Psalm 16/Notes/Grammar.v. 2.206548

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  • Normally in the Bible, the word אֲדֹנָי is a proper noun, "the Lord," and the yod ending (ָי), although originally a first-person suffix, has lost its value as a suffix and become part of the noun itself. In this context, however, it makes the most sense to interpret the yod as a first-person suffix: my Lord (parallel with "my good" [טוֹבָתִי] in the next line).[1] This is how most translations, ancient and modern, have understood the phrase.[2]
  1. ↑ So also in Ps 35:23 – אֱלֹהַי וַאדֹנָי. Cf. Baethgen 1904, 41; Delitzsch 1996, 137.
  2. ↑ LXX: Κύριός μου; Jerome [iuxta Hebr.]: Dominus meus; Peshitta: ܡܪܝ; cf. Targum: אלהי. Modern translations that have "my Lord" include ESV, NIV, CEB, NRSVue, CSB, NJPS, NLT, CEV, GNT, REB, GNB, EÜ, HFA, BDS, S21, NFC, NVI, BTX4, etc. Translations that have "the Lord" (without a first-person suffix) include LUT, ZÜR, NBS.