#Psalmtweet #Psalter 107:8 et al

 The beginning of the fifth book of the Psalter.

Refrain - the accent sequence is used as expected in this psalm, aurally marking the recitation.

יוֹד֣וּ לַיהוָ֣ה חַסְדּ֑וֹ וְ֝נִפְלְאוֹתָ֗יו לִבְנֵ֥י אָדָֽם		8 Give thanks to Yahweh, his kindness, and his wonderful works for the children of humanity.
k iodu lihvh ksdo vnplaotiv lbni adm	6 9	iv/d\v l/ihvh ksd\v vn/pla\vtiv l/bn\i adm

#Moses, #Psalmtweet Deuteronomy 32:13-15

Many of the lines of Deuteronomy are longer (12 to 24 syllables) than poetic lines. But typical short poetic lines (6 to 9 syllables) occur in the text and can be heard in the music. Look at verses 3, 5, 9, 12, 16, 18, 19, 23, 26, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 37, 40. This is a structural aspect of the poem and its song (full text and music here).

Deuteronomy 32:13-15

It's slightly odd to see the high places in a positive note. This is the land of milk and honey. In the psalms, 81 has a parallel. I would feed them from the choicest wheat, and from the honeyed rock I would satisfy you. Choisest klb is a homonym with milk.

But in this prose poem, as in Psalms 14 and 53, senseless is still characteristic of the human under glass. The record is important for us all for our learning, as is noted somewhere. How will we learn? I am old enough now to know how hard it is to learn. I wonder if I should chose the gloss blindfolded for bar 114 covered? It is a gloss I have used elsewhere for csh.

#Psalmtweet #Psalter 106:23

 

The closing frame of Book 4

וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לְֽהַשְׁמִ֫ידָ֥ם לוּלֵ֡י מֹ֘שֶׁ֤ה בְחִיר֗וֹ עָמַ֣ד בַּפֶּ֣רֶץ לְפָנָ֑יו לְהָשִׁ֥יב חֲ֝מָת֗וֹ מֵֽהַשְׁחִֽית		23 And he promised to exterminate them, unless Moses his chosen had stood in the breach in his presence, to turn away his heat to destroy.
cg viamr lhwmidm luli mwh bkiro ymd bprx lpniv lhwib kmto mhwkit	7 15 9	vi/amr lh/wmd\m lvl\i mwh bkr\v ymd b/prx l/pn\iv lh/wb km\tv mh/wkt

#Psalmtweet #Psalter 105:4

 

This sequence of accents occurs 118 times

דִּרְשׁ֣וּ יְהוָ֣ה וְעֻזּ֑וֹ בַּקְּשׁ֖וּ פָנָ֣יו תָּמִֽיד		4 Search out Yahweh and his strength. Seek his face continually.
d drwu ihvh vyuzo bqwu pniv tmid	7 6	drw\v ihvh v/yz\v bqw\v pn\iv tmid

#Moses, #Psalmtweet Deuteronomy 32:10-12

This exercise in learning seems to run OK at three verses per group. This comment is by no means structural, simply efficient for this moment of study. And not more than one group per day! Groups 2 and 3 got away from me too soon. I may stretch them out further because our building project is beginning to take shape. I am like the one who was to build a castle and did not consider the cost or the required duration of the plan.

The apple of his eye is a famous phrase from early English Bibles. Three times in the KJV, here, Zechariah and Psalms 17. In each case, however, the phrase is different in the Hebrew. The noun bbh in Zechariah is a hapax, and perhaps we could use apple here as the gloss. (I did since I didn't use apple anywhere else in my translation.) The noun here is aiwvn which I have rendered in its 5 instances in the Bible as picture. The psalm also has a unique form of the phrase:

שָׁ֭מְרֵנִי כְּאִישׁ֣וֹן בַּת־עָ֑יִן בְּצֵ֥ל כְּ֝נָפֶ֗יךָ תַּסְתִּירֵֽנִי		8 ♪g Keep me as the daughter pictured in an eye. In the shadow of your wings, hide me,
k womrni caiwon bt-yin bxl cnpiç tstirni	9 10	wmr\ni c/aiwvn bt yin b/xl cnp\ic t/str\ni

Verse 10 reminds me of Genesis 1 and its parallel in Jeremiah 4:23. And the word I have rendered there formless or here disordered is also once in the psalms (107:40). So the princes (Psalm 107), the chosen (Deuteronomy 32), and the earth as a whole (Genesis 1, and afterward Jeremiah 4) recapitulate the same move from disorder to grace. Let it be that we should become and remain graceful - nurtured  and matured as the fledgling eagle.

One of my teachers at the lay school of theology in Calgary, Peter Craigie, said to us in those days of our youth that Deuteronomy is the book of love. It was not our initial opinion in those days. I remember being astonished at the claim. Our ignorance of what is called the Old Testament is generally abysmal. It needs to be read by all faiths who consider it Scripture with a view to shattering our preconceived attitudes. We are very good at failing to understand the character of God.

יִמְצָאֵ֙הוּ֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִדְבָּ֔ר וּבְתֹ֖הוּ יְלֵ֣ל יְשִׁמֹ֑ן יְסֹֽבְבֶ֙נְהוּ֙ יְב֣וֹנְנֵ֔הוּ יִצְּרֶ֖נְהוּ כְּאִישׁ֥וֹן עֵינֽוֹ ר		10 He found him in a wilderness land, in the disorder of the howling of wasteland, he led him round about, he gave him discernment, he preserved him as a picture in his eye.
i imxahu barx mdbr ubtohu ill iwimon isobbnhu ibonnhu iixrnhu caiwon yino r	17 17	i/mxa\hv b/arx mdbr vb/thv ill iwm\n i/sbb\nhv i/bvn\nhv i/xr\nhv c/aiwvn yin\v
כְּנֶ֙שֶׁר֙ יָעִ֣יר קִנּ֔וֹ עַל־גּוֹזָלָ֖יו יְרַחֵ֑ף יִפְרֹ֤שׂ כְּנָפָיו֙ יִקָּחֵ֔הוּ יִשָּׂאֵ֖הוּ עַל־אֶבְרָתֽוֹ ר		11 As an eagle rouses its nest over its fledglings brooding, spreading its wings, taking them, lifting them up on its pinions,
ia cnwr iyir qino yl-gozliv irkf iprow cnpiv iiqkhu iiwahu yl-abrto r	14 18	c/nwr i/yr qn\v yl gvzl\iv i/rkp i/prw cnp\iv i/qk\hv i/wa\hv yl abr\tv
יְהוָ֖ה בָּדָ֣ד יַנְחֶ֑נּוּ וְאֵ֥ין עִמּ֖וֹ אֵ֥ל נֵכָֽר ר		12 Yahweh unassisted guided him, and there was no alien god with him.
ib ihvh bdd inknu vain yimo al ncr r	7 8	ihvh bdd i/nk\nv v/ain ym\v al ncr

#Psalmtweet #Psalter 104:24

 The sequence of accents in this verse is unique. Compare with tomorrow's post.

The most popular of psalms for its verbal similarity to an Egyptian hymn

מָֽה־רַבּ֬וּ מַעֲשֶׂ֨יךָ ׀ יְֽהוָ֗ה כֻּ֭לָּם בְּחָכְמָ֣ה עָשִׂ֑יתָ מָלְאָ֥ה הָ֝אָ֗רֶץ קִנְיָנֶֽךָ		24 How copious your deeds, Yahweh. All of them in wisdom you have made. The fullness of the earth is your purchase.
cd mh-rbu mywiç ihvh culm bkcmh ywit mlah harx qniinç	17 9	mh rb\v m/yw\ic ihvh cl\m b/kcm\h yw\it mla\h h/arx qn\inc

#Psalmtweet #Psalter 103:8

 

He made his ways known to Moses - Psalm 103 reflects the solution to the laments.

Having been made in the image of Yahweh, let us also imitate this character and become the likeness of Yahweh. That is what the psalms are for: to create such a people by reflecting on how God has done it. The Psalm among others (86, 111, 112, 116, 145) reflects Exodus (i.e. Moses) 34:6.

רַח֣וּם וְחַנּ֣וּן יְהוָ֑ה אֶ֖רֶךְ אַפַּ֣יִם וְרַב־חָֽסֶד		8 Compassionate and gracious is Yahweh, slow to anger, and abundant in kindness.
k rkum vknun ihvh arç apiim vrb-ksd	7 8	rkvm v/knvn ihvh arc ap\im v/rb ksd