Psalm 29 Exegetical Issues

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Psalm 29/Exegetical Issues
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Exegetical Issues Video

Introduction to Exegetical Issues

Presented here are the top three Exegetical Issues that any interpreter of the psalm—whether they’re reading the text in Hebrew or looking at a number of translations—are likely to encounter. These issues usually involve textual criticism, grammar, lexical semantics, verbal semantics, and/or phrase-level semantics, though they sometimes involve higher-level layers as well.

Exegetical Issues for Psalm 29

The construct phrase קוֹל יְהוָה occurs seven times in Psalm 29. Modern translations generally agree that the phrase means "the voice of YHWH" and that it functions as the subject of each clause in which it occurs. It is possible however, as both modern scholars and ancient translations have suggested, that the phrase functions syntactically not as the subject of the clauses in which it occurs but as an exclamation.
Psalm 29:6 is a "true crux interpretum."[1] Translations differ on how they understand the grammar and line division of this verse.
The interpretation of Psalm 29:7 involves two main issues: (1) lexical semantics—what is the meaning of the verb חֹצֵב?; and (2) grammar—what is the syntactic function of the phrase לַהֲבוֹת אֵשׁ?
There is a textual issue in v. 9ab that affects the meaning of the verse. Instead of deer giving birth (v. 9a), many translations mention oak trees whirling. And instead of forests being stripped of their leaves (v. 9b), some translations mention mountain goats giving birth.
  1. ↑ Basevi 1990, 29.