Reading Notes and Text for Psalm 22 (MT 23)
The notes are in their early vetting stages. Let me know if you find any errors.
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Greek text is from Alfred Rahlfs' Septuaginta, © 1935 Deutche Bibelstiftung, Stuttgart.
Parsings provided the the CCAT project at the University of Pennsylvania.
Read other Psalms online at www.bibelwissenschaft.de |
Structure of the Psalm and Content Overview
The Lord being called shepherd draws upon one of the oldest epithets of God in the Hebrew tradition (cf. Gen 49.24). The poet takes the ancient epithet of God as a starting point, but then develops its metaphorical content.... This metaphor is employed in various psalms (e.g. 82.8; 77.21; 95.7). Psalm 23 is the most personal adaptation of this metaphor. The background of the Exodus and God's provisions are seen in this psalm, and the psalm draws on passages such as Deut. 2.7; Ex. 15:13 and Num 10.33 The NT draws upon the echoes of the Exodus and redemption in the psalms; those echoes are transformed into echoes of the redemption won by the shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep (John 10:11). (Craigie, WBC 19, p. 206ff ad passim).
The language of the Psalm in itself does not enable one to determine its original sense and setting (Craigie WBC 19, p. 205) “Psalms 23 (LXX 22) is radically a psalm of trust, containing no actual plea. It manifests the same hopefulness that Ps. 22 eventually affirms, but it expresses itself in symbols, and it is even more difficult to tie down to a particular meaning or context.’ The preciousness of the psalm derives in large part from its lyricism, which is part of what also makes us unable to tie it down. It leaves itself open to many applications. Although the “I” envisaged by the psalm maybe an ordinary individual, it is open to being appropriated by a leader such as a king or a Second Temple leader, or by the community as a whole in any period. (Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Psalms. Goldengay vol. 1, p. 345).
The structure of the Psalm is also difficult to define with clarity or certainty. There is some consensus that the psalm falls into two main sections:
1. The Lord as shepherd (23:1-4)
2. The Lord as host (23:5-6) (Anticipation of future thanksgiving in God’s house)
There is debate, though whether the shepherd metaphor continues into verse 5-6. Οn the other hand, Goldengay sees a ab-ba structure.
Reading Notes on the Greek Text (by Louis Sorenson)
Comments by members are followed by their initials. References to Origen refer to Origen's selection of a LXX reading, as shown in Fields Hexapla. While Aquila and Symmachus made original translations of the LXX, Origen was a 'textual criticism guy' and tried attain the original text of the Greek Psalms. As stated above, the notes are in their early vetting stages. Let me know if you find any errors.
V1. Ψαλμός. [Translation:Word Choice]. The Hebrew word מִזמוֹר mizmor is translated as ψαλμός (Origen and Theodotion), μελῴδημα (Aquila) and ᾠδή (Symmachus).
V1 ποιμαίνει. [Translation: Word Choice]. The Greek translates the Hebrew qal participle ‘shepherds’ as a verb. The modern English versions and even Modern Greek (ο ποιμην μου) nominalize this word.
V1 οὐδέν με ὑστερήσει. [Syntax:υστερέω]. The verb ὑστερέω normally takes the genitive of thing or dative of person; the ‘accusative of person’ is odd (also occurring in Psalm 39.5; 84.11. cf. ὑστέρημα in Ps 34.10.)
V2. τόπον χλόης….κατεσκήνωσεν. [Translation: Word Choice]. χλόη usually refers to new green growth. Cf. Clorophyl. (Green = χλωρός). Aquila has ἐν ὡραιότητι (>ὡραιός ‘beautiful’) πόας (grass/meadow) κατεκλινέ με. τόπον most likely comes from a misreading of the Hebrew נאות ‘pastures’ for נָוֶה ‘abode, habitation’ (See Mozley for more). κατεσκήνοωσεν is causative for the Hebrew hiphil צֵנִיָרְבִּ . Verbs in –οω are usually factitive, denoting to cause or to make cf. Smyth §866.3. Later interpretations take τόπον χλόης to refer to the Elysian fields.
ν2. ὕδατος ἀναπαύσεως. The idea can perhaps be found in Numbers 10:33 καὶ ἡ κιβωτὸς τῆς διαθήκης κυρίου προεπορεύετο προτέρα αὐτῶν ὁδὸν τριῶν ἡμερῶν κατασκέψασθαι αὐτοῖς ἀνάπαυσιν. 'Slow streams', while perhaps more rare in the mountainous land of Israel, is not the main idea; the thrust of ὕδατος ἀναπαύσεως is a stream where a flock can lay down beside and pasture in - an area of safety and rest.
ν3. ἐξέθρεψέν. [Morphology|Accents]. This word is a great word to be on a test. The lemma is ἐκτρέφω. The preposition ἐκ is originally ἐξ; the ξ always reappears in intervocalic contexts. The root of τρέφω is θρεφ. Grassman’s law of deaspirants says that the first aspiriant in a syllable with two aspirants (θ,χ,φ) loses its aspiration, but, in ἐξέθρεψέν, when φ becomes ψ, the θ reappears. The ψ comes from -φσ- (σ is the aorist tense formant). Aquila reads διαβαστάξεις με; Symmachus reads ἐτημέλησέ με (Montef. reads ἀνεκτήσατό με). See Fields for an extensive disscussion on the word choice. See also Gen 47.17; διαθρέψεις is found in Ps 31.4.
Whenever there are two accents on a word (except in the case of crasis where two words have combined), the second accent comes from the following word, here με, which is called an enclitic, ‘leaning in’ (I call them end-clitics = ‘end accents’ versus proclitics which I call no-clitics = ‘no accents’). These words (e.g. με) are closely connected with the previous word and the two are pronounced as a single word. See Smyth §§181-187.
v3. ἐπέστρεψεν. [Translation:WordChoice] The traditional rendering ‘restore’ (kept by the NETS) may have better renderings. The extant English translations consistently render both Hebrew and Greek as ‘restore’. The Hebrew שׁוּב ‘return’ can mean to restore (e.g. bring back to the original state), but it also is frequently used for turning to or from good or bad, to apostacize, repent, etc. ἐπιστρέφω ‘to turn back’ can be used either intransively, transitively, or even causatively in the active. The word is often used in contexts of faith. It is used 534x in the LXX; 36x in the NT. Symmachus translates as ἀνεκτήσατο
v3. ὁδήγησεν. [Vocabulary:ὁδηγέω]. ὁδηγέω ‘to lead, guide, lit. lead down a path’ (>ὁδός ‘way’ and ἄγω ‘to lead’) See Exodos 15:13 ὡδήγησας τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου τὸν λαόν σου τοῦτον, ὃν ἐλυτρώσω….
v3. ἕνεκεν. [Morphology:ἕνεκεν]. ‘because of, on account of; in order that’. The form varies between ἕνεκα, ἕνεκεν and εἵνεκεν from Homeric through Koine times. It functions as an improper preposition (never used in composition with a verb) and governs the genitive.
ν4. γὰρ καὶ.. [Translation]. For Hebrew כִּי םגַּ.
v4. ἐὰν…πορευθῶ. [Syntax|Vocabualry]. πορευθῶ ‘I would go’ is aorist passive subjunctive of πορεύομαι, but is active/middle in meaning. For a good synopsis of the middle/passive voice usages, see Carl Conrad’s article on Greek Voice (http://artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/GrkVc.html). The coverall term ‘deponent’ is a general term for words middle/passive in form; but here, the form is aorist passive.
v4. μέσῳ σκιᾶς θανάτου. [Translation]. Origen reads μέσῳ for the Hebrew גַּיְא ‘valley’ , but Symmachus has διὰ φάραγγος σκεπομένης θανάτῳ. The words τὸ ἄγκος, ὁ κόλπος, τὸ κοῖλον, ἡ κοῖλη are other words for ‘valley’, but the idea here is that of a ravine with nooks, crooks, dark areas, etc., which is more of a place of danger (that’s where you get ambushed); ἡ φάραγξ ‘ravine’ fits the context best.
v4. μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ [Elision] = μετὰ ἐμοῦ. See Smyth §§70-75.
v4. αὐταί με παρεκάλεσαν. [Vocabualry] αὐταί = ῥάβδος καὶ βακτηρία. παρακαλέω has a wide range of meanings: 1) to call to one’s side; 2) to exhort, or urge, 3) to make a strong request; 4) to comfort, encourage, cheer up. cf. Psalms 118.50. See 1 Thes 4:18 παρακαλεῖτε ἀλλήλους ἐν τοῖς λόγοις τούτοις comfort one another with these words.
v5. ἐξ ἐναντίας τῶν θλιβόντων με. [Syntax:ἐξ ἐναντίας]. ἐξ ἐναντίας ‘against’, for Heb. נֶגֶד on analogy of ἐκ δεξιᾶς. The sequence was present in earlier Gk. [Hdt., Thuc.], and occurs often in the LXX. B-D-F §24(1) says ἐξ ἐναντίας is an elipsis. Perhaps here for ἠτοίμασας …τράπεζαν ἐξ ἣς ἐναντίας ἔστιν τῶν θλιβόντων με· ἐξ ἔναντιας occurs in the NT only in Mk 15.39 and Tit 2.8. Some editors write this as a single word ἐξεναντίας.
v5. ἐλίπανας. [Morphology]. 2nd Aorist active indicative 2s of λιπαίνω ‘anoint’ (stem λιπαν). The iota is only seen in the present tense stems. See Smyth §§523.h,i. λιπαίνω is often seen in composition with prepositions. Another common word for ‘anoint’ is ἀλείφω, aorist ἤλειψα.
v5. τὸ ποτήριόν σου…. [Text Content]. The Greek changes the ‘my cup’ to ‘your cup’. The various translations render the end as ὡς κράτιστον, πλὴν ἀγαθόν, παντὶ ἀγαθῷ (See Fields Hexapla, vol. 2, p. 121, notes 9-13).
v5. μεθύσκον. [Vocabulary]. Present active participle neuter nominative singular of μεθύσκω ‘to make one drunk’, used metaphorically here. For the accent see Smyth §301 (not completely explained though). See also Ps 64.10 and Ps. 35.9 (passive).
v6. ὡς κράτιστον. [Vocaulary:Superlative:ὡς]. The LXX reads ὡς κράτιστον as agreeing with ποτήριον; the Hebrew reads it with the next sentence, surely goodness and love…. κράτιστος is one of the superlatives for ἀγαθός ‘good’, cf. Smyth §319.1. Mozley says ὡς here is not the ordinary ὡς (used to heighten a superlative, cf. Smyth §2994), but as in the Vulgate quam praiclarus est. (= οἱόν or ὅτι > ὅστις?). Craigie, WBC 19, p. 204, note 5b: "Greek renders v5c-6a differently from MT: "And your cup cheers me like the best (wine?). Also, your mercy shall follow me. . . ." G joins the first two words of v 6 with the last word of v 5 (cf. S and Vg), but such a construction would be anomalous in Hebrew and it is best rejected. "
v6. πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας. [Syntax:Accusative:Extent]. The accusative deontes extent of time. See Smyth §§1582-1587.
v6. τὸ κατοικεῖν με ἐν οἴκῳ. [Syntax:Articular Infinitive | Rhetorical devices]. με properly is the subject of the infinitive κατοικεῖν. Τhe translator of the LXX uses pleonasm here, κατοικεῖν…οἴκῳ, Smyth §3042.e-f.; BDB §198.1 ‘associative dative’; BDB §§398-404 ‘articular infinitive’; Smyth §936 ‘subject of the infinitive’, Smyth §§2025-2034 ‘the articular infinitive’.
v6. εἰς μακρότητα ἡμερῶν. [Translation]. The Hebrew has ‘for length of days’; Origen reads literally εἰς μακρότητα ἡμερῶν, but Symmachus has εἰς μῆκος χρόνου, both referring to the length of one’s life on earth. Neither version reads εἰς αἰῶνα, which would change the meaning. The NT passages about 'adding a cubit' to your height/life in Mt 6.27 and Lk 12.25 use the word πῆχυς, εως, ὁ. πήχυιον ἐπὶ χρόνον=‘for only a cubit of time’ add a single hour to your span of life.
