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Welcome to the DRAFT Verse-by-Verse Notes for Psalm 19!

The Verse-by-Verse Notes present scholarly, exegetical materials (from all layers of analysis) in a verse-by-verse format. They often present alternative interpretive options and justification for a preferred interpretation. The Verse-by-Verse Notes are aimed at consultant-level users.

The discussion of each verse of this psalm includes the following items.

1. A link to the part of the overview video where the verse in question is discussed.
2. The verse in Hebrew and English.
3. An expanded paraphrase of the verse.
4. A grammatical diagram of the verse, which includes glosses for each word and phrase.
5. A series of notes on the verse, which contain information pertaining to the interpretation of the psalm (e.g., meaning of words and phrases, poetic features, difficult grammatical constructions, etc.).

Superscription (v. 1)

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
2a	לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃	For the Director; a Psalm; by David.

Expanded Paraphrase

v. 2 - For the Director; a Psalm; by David.

Grammatical Diagram

Speaking Sky (vv. 2–7)

It is unlikely anyone could read through Psalm 19, even for the first time, and fail to notice how verses 2-7 stand out as a distinct section in marked contrast to the following section(s) in verses 8-11(12-15). The content, syntax, line length and groupings of verses 2-7 combine to delimit it as a unit within the larger psalm. The theme of the first part (vv. 2-5) of this opening unit is the sky's witness to its Creator, with the focus then narrowing to the sun and its circuit (vv. 6-7). Both sky and sun are depicted in ways that portray God as glorious on account of his creative genius and power. The terminology and succession of declarative sentences in verses 2-7 contribute to this through a series of stating (v. 3), clarifying (v. 4a), explaining (v. 5ab), comparing (v. 6), and specifying (v. 7ab) illocutions. The resultant global speech act is that of a theological contemplation of the sky and the sun. This contemplation advances the poem into the second (vv. 8-11) of the poem's three sections suggestively through a comparison between the sun, which subjects all things to its heat (v. 7c) by its complete circuit (vv. 6-7ab), and the Law of YHWH (vv. 8-11) which is "complete" (תמימה) in its perfection.

• According to Genesis (1:1, 6-8a, 14-18, 31), God is the sovereign creator of all that exists and made everything "exceedingly good." Moreover, God demonstrated his supreme authority by designating all things' proper places and functions (Gen 1:4-5, 6-8a, 9-12, 14-18, 20-22, 24-31; e.g., the "expanse" [רקיע] is to "separate the waters which were below. . . and above" [Gen 1:6-8a], the sun to "separate between day and night" and mark time thereby [Gen 14-18]), etc.; cf. Ps 19:2-3, 5c-7).

This story triangle is to be read from bottom left, ascending the to the top and finishing on the bottom right corner.

• Though this opening unit of Psalm 19 (vv. 2-7) makes use of universal imagery (sky/expanse, day/night cycles, the sun, etc.), the superscription makes it likely that the Israelites were the intended addressees.
• The most noteworthy emotions of this unit appear to be awe at the impressive display of God's powerful artistry in the sky, confident that God created the sky, expanse, and sun, as well as appointing their roles, and being contemplative concerning the theological implications of the sky and sun.

vv. 2-5b

• Verses 2-5b constitute a subsection within the first unit (vv. 2-7) of Psalm 19.

• The two subsections (vv. 2-5b and 5c-7) are distinguished from one another by line structure and content. In verses 2-5b there are four balanced two-line groupings and the focus is on how the sky and day/night cycles witness to God's glory. By contrast, verses 5c-7 consist of two three-line groupings and focus on the sun and its circuit through the sky, but without the overt theme of witnessing.

v. 2

Watch the Overview video on v. 2.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
2a	הַשָּׁמַ֗יִם מְֽסַפְּרִ֥ים כְּבֽוֹד־אֵ֑ל	The skies are proclaiming the glory of God;
2b	וּֽמַעֲשֵׂ֥ה יָ֝דָ֗יו מַגִּ֥יד הָרָקִֽיעַ׃	and the expanse is making known the workmanship of his hands.

Expanded Paraphrase

v. 2 - The skies (in their beauty) are proclaiming the glory of God (by displaying God's creative power and genius to humanity); and the expanse (which God also created and where God determined the sun would be set) is making known the workmanship of his hands (because it further emphasizes God's creative ability) (and is seen and appreciated by people).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

Verse 2 is a neatly ordered chiasm.

• The first word of the poem, השמים ("the sky" v. 2), functions as subject to a predicative participle (מספרים) in announcing the psalm's opening theme (i.e., God's creative glory). This thematic word (השמים) is repeated in the final verse of the first unit (v. 7).
• The articles ("the" ה) in verse 2 mark the "unique referent" of both the sky (השמים) and the expanse (הרקיע) which were considered to be two distinct entities in ancient cosmological thought.
• The expanse was understood to be "the gigantic heavenly dome which was the source of the light that brooded over the heavenly ocean and of which the dome arched above the earthly globe." This outmoded cosmological concept may be why many modern translations avoid words that are overly literal (i.e., "dome" or "vault") or archaic (i.e., "firmament"). "Expanse," in the CBC, complements "the sky," with which it is aptly paralleled.
• Naming "the expanse" in addition to "the sky" develops the cosmological, and specifically celestial, focus (Gen 1:6-8, 14-15, 17, 20) which is the empirical basis for David's awe. "The vb. [רקע] describes God’s creative actions of spreading out the earth (Ps 136:6; Isa 42:5; 44:24) or the skies (שְׁחָקִים, Job 37:18)." Such a description evokes the impressive display of God's power.

• The continuous aspect of the participles in verses 2 (מספרים and מגיד) reflects the (figurative) activity carried on by the sky and expanse; that is, their very existence is a testimony to God's creative brilliance (i.e, glory).
• SDBH glosses כבוד as "honor; power; dignity," of which "power" seems to be the most apt choice in verse 2. Even so, "power" fails to include the beauty and artistry on display in the skies. For this reason "glory" features in the CBC, as well as many modern translations.

• The singular מעשה ("work") conveys well the idea of God's "hands-on" artistry in specifically creating the expanse, which has connotations of having been "beat[en/spread] out." However, the abstract "workmanship" better portrays the expanse as an exemplar of what God can do (i.e., make impossibly huge and beautiful things) which the expanse is figuratively portrayed as making known.

v. 3

Watch the Overview video on v. 3.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
3a	י֣וֹם לְ֭יוֹם יַבִּ֣יעַֽ אֹ֑מֶר	Day to day pours out speech
3b	וְלַ֥יְלָה לְּ֝לַ֗יְלָה יְחַוֶּה־דָּֽעַת׃	and night to night imparts knowledge.

Expanded Paraphrase

v. 3 - (Because God loves humanity and humanity has the capacity for communication,) day to day pours out speech (and thereby communicates a message concerning God's glory; that is, God's goodness, knowledge, wisdom, and power as Creator); and night to night imparts knowledge (in a similar manner and for the same reason).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• "Speech" (אמר) first features here in verse 3, is repeated in verse 4, and then again at the end of the psalm (v. 15), thus linking the first and last sections of Psalm 19 together with this key theme of God-glorifying communication. The concluding prayer (v. 15) that David's "speech" would be "pleasing" to YHWH points back to how the day cycle pours out "speech" that, in light of the preceding context (v. 2), can be said to glorify God.
• The fronted (non-default word order) noun phrases (יום ליום and לילה ללילה) indicate the marked topic of the clauses which highlights what they are about (viz., day/night cycles).
• There is a grammatical issue in verse 3 concerning the function of “day” (יום) and “night” (לילה). Due to the paralleled content of the verse in its context (i.e., the development of "proclaiming" [v. 2]/"pours out speech" [v. 3] and "making known" [v. 2]/"imparts knowledge" [v. 3] respectively), it appears that they are subjects jointly with ליום and ללילה respectively.
• The day/night cycles are synonymous participants in Psalm 19, along with "the sky" and "expanse" of verse 2 and the "sun" in verse 5c. They have an identical function (viz., to testify to God's glory).
• The CBC reads the day/night cycles as present habitual (i.e., present-in-the-present). The reference point for the verbs in verse 3 is determined by the semantic context; that is, the day/night cycles (intrinsically habitual events) are what communicate (i.e., "pour out speech"/"impart knowledge").
• The sky's variations throughout the day/night cycles provide humanity with knowledge about God.
• David's contemplation of the sky, expanse, and day/night cycles extends beyond a mere aesthetic appreciation of their beauty for its own sake and is evidently theological in nature. Along with the explicit mention in verse 1 that it is "the glory of God" (כבוד־אל) which the sky proclaims, elsewhere in the psalms "knowledge" (דעת) is portrayed as coming from God (Pss 94:10; 119:66; 139:6).

• The emotional character of this verse is interested, confident, and contemplative.

v. 4

Watch the Overview video on v. 4.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
4a	אֵֽין־אֹ֭מֶר וְאֵ֣ין דְּבָרִ֑ים	There is no speech and there are no words
4b	בְּ֝לִ֗י נִשְׁמָ֥ע קוֹלָֽם׃	whose voice is not heard.

Expanded Paraphrase

v. 4 - (Because God loves humanity and has enabled his created order to convey something of his glory,) there is no speech and there are no words whose voice is not heard (which means that the sky's witness to God is intelligible to rational beings).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The tense of the nominal clauses in verse 4a is inferable from the wider context (vv. 2-3, 5ab). Their "action" of communicating information has a present reference point, simultaneous relative tense, and is continuous in aspect.

• On account of the context of verses 2-5b, it seems best to render verse 4b as an asyndetic relative clause (see CBC). This reading is supported by the thematic unity and coherence of verses 2-7, as this depends on the consistent use of its vocabulary (e.g., אמר) which the relative clause enables. For a detailed treatment of the issue, see Exegetical Issue
• The marked word order of the participle clause in verse 4b (whose voice is not heard) appears to be for poetic/ironic effect (viz., the clause employs three negatives to affirm something). The rarer negative particle בלי is the third and final negative in verse 4, after the twice repeated אין (there is no), which affirms the comprehensive efficacy of the sky's witness to God's glory.
• "Whose voice" (קולם) as a verbal notion borrows from context (i.e., witnessing), however, the construct relationship is perhaps better classified as relating an "entity" (voice) with an "origin" (the antecedent)

• As a speech act, verse 4 clarifies the universal intelligibility of what can be inferred from contemplating the sky.
• As with verses 3, the emotional tenor of verse 4 is that of being confident about the communicative nature of the sky and contemplative regarding the implications of its universal intelligibility.

Legends

Grammatical diagram

For legend, click "Expand" to the right

Grammatical Term	Definition	Diagram	Example
Clausal Additions
Subject	The subject performs the action of the active verb or receives the action of a passive verb. With intransitive verbs	Indicated at the beginning of the main clausal line, and followed by a vertical line that crosses over the main clause line (separating the subject from the predicate).
Direct Object	Object that receives the direct action of a (transitive) verb	Indicate with a vertical line up from main clausal line
Predicate adjective/ Subject complement	A word used with a linking verb (ex. "to be"), renaming or restating the subject. Can be a whole prepositional phrase.	Indicate with a vertical slanted line up from the main clausal line. It can be on a stand if it is an embedded clause.
Object Complement	Word following a direct object to state what it has become.	Indicate with a vertical slanted line up from the main clausal line.
Infinitives	Can be subject, adverbial, or an infinitive construct.	Indicate with double vertical lines that cross the main clausal line. If used adverbially (ie. an embedded clause), place on a stand.
Participles	A verbal noun/adjective that can be used in three positions: (1) substantival; (2) attributive; (3) predicative.	Indicate with a round vertical line. Substantival participles are placed on a stand (they are embedded). Attributive participles are placed with a rounded line underneath what is modified.
Modifiers
Adjectives	A word modifying a noun to indicate quality, quantity, extent, or differentiating something from something else.	Indicate with a slanted line down from what is modified.
Adverbs	A word that modifies a verb, adverb, adjective, prepositional phrase, clause, or sentence to express a relation (ex. manner, quality, or time).	Indicate with a slanted line down from what is modified.
Construct relationships	Construction can express many different relationships between two (or more) nouns. English grammarians call this construction a ‘Construct’ (our term) or ‘Genitive’ phrase; Hebrew grammarians call it smīḵūt (סְמִיכוּת).	Indicate with a stair-step down from the modified word/clause/phrase.
Prepositional phrases	A phrase that consists of a preposition and its object and has adjectival or adverbial value	Indicate with a slanted vertical line connecting to a new clause.
Connectives	(1) Coordinating conjunctions join together words or word groups of equal grammatical rank (2) Subordinating conjunctions join a main clause and a clause which does not form a complete sentence by itself.	Indicate with a dashed line down from a vertical line marker.
Embedded clause	A clause inside another clause which can include substantival participles, adverbial infinitives, and prepositional phrases.	Indicate using stilts.
Particles
Subordinating particle	Indicates a dependent clause.	Indicate with a dashed line down from the antecedent to the pronoun.
Apposition	A word that is functioning as an explanatory equivalent as another in the sentence	Place on a line apart from the diagram but next to the word it is the equivalent of with an equal sign in between.
Vocative	Indicating a person being addressed (usually with a 2nd person verb)	Place on a line apart from the diagram next to the '()' indicating the gapped subject an equal sign in between.

Master Diagram

Shapes and colours on grammatical diagram

For legend, click "Expand" to the right

	Prepositional phrase	Construct chain	Construct chain within a prepositional phrase	Phrase-level waw	Article and כֹּל
Diagram Shading
Definition	- A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition plus its object. The phrase usually modifies the clause or another constituent in the clause.	- A construct chain, also called a 'genitive phrase', is a grammatical encoding of the relationship 'A of B,' in which A is a phonologically modified noun (in the construct state), and B is a phonologically unmodified noun (the absolute state).	- Some construct chains occur within prepositional phrases	- A waw conjunction can join units of all sizes. Phrase level waw join units at the word or phrase level (i.e., below the level of the clause).	- Definite articles tell you something about the identifiability or inclusiveness about the word it is attached to - כֹּל is a quantifier that tells you about the scope of a word it is attached to

Expanded paraphrase

For legend, click "Expand" to the right

• Close but Clear (CBC) translation
• Assumptions which provide the most salient background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences

Bibliography

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deClaissé-Walford, Nancy, Rolf A. Jacobson and Beth LaNeel Tanner. 2014. The Book of Psalms. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

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