The Meaning of הַשְּׁמִינִית in Psalm 6:1

Introduction

The superscription of Psalm 6:1 reads as follows:

לַמְנַצֵּ֣חַ בִּ֭נְגִינוֹת עַֽל־הַשְּׁמִינִ֗ית מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃

The phrase עַל הַשְּׁמִינִית appears in the titles of Psalm 6 and Psalm 12 (cf. 1 Chron 15:21). Although most interpreters agree that sheminith literally means 'eighth' (cf. Lev. 25:22) and that it is "probably a musical term" (NIV footnote), there is broad confusion and disagreement about the precise meaning of the word in this context. Consider, for example, how the following translations deal with the word here in Psalm 6:

• Omit and include in a footnote (CEV).
• Transliterate as sheminith (ESV, NRSV, REB, NIV; cf. NET, JPS85, ELB, RVR95, BTX4)
• Translate literally as eighth (ZÜR, EÜ, NVI; so LXX, Aquila, Symmachus, and Jerome)
• Interpret as eight-stringed instrument (NLT, NJB, LUT, HFA, GNB, TOB, NBS, NVS78P, BDS, PDV2017, S21, DHH94I)
• Interpret as octave (NFC), specifically as a lower octave (NGÜ)

The following argument maps will evaluate the last two of these options, which are the only two attempts to interpret the meaning of the word.

Argument maps

Eight-stringed instrument

A significant number of translations, beginning with the Aramaic Targum, have understood the sheminith as an eight-stringed instrument. The NLT, for example, says "to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument" (cf. NJB, LUT, HFA, GNB, TOB, NBS, NVS78P, BDS, PDV2017, S21, DHH94I).

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[Instrument]: The "sheminith" is an eight-stringed instrument (Targum; Kraus 1988, 31). #dispreferred
 - <על in superscriptions>: In the superscriptions of the Psalms phrases with עַל usually refer to something other than instrumental accompaniment (cf. May 1941, 72 :A:; Gunkel and Begrich 1998, 349 :M:).
  + [על in superscriptions]: E.g., עַל־אַיֶּ֥לֶת הַשַּׁ֗חַר (Ps 22; cf. Pss 8; 9; 45; 46; 53; 56; 60; 62; 69; 77; 81; 88).
  <_ <Ps 61>: The superscription of Psalm 61, the preposition עַל is followed by the word "stringed instrument" (עַל־נְגִינַת). #dispreferred
   + [Ps 61]: לַמְנַצֵּ֬חַ׀ עַֽל־נְגִינַ֬ת לְדָוִֽד׃ #dispreferred
 - <ב + instrument>: One usually plays a song "with" (ב) a stringed instrument, not "on" (עַל) it.  
  + [ב + instrument]: E.g., "Praise him with lyre and lute (בְּנֵבֶל וְכִנּוֹר)" (Ps 150:3; cf. Pss 4:1; 6:1; 33:2; 98:5; 144:9; 150:4–5; etc.)
  <_ <עַל + instrument>: One can also play "on" (עַל) an instrument.#dispreferred
   + [עַל + instrument]: "\[praise YHWH\] with a ten-stringed instrument (עֲלֵי־עָשׂוֹר) and with a harp (עֲלֵי־נָבֶל)" (Ps 92:4; cf. Ps 61:1; Amos 6:5). #dispreferred
 + <Targum>: An early Jewish tradition, represented in the Targum, understood the term to refer to an eight-stringed instrument. #dispreferred
  + [Targum]: "Upon the lute with eight strings (על כנרא דתמניא נימיא)" (Stec 2004, 34). #dispreferred
  <_ <Influenced by 1 Chronicles>: "The addition of כנרא 'harp' here likely comes from the fact that the targumist was thinking with 1 Chr 15:21" (Berkovitz 2020, 639 :A:).
 + <Connection with stringed instruments>: The word "sheminith" is usually associated with stringed instruments. #dispreferred
  + [1 Chr 15:21]: בְּכִנֹּר֥וֹת עַל־הַשְּׁמִינִ֖ית לְנַצֵּֽחַ #dispreferred
  + [Ps 6:1]: לַמְנַצֵּ֣חַ בִּ֭נְגִינוֹת עַֽל־הַשְּׁמִינִ֗ית #dispreferred
  <_ <Sheminith + instrument>
 - <Sheminith + instrument>: In Psalm 6, "the musical instrument is mentioned in addition (to the Sheminith), as also in 1 Chron 15:21" (Hengstenberg 1869 :C:; cf. Delitzsch 1871 :C:). The "sheminith," therefore, is distinct from the instrument.

Octave (preferred)

Others have argued that the sheminith (lit.: "eighth") refers to an octave (cf. NFC, NGÜ), which might mean (among other possibilities) tuning the stringed instruments to a lower octave or singing along with the instruments at a lower octave.

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[Octave]: The word "sheminith" (Pss 6; 12) refers to a lower octave (BDB :L:; cf. Braun 2002, 41 :M:).
 + <Parallel עלמות>: In I Chronicles 15:21, "sheminith" (הַשְּׁמִינִית) is parallel to the term עֲלָמוֹת (I Chr 15:20), which probably refers to "'maidens' = maidens' voices i.e., soprano" (Delitzsch 1871 :C: cf. Baethgen 1904, xl :C:; Molnàr 2020 :A:). "Sheminith," therefore, probably refers to a lower octave (bass in contrast to soprano).
  + [1 Chr 15:20-21]: "Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play harps according to Alamoth (עַל־עֲלָמוֹת); but Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to lead with lyres according to the Sheminith (עַל־הַשְּׁמִינִית)" (1 Chr 15:20-21, ESV).
   <_ <Relationship to particular instrument unexplained>: "It is difficult to make any sense out of the rubric as it occurs in I Chron. 15:21 by interpreting it to mean an octave, for why should playing on the octave be associated particularly with the harp (כנור), as contrasted with the lyre (נבל) in verse 20, mentioned with the rubric על עלמות...? Not only is it uncertain that עלמות and השמינית bear any such relationship to one another as suggested by soprano and an octave lower... but it is not even certain that these two terms have any direct relationship with the lyre and harp, respectively" (May 1941, 81 :A:). #dispreferred
 + <Solemn mood>: Psalm 6 is gloomy and sad, and so a lower octave "would be appropriate to the solemn theme of the psalm" (Craigie 1983 :C:). Psalm 12, the only other psalm "according to the sheminith," is also "gloomy and sad" (Delitzsch 1871 :C:).
 - <Unknown in Israel>:The concept of an "octave" (which assumes a heptatonic \[seven-note\] scale) was "unknown to the Israelite musicians" (Matthew 1992, IV,933 :D:; cf. May 1941 :A:; Osterley 1955 :C:). "It is hardly probable that the Hebrews had anticipated our modern divisions of the scale" (Millar 1915, 2096 :D:).  #dispreferred
  + <"Octave" as "answer/echo/repetition" in Arabic>: "The perfect consonance of the octave is known to the Oriental musician by the Arabic term *jewab* (answer, echo, repetition)" (not by any term associated with the number "eight") (Idelsohn 1972, 25 :M:). #dispreferred
  - <Heptatonic scale at Ugarit>: "The heptatonic scale is now known to have been in common use in Ugarit (Foxvog/Kilmer, 1979), and this suggests that octaves were used in ancient Israel as well" (Braun 2002, 41 :M:).
   + <Six Akkadian texts>: "Assyriological research since 1960 has led to the discovery of six Akkadian texts that, from a variety of different standpoints, describe Mesopotamian music theory and practice from ca. 1800 BC to ca. 500 BC. The texts, from different places and times, have shown that the musical scales in general use in ancient Mesopotamia were heptatonic and diatonic" (Foxvog and Kilmer 1979, 446-7 :D:; cf. Kilmer et al. 1976 :M:).
    + <Mathematical text and Tuning text>: Both the so-called "Mathematical text (CBS 10996) and "Tuning text" (U. 7/80) appear to assume a heptatonic scale (see Kilmer et al. 1972, 8–9 :M:).
    + <E.g., Hurrian cult hymn>: "One complete piece of music, a syllabic cuneiform Hurrian cult hymn to the moon-goddess Nickel dating to ca. 1400 BC, has been found at ancient Ugarit. Its Akkadian colophon identifies it as follows: 'This is a song of the Fall-of-the-Middle (scale), a hymn(?) of the gods, from Urhiya; copied by Ammurapi" (cited in Foxvog and Kilmer 1979, 446-7 :D:). The scale, "Fall-of-the-Middle" (nīd qabli), described in the "Tuning text," is probably heptatonic, equivalent to the Western major scale (cf. Kilmer et al. 1976, 14 :M:).

Conclusion (D)

As noted in the introduction, the word sheminith (lit.: "eighth") is probably a musical term. Beyond this general claim, however, it is difficult to say much with any degree of confidence. As HALOT notes, "the final answer must remain undecided." Nevertheless, of the two main options explored above ("eight-stringed instrument" and "octave"), the "octave" interpretation, suggested by the use in 1 Chronicles 15:21, where it is parallel to the term עלמות, seems more likely. In the past, scholars had objected to this view on the grounds that the heptatonic scale was foreign to ancient Israelite music. Several 20th-century discoveries, however, provide evidence that a heptatonic scale was probably known in Mesopotamia and Ugarit at a very early time and therefore might have been known also in Israel. One of these texts, the so-called Akkadian "Tuning Text," which gives detailed information about different ways to tune a lyre, appears to assume the existence of a heptatonic scale. Interestingly, another text, the 15th-century Hurrian hymn discovered at Ugarit, has an Akkadian colophon that specifies the use of one of the tunings mentioned in the "Tuning Text." It would be reasonable to guess, then, especially in light of the fact that the sheminith is usually associated with 'stringed instruments' (Ps 6:1; 1 Chr 15:21), that the word gives information for how the stringed instruments were to be tuned (perhaps to a lower octave).

Research

Translations

Ancient

• LXX: ὑπὲρ τῆς ὀγδόης
  • "Over the eighth"
• Aquila: ἐπὶ τῆς ὀγδόης
  • "On the eighth."
• Symmachus: περὶ τῆς ὀγδόης
  • "Concerning the eighth."
• Jerome (iuxta Hebr.): super octava
  • "Above the eighth."
• Targum על כנרא דתמניא נימיא
  • "Upon the lute with eight strings"

Modern

Omit

• GNT
• NEB
• Use stringed instruments. (CEV)

Transliterate

• with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. (ESV)
• with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. (NRSV)
• with stringed instruments : according to the sheminith. (REB)
• With stringed instruments. According to sheminith. (NIV)
• to be accompanied by stringed instruments, according to the sheminith style (NET)
• with instrumental music on the sheminith (JPS85)
• Mit Saitenspiel. Auf der Scheminith. (ELB)
• en Neginot, sobre Seminit. (RVR95)
• con neguinot, en sheminit (BTX4)

Translate literally: 'Eighth'

• Mit Saitenspiel nach der Achten (EÜ)
• Mit Saitenspiel auf der Achten. (ZÜR)
• Sobre la octava. (NVI)

'Instrument'

• to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument (NLT)
• For strings. For the octachord (NJB)
• beim Saitenspiel auf acht Saiten. (LUT)
• Saiteninstrument zu begleiten. (HFA)
• zu begleiten auf achtsaitigem Instrument. (GNB)
• avec instruments à huit cordes. (TOB)
• Avec instruments à cordes. (NBS)
• Avec instruments à cordes. Sur la harpe à huit cordes. (NVS78P)
• à chanter avec accompagnement de harpes à huit cordes. (BDS)
• Avec instruments à huit cordes. (PDV2017)
• avec instruments à cordes, sur la harpe à huit cordes. (S21)
• con instrumentos de ocho cuerdas. (DHH94I)

'Octave'

• Mit Saiteninstrumenten im Bass zu begleiten. (NGÜ)
• Accompagnement à l'octave. (NFC)

Secondary literature

Baethgen, Friedrich. 1904. Die Psalmen. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht.

Berkovitz, Abraham J. 2020. “Translation, Translation Technique, and the Psalm Superscriptions of the Aramaic Targum.” The Jewish Quarterly Review 110 (4): 621–51.

Braun, Joachim, Stott, Douglas W, and Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2006. Music in Ancient Israel/Palestine: Archaeological, Written, and Comparative Sources. Michigan; Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Delitzsch, Franz. 1883. Biblical Commentary on the Psalms: Vol. 1. Translated by Eaton David. Vol. 1. New York: Funk and Wagnalls.

Foxvog, D. A., and A. D. Kilmer. 1979. “Music.” In The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Vol: 3. Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans. .

Gunkel, Hermann. 1998. An Introduction to the Psalms: The Genres of the Religious Lyric of Israel. Translated by James D. Nogalski. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press.

Idelsohn, Abraham Zebi. 1972. Jewish Music in Its Historical Development. New York: Schocken Books.

Kilmer, A. D., R. L. Crocker, and R. R. Brown. 1976. Sounds from Silence : Recent Discoveries in Ancient Near Eastern Music. Berkeley: Bit Enki publications.

Kraus, Hans-Joachim. 1988. Psalms 1–59. Minneapolis: Fortress.

May, Herbert Gordon. 1941. “‘AL....’ in the Superscriptions of the Psalms.” The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures 58 (1): 70–83.

Millar, James. 1915. “Music.” In The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Vol. 3. Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company.

Molnár, János. 2020. “Music in the Psalm Superscriptions.” Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai - Musica 65 (1): 123–36.

Stec, David M., ed. 2004. The Targum of Psalms. The Aramaic Bible, v. 16. Collegeville, Minn: Liturgical Press.

References

6:1 Approved