|Message=In the end, it's those who follow YHWH's instruction who will flourish.
|Message=In the end, it's those who follow YHWH's instruction who will flourish.
|Author=Anonymous
|Author=Anonymous
|Background Ideas=<ul><li>People declare someone to be "happy" (אַשְׁרֵי) when they admire that person's condition and consider it to be admirable and desirable (cf. Janzen 1965, 215-226; SDBH). For example, when the Queen of Sheba saw the wealth and wisdom and King Solomon, she exclaimed, "Happy (אַשְׁרֵי) are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!" (1 Kgs 10:8, ESV). </li><li>When wicked people flourish, others are tempted to declare them "happy." For example, Malachi (which occurs immediately before Ps 1 in the order of the Hebrew canon) says, “You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it’” (Mal 3:14-15, NIV; cf. Jer 12:1; Ps 73). </li><li>YHWH is the judge of all the earth (Gen 18:25), and the job of a just judge is to acquit the righteous/innocent (צַדִּיק) and condemn the wicked/guilty (רָשָׁע) (see Deut 25:1). </li><li>“In winnowing, grain is threshed in order to separate the kernel of grain from the husk and straw. The mixture is thrown into the air with a winnowing fork or shovel. The wind blows the light husksaway, the heavier straw falls near the edge of the threshing floor, and the grain falls back to the floor to be collected. Both the light husks and the heavier straw are referred to in the words translated ‘chaff’ in the Bible” (Ryken et al. ed. 1998, 136). </li><li>The place of YHWH's life-giving presence is depicted as a garden paradise (Gen 2; Ezek 47:12) in which the righteous grow like trees (Pss 52:10; 92:13-15; cf. Creach 1999).</li></ul>
Purpose: To persuade the hearer that following YHWH's instruction is worthwhile.
Content: It is not the wicked, but the one who follows YHWH's instruction who is "happy." This is because "YHWH cares for the way of righteous people, and the wicked's way will come to an end.
Message: In the end, it's those who follow YHWH's instruction who will flourish.
Author: Anonymous
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Translation
Click 'Expand' to the right to see our Close-but-Clear translation of Psalm 1.
1. Happy is the one who has not walked in the counsel of wicked people,
has not taken a stand in the way of sinful people,
and has not settled in the dwelling place of insolent people!
2. Instead, his delight is in YHWH's instruction,
and he meditates on his instruction day and night.
3. And he will become like a tree transplanted beside water channels
that gives its fruit in its season
and whose leaves do not wither.
And he will cause all that he does to flourish.
4. Not so the wicked people!
Instead, they will be like chaff that the wind drives away.
5. Therefore, wicked people will not stand firm in the judgment,
and sinful people [will not stand] in the group of righteous people.
6. Because YHWH cares for the way of righteous people,
and the way of wicked people will come to an end.
The Close-but-clear translation (CBC) exists to provide a window into the Hebrew text according to how we understand its syntax and word-to-phrase-level semantics. It is not intended to be used as a stand-alone translation or base text, but as a supplement to Layer-by-Layer materials to help users make full use of these resources.
For links to other translations of Psalm 1, click here.
Verse-by-Verse
Click the link to view all of Psalm 1 Verse-by-Verse, or click on an individual verse below.
