Psalms 9-10

Psalms 9 and 10 are one psalm, and are treated as such by the Septuagint. So all Greek and Hebrew Bible psalm numbering is off by one for several psalms. (Here's a reconciliation of Psalms numbering by a fellow Biblical Studies blogger and carnival host.)

This psalm is a broken alphabetic game. Whether it is broken because it is old and has been left in a disordered room and pieces were lost under the bed or under the dresser, or whether it is deliberately broken as if the child does not want to play, we don't know. What we do know is that an editor or an author can decide to drop a verse, as the Masoretes dropped the Nun verse of Psalms 145,  or deliberately reverse the normal sequence of letters as Lamentations reverses peh and ayin.

This is the longest analysis of the music we have yet undertaken. Psalms 9 begins on the third of the scale, tifcha, g, the mediant. According to my thesis, this shows its connection to the prior psalm. The first acrostics of book 5 (111, 112) also begin on a note other than the tonic. The remaining acrostic poems all begin on the tonic.

thlim 't	Psalms 9	Fn	Min	Max	Syll
a lmnxk yl-mut lbn mzmor ldvid	1 For the leader on death of the son. A psalm of David.	g	3e	3g	13
b aodh ihvh bcl-libi asprh cl-nplaotiç	2 I will thank Yahweh with all my heart. I will recount all your wonders.		3e	4B	8 9
g awmkh vaylxh bç azmrh wmç ylion	3 I will be glad and I will be elated in you. I will sing a psalm to your name Most High.		3e	4B	8 7
d bwub-aoibii akor iicwlu viabdu mpniç	4 But when my enemies turn back, let them stumble and perish from your presence.		3e	4A	6 10
h ci-ywit mwp'ti vdini iwbt lcisa wop't xdq	5 For you have made my judgment and my case. You sit enthroned judging right.		3e	4B	9 10
v gyrt goiim aibdt rwy wmm mkit lyolm vyd	6 God, you rebuked the nations. You made wickedness perish. You have erased their name forever and ever.		3e	4B	10 10
z haoib tmu korbot lnxk vyrim ntwt abd zcrm hmh	7 Here O enemy, completed are ruins in perpetuity, and cities you have blotted out. Perished is their memory of them.		3e	4B	11 6 6
k vihvh lyolm iiwb conn lmwp't cisao	8 Verily, Yahweh forever sits. He has established his throne for judgment.	g	3e	4B	7 7
't vhua iwpo't-tbl bxdq idin laumim bmiwrim	9 And he himself will judge the world in righteousness. He will make the case for the tribes in uprightness.		3e	4A	9 9
i vihi ihvh mwgb ldç mwgb lyitot bxrh	10 And Yahweh will be a retreat for the crushed, a retreat in times of trouble.	~	3e	4C	8 8
ia vib'tku bç iodyi wmç ci la-yzbt dorwiç ihvh	11 And they will trust in you knowing your name, for you Yahweh do not forsake those searching for you.		3e	4C	11 9
ib zmru lihvh iowb xion hgidu bymim ylilotiv	12 Zion in Zion where Yahweh sits, let all sing a psalm. Evident among the peoples is his prodigality.		3e	4B	8 10
ig ci-dorw dmim aotm zcr la-wck xyqt ynvvim	13 Because searching out blood, he remembers them. He does not forget the outcry of the afflicted.		3e	4B	8 8
id konnni ihvh rah yonii mwonaii mrommi mwyri mvvt	14 Have mercy, be gracious to me Yahweh. See my impoverishment from those hating me, you who lift me high from the gates of death,		3e	4B	12 9
'tv lmyn asprh cl-thiltç bwyri bt-xion agilh biwuytç	15 so that I will recount all your praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion. I will rejoice in your salvation.		3e	4A	12 7 8
'tz 'tbyu goiim bwkt ywu brwt-zu 'tmnu nlcdh rglm	16 The nations sink in the destruction they made. In this net that they buried, their foot is caught.		3e	4B	9 12
iz nody ihvh mwp't ywh bpoyl cpiv noqw rwy higion slh	17 Yahweh is known, Judgment he makes. In the work of his palms he lays a trap for the wicked. Meditation. Selah.	C	3d	4C	8 9 5
ik iwubu rwyim lwaolh cl-goiim wcki alohim	18 Into their grave the wicked will turn, all nations that forget God.		3e	4B	9 9
i't ci la lnxk iiwck abion tqvvt yniim tabd lyd	19 Causes of the needy will not always be forgotten. The expectation of the poor will not perish for ever.	C	3e	4C	10 9
c qumh ihvh al-iyoz anow iiwp'tu goiim yl-pniç	20 arise Yahweh, let a mortal not be strong. Let the nations be judged in your presence.		3e	4B	9 9
ca with ihvh morh lhm iidyu goiim anow hmh slh	21 Impose, Yahweh. Fear to them. let the nations know their mortality. Selah.	~	3e	4C	8 4 6
thlim i	Psalms 10	Fn	Min	Max	Syll
a lmh ihvh tymod brkoq tylim lyitot bxrh	1 LORD why do you stand in the distance, obscure in times of trouble?		3e	4B	10 8
b bgavvt rwy idlq yni iitpwu bmzimot zu kwbu	2 In pride criminal hotly pursues poor. Let them be arrested in those schemes they have devised.		3e	4B	10 10
g ci-hill rwy yl-tavvt npwo uboxy birç niax ihvh	3 For criminal boasted over its own desire, and blessed extortion, spurning Yahweh.		3e	4B	10 10
d rwy cgobh apo bl-idrow ain alohim cl-mzimotiv	4 Criminal looks down its un-searching nose. There is no God in all its multifarious schemes.		3e	4B	10 9
h ikilu drciv bcl-yt mrom mwp'tiç mngdo cl-xorriv ipik bhm	5 Its ways are twisted. In all times, high is your judgment, out of its sight. All its troubles, It snorts at them.	~	3e	4C	18 8
v amr blibo bl-amo't ldor vdor awr la-bry	6 It said in its heart, I will not be moved, from generation to generation, in which there is no evil.		3e	4B	8 9
z alh pihu mla umrmot vtoç tkt lwono yml vavvn	7 Pucker full of imprecation and deceit and fraud, under its tongue toil and mischief,		3e	4C	11 10
k iiwb bmarb kxrim bmstrim ihrog nqi yiniv lklch ixponu	8 it sits in the lurking places of the villages. In hidden places it slays the innocent, its eyes treasuring the hapless.		3e	4C	17 8
't iarob bmstr carih bsuco iarob lk'tof yni ik'tof yni bmowco brwto	9 It lies in wait in its hiding place like lion in lair. It lies in wait to seize the poor. It seizes the poor. It draws him away in Its net.		3e	4B	20 10
i idch iwok vnpl byxumiv kil caim	10 It crushes. It presses down, and hapless falls by its sheer numbers.		3e	4B	5 10
ia amr blibo wck al hstir pniv bl-rah lnxk	11 It said in its heart, God has forgotten. He hides his face. He will never see.		3e	4B	8 10
ib qumh ihvh al nwa idç al-twck ynvvim	12 Quickly arise! Yahweh God. Lift up your hand. Do not forget the afflicted.		3e	4C	10 6
ig yl-mh niax rwy alohim amr blibo la tdrow	13 Since when does criminal spurn God? It said in its heart, He will not search.		3e	4C	9 8
id rait ci-ath yml vcys tbi't ltt bidç yliç iyzob klch itom ath hiit yozr	14 Regard you will, for you yourself take note of toil and grief to give by your hand. To you the hapless defer. The orphan you yourself will help.		3d	4C	18 9 9
'tv wbor zroy rwy vry tdrow-rwyo bl-tmxa	15 Shatter the arm of criminal, and for an evil one, search out its crimes till none is found.	g	3e	4B	7 9
'tz ihvh mlç yolm vyd abdu goiim marxo	16 Yahweh is king now and for ever. Perished are the nations from his land.		3e	4B	8 7
iz tavvt ynvvim wmyt ihvh tcin libm tqwib aoznç	17 The desire of the afflicted you have heard Yahweh. Establish their heart. You will make your ear attend,		3e	4B	11 9
ik lwpo't itom vdç bl-iosif yod lyrox anow mn-harx	18 to judge orphan and crushed. Adding no longer, to ruthlessness is mortal from the earth.		3e	4A	6 4 9

I have bolded the acrostic letters and a few selected recurring words to see if they help define strophes. I have generally considered acrostics to be less amenable than other poems to structural analysis. 

Here's the music.

What if we abstract the musical shapes by verse. We could substitute the accent names, but the letters are briefer. The three-character abbreviations below are for ornaments (supra-lineal signs). This is easier than talking about accent sequences, but much harder than reading and hearing the music. There are no available performances.

incipit g f# rev,f# e - no higher than an f#

2 e B g ^A ger-rev,e - first half matches 10:6, second half revia mugrash occurs 30 times, 9 times on ^A - this is an extended recit on the rest note, can be significant in word / mood painting.
3 e B B ^A g B e - first half matches 18
4 e f# ^A f# ger-rev,e - first half matches 10:6 and final approach of 9 and 16, second half ger-rev occurs 19 times on an f# - 7 full matches for this return to the tonic
5 e g B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e unique approach to ^A - 21 return to the tonic via f#, 8 full matches for v5
6 e B g B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e - first half, nine matches, 6, 11, 13, 16, 20 and 10:1-3 and 16

7 e pas,f# rev,ole,f# f# ^A g B e - tricolon - note 6 occurrences of pashta (=qadma)
8 g B ^A g B e - first half matches 10:15 + 18 final approach partial matches
9 e rev,e f# ^A f# ger-rev,e - 13 return to the tonic directly after the common ornament.
10 zar,C B B ^A ger-rev,f# e The first of three verses to begin with a zarqa
11 e B g B ^A C e g B e - middle verse music is unique both in approach and return
12 e rev,g B ^A f# ger-rev,e
13 e B g B ^A e ger-rev,f# e - ger-rev on the tonic

14 e ill,rev,B g ^A ger-rev,f# e - seven illuy, 6 in the next psalm
15 e f# rev,e ole,f# e f# ^A ger-rev,e - tricolon
16 e B g B ^A e f# ger-rev,f# e
17 C pas,zar,d ole,f# B g B ^A f# e - tricolon
18 e B B ^A ger-rev,f# e
19 C B g B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e

20 e B g B ^A f# ger-rev,e
21 zar,C pas,rev,ole,f# f# ^A g B e- tricolon

1 e B g B ^A ger-rev,f# e
2 e B g B ^A shl,g B e - unique shalshelet in this verse.
3 e B g B ^A f# ger-rev,zar,f# e
4 e rev,B g ^A f# ger-rev,e
5 zar,C pas,rev,B g ^A ger-rev,f# e

6 e B g ^A f# ger-rev,B e return to the tonic matches 10 and 13 following
7 e C B g B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e
8 e C ill,rev,g B ^A ger-rev,e f# e
9 e ill,pas,ill,rev,g B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e
10 e f# ^A f# ger-rev,B e
11 e B g B e ^A f# ger-rev,f# e

12 e C rev,g B ^A f# e
13 e C g f# ^A f# ger-rev,B e
14 e paz,e C zar,C pas,zar,d ole,f# g B ^A ger-rev,C ill,e - tricolon
15 g B ^A ger-rev,e f# e
16 e B g B ^A f# ger-rev,e
17 e ill,B B ^A f# ger-rev,f# e
18 e f# rev,ole,f# f# ^A f# ger-rev,e - tricolon