Psalm 44 Grammar

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About the Grammar Layer

The grammar layer visually represents the grammar and syntax of each clause. It also displays alternative interpretations of the grammar. (For more information, click "Expand" to the right.)

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The grammatical diagram provides a way to visualise how different parts of a sentence work together. It represents the “surface-level” grammar, or morphosyntax, of a sentence. Morphosyntax includes both the form of words (morphology) and their placement in the sentence (syntax). This approach to visualising the text, based on the Reed-Kellogg diagramming method, places the grammatical subject in one slot, the verb in another slot, and modifiers and connectives in other slots.

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Grammar Visuals for Psalm 44

The grammar layer visually represents the grammar and syntax of each clause. It also displays alternative interpretations of the grammar. (For more information, click "Grammar Legend" below.)

Grammar Legend

Visualization	Description
	The clause is represented by a horizontal line with a vertical line crossing through it, separating the subject and the verb.
	The object is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause. Infinitives and participles may also have objects. If the direct object marker (d.o.m.) is present in the text, it appears in the diagram immediately before the object. If the grammar includes a secondary object, the secondary object will appear after the object, separated by another vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause.
	The subject complement follows the verb (often omitted in Hebrew) separated with a line leaning toward the right. It can be a noun, a whole prepositional phrase or an adjective. The later two appear modifying the complement slot.
	When a noun further describes or renames the object, it is an object complement. The object complement follows the object separated by a line leaning toward the right.
	In a construct chain, the noun in the absolute form modifies the noun in the construct form.
	Participles are indicated in whatever position in the clause they are in with a curved line before the participle. Participles can occur as nominal, where they take the place of a noun, predicate, where they take the place of a verb, or attributive, where they modify a noun or a verb similar to adjectives or adverbs.
	Infinitives are indicated by two parallel lines before the infinitive that cross the horizontal line. Infinitive constructs can appear as the verb in an embedded clause. Infinitive absolutes typically appear as an adverbial.
	The subject of the infinitive often appears in construct to it. In this situation, the infinitive and subject are diagrammed as a construct chain.
	The object of the infinitive is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the infinitival clause.
	Modifiers are represented by a solid diagonal line from the word they modify. They can attach to verbs, adjectives, or nouns. If modifying a verb or adjective, it is an adverb, but if modifying a noun, it is an adjective, a quantifier, or a definite article. If an adverb is modifying a modifier, it is connected to the modifier by a small dashed horizontal line.
	Adverbials are indicated by a dashed diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. These are nouns or infinitives that function adverbially (modifying either a verb or a participle), but are not connected by a preposition.
	Prepositional phrases are indicated by a solid diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. The preposition is to the left of the diagonal line and the dependent of the preposition is on the horizontal line. They can modify verbs (adverbial) or nouns (adjectival).
	Embedded clauses are indicated by a "stand" that looks like an upside-down Y. The stand rests in the grammatical position that the clause fulfills. Extending from the top of the stand is a horizontal line for the clause. If introduced by a complementizer, for example כִּי, the complementizer appears before the stand. Embedded clauses can stand in the place of any noun.
	When clauses are joined by a conjunction, they are compound clauses. These clauses are connected by a vertical dotted line. The conjunction is placed next to the dotted line.
	Within a clause, if two or more parts of speech are compound, these are represented by angled lines reaching to the two compound elements connected by a solid vertical line. If a conjunction is used, the conjunction appears to the left of the vertical line. Almost all parts of speech can be compound.
	Subordinate clauses are indicated by a dashed line coming from the line dividing the subject from the predicate in the independent clause and leading to the horizontal line of the subordinate clause. The subordinating conjunction appears next to the dashed line.
	Relative clauses also have a dashed line, but the line connects the antecedent to the horizontal line of the relative clause. The relative particle appears next to the dashed line.
	Sentence fragments are represented by a horizontal line with no vertical lines. They are most frequently used in superscriptions to psalms. They are visually similar to discourse particles and vocatives, but most often consist of a noun phrase (that does not refer to a person or people group) or a prepositional phrase.
	In the body of the psalm, a horizontal line by itself (with no modifiers or vertical lines) can indicate either a discourse particle or a vocative (if the word is a noun referring to a person or people group). A discourse particle is a conjunction or particle that functions at the discourse level, not at the grammatical level. Vocatives can appear either before or after the clause addressed to them, depending on the word order of the Hebrew.
	Apposition is indicated by an equal sign equating the two noun phrases. This can occur with a noun in any function in a sentence.

Hebrew text colors
Default preferred text	The default preferred reading is represented by a black line. The text of the MT is represented in bold black text.
Dispreferred reading	The dispreferred reading is an alternative interpretation of the grammar, represented by a pink line. The text of the MT is represented in bold pink text, while emendations and revocalizations retain their corresponding colors (see below).
Emended text	Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold blue text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
Revocalized text	Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold purple text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
(Supplied elided element)	Any element that is elided in the Hebrew text is represented by bold gray text in parentheses.
( )	The position of a non-supplied elided element is represented by empty black parentheses. For example, this would be used in the place of the noun when an adjective functions substantivally or in the place of the antecedent when a relative clause has an implied antecedent.

Gloss text colors
Gloss used in the CBC	The gloss used in the Close-but-Clear translation is represented by bold blue text.
Literal gloss >> derived meaning	A gloss that shows the more literal meaning as well as the derived figurative meaning is represented in blue text with arrows pointing towards the more figurative meaning. The gloss used in the CBC will be bolded.
Supplied elided element	The gloss for a supplied elided element is represented in bold gray text.

v. 1

• For the phrase לַמְנַצֵּחַ, see Lamnaṣṣēaḥ.

v. 2

• The object of שָׁמַעְנוּ: While the qal verb שׁמע can occasionally be used intransitively (e.g., Gen 35:22; Num 12:2; Deut 6:4), in such instances the object of the verb (i.e., the content which is heard) is implied by the context. While it is separated from שָׁמַעְנוּ by an intervening clause, the present context suggests that פֹּעַל serves as the object of both שָׁמַעְנוּ and סִפְּרוּ.

Another possibility is the parenthesis of אֲבוֹתֵ֥ינוּ סִפְּרוּ־לָ֑נוּ, as read in the CSB: We have heard with our ears— our ancestors have told us— the work you accomplished in their days.

• Textual note on בִּימֵי: Some Hebrew manuscripts read כימי instead of בִּימֵי, but this alternative is not reflected in modern translations.

v. 3

• The function of יָדְךָ: The LXX renders v. 3a with יָדְךָ as the subject of a third-person verb, ἡ χείρ σου ἔθνη ἐξωλέθρευσεν ("your hand destroyed nations," NETS). It is possible that the LXX understands יָדְךָ, as a metonymy for God, as the subject of the 2ms verb הוֹרַשְׁתָּ, with agreement between the verb and the 2ms pronominal suffix (JM §151c). However, it is more likely that יָדְךָ functions as an adverbial accusative (i.e., "You dispossessed the nations by your hand"; cf. GKC §144l–m), as reflected in most modern translations.
• 3mp pronominal suffixes: There is some ambiguity as to the referent of the 3mp pronominal suffixes of וַתִּטָּעֵם and וַתְּשַׁלְּחֵם. Most modern translations interpret them as referring to the forefathers of v. 2 (so NIV, ESV, NRSV, NET, CSB). This would require reading the wayyiqtol verbs as adversative ("but them you planted... but them you set free...," NRSV) or purpose/resultative ("in order to plant them... in order to settle them...," CSB). Alternatively, a temporally sequential reading of the wayyiqtols would suggest that the suffixes refer to the גּוֹיִם and לְאֻמִּים (so NASB95, LSB, KJV). For an in-depth discussion, see Lexical Semantics and Participant Analysis.

v. 4

• Prepositions: The preposition בְּ of בְחַרְבָּם indicates the means or instrument by which the land is (not) possessed (GKC §119o). The לְ preposition of לָּמוֹ indicates a dative of advantage, expressing the party to whose advantage הוֹשִׁיעָה comes (JM §133d).

v. 5

• Is הוּא a copula or pronoun? If הוּא in this verse is functioning as a pronoun, then this would imply that אַתָּה would be a dislocated item. However, the אַתָּה in this verse is not left-dislocated ("as for you..."), as it does not agree in person with הוּא, which would be the resumptive pronoun in a left-dislocated construction (Holmstedt and Jones 2014, 59). Rendering הוּא as a resumptive would result in the difficult, "You, he is my king..." It is possible to understand the clause as a right-dislocated construction ("you are he, my king"; so Hengstenberg 1863, 113). However, this would result in an anaphoric pronoun הוּא that does not have a clear antecedent (Holmstedt and Jones 2014, 59). As such, הוּא is most likely functioning as a copula in this context (i.e., "you are my king"). It also serves to disambiguate the sentence as a verbless clause, as opposed to a vocative expression ("you, my king, O God"; BHRG §36.1.1.2[4]). For similar constructions, see 2 Sam 7:28; 1 Kgs 19:15; Neh 9:7.
• Textual note on אֱלֹהִים and צַוֵּה: LXX reads ὁ θεός μου ὁ ἐντελλόμενος τὰς σωτηρίας ιακωβ ("... my God, he who commands acts of deliverance for Iakob," NETS). This reading presupposes a division of the consonantal text into אֱלֹהָי מְצַוֶּה instead of the MT's אֱלֹהִים צַוֵּה. For more on this issue, see The Text and Meaning of Ps. 44:5.
• The plural form of יְשׁוּעוֹת: The plural form is often used in the HB to express abstract concepts. Originally, these plurals of abstraction likely expressed concrete manifestations of the abstract concept, and eventually developed into expressions of the abstraction itself (JM §136g). Thus, יְשׁוּעוֹת indicates the concept "help/salvation," as opposed to instances of "helps/salvations."

v. 6

• Preposition בְּ: The prepositions of בְּךָ and בְּשִׁמְךָ indicate the means or instrument by which Israel's enemies are gored and trod down (GKC §119o).
• Pronominal suffix of קָמֵינוּ: While pronominal suffixes often indicate an accusative (i.e., direct object), they can also indicate datives with certain verbs (JM §125ba). This is the case here, where the 1cp suffix indicates a dative of disadvantage ("against us") for the intransitive qal participle קָמִים.

v. 7

v. 8

v. 9

v. 10

v. 11

• Textual note on מִנִּי־צָר: LXX includes a possessive pronoun that is not present in MT (παρὰ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἡμῶν). This reading is reflected in a few modern translations (NLT, GNB, NCV). The inclusion of the pronoun could be explained as having been supplied by the LXX translators to smooth out the rendering, and thus the MT reading is preferred.

v. 12

v. 13

• The grammar of רִבִּיתָ בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם: Some modern translations treat רִבִּיתָ as an intransitive verb (i.e., "you have not profited/increased"), with the prepositional phrase בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם functioning as an adverbial modifier, indicating means (i.e., "by their price"; so NASB, NIV, CSB, KJV). On the other hand, it is possible that the preposition בְּ of בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם introduces the object of the transitive verb רִבִּיתָ (DCH, 5:217; 7:397). If so, then the verbal idea here is that of inflating the purchase price (so ESV, NRSV, NET). A mediating position would be to see רִבִּיתָ בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם as an idiomatic expression, "to make a profit" (so HALOT, 1176). However, if this were the case, then translating בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם adverbially (cf. CSB, "you make no profit by selling them") would be redundant.

While, in rare cases, the verb רבה can be used intransitively to refer to qualitative (as opposed to quantitative) greatness, this typically occurs in the qal stem (Job 33:12; 1 Kgs 5:10). In the piel stem (as here in 44:13), the verb is transitive in all its other occurrences (Judg 9:29; Ezek 19:2; Lam 2:22). Thus, reading רִבִּיתָ as transitive (with בִּמְחִירֵיהֶם indicating the object) is preferred.

v. 14

v. 15

• Textual note on בַּלְאֻמִּים: BHS, in reproducing the text of Leningradensis (L), reads בַּל־אֻמִּים ("not peoples"?) in v. 15. Most Hebrew manuscripts (including the Aleppo and Sassoon Codices) read בַּלְאֻמִּים ("among the peoples") instead. This reading is also supported by the LXX and Targum.

It is possible that L has mis-divided the original בלאמים into בַּל־אֻמִּים (so Goldingay 2007, 2:36). However, as the identical construction בַּל־אֻמִּים also occurs in Pss 57:10; 108:4; and 149:7 of L, if this were indeed a scribal error, it would be an unusually common one that was made.

The reading of בַּל־אֻמִּים makes little sense syntactically, as the negative particle בַּל is not elsewhere found with substantives (Barbiero and Pavan 2012, 599). It is also difficult contextually, unless בַּל־אֻמִּים means "not a people" in a pejorative sense (cf. בְּלֹא־עָם in Deut 32:21). It is possible that this pejorative sense formed the motivation for an intentional re-vocalization of the text of L. The reading of בַּל־אֻמִּים could be explained as a midrashic play on words by the scribe of L, in order to make allusion to texts like Deut 32:21 (Ibid, 603–604).

vv. 16-17

v. 18

• Pronominal suffix of בָּאַתְנוּ: While pronominal suffixes often indicate an accusative (i.e., direct object), they can also indicate datives with certain verbs (JM §125ba; see also Pss 36.12; 119.41, 77; Prov. 28.22; Job 22.21). This is the case here, where the 1cp suffix indicates location ("to us") with the intransitive qal of בוא.
• Clausal syntax: The negated clauses in this verse could be construed as subordinated circumstantial clauses, perhaps with a concessive force (so GKC §156f). However, in the absence of a subordinating conjunction, the parallel uses of qatal verbs throughout this verse suggest viewing these clauses as disjunctive, rather than subordinate (cf. Davidson 1902, §152).

v. 19

• Grammatical agreement of וַתֵּט and אֲשֻׁרֵינוּ: Feminine plural nouns of things (or animals) can sometimes function as collectives, and thus take a feminine singular verb, as here (JM §150g).
• Negative particle לֹא: Although the negative particle לֹא only occurs in the first half of this verse, its force is extended to the second, juxtaposed clause (JM §160q).

v. 20

• Textual issue on תַּנִּים: Some Hebrew manuscripts, along with the Syriac, read תנין "sea monster" instead of תַּנִּים. LXX reads κακώσεως "ill-treatment" (NETS), though it should be noted that LXX tends to be inconsistent in its rendering of תַּנִּים (cf. Isa 13:22; 34:13; 35:7; Jer 10:22), and appears to translate it as δρακόντων "dragons" (NETS) in Jer 9:10. While some have suggested that תַּנִּים itself can mean "sea monster" (deClaisse-Walford, et al 2014, 411n11; cf. DCH), most modern translations render the term as "jackal." Taken with the construct מְקוֹם, "jackal" makes better sense here, as "the place of the sea monster" would imply the sea as a setting, which does not seem to fit the present context.
• Preposition בְּ: The preposition of בְצַלְמָוֶת indicates the instrument of covering (GKC §119q).

v. 21-22

v. 23

v. 24

v. 25

• The interrogative לָמָּה: Interrogative particles may at times be found governing multiple clauses (cf. Pss 2:1–2; 4:3; 13:3), which appears to be the case here in v. 25. On the one hand, the lack of לָמָּה in v. 25b could be viewed as an ellipsis that helps to balance the meter of the poetic lines (cf. Tsumura 2017, 193). Perhaps a better explanation is that לָמָּה is functioning as a double-duty word that vertically modifies both clauses at the same time (Ibid).

v. 26

v. 27

• The form of עֶזְרָתָה: The תָה◌ָ- ending of the noun עֶזְרָה "help" could be construed as a locative-ה ("to [our] help"). However, it is more likely that the ending has been added to avoid the contact of two stressed syllables (in this case, עֶזְרָ֣ה לָּ֑נוּ; JM §93j). Nevertheless, in the present context, the adverbial accusative עֶזְרָתָה would have a similar sense to that of the locative, in that it indicates the goal of a directed activity ("to/for [our] help"; IBHS §10.2.2b).

Bibliography

Barbiero, Gianni, and Marco Pavan. 2012. "Ps 44,15; 57,10; 108,4; 149,7: בלאמים or בל־אמים?" ZAW 124:598–605.

Davidson, A. B. 1902. Introductory Hebrew Grammar Hebrew Syntax. 3d ed. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

Goldingay, John. 2007. Psalms. Vol. 2. Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic.