Psalm 34 Discourse
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Psalm 34
Please note: Resources for Psalm 34 are in the process of being reformatted for visual consistency and improved functionality.
About the Discourse Layer
Our Discourse Layer includes four additional layers of analysis:
- Participant analysis
- Macrosyntax
- Speech act analysis
- Emotional analysis
For more information on our method of analysis, click the expandable explanation button at the beginning of each layer.
Participant Analysis
Participant Analysis focuses on the characters in the psalm and asks, “Who are the main participants (or characters) in this psalm, and what are they saying or doing? It is often helpful for understanding literary structure, speaker identification, etc.
For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Participant Analysis Creator Guidelines.
There are 4 participants/characters in Psalm 34:
| David |
| "Poor man" (v. 7) |
| David's Soul |
| The Afflicted |
| "Holy ones" (v. 10) |
| "Children" (v. 12) |
| The Righteous |
| "Those who fear [YHWH]" (v. 8) |
| "The man who seeks refuge in [YHWH]" (v. 9) |
| "Those who seek YHWH" (v. 11) |
| "The person who desires life" (v. 13) |
| "The broken-hearted" (v. 19) |
| "The crushed in spirit" (v. 19) |
| "[YHWH's] servants" (v. 23) |
| The Righteous One's Body |
| "[The righteous one's] lips" (v. 14) |
| YHWH |
| YHWH's Body |
| "YHWH's face" (v. 17*) |
| "YHWH's eyes" (v. 16*) |
| "YHWH's ears" (v. 16*) |
| YHWH's Angel |
| Enemies |
| "Wicked person" (v. 22) |
| "Those who hate a righteous person" (v. 22) |
| Young lions |
| Abimelek |
- Young lions: Lions are a metaphor for those who don't fear YHWH. (See [Psalm 34 Story Behind | Story Behind]).
- Non-Agentive Participants - YHWH's Body / The Righteous One's Body: While not agentive participants per se, included in this list of participants are inanimate entities personified as performing relational actions, or entities representing a metonymy for an agentive participant.
- The Afflicted vs. the Righteous: While there is significant overlap between these two participant sets (hence their grouping as related sets), the distinction made here is between the psalmist's addressee (the Afflicted) and the hypothetical person whom the addressee is encouraged to emulated (the Righteous).
| Hebrew | Line | English |
|---|---|---|
| לְדָוִ֗ד בְּשַׁנּוֹת֣וֹ אֶת־טַ֭עְמוֹ לִפְנֵ֣י אֲבִימֶ֑לֶךְ וַֽ֝יְגָרֲשֵׁ֗הוּ וַיֵּלַֽךְ׃ | 1 | By David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelek, and Abimelek drove him out, and he went. |
| אֲבָרֲכָ֣ה אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה בְּכָל־עֵ֑ת | 2a | I will bless YHWH at all times. |
| תָּ֝מִ֗יד תְּֽהִלָּת֥וֹ בְּפִֽי׃ | 2b | His praise will continually be in my mouth. |
| בַּ֭יהוָה תִּתְהַלֵּ֣ל נַפְשִׁ֑י | 3a | My soul boasts in YHWH. |
| יִשְׁמְע֖וּ עֲנָוִ֣ים וְיִשְׂמָֽחוּ׃ | 3b | May the afflicted hear and be glad! |
| גַּדְּל֣וּ לַיהוָ֣ה אִתִּ֑י | 4a | Extol YHWH with me, |
| וּנְרוֹמְמָ֖ה שְׁמ֣וֹ יַחְדָּֽו׃ | 4b | and let us exalt his name together! |
| דָּרַ֣שְׁתִּי אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה וְעָנָ֑נִי | 5a | I sought YHWH and he answered me |
| וּמִכָּל־מְ֝גוּרוֹתַ֗י הִצִּילָֽנִי׃ | 5b | and he rescued me from all my terrors. |
| הַבִיטו אֵלָ֣יו וּנְהָרוּ | 6a | Gaze at him and glow, |
| וּפְנֵיכֶם אַל־יֶחְפָּֽרוּ׃ | 6b | and do not let your faces be ashamed! |
| זֶ֤ה עָנִ֣י קָ֭רָא וַיהוָ֣ה שָׁמֵ֑עַ | 7a | This is a poor man who called out and YHWH heard |
| וּמִכָּל־צָ֝רוֹתָ֗יו הוֹשִׁיעֽוֹ׃ | 7b | and saved him from all his troubles. |
| חֹנֶ֤ה מַלְאַךְ־יְהוָ֓ה | 8a | YHWH’s angel encamps |
| סָ֘בִ֤יב לִֽירֵאָ֗יו וַֽיְחַלְּצֵֽם׃ | 8b | all around those who fear him and he delivers them. |
| טַעֲמ֣וּ וּ֭רְאוּ כִּי־ט֣וֹב יְהוָ֑ה | 9a | Taste and see that YHWH is good! |
| אַֽשְׁרֵ֥י הַ֝גֶּ֗בֶר יֶחֱסֶה־בּֽוֹ׃ | 9b | Happy is the man who seeks refuge in him. |
| יְר֣אוּ אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה קְדֹשָׁ֑יו | 10a | Fear YHWH, you holy ones of his! |
| כִּי־אֵ֥ין מַ֝חְס֗וֹר לִירֵאָֽיו׃ | 10b | For those who fear him have no lack. |
| כְּ֭פִירִים רָשׁ֣וּ וְרָעֵ֑בוּ | 11a | Young lions have suffered want and been hungry, |
| וְדֹרְשֵׁ֥י יְ֝הוָ֗ה לֹא־יַחְסְר֥וּ כָל־טֽוֹב׃ | 11b | but those who seek YHWH will not lack any good. |
| לְֽכוּ־בָ֭נִים שִׁמְעוּ־לִ֑י | 12a | Come, children! Listen to me! |
| יִֽרְאַ֥ת יְ֝הוָ֗ה אֲלַמֶּדְכֶֽם׃ | 12b | I will teach you the fear of YHWH. |
| מִֽי־הָ֭אִישׁ הֶחָפֵ֣ץ חַיִּ֑ים | 13a | Who is the person who desires life, |
| אֹהֵ֥ב יָ֝מִ֗ים לִרְא֥וֹת טֽוֹב׃ | 13b | wants to live a long time, [who loves] to see good? |
| נְצֹ֣ר לְשׁוֹנְךָ֣ מֵרָ֑ע | 14a | Keep your tongue from evil |
| וּ֝שְׂפָתֶ֗יךָ מִדַּבֵּ֥ר מִרְמָֽה׃ | 14b | and your lips from speaking deceit! |
| ס֣וּר מֵ֭רָע וַעֲשֵׂה־ט֑וֹב | 15a | Turn away from evil and do good! |
| בַּקֵּ֖שׁ שָׁל֣וֹם וְרָדְפֵֽהוּ׃ | 15b | Seek peace and pursue it! |
| עֵינֵ֣י יְ֭הוָה אֶל־צַדִּיקִ֑ים | 16a | YHWH’s eyes are directed towards the righteous, |
| וְ֝אָזְנָ֗יו אֶל־שַׁוְעָתָֽם׃ | 16b | and his ears are attentive to their cries for help. |
| פְּנֵ֣י יְ֭הוָה בְּעֹ֣שֵׂי רָ֑ע | 17a | YHWH’s face is against those who do evil, |
| לְהַכְרִ֖ית מֵאֶ֣רֶץ זִכְרָֽם׃ | 17b | so as to remove the memory of them from the earth. |
| צָעֲק֣וּ וַיהוָ֣ה שָׁמֵ֑עַ | 18a | They called for help, and YHWH heard, |
| וּמִכָּל־צָ֝רוֹתָ֗ם הִצִּילָֽם׃ | 18b | and he delivered them from all their troubles. |
| קָר֣וֹב יְ֭הוָה לְנִשְׁבְּרֵי־לֵ֑ב | 19a | YHWH is near to the broken-hearted |
| וְֽאֶת־דַּכְּאֵי־ר֥וּחַ יוֹשִֽׁיעַ׃ | 19b | and he saves the crushed in spirit. |
| רַ֭בּוֹת רָע֣וֹת צַדִּ֑יק | 20a | The hardships of the righteous are many, |
| וּ֝מִכֻּלָּ֗ם יַצִּילֶ֥נּוּ יְהוָֽה׃ | 20b | but YHWH rescues him from all of them. |
| שֹׁמֵ֥ר כָּל־עַצְמוֹתָ֑יו | 21a | He protects all his bones. |
| אַחַ֥ת מֵ֝הֵ֗נָּה לֹ֣א נִשְׁבָּֽרָה׃ | 21b | Not one of them has broken. |
| תְּמוֹתֵ֣ת רָשָׁ֣ע רָעָ֑ה | 22a | Hardship finishes off a wicked person, |
| וְשֹׂנְאֵ֖י צַדִּ֣יק יֶאְשָֽׁמוּ׃ | 22b | and those who hate a righteous person bear their guilt |
| פּוֹדֶ֣ה יְ֭הוָה נֶ֣פֶשׁ עֲבָדָ֑יו | 23a | YHWH redeems his servants’ lives, |
| וְלֹ֥א יֶ֝אְשְׁמ֗וּ כָּֽל־הַחֹסִ֥ים בּֽוֹ׃ | 23b | and no one who seeks refuge in him will ever bear guilt. |
Participant Relations Diagram
The relationships among the participants may be abstracted and summarized as follows:
Participant Analysis Summary Distribution
This resource is forthcoming.
Macrosyntax
Macrosyntax Diagram
| Macrosyntax legend | |
|---|---|
| Vocatives | Vocatives are indicated by purple text. |
| Discourse marker | Discourse markers (such as כִּי, הִנֵּה, לָכֵן) are indicated by orange text. |
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The scope governed by the discourse marker is indicated by a dashed orange bracket connecting the discourse marker to its scope. |
 |
The preceding discourse grounding the discourse marker is indicated by a solid orange bracket encompassing the relevant clauses. |
| Subordinating conjunction | The subordinating conjunction is indicated by teal text. |
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Subordination is indicated by a solid teal bracket connecting the subordinating conjunction with the clause to which it is subordinate. |
| Coordinating conjunction | The coordinating conjunction is indicated by blue text. |
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Coordination is indicated by a solid blue line connecting the coordinating clauses. |
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Coordination without an explicit conjunction is indicated by a dashed blue line connecting the coordinated clauses. |
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Marked topic is indicated by a black dashed rounded rectangle around the marked words. |
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The scope of the activated topic is indicated by a black dashed bracket encompassing the relevant clauses. |
| Marked focus or thetic sentence | Marked focus (if one constituent) or thetic sentences[1] are indicated by bold text. |
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Frame setters[2] are indicated by a solid gray rounded rectangle around the marked words. |
| [blank line] | Discourse discontinuity is indicated by a blank line. |
| [indentation] | Syntactic subordination is indicated by indentation. |
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Direct speech is indicated by a solid black rectangle surrounding all relevant clauses. |
| (text to elucidate the meaning of the macrosyntactic structures) | Within the CBC, any text elucidating the meaning of macrosyntax is indicated in gray text inside parentheses. |
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
(Click diagram to enlarge)
This resource is in the process of reformatting. To view the notes on the Macrosyntax of Psalm 34, click here.
Speech Act Analysis
The Speech Act layer presents the text in terms of what it does, following the findings of Speech Act Theory. It builds on the recognition that there is more to communication than the exchange of propositions. Speech act analysis is particularly important when communicating cross-culturally, and lack of understanding can lead to serious misunderstandings, since the ways languages and cultures perform speech acts varies widely.
For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Speech Act Analysis Creator Guidelines.
Summary Visual
Speech Act Analysis Chart
The following chart is scrollable (left/right; up/down).
| Verse | Hebrew | CBC | Sentence type | Illocution (general) | Illocution with context | Macro speech act | Intended perlocution (Think) | Intended perlocution (Feel) | Intended perlocution (Do) |
| Verse number and poetic line | Hebrew text | English translation | Declarative, Imperative, or Interrogative Indirect Speech Act: Mismatch between sentence type and illocution type |
Assertive, Directive, Expressive, Commissive, or Declaratory Indirect Speech Act: Mismatch between sentence type and illocution type |
More specific illocution type with paraphrased context | Illocutionary intent (i.e. communicative purpose) of larger sections of discourse These align with the "Speech Act Summary" headings |
What the speaker intends for the address to think | What the speaker intends for the address to feel | What the speaker intends for the address to do |
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
Emotional Analysis
This layer explores the emotional dimension of the biblical text and seeks to uncover the clues within the text itself that are part of the communicative intent of its author. The goal of this analysis is to chart the basic emotional tone and/or progression of the psalm.
For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Emotional Analysis Creator Guidelines.
Emotional Analysis Chart
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
Summary Visual
(Click visual to enlarge).
Bibliography
- Allegro, John Marco. 1955.“Uses of the Semitic Demonstrative Element Z in Hebrew.” Vetus Testamentum, vol. 5, no. 3 July: pp. 309–12.
- Baethgen, Friedrich. 1904. Die Psalmen. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht.
- Bratcher, Robert G., and William D. Reyburn. 1991. A Handbook on Psalms. UBS Handbook Series. New York: United Bible Societies.
- Ceresko, Anthony. 1985. “The ABCs of Wisdom in Psalm Xxxiv.” VT 35: 99–104.
- Craigie, Peter C. 2004. Psalms 1–50. WBC 19. Waco, TX: Word.
- Delitzsch, Franz. Biblical Commentary on the Psalms: Vol. 1. Translated by Eaton David. Vol. 1. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1883.
- Eriksson, Lars Olov. 1991. “Come, Children, Listen to Me!”: Psalm 34 in the Hebrew Bible and in Early Christian Writings. Coniectanea Biblica 32. Stockholm: Almquist & Wiksell.
- Fokkelman, J.P. 2003. Major Poems of the Hebrew Bible: At the Interface of Prosody and Structural Analysis (Vol 3: The Remaining 65 Psalms). Vol. 3. Studia Semitica Neerlandica. Van Gorcum.
- Freedman, David Noel. 1992. "Patterns in Psalms 25 and 34", in Priests, Prophets, and Scribes JSOT 149, Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press.
- Gentry, Peter. 2013. "The Meaning of 'Holy' in the Old Testament." Bibliotheca Sacra 170, no. 677-680: 400-417.
- Goldingay, John. 2006. Psalms: Psalms 1–41. Vol. 1. BCOT. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006.
- Gunkel, Hermann. Die Psalmen. 4th ed. Göttinger Handkommentar Zum Alten Testament 2. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1926.
- Hossfeld, Frank-Lothar, and Erich Zenger. 1993. Die Psalmen I: Psalm 1–50. Neue Echter Bibel. Würzburg: Echter.
- Hupfeld, Hermann. 1868. Die Psalmen. Vol. 2. Gotha: Friedrich Andreas Perthes.
- Jenni, Ernst. 1992. Die Hebräischen Präpositionen Band 1: Die Präposition Beth. Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer.
- ___. 2000. Die Hebräischen Präpositionen Band 3: Die Präposition Lamed. Stuttgart: Verlag W. Kohlhammer.
- Kimhi, David. 1900. The Book of Psalms, with commentary. Berlin, Schocken.
- Krohn, Rachel. 2021. “A Syntactic Description of Biblical Hebrew Poetry: The Revised and Extended Hebrew Verse Structure Model.” Doctoral thesis.
- Locatell, Christian S. 2017. “Grammatical Polysemy in the Hebrew Bible: A Cognitive Linguistic Approach to כי.” PhD Dissertation, University of Stellenbosch.
- López, René A. 2010. "Identifying the 'Angel of the Lord' in the Book of Judges." Bulletin for Biblical Research 20 (1):1-18.
- Lugt, Pieter van der. 2006. Cantos and Strophes in Biblical Hebrew Poetry: With Special Reference to the First Book of the Psalter. Vol. 1. 3 vols. Oudtestamentische Studiën 53. Leiden: Brill.
- Lunn, Nicholas P. 2006. Word-Order Variation in Biblical Hebrew Poetry: Differentiating Pragmatics and Poetics. Paternoster Biblical Monographs. Milton Keynes: Paternoster.
- Malone, Andrew S. 2011. "Distinguishing the Angel of the Lord." Bulletin for Biblical Research 21 (3): 297-314.
- Milgrom, Jacob. 1991. Leviticus 1–16. New York: Doubleday.
- Miller, Cynthia L. 2010. “Vocative Syntax in Biblical Hebrew Prose and Poetry: A Preliminary Analysis.” Semitic Studies 55, no. 1: 347–64.
- Revell, E.J. 1996. The Designation of the Individual: Expressive Usage in Biblical Narrative. (Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology 14.) Kampen: Kok Pharos.
- Roberts, J. J. M. 1973. “The Young Lions of Psalm 34, 11.” Biblica 54, no. 2: 265–67.
- Rogland, Max. 2003. Alleged Non-Past Uses of Qatal in Classical Hebrew. Assen, The Netherlands: Royal van Gorcum.
- Sanders, Paul. Forthcoming. "A Long Life as a Blessing in the Old Testament and the Ancient Levant."
- Skehan, Patrick William. 1951. “Structure of the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy (Deut 32:1-43).” The Catholic Biblical Quarterly 13, no. 2 (April 1951).
- Strawn, Brent A. 2005. What is Stronger than a Lion? Leonine Image and Metaphor in the Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East. Fribourg, Switzerland: Academic Press Fribourg.
Footnotes
- ↑ When the entire utterance is new/unexpected, it is a thetic sentence (often called "sentence focus"). See our Creator Guidelines for more information on topic and focus.
- ↑ Frame setters are any orientational constituent – typically, but not limited to, spatio-temporal adverbials – function to "limit the applicability of the main predication to a certain restricted domain" and "indicate the general type of information that can be given" in the clause nucleus (Krifka & Musan 2012: 31-32). In previous scholarship, they have been referred to as contextualizing constituents (see, e.g., Buth (1994), “Contextualizing Constituents as Topic, Non-Sequential Background and Dramatic Pause: Hebrew and Aramaic evidence,” in E. Engberg-Pedersen, L. Falster Jakobsen and L. Schack Rasmussen (eds.) Function and expression in Functional Grammar. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 215-231; Buth (2023), “Functional Grammar and the Pragmatics of Information Structure for Biblical Languages,” in W. A. Ross & E. Robar (eds.) Linguistic Theory and the Biblical Text. Cambridge: Open Book Publishers, 67-116), but this has been conflated with the function of topic. In brief: sentence topics, belonging to the clause nucleus, are the entity or event about which the clause provides a new predication; frame setters do not belong in the clause nucleus and rather provide a contextual orientation by which to understand the following clause.