Psalm 46/Notes/Textual.v. 5.332511

In v. 5c, the LXX diverges from the MT (קְדֹשׁ מִשְׁכְּנֵי עֶלְיוֹן; "the holy dwelling of the Most High"), containing ἡγίασεν τὸ σκήνωμα αὐτοῦ ὁ ὕψιστος ("the Most High sanctified his covert" [NETS]; cf. Vulg). It appears to presuppose a piel verb קִדֵּשׁ (“ to make holy/sanctify”) and understand the next form as “his [God's] dwelling place” (singular). Presumably, the LXX reads the final yod of משכני as a waw. Barthélemy sees both MT's קְדֹשׁ and מִשְׁכְּנֵי עֶלְיוֹן as "highly probable with a certain margin of doubt" and most modern translations follow the MT over and against the LXX. Intriguingly, Dahood realigned vv. 4-5, reading v. 5bc as "God brings happiness to his city, the Most High sanctifies his habitation." In his understanding, "the river and its channels" should be linked to the word סלה (v. 4), which he read in light of Exod 15:8. Thus, he took the whole collocation to mean "the river and its channel stand in a heap." This reading has no support among the versions and is not represented in any major translations. As to the LXX (cf. BHS), it likely reflects the unusual nature of the construction in the MT (note that the plural form of משכן is usually משכנות [cf. Pss. 43:3; 84:1; 132:5]). Notably, the LXX also adds the definite article to "city", which leads some to think that this collocation ("the city of God") refers to Jerusalem. Here, the MT is taken as a preferred reading, understanding קְדֹשׁ as an adjective used substantivally (IBHS 14.3.3.b; for Ps 46:5, see n19; cf. Exod 15:16; Ps 65:5).