Psalm 4/Notes/Lexical.v. 5.954184

• The word וְדֹמּוּ could mean to "be silent, be still" (cf. NIV, NLT, ESV, NRSV, LUT, HFA, NGÜ, ELB EÜ, GNB, ZÜR; see e.g., Ps 37:7) or to "wail, lament" (cf. NET; so HALOT). Evidence for the latter interpretation might come from Isa 23:1-2 and Hos 7:14: "Wail (הֵילִילוּ), you large ships... Lament (דֹּמּוּ), you residents of the coast" (Isa 23:1-2, NET). "They do not cry out to me from their hearts but wail (יְיֵלִילוּ) on their beds (עַל־מִשְׁכְּבֹותָם)" (Hos 7:14, NIV). Together, these two passages show an association between "wailing" (היליל) and "beds" (Hos 7:14; cf. Ps 4:5) as well as an association between the word "wail" (היליל) and the word דמם (Isa 23:1-2; cf. Ps 4:5). These connections might suggest that the verb דֹמּוּ in Ps 4, which is associated with "beds," means "wail" or "lament." Further evidence for this interpretation comes from the Ugaritic cognate דמם, which means "wail" or "lament" (Olmo Lete and Sanmartín 2004, 274; see e.g., KTU 1.16, I 26—אל תבכן אל תדם לי = COS I:339, "Do not weep... do not lament for me"). The LXX might also support this view. It translates דֹמּוּ as "be pricked" (κατανύγητε), a word that "stands for strong emotions, especially pain, grief and dismay" (Bons et al. 2011, 1506; cf. Acts 2:37—κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν). This interpretation, in turn, would support the emendation of אִמְרוּ ("think") to הָמֵרוּ ("weep bitterly") (see grammar note; see further Barré 1995). On the other hand, the interpretation "wail/lament" does not make sense in the psalm. Why would the psalmist exhort the "mortal humans" to wail on their beds, if this practice was associated with pagan worship (cf. Hos 7:14)—precisely the thing that the psalmist is condemning? The interpretation "be silent" is more likely. Perhaps we should see a word-play here. The psalm says, in effect, "You have been wailing (דמם) on your beds, trying to get the attention of your gods, but you need to be silent (דמם)."