference to the churning of the sea that sometimes precedes such battles (see note on ). See the article “Chaos Monsters.”

Leviathan. Often identified as a crocodile; crocodiles were found mostly in Egypt (where it symbolized kingly power and greatness), but also sparsely in Palestine. However, the multiple heads here and the fiery breath in make the crocodile identification difficult. Alternatively, Leviathan has been depicted as a sea monster—one of the chaos creatures well known in the ancient world (see the article “

appointed time. The Hebrew word might be any agreed upon assembly place () or specified time (). The prophet Habakkuk uses this term for God’s chosen time of judgment (), and in God’s time for intervention is simultaneously a time of deliverance for his people. However, it also commonly refers to the assembled festivals of the religious calendar occurring three time a year: Passover and Unleavened Bread in the spring and the Festival of Tabernacles/Booths in the fall (; ; see the article “Pilgrim Psalms”). Given the worship setting of and its identification as prophetic speech (see note on ), the backdrop for this psalm may be a judgment/salvation speech delivered on the occasion of such a religious gathering (cf. ; , ; ).

pillars. See note on ; see also the article “

horns. Symbols of strength and therefore a basis for boasting (see note on ).

cup full of foaming wine. When wine ferments, it produces froth from the released gases, so the metaphor perhaps suggests a particularly well-fermented product. The word picture is expanded with the description “mixed.” At times, wine was mixed with water; but spices were often used to increase the pungency of the drink (). The allure and potentially damaging effect is described in , so it serves as a fitting metaphor of judgment (; ; , ). dregs. The sediment-laden portions at the bottom of the jar.

Salem. This is an abbreviated form of the name Jerusalem, identified as such because of the parallelism with “Zion” in this verse. Jerusalem means “peace.” The same abbreviation is used in as the royal city of Melchizedek, who met Abraham after Abraham’s return from the war against the five kings. This psalm, which celebrates Yahweh’s protection of Jerusalem, is closely related to the “songs of Zion” (see the article “

he broke . . . weapons of war. alludes to a siege of Jerusalem broken by the intervention of Yahweh. It is not clearly identifiable with any known battle in OT history, but one like Sennacherib’s siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC () would match the description in the psalm.

The waters saw you. The psalms speak of the exodus in terms of a cosmic battle between Yahweh and unruly personified forces, such as turbulent waters, which in other ancient Near Eastern texts are hostile gods and goddesses (see the article “Chaos Monsters”).

thunder . . . lightning. These natural phenomena, together with the earthquake (v. ), are commonly associated with the appearance of a divine warrior (see the article “

Giant footprints carved into the threshold of a temple at Ain Dara in Syria (tenth to eighth century BC). See note on .

Kathryn Hooge

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the sea. See notes on ; ; see also the article “Chaos Monsters.” footprints. The gods and goddesses of the other nations in the Near East were portrayed in various animal and human forms. Of interest is the discovery of giant footprints carved into the threshold of a temple at ʿAin Dara in Syria (tenth to eighth century BC). The footprints symbolize the deity stepping from the entrance into the inner sanctuary. Israel’s God revealed himself only in the cloud and pillar of fire ().

parable. Wisdom themes are not foreign to hymnic literature such as psalms (see note on ). In the most basic sense, a “parable” is a comparison between two things, but the term is used more broadly for any saying that reflects upon the concerns of wisdom (see , where it is translated “proverb” and is echoed by the word “riddle”; see also note there). Here the concern is passing on to children the lessons of the fathers (). A similar value is expressed in the Egyptian “Instruction of Ptahhotep,” in which it is noted that fathers pass instruction on to their children generation after generation by their actions as well as their words.

men of Ephraim. Ephraim’s tribe was the dominant group among the northern tribes of Israel, so the name “Ephraim” was synonymous with the whole group of northern Israel. When addressing the northern kingdom, the prophet Hosea uses Ephraim’s name for the whole (e.g., ; ; ; ; ). is concerned with the downfall of the northern kingdom and the transfer of prominence to Judah as the place of God’s dwelling (vv. , ). The use of “Ephraim” at this early point in the psalm (v. ) signals this emphasis in the psalmist’s historical allusions and admonitions from the past.

Zoan. The Egyptian city of Djanet, which the Greeks called Tanis. It became the capital city of the delta region in the Twenty-First Dynasty (twelfth century BC). It is in the area where the Israelites were settled in Egypt at the time of Moses.

blood . . . flies . . . frogs . . . locust . . . hail . . . livestock. See notes on ; ; ; see also the article “

Ham. See note on .

high places. See notes on ; ; .

tabernacle of Shiloh. See notes on ; , .

He built his sanctuary. The theme that gods are ultimately the builders of their own temples is frequently associated in the ancient Near East with the notion that such a temple is rooted in the cosmic realm (either in the realm below the earth’s surface or in heaven). This is a poetic way of affirming its secure and enduring qualities. See the article “

shepherd. See note on . The Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal (c. 1050 BC) identifies the goddess Ishtar as the one who took him from the mountains and named him to be shepherd of the peoples.

The historical event referred to in this psalm is the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonian army in 586 BC (see note on ). is similar in several ways to city laments known from ancient Mesopotamia (see the article “City Laments”).

dead bodies . . . as food for the birds . . . the animals. In the Gilgamesh Epic, the guardian monster of the cedar forest, Huwawa, tells Gilgamesh that he should have given his flesh to be eaten by birds of prey and scavengers. For exposure of corpses, see notes on ; . A common feature of city laments is the graphic description of the fate of the city’s inhabitants. The “Lament Over the Destruction of Ur” reports corpses were piled up by the city gates and that the dead littered the ground like potsherds.

How long . . . ? This question occurs nearly 20 times in Psalms, usually in connection with a lament psalm. It is found also in Mesopotamia, as the Sumerian “Lament Over the Destruction of Sumer and Ur” asks, “How long will the eye of the enemy be cast on me?”

Pour out your wrath. While city laments such as the “Lament Over the Destruction of Ur” acknowledge that the destruction was the result of a divine decision, they also contain a section calling for divine retribution on the enemy who showed no limit in their rampage.

we . . . will praise you. A concluding vow in a city lament is the portrait of praise that will result if the city is restored. The “Lament Over the Destruction of Ur” closes with the hope that the city of the god Nanna might be restored so that praises and rituals can be renewed.

Shepherd. See note on . enthroned between the cherubim. See note on .

, , make your face shine on us. This refrain finds an echo in v. , where God’s act of restoration is parallel to looking down from heaven and watching in a protective manner. Therefore, the metaphor of shining is probably similar to the image of God as the sun (see note on ).

God Almighty. This Hebrew expression has traditionally been translated “God of hosts,” or when coupled with the divine name Yahweh, “LORD of hosts.” The word for “hosts” is associated with armies (; ; ). By extension, the same word refers to the “army” of heavenly beings whom Yahweh commands for his service. The psalmist calls for God to intervene militarily on behalf of his people, utilizing his heavenly army on their behalf (see ).

Rashap, the Ugaritic god of war, is called in one text “Rashap of the Army” (Ugaritic sbʾ = Hebrew sbʾ, “host”). It is also possible that there is a connection between the imagery of God as a shining sun (vv. , , ) and his ability to intervene with his heavenly “host/army.” A conceptual parallel might be found in a letter from a Canaanite king to the Egyptian pharaoh (c. 1350 BC). The Canaanite king has readied his troops for battle to serve the sun-god, Pharaoh, whom he calls “sun of thousands.” A related letter uses the image for Pharaoh as the sun “over thousands” shining forth over the horizon to muster troops.

bread of tears. The trauma was so long and severe, it was as though the people’s daily bread was their hardship, a metaphor known from Mesopotamian texts as well.

Sea . . . River. Given the geographic description, they are likely references to the Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates River, respectively, though they potentially may be references to the cosmic waters. (In the end this is a difference without a distinction, since the Mediterranean and the Euphrates were part of the cosmic waters.)

Boars. Not only vicious, powerful animals in the wild, but also unclean for eating (; , translated “pig” in both verses). Therefore, the irony of the image is that an unclean animal is destroying the food of God’s people.

music. See the article “

New Moon . . . festival. The designation New Moon, i.e., the first day of the month, combined with the description “when the moon is full,” the 14th day, points to the autumn religious festival. This festival opened on the 1st day of the 7th month (Sept./Oct.) with a trumpet call for a sacred assembly. It included the Day of Atonement on the 10th day and culminated with the week-long Festival of Tabernacles, which began on the 15th day (; ). See the article “Pilgrim Psalms.”

unknown voice. See note on .

This verse begins the words of the Lord spoken by a prophet at the festival. Prophetic ministry during temple worship was probably common. Assyrian temple prophets served at covenant renewal festivals. See note on .

thundercloud . . . Meribah. There was thunder at Mount Sinai (), but it is hard to see how that was an act of rescue, and Meribah—where Yahweh gave water from the rock ()—preceded it. It is therefore more likely that the thundercloud is seen as the weapon of the divine warrior, Yahweh, who delivered Israel from Egypt (the same Hebrew term is used in [NIV “thunder”]).

honey from the rock. While most honey spoken of in the OT is the syrup from the date palm, mention of the rock here suggests bees’ honey from honeycombs in the rocks.

great assembly. This Hebrew expression can be rendered more lit. “assembly of God” or “divine assembly” (cf. NASB: “congregation”; NRSV and ESV: “divine council”). Yahweh, the God of Israel, stands at the head of an assembly of heavenly beings, which in OT texts are usually called “gods” or “sons of god” (see note on ). The concept of a divine council was also well known among Israel’s Canaanite neighbors and in the religion of Mesopotamia (see the article “

In the Baal Cycle (see note on ; see also the article “

foundations of the earth. While this concept usually refers to the divine ordering of creation (see notes on ; ; see also the article “

I said, ‘You are “gods.” ’ Throughout this psalm, God speaks through the words of a temple prophet (see note on ). God is rendering a verdict of destruction on the heavenly beings who have transgressed the divinely ordained social order. An important aspect of the ancient viewpoint here is that human rulers make decisions that mirror the actions of the “gods.” gods. This term is used both of supernatural beings and of the human rulers who are their agents (see note on ). Therefore, divine retribution reaches into both the human and the heavenly realms in order to vindicate the victims of injustice and oppression (see the article “

The reference to Assyria (v. ) points to the general period of Assyria’s westward expansion (c. 750–700 BC), although no specific event known outside this psalm corresponds to this list of nations. The number of nations, ten, might suggest a stereotypical list of enemies. Mention of the Assyrian Empire at the end punctuates the list of nine other enemies. From the earliest times, Egyptian scribes used the term “Nine Bows” to refer to nine nations in the region of Egypt, at times including Egypt itself. Over time, the convention changed so that the specific nations listed were immediate enemies of the Egyptian king. The nations listed often described a circle around Egypt, although they were not always in geographic order. The number of nations named also varied at times. For example, the list of “Nine Bows” on Merneptah’s Stele (c. 1207 BC) numbered only eight, including Israel.

Edom, Moab and Ammon were kingdoms southeast, east and northeast of the Dead Sea, respectively (Moab and Ammon being descendants of Lot, v. ). Ishmaelites and Hagrites were Bedouin tribes in the Arabian desert east of Canaan, and Amalek refers to tribes located to the south. Gebal might refer to a city in Phoenicia (northwest of ancient Israel); however, there is evidence of the existence of a “Gebal” in the region of Edom, which better corresponds with the other places immediately before and after this name in the list. Philistia bordered Israel and Judah on the west and Tyre was a major city in Phoenicia to the northwest. Assyria controlled territories to the north and northeast. Conceptually, the list of nations portrays enemies surrounding Israel and Judah on all sides.

Midian . . . Sisera and Jabin. During the judges period, God intervened to help Gideon defeat the Midianites (), a tribal group later associated with the Ishmaelites. About this same time, Sisera and Jabin, from Hazor to the north of Israel, were defeated by Deborah and Barak (). By selecting these examples, the psalmist alludes to famous victories in geographic regions corresponding to the list of enemies in vv. .

Endor. Not mentioned in the account of these battles in Judges (see previous note), but it is in the vicinity of both of them. The eastern end of the Jezreel Valley is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) wide from north to south. The north end is blocked off by Mount Tabor, while the south end is blocked off by Mount Gilboa. The ten-mile (16-meter) stretch between the two is broken into two passes by the smaller hill of Moreh. Endor is located in the middle of the northern pass, between the hill of Moreh, where the battle of Midian took place, and Mount Tabor, where Deborah and Barak mustered their troops.

Oreb and Zeeb . . . Zebah and Zalmunna. Nobles killed in Gideon’s battle against the Midianites (; , , ).

you alone are the Most High. In the ancient world, the existence of a god was understood in terms of its effective activity as a god. A being who was inactive, ineffectual, incompetent or lacking power or authority was not a god. This statement identifies Yahweh as the only being justifiably classified as a god. See the article “

When the patriarch Jacob encountered the Lord, he recognized the “special” nature of the place where that meeting took place (). Similarly, Moses’ experience confirmed how a divine visitation set apart (made “holy”) the actual space around God’s presence (; ), and the ongoing presence of God in the midst of Israel necessitated special provision to protect the sanctity of the place of his dwelling (; ). The most enduring location of this sacred presence was Solomon’s temple (). Wherever God touches earth, there is a nexus, a connection point, between the realm of heaven and earth; and the temple served as such a point for ancient Israel (). This notion of sacred space was shared among Israel’s neighbors as well, and temples were regarded as the center of the cosmos, where heaven, earth and, in some views, the underworld met. In the Mesopotamian Creation Epic, founding the temple at Babylon as a waypoint for the gods between heaven and earth was among the first acts of Marduk.

Various creation stories from Egypt originated in cities whose temples were built where the gods were believed to have evolved into the constituent parts of the cosmos. When building temples, the Egyptians filled the ground for the foundation with clean sand in order to preserve the sanctity of the building site. Once geographic space was considered sacred, successive temple projects were built over top of older ones, and in some cases remodeling involved digging back down to “virgin soil” in order to reset foundation stones. Temple architecture also marked the degrees of sacredness, from the most inner sanctuary to the outside perimeter walls of the temple compound (see note on ). In this way, the cosmic symbolism of sacred space was protected.

For Solomon’s temple, the symbolism of a garden, guarded by gates and cherubim, suggested a portal for entry into heaven; and the large tank of water, called the “Sea” (), may have symbolized the cosmic ocean over which Yahweh presided as king (; ). For ancient Israelites, then, it was as though the stability of the cosmos (and certainly their nation) was bound together with Yahweh’s temple. Visiting the temple was to gain a glimpse of the habitation of God on earth, the center of power and rule in the world. Even more cherished was the privilege of the priests who could dwell within the temple compound. Everything about the temple, its architecture and symbolism, conveyed a sense of awe, beauty, glory and majesty of the Creator and King of the universe. See the articles “

A relief of a shrine marked by fish and boats; perhaps to Ea, the water god. Khorsabad, palace of Sargon II, 721 to 705 BC. The notion of sacred space was shared among Israel’s neighbors, and temples were regarded as the center of the cosmos.

Kim Walton. The Oriental Institute Museum, University of Chicago.

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Hymns that extol holy cities and their temples are known from the ancient Near East (see the article “

a home . . . near your altar. While the Most Holy Place, containing the ark of God’s presence, was the most sacred place in the temple, it was accessible only to the high priest (), and the altar of incense, which was within the Holy Place, could only be approached by a priest (). Therefore, the altar of sacrifice in the temple court was the most important center of activity for the average worshiper. The psalmist marvels at the good fortune of even a small bird to have a nest so near, probably tucked into a niche somewhere on the structure of the sanctuary itself overlooking the court and altar. Even more blessed are the priests who have the privilege of living in the temple compound (v. ).

those who dwell in your house. Being constantly in deity’s presence is considered a privilege to be longed for throughout the ancient Near East. The Babylonian king Neriglissar expresses to his god that he wants to be where his god is forever. Another text requests that the king might stand before the god forever in adoration. The Hymn to Marduk requests that the worshiper may stand before the deity forever in prayer, supplication and entreaty. In the third millennium BC, Sumerian worshipers tried to accomplish this objective by placing statuettes of themselves in the posture of prayer in the temple. In this way they would be continuously represented in the temple.

Valley of Baka. If this is a reference to a geographic location, it is obscure. The word Baka means “weeping,” but this would also be difficult to understand. The alternative suggestion is that the word describes a tree, particularly, the balsam (see note on ). None of these help locate the valley or identify its significance.

our shield. As in , the king is identified with the shield as an image of protection (see note on ). your anointed one. See note on .

doorkeeper. See note on .

sun and shield. Both offer protection. For the shield that is obvious, but we would not necessarily think of the sun in those terms. Nonetheless, Assyrian kings use the metaphor of their protection spreading over the land like the rays of the sun.

I will listen. May refer to a prophet in the temple waiting for a message from God, which in this psalm would comprise vv.  (see note on ). Prophets were often thought to receive their messages by being allowed to listen in at the divine council (see the article “

righteousness and peace. Peace is what people experience in the absence of fear. It results when righteousness prevails (). A similar pairing of these two concepts was shared by the Egyptians, who expressed the combination with one word: maat. For the Egyptians, maat was the natural order of the universe, “the way things ought to be.” It could be translated “order” or “justice,” so it embraced social justice leading to prosperous life for the community. A good illustration of this is found in the speeches of the “Eloquent Peasant,” in which a peasant appeals for justice from a local magistrate. His poem links the execution of social “justice” (maat) with the “fair wind” that accompanies a smooth and prosperous sail on the sea. When chaos plagues Egyptian society, it is due to the absence of maat in the king’s rule. In this verse, righteousness and peace “kiss” when God blesses his people. See note on .

none like you. In ancient Near Eastern hymns, proclaiming the incomparability of a god or goddess is well attested. Whichever of the great gods a person was worshiping would be the “greatest” at that particular moment of worship. For example, in one hymn the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (c. 650 BC) calls his national god, Assur, “lord of the gods” and “surpassing” all other gods, who themselves cannot fully comprehend him. In another hymn, he proclaims Marduk as the most high and most powerful, whose deeds make him lord of the gods. At the same time, he claims that the goddess Ishtar has “no equal among the great gods.” Some expressions of worship to the Egyptian sun-god declare his incomparability: “one without parallel,” “the one of surpassing power” relative to the other gods, “who conceals himself from all the gods . . . there is no comprehending him.”

Consequently, we can see that such expressions are not solely associated with monotheism, though they comport well with it. Even the statement “you alone are God” (v. ) has to be understood in the context of how the Israelites and their neighbors thought about the gods (see note on ).

Give me a sign. Perhaps this request is best understood as an expectation of prophetic response in the context of worship (see note on ). The demonstration of God’s favor by some visible or tangible form would vindicate the psalmist in the sight of his enemies. This concept is illustrated in a letter from a Canaanite king to Pharaoh (c. 1350 BC). The king expresses his wish for a gift from Pharaoh as a visible symbol that he enjoys Pharaoh’s favor: “bestow a gift upon his servant so that our enemies may see (it) and be humiliated.”

founded his city on the holy mountain. In OT thought, Jerusalem (also called “Zion,” v. ) was at the center of God’s kingdom and the world. For the importance of holy cities and mountains in ancient Near Eastern religion, see applicable notes on ; see also the article “

Rahab. Its identification is not clear. In some contexts, the name refers to the chaos serpent (see the article “Chaos Monsters”). However, the names of mythical monsters can be used symbolically for an enemy nation, and here “Rahab” is another name for Egypt (see ), the great empire to Israel’s southwest. Babylon. One of the oldest and most highly esteemed cities in Mesopotamia (); it is representative of the peoples from this region of the ancient Near East. Philistia . . . Tyre . . . Cush. No historical situation needs to be sought here, because the text is simply listing some of the nations that will be counted among those who acknowledge Yahweh (whether politically or spiritually). The list in this verse includes the great powers, Egypt (Rahab) and Babylon, the near neighbors, Philistia (southwest) and Tyre (northwest), and the distant nation Cush (i.e., Nubia), south of Egypt).

register of the peoples. In the ancient world, royal estate cities typically housed the administration (composed largely of relatives of the king), and their citizens enjoyed certain privileges, including exemption from taxation, corvée labor, military duty and imprisonment, as well as being beneficiaries of the most beautiful and elaborate building projects. Such privileges (Akkadian kidinnutu) were enjoyed, e.g., by Babylonian cities such as Nippur, Sippar and Borsippa based on their statuses as religious centers rather than as political capitals. Political capitals such as Nineveh and Babylon also were endowed with similar status. It is presumed that records would be kept to identify those who enjoyed such privileges. In this verse the psalmist alludes to the privileged status of those born in Zion.

my fountains. A common image in ancient Near Eastern art is a deity holding a vessel from which waters flow, bringing blessing to the worshipers. Perhaps this lyric, sung by converts to the God of Zion, alludes to the idea that the dwelling place of God is the origin of all that blesses life (see note on ).

title Heman the Ezrahite. Along with Ethan (see title), Heman is listed as one of the famous wise men in Solomon’s time () and was appointed one of the Levitical musicians during the time of David (, ).

, See the articles “

Do their spirits rise up and praise you? The glorification of God’s name on earth comes through the praises of his people (, lit. “enthroned on the praises of Israel” [ESV, NASB]). Conversely, the dead contribute nothing in this regard. This notion forms the basis of a natural appeal to God for intervention. A similar plea is echoed in a Mesopotamian prayer to Marduk observing that the god has no profit from one who has turned to clay or dust. This very human perspective is also evident in Hittite laments.

I have made a covenant . . . sworn to David. The theme of God’s covenant with David is introduced in vv.  and expanded in the prophetic proclamation that begins in v. . David and his descendants were chosen by Yahweh to rule on the throne over the people of Israel (; ). The covenant announced in these prophetic speeches promises unconditionally that David’s dynasty would always be the rightful heirs to the throne. However, individual descendants who did not follow God’s laws could be removed from kingship. Unconditional and conditional elements are compatible in ancient Near Eastern treaties and wills, with wording similar to that of ; ; . A great king might grant to a loyal subject certain guarantees of property. The property would always belong to the family; however, in the future any disloyal individual could be disciplined by the great king and lose their right to the land. However, the land remains in the possession of the family line. While the form of these royal grants is not an exact parallel with the Davidic covenant, the similar language illustrates how unconditional and conditional themes might work in compatible fashion in the same document. Another important feature of these covenants was the family terminology (see notes on ).

among the heavenly beings. See the article “

You rule over the surging sea . . . crushed Rahab. See the article “Chaos Monsters.”

You created the north and the south. A poetic way of saying the same thing as v.  (i.e., God created everything) by naming two extremities in order to include everything in between. A similar use of these two compass points can be found in ; . north. The Hebrew word (tsaphon) is perhaps significant in that the same Hebrew word is the name of a high mountain in Syria to the north of Israel: Zaphon. Although Yahweh’s dwelling is most often associated with Mount Zion in Jerusalem, his presence is sometimes attached to other high mountains, like Zaphon (see note on ). south. Also the place of Yahweh’s mountain dwelling (Mount Sinai/Paran, ). In the ancient Near East, gods were often associated with high places, especially mountains, and worshiped there. Canaanite myth placed Baal’s palace on Mount Zaphon. Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon in northern Israel were likewise ancient worship sites.

Righteousness and justice. Frequently depicted on the pedestal of Egyptian thrones is the hieroglyph for justice (maat, see note on ), conveying the importance of this value to the rule of a good king. See note on .

shield. A symbol of protection; here it is an image for the king, to whom the people have looked for their security (see notes on ; , ). The people affirm their dependence on the king and ultimately on the Lord, to whom the king belongs; however, this psalm laments the king’s downfall.

Many of the expressions in these verses (see also ; ; ) are similar to divine words of affirmation found in Assyrian royal prophecy, in which the god sustains the king, crushes his enemies, and establishes his house. Throughout the ancient Near East, prophetic oracles offered great assurance to the king, supported his authority in the eyes of the people, and functioned to solidify the relationship between the deity, the king and the people. In Psalms, it is also the case that these prophetic words are supportive of the king, in contrast to the prophetic books of the OT, in which the prophets often took a critical stance against the king.

vision. This word indicates that the ideas expressed in the following verses originated from prophetic speech (cf. ; ). The royal promises to David and his descendants began with the prophet Nathan (), through whom Yahweh announced his covenant, and are found in other prophetic psalms (; ; ). Such prophetic oracles were sometimes uttered in a temple setting, which fits well the background of the psalms, and here, the use of the Hebrew term hesidim (“faithful people”) refers to the community gathered for worship (also in ; ; ; ; and “consecrated people” in ).

I have anointed him. See notes on ; .

horn. See note on .

I will appoint him to be my firstborn. As the eldest son in a family, the “firstborn” had customary right to a major share of the inheritance () and took leadership of the family clan upon the father’s death (see the article “

his throne endure . . . like the sun . . . like the moon. Because of their enduring presence in the universe, the imagery of sun and moon were used in royal inscriptions for the stability of a king’s dynasty. A letter to the Assyrian king Esarhaddon (c. 670 BC) expresses the wish that his kingship and that of his descendants might be established as firmly as the moon and sun. In , they are likened to witnesses to the covenant, thereby ensuring its validity for all time.

Return to dust. Death is decreed. According to Mesopotamian myth, the chief god Enlil became annoyed by the noise stemming from the ever-growing human population. After the flood, which was sent by the gods to wipe out humanity and thus alleviate the noise, population growth was limited by withholding immortality from humankind. In the Gilgamesh Epic, the god Enki describes how after the flood the gods swore that people should not have eternal life. The psalmist recognizes that divine judgment and death are the result of sin (v. ). dust. See note on .

seventy years. As early as 100 BC, the Apocryphal Book of Jubilees (Jubilees 23:15) contrasts the preflood life spans approaching 1,000 years (v. ) with the postflood expectancy of 70 years (here). A similar chronological schema is preserved in the Sumerian King List, which records the reigns of kings in the tens of thousands of years before the flood, but diminishing to hundreds of years and then tens of years after the flood.

On the basis of human skeletal remains, anthropologists have estimated the life span of people living in Canaan during Biblical times. A little over 40 percent reached adulthood (20–49 years of age) and nearly 10 percent lived beyond 50 years. Ancient Egyptian tradition idealized the maximum age as 110, as Pharaoh Amenmesses (c. 1200 BC) hoped, since that was the destiny of the righteous man. But more realistically, Egyptian tradition also set the prime of life between 40 and 60 years. Mesopotamian expectations set 40 years as “prime” with 90 years as a maximum. Records show that scribes and even many slaves lived 60 to 80 years. The mother of the Babylonian king Nabonidus lived 104 years. These cultural norms all accord with the expectation of the psalmist.

establish the work. Not only did ancient Israelites recognize the ephemeral nature of life and human endeavor (vv. ; , ; ), but a similar humility marked Mesopotamian thought. A Mesopotamian wisdom text that treats the transitory nature of life states that humans as well as their achievements do not last. The text goes on to admonish the reader to attend to his god. In this verse, a confident trust breaks through that God is able to make human efforts count for good.

the shadow of the Almighty. The shadow offers protection and is usually referred to as the “shadow of your wings” (; see note there).

fowler’s snare. See notes on ; . pestilence. Usually translated “plague” in the NIV, this Hebrew word refers to acts of God’s judgment, which may include disease, but more broadly includes any disaster with fatal consequences (cf. ; ). Some commentators associate pestilence with demonic forces, which fits the imagery of a pestilence that “stalks” (v. ). Indeed, this word and its synonym, “plague” (v. ), are coupled with a word that is also the name of a deity of pestilence, war and the underworld in ancient Near Eastern texts: “Rashaph” (Hebrew resheph, see ; [both translated “pestilence”]). In the ancient world, all of these issues were understood as interrelated.

under his wings. See note on .

terror of night . . . the darkness. The darkness of night creates an inherently more dangerous setting; and perhaps due to the intensification of fever at night, illness in particular was feared. A nighttime prayer from Mesopotamia to the god Nusku implores the god to dispel the fears connected with the night (e.g., demons, wicked people) and to appoint to him a “watcher of well-being and life” to guard him until daybreak.

pestilence. See note on v. .

angels . . . to guard you. In the ancient Near East, it was, of course, deities rather than angels who served as guardians. Mesopotamians believed that personal gods or family gods offered special care and protection that the great cosmic or national deities would not be bothered with. The Akkadian texts also speak of guardians of well-being and health, as well as guardian spirits. These spirits were assigned to an individual by the deity just as here. The protection that was expected in the ancient Near East was against demonic powers that were believed to be the cause of illness and trouble. Related to that was the danger of magical spells and hexes that could be pronounced against someone. The Israelites undoubtedly believed in the reality of the demon world, and many Israelites would not have successfully divorced their thinking from the magical perspectives of their neighbors. Nevertheless, the psalmist does not typically understand the problems he faces in those terms. While the OT offers no evidence for personal, guardian spirits such as those implied in the Mesopotamian texts or affirmed in some Christian traditions (“guardian angels”), does express confidence that Yahweh sends servants from the heavenly realm to aid his people in time of need (see note on ).

cobra . . . serpent. See notes on ; .

I will rescue him. The previous verses are words of encouragement on behalf of the worshiper; beginning in v. , however, God himself speaks. Prophetic speech in the context of worship was not uncommon to ancient Israel, and it is preserved in some psalms (see note on ). The original setting for most psalms is a matter of speculation. While the first performance of this psalm might have been addressed, e.g., to a king preparing for battle (see note on ), its preservation and subsequent use was for anyone seeking protection from God. Such reapplication of original compositions is attested across the ancient Near East (see the articles “

title A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day. This is the only psalm that is designated for the Sabbath. There is little indication in the OT of any special worship ceremonies on the Sabbath. It has been suggested that this psalm accompanied the daily offerings on the Sabbath.

, music. See the article “

lyre. See the articles “

horn. See notes on ; . oils . . . poured on me. See note on .

Cedar of Lebanon. “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon” ().

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palm tree. Reaching heights of 70 feet (21 meters) and living up to 200 years, the date-palm tree was a conspicuous sight of fertility along waterways in the arid climate of the ancient Near East. cedar of Lebanon. The rain-drenched, mountainous regions to the north of Israel were famous for towering cedar forests (see notes on ; ; ; ). Appreciation for the beauty and shade of trees led to the planting of groves in palace compounds. Solomon even simulated a forest by incorporating a high concentration of cedar beams into his palace (). There were no such groves in the court of the temple, but the metaphor drawn from royal architecture was meaningful in the context of Yahweh’s temple court.

The LORD reigns. See note on . world is established, firm and secure. See notes on ; .

Your throne was established. See note on ; see also the article “

The seas . . . the great waters. The link between defeating the sea, the paramount representation of nonorder, and attaining kingship, the primary human mechanism of order, was common in the ancient Near East. The Babylonian Creation Epic, in which Marduk defeats the sea, concludes with the admonition for people to sing the song of Marduk’s victory over Tiamat (the sea) and his ascension to kingship over the gods. In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, the god battles the sea in order to gain control of chaos and earn the right to be king. See the article “Chaos Monsters.”

shine forth . . . Rise up, Judge. In Mesopotamia and Egypt, the sun-god was viewed as the god of justice. Using a similar metaphor of the sun’s penetrating rays, the psalmist appeals to Yahweh for justice (see notes on ; ).

corrupt throne. Corrupt government is a great evil to citizens of any community, and the value of justice extended universally. The Mesopotamian text Advice to a Prince warns of divine retribution for any king who oppresses his subjects. The god would bring chaos and devastation. The text continues with threats to advisors or officers who likewise fail to heed justice, and it applies these warnings for the benefit of specific cities in Mesopotamia. We therefore see that justice was a primary concern throughout the ancient world.

let us sing. See notes on .

King above all gods. The supremacy of one deity over all other gods in the divine council is a prominent theme in ancient Near Eastern religions. In the Babylonian story of the exaltation of Marduk (the Creation Epic), Marduk’s reward for defeating the gods of chaos was kingship over all the gods. Together they prostrated themselves and declared him their king. When the Assyrian Empire controlled Babylon, the chief god of Assyria, Assur, was regarded as supreme. The Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (c. 650 BC) declared in his Hymn to Assur his intention to magnify this king of the gods. After Baal’s defeat of Yamm, the goddess Athirat argues that Baal should have his own palace: “Our king is the Mightiest Baal, our ruler, with none above him.” The Hymn to Osiris, an Egyptian god, opens with the words: “Hail to you, Osiris, lord of eternity, king of the gods.” Yahweh’s superiority to other gods suggests his ability to give Israel victory over the other nations. See the article “

depths of the earth. The word “depths” refers to something inaccessible to be searched or explored (cf. ). In this verse, the “depths of the earth” are set in contrast to the highest mountain tops. In OT geography, the lower-most recesses of the earth were thought to be rooted in the deep sea (see the article “

bow down in worship. To prostrate oneself, a common description of homage in the ancient world. One Egyptian portrait shows subservient people moving through three different postures in homage—standing with hands raised, kneeling and lying prostrate.

people of his pasture. The ideal king in the ancient Near East was likened to a shepherd, an image of care and protection, a function of the gods whom the king represents (see note on ). The picture here is even more intimate, because Yahweh, the king (v. ), is also viewed as one who created his people by his own hand. One Egyptian wisdom text refers to humanity as god’s “cattle” for whom he provides (see note on ).

Meribah. Means “strife” (translated “quarreling” in ). It refers to a place in the wilderness, “Rephidim,” exact location unknown. Here the exodus generation quarreled against Moses over the lack of water (). Massah. Related to the word “tested” in v. ; it is another name given to the same location in recognition that Israel put Yahweh to the test as their provider (, ). At the same time, the Israelites were themselves being tested by Yahweh for their fidelity, which was one of the general purposes of the trials in the wilderness (; ).

a new song. Several times the OT records the creation of new music. This was common after military victories (e.g., ; ; ). , e.g., originated as a wedding tribute (); and when the ark was brought to Jerusalem, David commissioned a “new song” (v. ; ). , or at least its first edition, originated from this context (compare with ). Any fresh experience of God might offer an occasion for the composition of a “new song.”

feared above all gods . . . idols. Some psalms indicate that, in the heavenly realm, divine (supernatural) beings do exist, but they are inferior in every way to Israel’s God, Yahweh, who exists in a class of his own (see notes on ; ; ; ). Hence, they are not really “gods” worthy of worship, as the other nations understand them to be. Because of this, the psalmist uses a derogatory Hebrew word for “idol,” meaning “useless” or “vain.” See the article “

The LORD reigns. See note on .

The LORD reigns. See note on .

Clouds and thick darkness surround him. The image of a rampant God storming through the heavens in a cloud chariot is a common one (; ; ). Such descriptions of storm theophany may be found in the texts that speak of the Ugaritic god Baal. In both the Aqhat Legend and the Baal Cycle, Baal is referred to as the “rider of the clouds” (see note on ). Baal’s attributes—commanding the storms, unleashing the lightning, and rushing to war as a divine warrior—even appear in the Egyptian Amarna letters. The characteristics of Yahweh as creator, fertility god and divine warrior share a great deal in common with these earlier epics. One of the ways that Yahweh presents himself as the sole divine power for the Israelites is by assuming the titles and powers of the other ancient Near Eastern gods.

mountains melt like wax before the LORD. Similar to a Hebrew inscription found at a trading post in the southern desert of Judah (Kuntillet Ajrud, c. 800 BC). While the words for the deity in that inscription are used of Canaanite deities, they are also generic terms for “god” (el) and “lord” (baal), and they therefore could refer to the God of Israel. Lord of all the earth. In v. , the psalmist will denounce the status of the gods of the nations; and if Israel’s God is truly the only God, then he reigns over the territories and nations of these “gods.” The concept of Yahweh’s universal rule is affirmed in a cave inscription, possibly carved by refugees of the Babylonian invasions (c. 600 BC, or perhaps c. 700 BC, which would date to the Assyrian crisis): “Yahweh is the god of the whole earth.” This is an expression of hope and faith that Yahweh will prove stronger than the gods of the other nations. A dedication inscription of a southern Mesopotamian king (Ishbi-Erra, c. 2000 BC) begins: “For the god Enlil, lord of the foreign lands.” Over a millennium later, when Assyria was supreme in northern Mesopotamia, their chief god Assur was proclaimed “the lord of the lands.” Egyptian ideals of their universal god find clearest expression during the reign of Akhenaten, who advanced the sun disk as sole god by declaring him Lord of all the earth.

images . . . idols . . . gods. See notes on ; ; see also the article “

holy arm. See note on .

harp . . . singing. See the article “

trumpets . . . ram’s horn. See note on .

rivers clap . . . mountains sing. It is not unusual for the Bible to personify the forces of nature, but it does not embody them with personality, as was the practice in the rest of the ancient Near East. In Mesopotamia, Canaan and Egypt, the forces of nature were manifestations of individual deities who had jurisdiction over that realm of nature and who were integrated into it.

equity. The Hebrew term here is comparable to that used in Mesopotamia for the declaration of release from debts. In the ancient Near East the freeing of prisoners (from debtors’ prison) as an act of justice often occurred in the first or second year of a new king’s reign (and then periodically after that). The Old Babylonian period king Ammisaduqa (seventeenth century BC), e.g., cancelled economic debts on behalf of Shamash. One of the ways to bring justice was to bring relief to those who were suffering under debt (usually by no fault of their own).

The LORD reigns. Another way this phrase can be translated is “The LORD is king!” (NRSV; JPS). In these terms, the psalmist echoes the sorts of claims that resound throughout the praise literature of the ancient Near East. The Babylonian Creation Epic declares, “Marduk is king.” In the historical context in which the Creation Epic was composed, this affirmed at the same time the kingship of Marduk over other gods as well as the corresponding rise to power of Babylon. A similar ideology was at work in Assyria. At the coronation of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, the national god was acclaimed with the words “Assur is king—indeed Assur is king!” This claim was part of the Assyrian view that united Assyria’s growing imperial aspirations with its belief in the supremacy of the national god, Assur, over other deities. In fact, an Assyrian version of the Creation Epic substituted Assur’s name for Marduk’s in an assertion of the former’s precedence over the latter. When Egyptians marked the deceased pharaoh’s transfiguration into the form of the god Osiris, a hymn repeatedly addressed him with the title “Osiris the King.” enthroned between the cherubim. See note on .

footstool. See note on .

sheep of his pasture. See note on .

Enter his gates . . . courts. The temple of God was viewed as his palace. Consequently, its architecture featured walls, gates and courtyards, as would the citadel or palace complex of any king. Though the core design was given by God to Moses when the portable shrine, or tabernacle, was constructed for worship during Israel’s journey from Egypt to their homeland, the architecture was not unique. In fact, it replicated what could be found in the ancient world. It featured a fenced, outer courtyard, which surrounded the tabernacle (). The tabernacle was a tent that consisted of two rooms, the Holy Place (an entry court) and the “Most Holy Place,” where the ark (the footstool of God’s throne) was set (; ; see note on ). The more permanent temple built by Solomon followed this basic design, but it was integrated into a larger citadel structure (; cf. Solomon’s palace, ). This threefold pattern of an outside court with an inside entry court leading to an inner sanctuary was typical of temple complexes throughout the ancient Near East. The temple at Tell Tayinat in Syria (c. 800 BC) offers a close look at a plan similar to Solomon’s temple. Two large pillars flank an entry porch leading into a main hall with a second, smaller room further inside that housed the image of the deity. Another Syrian temple (Tell ʿAin Dara) from about the time of Solomon featured a large court in the front, with pillars on the entry porch and two (or perhaps three) inner rooms, with many decorations of winged cherubs and palm designs. In theory, with this design the large outside courtyard of Solomon’s temple was accessible to any worshiper, hence the call to worship: “Enter . . . his courts with praise.” See the article “

I will. This psalm records the vow of a king, as though he were taking an oath of office. This backdrop is evident from the references to government ministers (v. ) and the responsibility for the overall welfare of the holy city (v. ). In this context, the commitment of the psalmist to maintain justice is first and foremost an expression of royal duty to God for good government (see note on ). love and justice. The Hebrew word for “love” (hesed) stresses fidelity, which is here coupled with “justice,” highlighting the attributes of God that the king will emulate. These characteristics marked the virtuous king throughout the ancient Near East (see notes on ; ).

the one whose walk is blameless will minister. The king in Israel employed officials of the court to execute the responsibilities of government (; ; ; ), and the righteousness of his rule depended upon their effectiveness (). One Neo-Assyrian letter illustrates the connection between the king’s justice and his officials, indicating his charge to them that they should render careful justice in each case they hear. In Egypt, officials such as the vizier were responsible, as agents of the king, to ensure the maintenance of cosmic order and justice. Pharaoh Horemheb (c. 1300 BC) claims that he chose men of discretion and good character, who were loyal to the throne and had good insight into human nature. Therefore, the integrity of government officials was of supreme importance, and an Egyptian tomb painting from the mid-fourteenth century BC portrays the pharaoh holding his scepter in one hand and extending the other to dispense rewards to faithful servants.

hide your face. See note on .

my bones burn. See note on .

skin and bones. See note on .

enthroned. See note on .

sanctuary on high. It is unclear whether an earthly temple was viewed in the ancient Near East as a physical replica of a heavenly temple in which the deity dwelt, or whether it was actually one and the same that existed simultaneously in both realms. Nevertheless, ancient people did conceive of a heavenly court where the divine council met (see the article “

forgives all your sins. See notes on . heals all your diseases. See notes on , .

the pit. See the articles “

eagle’s. Identifying exact species of birds in the Bible is often difficult. Whether or not one wishes to classify some varieties of vultures with eagles, the behavior of these birds that underlies the metaphor is the same. Eagles, with six-foot (about two-meter) wingspans, soar effortlessly for long periods of time; therefore, the ancients would marvel at their endurance and use this observation for comparison to the sustaining strength that comes from the Lord.

east . . . west. In the ancient Near East, the four compass directions were oriented facing east rather than north as it is in modern times. The Hebrew word for “east” means “place of rising” (of the sun; ). Another word for “east” also means “before, in front.” Facing the orientation of the rising sun, the Mediterranean Sea is behind, hence the words “sea” and “behind” were used for “west.” The words for “right” (hand) and “left” (hand) also meant “south” and “north,” respectively. Another expression for “west,” used in this verse, was related to the word for evening (i.e., the setting sun). Thus, the metaphor here takes the two most distant points imaginable, sunrise (“east”) and sunset (“west”) to express the casting away of sin. This contrast of east and west is also found in an Egyptian hymn to Amun, in which the deity is being praised for his judgment of the guilty. As a result of the god’s discernment, the guilty is assigned to the East, and the righteous to the West.

he knows how we are formed. The various accounts of human origins in the literature of the ancient Near East feature various materials: clay, dust, blood (of a god), spit, etc.—all expressing something important about human nature. In a Mesopotamian creation story, Enki, god of wisdom, designs a purpose for humanity, which is fashioned from clay. He does this as a result of pondering the nature of humanity, demonstrating that the ingredient of clay reflects what humans essentially are. Enki’s purpose is that humanity would relieve the minor gods of work. Further, he assigns useful roles in society to people whose bodies are disabled in some manner (see note on ). The point of the psalmist is that Yahweh’s knowledge of the ephemeral nature of humanity moves him to compassionate love and forgiveness (vv. ).

angels. Lit. “messengers.” Their identity is clarified by the designation “mighty ones.” They are further described in as participants in the divine council (see the article “

Under the reign of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten (c. 1350 BC), the state-sponsored religion of Egypt turned momentarily toward the exclusive worship of the sun disk as the sole god (see note on ). One hymn originating during this time, the Great Hymn to Aten, is similar in striking ways to certain verses in . For example, lines ii 7—iii 10 of the Great Hymn to Aten speak of the lion leaving its den at dark, then the dawn rises and people take up their work (cf. ); lines iv 8–11 refer to ships going upstream and downstream and fish darting about (cf. ); lines vii 1–8, referring to the creation of humankind, cattle and every sort of small beast, are introduced with the proclamation “How various are the things you have created, and they are all mysterious in the sight” (cf. ). These and other similarities have led scholars to speculate about the possible relationship between the two texts, with Biblical scholars and Egyptologists both affirming and denying any literary connection. This is perhaps the most striking example, though a number of others exist, of the ways in which Israelite psalmists tended to echo the same sort of praise language that was current in the world in which they lived. ◆

Great Hymn to Aten.

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wraps himself in light. The psalmist begins to expand what he means by “splendor and majesty” (v. ). The intense light of the sun provides a common image for ancient Near Eastern hymns, especially emphasizing the provision of the deity for his people. The Hymn to Shamash (the sun-god) describes his radiance as spreading like a net over the earth, and it couples this illumination with the god’s shepherding role. In Mesopotamia, the gods were considered to be characterized by a fierce shining (Akkadian melammu). They sometimes conferred this on the king as well. However, given the Egyptian associations in the psalm, it is more likely that we should understand the imagery in light of its Egyptian context. The Egyptian Great Hymn to Aten (see the article “The Great Hymn to Aten”) stresses the sun-god’s provision for his creatures. These common cultural associations are found in the OT, a fitting metaphor in a psalm extolling God’s care over his creation (see note on ; cf. ; , as well as the benefits of a godly king in ). Furthermore, light has the connotation of something beautiful and dazzling (). The Aten is the sun disk and is often pictured with its rays of light shining forth. stretches out the heavens like a tent. The ancients probably perceived the sky (heavens) as a dome above the earth (see the article “

beams of his upper chambers. The imagery used here has more connections with what we know from the world of Mesopotamia. In the ancient world, there were several levels of heavens, and they were understood as having floors, walls and roofs (see the article “

winds . . . flames of fire. This poetic imagery describes the servants of Yahweh, who are elsewhere identified with angelic, divine beings (see notes on ; ; ; ).

earth on its foundations. OT geography orients the earth upon a foundation of pillars that were established by God (; ; ). In this way, he keeps the earth stable on the subterranean ocean (see note on ), upon which it might otherwise toss to and fro. The Genesis creation account, as well as the flood account (a re-creation), speak of the land emerging from the “deep” (, ; ; ). Egyptian geography also views the earth as a disk floating on the subterranean waters, the embodiment of the god Nun. See the article “

set a boundary. With their ever constant wave action hammering at the shoreline, the seas constituted an ongoing threat to the stability of the inhabited land (see notes on ; ). The potential for destruction is underscored most graphically in the Biblical flood account and its Mesopotamian counterparts. The Mesopotamian texts allude to the danger of the sea, which is kept in check by “bolts” or “locks” set against their encroachment on land (cf. ). The tides themselves suggest that boundaries are set and that the waves reach them, then retreat.

the moon . . . the sun. In the Mesopotamian account of Marduk’s creative work, he arranged the seasons of the year and the relation between the sun and moon. In the Egyptian Great Hymn to Aten, the deity is praised because he has fashioned the seasons and the sky.

Leviathan. Elsewhere in the OT “

open your hand. The imagery of God giving good gifts with an open hand is also seen in Egyptian reliefs depicting the worship of Aten, the deified sun disk. The sun disk is portrayed with numerous arms reaching from it, each one with a hand at the end of it symbolizing the giving of blessings and favor.

return to the dust . . . you send your Spirit. Both man and beast, viewed in as joint recipients of God’s good provision, originated from the ground (, ). In OT thought, the force that animates them with life is their “breath,” a gift from God that is withdrawn at death, leaving only the earth-like material (; ; ). However, life is renewed on earth by the creative work of God’s Spirit (v. ; or possibly “breath,” cf. ). Similar to this thought is the Egyptian “Memphite Theology” of creation, which describes the ongoing animation of humanity and animals through the active will of the god Ptah (see notes on , ). An Egyptian wisdom text states: “Well tended is mankind—god’s cattle, he made sky and earth for their sake, he subdued the water monster, he made breath for their noses to live, they are his images, who came from his body” (see notes on , , ; ). This last expression differs from another Egyptian account in which humanity came from the tears of the sun-god. The Mesopotamian view differs even more, in that humanity was created out of a mixture of clay and the blood of a slain rebel-god (see note on ).

Artist’s rendition of Israel’s cosmic geography.

Jonathan Walton

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the earth . . . it trembles . . . mountains . . . they smoke. The glory of God is revealed in what OT scholars refer to as a “theophany” (appearance of God). This manifestation of God’s glory was first expressed on Mount Sinai (), and the imagery is associated with God’s awesome power as a warrior (see notes on , ). Israelites experienced earthquakes due to the existence of a major fault line along the Jordan Valley. They were not as likely to experience volcanoes, though some existed in the region. Ararat is one of the active volcanoes in the Fertile Crescent (but it has not had an eruption since 1840). Additionally, there are several volcanoes in Syria, and quite a few along the southern rim of Turkey. Most significantly, the Aegean features half a dozen volcano sites, including at least one that had an eruption during the OT period (Santorini, 1650 BC).

the land of Canaan. See note on ; see also the article “

shackles . . . irons. The shackles around the ankles chaining the feet together are clear enough. Since the other instrument goes around the neck, it must be an iron collar. These were at times used to link prisoners together. Assyrian reliefs from the ninth and eighth centuries BC depict captives being transported or laboring with wooden yokes around their necks.

land of Ham. According to the list of nations in , the descendants of Ham included the people who came to inhabit Egypt (, ).

darkness . . . blood . . . frogs . . . flies . . . gnats . . . hail . . . locusts . . . firstborn. See notes on ; ; , , ; see also the article “

the Red Sea. See the article “

Horeb. See the article “

image of a bull. See the article “

land of Ham. See note on .

Baal of Peor. See note on . ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods. With some types of sacrifices, part of the sacrificial animal was offered on the altar to the god, and the rest was consumed in a communal meal by the worshipers (see note on ). This symbolized a union between worshipers and with the deity to whom they sacrificed (cf. ). In the case of Baal of Peor, the communal sacrifice with the Moabites also involved the Israelites in the worship of the Moabite gods and feasting with them (); they “yoked themselves” (cf. ). The NIV translation “sacrifices offered to lifeless gods” corresponds to the view that the gods and idols of other peoples are in reality dead things (). However, this phrase can be translated more lit. “sacrifices of the dead,” possibly alluding to some sort of mourning custom (). Offerings devoted to the deceased were customary in Egypt and Mesopotamia, but these were not necessarily integral to worship of the gods, except in the case of the deceased pharaoh. Rituals from Mari (c. 1800 BC) and Ugarit incorporate sacrifices to gods in the context of a feast at which deceased kings were thought to be present.

waters of Meribah. See note on .

Little is known about the Israelite view of malevolent spirits, popularly called “demons” in contemporary usage. In addition to the Hebrew word shed, translated “false gods” in , the OT has a Hebrew word sair, translated in the NIV as “goat idols” (; ; see the on ). Some suggest that the use of sair also refers to demons in ; (NIV “wild goats”). This same Hebrew word refers to an actual goat in and frequently in texts prescribing a goat for sacrifice (e.g., ; ). The overlap in terms can be understood if the Israelites thought of malevolent spirits as normally inhabiting the hostile desert, where creatures such as wild goats were native. Some of the earliest Mesopotamian art might offer a parallel to Israelite conceptions of malevolent spirits as goats. Among the Sumerians, one demon takes the form of an ibex—the wild goat well-known in Israel. Early Sumerian art (early third millennium BC) also depicts the composite figure of a bull-man, sometimes locked in combat with a human hero, representing an evil force of some kind. Closer to the Biblical imagery is a Late Babylonian (first millennium BC) commentary on an exorcism that describes two malevolent spirits as having the faces of goats. Egyptians also portrayed malevolent, lesser spirits in human and animal form.

This is all conjecture about how Israelites might have visualized such beings. Unfortunately, their function within the religion of Israel is equally unclear. Mesopotamians associated malevolent spirits with very specific illnesses and personal misfortune, and they named them accordingly. However, there are no indications in the OT as to how demons were thought to interface with the human realm. Israelites sacrificed to such beings, and perhaps physical images of them were involved (see and ; ; ). It is possible that Yahweh employed malevolent spirits to afflict judgment (; ); but here the general word for “spirit” is used, so the identity of the spirit within the ranks of the divine council is unknown. In later Judaism, a more elaborate theology of angels and demons developed, but the classifications assumed in contemporary Christianity were largely unknown in OT times. ◆

Impression of Akkadian Cylinder Seal recovered in Ur, 2300 to 2100 BC. Early Sumerian art (early third millennium BC) also depicts the composite figure of a bull-man, sometimes locked in combat with a human hero, representing an evil force of some kind.

Photo courtesy of Mary Harrsch © 2015.

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sacrificed their sons and their daughters. See notes on ; ; ; ; .

gather us from the nations. See note on .

those he gathered from the lands. This verse might celebrate the gathering of the people after exile in Mesopotamia and Egypt (cf. ). The curses of warn of exile from the land, which would take the form of deportation as prisoners by conquering nations. This consequence of foreign attack was common in the ancient Near East. A record of Iahdun-Lim, king of Mari (c. 186 BC), reports concerning his conquest of the city of Haman that he took the population away as plunder. The Egyptian king Amenhotep II (c. 1420 BC) boasts of bringing thousands of captives back to Memphis as spoils of war from his campaigns against Syria-Palestine.

The northern kingdom of Israel suffered deportation to Assyria (; , ), first by Tiglath-Pileser III (c. 732 BC), who in one account claims to have deported 13,520 people. Then, Shalmaneser V, by the hand of Sargon II, carried off another 27,280 inhabitants of Samaria (c. 722 BC). Sennacherib reports having deported over 200,000 captives from Judah in his 701 BC campaign.

The southern kingdom of Judah experienced its final fate in the years from 605 to 586 BC, when the Babylonians deported masses from the southern kingdom, with others fleeing to Egypt and elsewhere (; ; ; , ). A Babylonian prayer addresses the gods Shamash and Marduk as able to gather scattered, captured or exiled people. See note on .

prisoners suffering. appears to draw from four different situations of life in which God delivered his people. Prisons in ancient Israel were used primarily for temporary detention pending trial (), housing forced labor (), unjust captivity for economic “collateral” () or isolation of a political prisoner ().

Release from prison in may allude particularly to the exile (vv. , ), though many deportees were simply resettled in a foreign land to build a new life for themselves. Others, however, probably those of higher social rank who might be capable of leading an insurrection, were imprisoned. King Jehoiachin illustrates the case of one who was carried off to Babylon () and later released from prison conditions (). A ration list from the palace of Babylon names Jehoiachin and his sons, who were there under house arrest. While Jehoiachin never returned to the land of Judah, others did.

While release of prisoners became a noteworthy act of deliverance in the history of Israel, this sort of action was probably typical of what was expected of ancient Near Eastern deities, as illustrated in the Hymn to Shamash, in which the god is praised for showing havens to those who have fled and roads back home to those who are lost, and for giving freedom to imprisoned, displaced people. This can also be an attribute of justice for release of those wrongly imprisoned.

gates of bronze . . . bars of iron. The Greek historian Herodotus described Babylon as having “one hundred gates in the circuit of the wall, all of bronze with bronze uprights and lintels.” Large gates adorned with bronze bands featuring reliefs have been excavated at the Assyrian-period site of Balawat, giving a glimpse of what the Babylonian walls may have been like. Gates were locked by means of a bar slid across the gateway, and iron would obviously be the most difficult material to break.

gates of death. See the articles “

The Babylonian Hymn to Shamash also has a section in which Shamash is seen as rescuing merchants (and their goods) from storms at sea. However, it does not speak of Shamash either sending the waves or stilling the storm (cf. vv. , ), only of watching over the traveler and saving his life.

stilled the storm. See the article “Chaos Monsters.”

In the world-upside-down motif, all that is considered most consistent and reliable is jeopardized. The concept can be applied to the cosmic realm (sun growing dark), the natural realm (mountains being leveled), the political realm (empires being overthrown), the social realm (poor becoming rich) or the animal realm (lion and lamb together). These represent upsetting the boundaries usually associated with order. It is often used in prophetic literature in connection with the day of the Lord and coming judgment. The Babylonian Epic of Irra is roughly similar, in that it describes a reversal of Marduk’s creation of order out of the original primeval chaos.

is a composite from and (see notes on , ). The editing of hymns to create new worship songs for new settings is also illustrated by comparing with ; ; , as well as with .

An example from prophetic texts is and . The reuse of older material in new compositions is well attested in Mesopotamian literature, and it is probably only the limited sample of older Mesopotamian hymns that leaves us without good examples from this genre. Similarly in Egypt, well-crafted compositions were put to use in multiple forms. ◆

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For imprecations, see the article “

prayers condemn him. From the context it could be concluded that this refers to a petitionary prayer in a courtroom situation. Such prayers could be accompanied by oaths of innocence (such as Job’s in ). If the party were not truly innocent, such an oath would be a basis for divine punishment.

a curse. See note on .

fasting. Religious fasting is little attested in the ancient Near East outside of the Bible; it generally occurs in the context of mourning. In the OT the religious use of fasting is often in connection with making a request before God. Presumably, the principle is that the importance of the request causes an individual to be so concerned about their spiritual condition that physical necessities fade into the background. In this sense the act of fasting is designed as a process leading to purification and humbling oneself before God ().

right hand. See note on .

This psalm is a prophetic oracle concerning the king that was probably delivered in the Jerusalem temple. The opening introduction is similar to what is found in Assyrian royal prophecy that was likely delivered in temple worship at the king’s enthronement: “The word of Ishtar of Arbela to Esarhaddon.” Thus, in the context of the psalm, the speaker is not the king (e.g., David) but the prophet delivering a message to the king. In Israel, prophetic oracles spoken on the coronation day provided important divine support for the king’s authority. Several themes are parallel between and Assyrian enthronement prophecy: (1) legitimation of kingship, (2) promised destruction of enemies, (3) presence of loyal supporters and (4) priesthood of the king.

Divine authorization was also the custom in Egypt, where the pattern of coronation appears close to that described in ; . First, the Egyptian king was elected by divine decree in the temple (in , the temple had not yet been built, but the anointing took place at the tabernacle, God’s temporary shrine []). This was followed by a procession to the palace, where enthronement took place. See the article “

Sit at my right hand. Close physical proximity, especially at the “right” hand, is a metaphor of privileged relationship and even legal heir (; ; ). Esarhaddon was said to place his son Ashurbanipal, who was to succeed him as king in Assyria, at his right hand and his son Shamash-shum-ukin, who was to take the secondary status of king in Babylon, at his left. The coronation text for the Egyptian king Horemheb describes him as being presented to the gods under the embrace of the god Horus, and Egyptian art depicts him seated at Horus’s right side. I make your enemies a footstool. Assyrian royal prophecy promises that the deity will place the king’s enemies under his feet. An inscription on the throne pedestal of the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III (c. 850 BC) identifies him as a valiant king who with the help of his god had succeeded in putting all lands under his feet like a footstool. Egyptian art also shows the newly enthroned king with his feet upon a footstool with enemy nations inside, and coronation inscriptions speak of enemy nations under the king’s feet. Other reliefs from Egypt and Mesopotamia portray the king with his foot on the neck or head of prostrate foes. Thus, in , the Lord promises that the enemies of the Davidic king will be subject to him.

Your troops . . . your young men. An Egyptian royal text might offer a parallel to this difficult verse as it speaks of subjects dancing in celebration at the king’s victorious return. Like that Egyptian text, this verse celebrates the king’s military brilliance with images of majestic splendor and youthful prowess.

will not change his mind. A similar denial of duplicity accompanies a divine promise in an Assyrian royal prophecy in which the god insists to have spoken truly without lies (which was followed by a promise of victory). a priest forever. In Egypt and Mesopotamia, the king was regarded as a priest who was ultimately responsible for the support of temple worship and on special occasions participated in priestly duties (cf. ; ). Like the royal prophecy in , Assyrian royal prophecies called the king to his priestly responsibility. Royal priesthood was also the custom among Canaanite peoples. By alluding to the ancient precedent of a priestly king in Canaanite Jerusalem (see Melchizedek in the note on ), this psalm confers upon the Davidic king in Jerusalem a priestly title without usurping the prerogatives that belong to the Levitical priests.

The Lord is at your right hand. A common metaphor of protection in Mesopotamian literature was the claim that a deity was stationed before, behind or at the (particularly right) side of an individual. Prophetic assurances that the deity would be alongside the king in battle were part of Assyrian royal prophecies. Ninurta, the god of battle, would be at the king’s right and left side and subdue his enemies under his foot. crush kings. The promise of destruction of the king’s enemies and foreign rulers is a predominant feature of these Assyrian prophecies.

He will drink from a brook. The reference to “he” in v.  changes from the Lord (vv. ) to the king. While awkward in English style, such changes in reference can be seen in Assyrian royal prophecy, as well as in Biblical Hebrew. Some have suggested that the king drinking from the brook alludes to the coronation ritual in which the king was anointed by the spring of Gihon, which was located in the Kidron Valley below the city of Jerusalem (cf. , ). This may have been a water purification ritual during the coronation, similar to what was practiced in Egypt; but the lifting of the head in this verse suggests that the symbolism involved granting strength to the king for victory. lift his head high. A sign of invincibility, which is illustrated in the coronation inscription concerning the Sumerian king Shulgi.

;

An “acrostic” is a literary device in which each new line of a poem begins with a different letter, arranged so that the whole series of letters conveys something meaningful. In all of the acrostic psalms of the OT, these letters follow the order of the Hebrew alphabet. However, much more elaborate messages can be expressed. For example, in Ashurbanipal’s (Assyrian king, c. 650 BC) Hymn to Marduk and Zarpanitu, the sequence of Akkadian signs that begin each set of lines spells an entire sentence: “I am Assurbanipal, who has called out to you: give me life, Marduk, and I will praise you!”

Egyptian examples offer numerical sequences or complex messages that involve both horizontal and vertical patterns. They are more dependent on puns to accomplish their stylistic objective. Acrostics depend on writing, and therefore would not be composed orally. Likewise, they are intended to be read, not just heard, because of the importance of the visual element. Because of this, we come to understand that only a limited audience would appreciate the formal elements. This is especially clear in the Babylonian examples, where a variable sign needs to be read with one value in the poem, but with a different value in the acrostic. Some of the Babylonian examples also contain a pattern in the last sign of each line. Another variation is found in those examples where the acrostic is repeated each stanza. Nevertheless, in the case of the Hebrew alphabetic acrostics, the alphabetic element could serve as a mnemonic device.

and are both acrostics of the Hebrew alphabet, which helps pair these psalms together in a way that they complement each other in the themes and expressions mirrored by these adjacent psalms. and each contain half of the Hebrew alphabet, so unified, they form an acrostic of the whole. Acrostics can serve, then, to suggest that the meaning of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. , , , and are also acrostics of the Hebrew alphabet. Perhaps those acrostics simply ornament each psalm with an aesthetic beauty that complements the message. ◆

Cuneiform tablet containing a portion of Assurbanipal’s Hymn to Marduk. This is an acrostic prayer. The first letter of each section forms the sentence, “I am Ashurbanipal who calls on you. Give me life, Marduk, I will glorify you.”

Kim Walton. The British Museum.

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The fear of the LORD. The citation of familiar sayings is natural in the composition of great literature and music, a technique well known in Mesopotamia. For example, one text used in the worship of Marduk actually cites the source of the phrase: “It is said in Enuma Elish: When heaven and earth were not created, Assur came into being.” Here the psalmist punctuates his opening directive to praise God (v. ) by citing at the close of his psalm the foundational slogan of wisdom (; ; ). The nexus between the two themes is revealed in the contemplation of God’s works (v. ).

Their children will be mighty. See notes on , .

generous. A generous spirit was a virtue across the ancient Near East. Tomb inscriptions from as early as Sixth-Dynasty Egypt (c. 2200 BC) bear as part of the epithet “I gave bread to the hungry, clothing to the naked.” An early Mesopotamian wisdom collection exhorts, “Do not despise the miserable . . . Give food to eat, beer to drink.” Protecting the interest of the poor and upholding equal justice was enshrined in the earliest law collections of Mesopotamia.

horn will be lifted. See notes on ; .

who stoops down to look. One ancient view of the universe imagined the throne of the highest god perched atop the heavens, which in turn formed a dome over the flat disk of the earth. See the article “

He raises the poor. This echoes the praise of , which also associates God’s rule over creation with his compassion to help the poor. The importance of this attribute for a deity is reflected in the Hymn to Nanaya (c. 720 BC), an Assyrian goddess who in her mercy reverses the destitution of the poor by giving abundance (see note on ).

settles the childless woman. In the ancient Near East, conception and childbirth were sometimes accompanied by elaborate rituals of magic intended to ensure their success. Other magical rites were performed to protect newborn children from being snatched by the evil demon Lamashtu. In ancient Israel, clay figurines of the fertility goddess and other symbols associated with her were common. Their precise ritual function is unknown, but their ubiquity in the archaeological record demonstrates the anxiety felt regarding childbearing. It is therefore understandable that Yahweh is seen as the one who grants children, though here with no appeal to magical words or acts.

foreign tongue. The language of the Israelites, who at the exodus were delivered from bondage in Egypt, was likely a forerunner of Hebrew, which in turn was part of the larger family of Semitic languages. These languages had many common vocabulary words and similar grammatical constructions, and had some overlap with Egyptian, though it was not a Semitic language. Nevertheless, they were not mutually understandable ().

Judah . . . God’s sanctuary. This reflects a temple as state imagery. God’s throne was in the temple just as the king’s throne was in his palace. God and king reigned over the country from their respective thrones. This concept goes all the way back into earliest recorded history as the temples served as the earliest administrative centers for the state. In this way it can be seen that the two lines of this verse are parallel in that the sanctuary is the central feature in the “dominion” (kingdom).

Similar to the crossing of the Red Sea at the exodus, the Jordan River was also crossed by a miraculous turning back of the waters (). This event is described poetically using imagery of a cosmic warrior (see the article “Chaos Monsters”).

mountains leaped. In the Ugaritic tale concerning the building of Baal’s palace, his enthronement is preceded by his voice thundering forth, with the result that the high places of the earth leap or quake. Similarly, in the Hymn to Marduk, the god’s thundering voice makes the earth quake. The Hebrew verb translated “leaped” is often thought to describe a frolicking or gamboling type of motion, but it is more likely the undulating appearance of a flock of sheep or goats moving along a path. This would be an appropriate image to describe the heaving of the earth in an earthquake.

idols. See note on ; see also the article “

the dead. See note on ; see also the articles “

heard my voice. See note on .

turned his ear. This is a common metaphor for God responding to a plea. It is graphically illustrated on Egyptian offering tablets that feature carvings of the deity’s ears. Some of these depict the worshiper in a position of praise or prayer in front of the ears, with an inscribed prayer accompanying the art.

cup of salvation. The connection in this context to the payment of vows in the temple (v. ) suggests that a libation is being poured out as a testimony is given of God’s goodness and protection. Libations were a common form of thanksgiving in the ancient world, as depicted on Egyptian, Phoenician and Mesopotamian reliefs. The libation represents the deliverance (salvation) afforded by deity and also accomplishes deliverance from the vow.

fulfill my vows. Vows are voluntary, conditional agreements that are common in most of the cultures of the ancient Near East, including Hittite, Ugaritic, Mesopotamian and, less often, Egyptian. In the ancient world the most common context for a vow was when a request was being made to deity. The condition would typically involve God’s provision or protection while that which was vowed was usually a gift to deity. The gift would most frequently take the form of a sacrifice, but other types of gifts to the sanctuary or priests would be options. Fulfillment of a vow could usually be accomplished at the sanctuary and was a public act. In Ugaritic literature King Keret makes a vow in requesting a wife who could produce offspring. In return he offered gold and silver corresponding to his bride’s weight.

Praise the LORD. This command to the congregation (a plural imperative) is a formulaic opening and frequent closing for hymns (; ; ). A similar formal device can be seen in Egyptian hymns with the interjection “Hail!” However, the Egyptian interjection does not carry the same meaning as does the Hebrew expression, which invokes the congregation to join the worshiper in praise.

trust in humans . . . princes. See note on .

gates of the righteous. See note on .

cornerstone. Houses in Canaan usually consisted of several courses (rows) of stone as a foundation, upon which the mud brick walls were constructed. Stone pillars served to support roofing and, in some cases, a second story, with wooden beams as cross members. Wealthier homes show the use of “ashlar masonry,” in which the stone was dressed into rectangular blocks. Large homes could reach several stories, with stone foundation walls several feet (1.5 m to 2.5 m) thick, sometimes filled with earthen debris, to support the heavier superstructure. There is archaeological evidence of the use of wooden beams between rows of stone either for structural shape or decoration (cf. ; ). In walls constructed of undressed field stones, builders utilized ashlar masonry to provide stability at points along a wall, laying rectangular stones the length of the wall (“stretchers”), alternated with others set perpendicular (“headers”). Other public buildings show similar technique. Special care was taken to select a larger and better cut stone in order to stabilize the intersection of two walls at a corner (cf. ; ). Foundation and top course stones at these points were particularly important, and the phrase translated “cornerstone” (lit. “head of the corner”) could refer to either.

festal procession. To represent the abundance and lushness of the land, Israelites were instructed to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles by waving and decorating their booths with fruit (citron) as well as leaves and branches from willow and palm trees. The festal occasion probably included dancing and processions carrying bundles of the leafy branches. In this way, the people acknowledged the abundance provided by God and communally celebrated the visible fulfillment of the covenant. Ancient Near Eastern texts also describe the itineraries of priestly processions. These differed in that they took the images of gods, along with their various divine accoutrements, from one town to another within a kingdom. This allowed the god to visit shrines, make inspection tours of facilities owned by the principal temple community, and participate in annual festivals outside the capital. These sacred processions paraded the images and symbols of the gods through the city streets to their shrines, where sacrifices, sacred dancing and other cultic activities would take place.

Blessed are those who keep his statutes. Keeping law was a serious religious matter in the ancient Near East. Hammurapi points to Shamash, the god of justice, for the authorization of his collection of Babylonian laws, and he concludes with blessings for those who honor the stipulations of the law. If a future king heeded the pronouncements, his reign would be long and he would enhance the well-being of his people. Curses would be upon the one who desecrated the monument upon which the laws were recorded or who failed to observe them (cf. v. ). At the heart of Hammurapi’s concern, however, is the longevity of his monument (and thus his legacy as lawgiver), whereas the psalmist longs to keep God’s law as a means of glorifying God (see also vv. , , , , ).

thousands. The measure of silver and gold is not specified in the Hebrew text; but this lack of detail underscores the point that the value is incalculable. In a similar fashion, Solomon left the bronze objects contributed to the temple unweighed because there were so many (). The most common weight of metal currency was the silver shekel, and 10 shekels might be regarded as an annual salary (). Other measures, such as the talent or mina, were larger (50 shekels per mina and 3,000 shekels per talent). The total weight in gold paid to Solomon as tribute each year was 666 talents (). By any measure, then, “thousands” of pieces of gold and silver would be an unimaginable fortune.

lamp. In OT times, lamps were made of clay in the shape of a shallow cup or saucer that was pinched on one edge to support a wick. They were not carried outside for travel, lest oil spill out of the open top; rather, they were used indoors or in a cave, where not even moonlight illumined the darkness. By extension, this custom served as a metaphor for help to find one’s way in any situation. In a culture for which the night held many terrors (), the light of a lamp meant safety (). An Assyrian prophecy refers to the goddess Ishtar shining light from a lamp (Akkadian nūru = Hebrew ner) upon King Esarhaddon in order to see and protect him (cf. ). In this verse it is God’s word that provides certainty—and in this sense, security—to the choices of the psalmist who is in distress (vv. ).

are unified as a subcollection of the Psalter by the common title “A song of ascents.” The background to this title has several interpretations. The Hebrew word translated “ascents” is related to the verb “to go up.” Since the Jerusalem temple is geographically situated on a hilltop in the south-central mountain region of Israel, going to Jerusalem involved an “ascent.” In , Ezra refers to his “journey” from Babylon to Jerusalem using this Hebrew word (using the verb in ), so one interpretation is that this term recalls the return of captives from exile in Babylon. Perhaps the most common view is that pilgrims on their journey to Jerusalem for one of the three annual agricultural festivals sang these songs in anticipation of the festivities (; ; ; ). The imagery of ; ; ; ; might allude to agricultural harvests.

The Hebrew word translated “ascents” can mean “steps” and was used by Ezekiel to refer to the temple staircase (, ). Later Jewish tradition suggests that these 15 songs were sung by Levites at the Festival of Tabernacles as they stood on each of the 15 steps leading to the main court of the second temple. This latter interpretation does not exclude a possible early use of these songs during pilgrimages to the annual festivals. Assuming that these psalms were used in conjunction with the great pilgrim festivals, they express a strong longing in anticipation of worship in Jerusalem. The heartfelt love for worship at God’s temple is similar in spirit to the words of an Egyptian text practiced by scribes expressing their deep desire to see the holy city of the god Ptah in Memphis. ◆

Southern steps to the Temple Mount. are unified as a subcollection of the Psalter by the common title “A song of ascents.” The Hebrew word translated “ascents” can mean “steps,” and was used by Ezekiel to refer to the temple staircase (, ).

Kim Walton

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burning coals of the broom bush. The trunk of the broom bush provided hard wood that made excellent charcoal.

Meshek. A central Anatolian kingdom conquered by Sargon II of Assyria and invaded by the Cimmerians from southern Russia. It is thought that they were incorporated under Lydian control after the conclusion of the Cimmerian wars. They are known to the Assyrians as Mushku and to Herodotus as the Moschi. At the end of the eighth century BC, the king of Mushku was Mita, known to the Greeks as Midas, the king with the golden touch. His tomb has been identified at Gordion and excavated. Kedar. The second son of Ishmael () and the name of a tribe that flourished from the eighth to the fourth centuries BC. The tribe is known from Assyrian and Late Babylonian texts as Qadar. The personal names of the Kedarites appear to have been related to the southern branch of the Semitic languages. These tribal peoples were based in the Arabian peninsula and often made their way into the Levant via the Sinai. They functioned as sheep breeders and caravanners at least as late as the Hellenistic period. Since Meshek and Kedar are in opposite directions from Israel, they are probably paired as representatives of remote and barbaric places.

to the mountains. It is possible that looking to the mountains evokes images of danger and difficulty, especially the rugged terrain of the hill country on approach to Jerusalem, where robbers lurked. At such times, the psalmist looks to Yahweh for protection. On the other hand, the “mountains” might be a figure of speech for the location of Jerusalem, situated on a hill in the southern mountain range of Israel, where God inhabits his temple (see note on ). Looking to the mountains, then, is a search for divine help, similar in spirit to . For an Israelite living at a distance from Jerusalem or traveling there, looking toward the hills of Jerusalem would be “looking up” toward God’s abode, his or her only source of help ().

sleep. See note on .

sun . . . moon. The oppressive heat of the sun is a common human experience (see also ; ). Whether or not the ancients thought that special dangers were posed by the moon is unknown (i.e., “moonstruck,” also “lunacy”). Mesopotamian medical texts diagnose some illnesses in association with the “hand of the moon god,” but this is not unique to this deity, and other gods and goddesses are named more frequently in this regard. One text mentions the moon-god (Sin) and the sun-god (Shamash) together in conjunction with the same illness. Even if the psalmist would have been disinclined to acknowledge the real potency of these foreign gods, this verse addresses any anxiety that might haunt the pilgrim. Most likely, the mention of the moon balances the parallelism with the sun, which extends the potential harms to include all dangers of the night, as well as of the day. The main danger with the moon in both ancient and classical times is in the connection made between the moon and what we know as epilepsy (cf. ).

Jerusalem. See the article “

tribes go up. Three times a year all the males of Israel were required by statute to attend festivals in Jerusalem (see the article “Pilgrim Psalms”).

thrones for judgment. The psalmist revels in the virtues of the city of Jerusalem, and one test of the quality of any community is its judicial system. A “throne” was a seat of authority where justice was dispensed (see the article “

lift up my eyes. A natural attitude of prayer. At Ugarit, a city to the north of the land of Israel (c. 1300 BC) that shared common features with Canaanite and Israelite cultures, a prayer for help during a time of siege instructs worshipers to “lift your eyes to Baal.”

torrent. Lit. “wadi,” which can be a perennial stream, but more often refers to a dry riverbed that fills with water only during rain. A sudden rain storm can cause a flash flood that sweeps treacherously down the canyon.

fowler’s snare. Remnants of an Egyptian bird snare have been found that enable reconstruction of its mechanism and operation. A circular net was held flat on the ground by two semicircular bows framing the circumference and hinged across the middle. A bird, lured by bait set at the middle of the net, would be caught when the two sides of the circle sprang upward to close around the bird. A variety of other netting systems were also employed (see note on ).

Mount Zion . . . cannot be shaken. See note on .

mountains surround Jerusalem. Jerusalem was built on a hill in the southern mountain range of Israel, and the temple was located at its crest (called Mount Zion, see note on ). However, other hills exist in the surrounding area, some even higher than the temple mount. The psalmist uses this geographic image as a metaphor of Yahweh’s protection.

restored the fortunes of Zion. After the Persian king Cyrus conquered Babylon in 539 BC, he issued a proclamation allowing captive peoples, including Israelites, to return to their homelands and rebuild their cities and temples (; ; ). A document referred to as the Cyrus Cylinder records such a decree, though the Israelites are not explicitly included. Isaiah attributes Cyrus’s proclamation to the sovereign providence of Yahweh (). The psalmist states that the effect upon the returnees was dreamlike. See notes on ; .

streams in the Negev. The wadis of Palestine are similar to overflowing rivers in the rainy season. However, they have little or no water during the summer season, precisely the time when water is most needed. In the Negev, the arid desert region south of Jerusalem, the periodic flooding of these wadis brought relief and life.

house. In OT usage, the Hebrew word can be used of a physical structure or of a family. This double meaning appears in Nathan’s prophecy to David regarding the future temple and David’s own future dynasty (, ). The psalmist draws upon the same wordplay here, since “house” is parallel to “city” in v.  and is also echoed in the second half of the psalm as “children” (vv. , ). In either case, the Lord’s help is the decisive factor in success. These are fundamental concerns for any society. Numerous Mesopotamian texts refer to the crucial role of deities in the building of a city. Prayers and incantations also recognized the necessity of divine help in procreation (see note on ). The joining of these two themes is illustrated as well in the Sumerian Hymn to Nisaba. Neither houses nor cities can be built without the aid of the goddess Nisaba.

arrows . . . quiver. Archery units were the most critical component of an ancient army, useful on foot, horseback (eventually), and as part of the chariot corps. The psalmist’s choice of arrows as a metaphor is appropriate to the analogy of multiple children, but it also underscores the thought that the growth of the next generation is vital to the future well-being of both city and society.

fruitful vine. The metaphor of a vine is used for a wife, both for its connotations as a delectable fruit () and for suggestions of fertility (; ). olive shoots. A olive tree was versatile, useful for its wood, leaves and oil, but it also symbolized well-being (e.g., ) and splendor (e.g., ). It tenaciously produces new shoots even after being cut down. The size of the typical family in ancient Israel is difficult to estimate, but some studies suggest that an average number of live births might be four with a 50 percent mortality rate. Mesopotamians worshiped the birth-goddess Ninmah, to whom they would pray for posterity. For an Israelite, this was not just the natural hope that any human family would have, it was also related to the covenant blessings of family.

children’s children. Seeing one’s grandchildren was considered a blessing (); living to see great-grandchildren was exceptional (). The tomb inscription of a non-Israelite priest who lived in Syria around 700 BC states: “On the day I died . . . with my eyes I beheld children of the fourth generation.” The psalmist measures a successful life in similar terms.

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