Psalm 98 Verse-by-Verse

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Welcome to the DRAFT Verse-by-Verse Notes for Psalm 98!

The Verse-by-Verse Notes present scholarly, exegetical materials (from all layers of analysis) in a verse-by-verse format. They often present alternative interpretive options and justification for a preferred interpretation. The Verse-by-Verse Notes are aimed at consultant-level users.

The discussion of each verse of this psalm includes the following items.

1. A link to the part of the overview video where the verse in question is discussed.
2. The verse in Hebrew and English.
3. An expanded paraphrase of the verse.
4. A grammatical diagram of the verse, which includes glosses for each word and phrase.
5. A series of notes on the verse, which contain information pertaining to the interpretation of the psalm (e.g., meaning of words and phrases, poetic features, difficult grammatical constructions, etc.).

Structural Analysis Notes

• Based on the participant reference data, the psalm can be split into the following 3 main scenes from the addressee:
• Vv. 1-3: The psalmist asks the people to sing
• Vv. 4-6: The psalmist calls the earth to worship YHWH
• Vv. 7-9: The psalmist calls nature to worship YHWH because of the future judgment
• This is structure is supported by the poetic structure here given.
  
• Some general observations:
  • The psalm is relatively short and it is difficult to get many sub-divisions.
  • Vv. 1-9: Who is the general addressee of our psalm?
  • The Psalm seems to have a universal scope, thus favoring the addressee to be mankind in general. We can see "the nations" in verse 3, "the ends of the earth" of verses 3-4, the whole creation or nature in verses 4-9 called with vivid imperatives (Stream 2008: Ps 98.4–6). Moreover, YHWH is presented as the universal king and judge in verse 9.
  • We prefer however to see the general addressee as the people of Israel. Despite its universal scope, as other psalms, the primary audience is Israel.
• The nations within the psalm can be understood first as non-Israelite people groups.
• As we have it on our participant analysis notes, the earth refers most certainly to all humanity.

Victory for Israel (vv. 1-3)

• Vv. 1-3 call on an unspecified people to “sing to YHWH a new song”. This most likely addresses the people of Israel, who are the primary audience of the psalm as suggested before. For further details see the participant tracking notes.
• Vv. 1-3: Who is the people addressed in verse 1, mankind in general or Israel?
  • The Psalm begins with the imperative שִׁ֤ירוּ with no further explicit indications about the identity of the addressees of the Psalm. We need to depend on the context to determine the addressee.
  • The Psalmist gives a probable hint when in verse 3 talking about "our God". This exclusive presentation of YHWH shows that the people addressed is "Israel". Furthermore, the people of Israel is explicitly mentioned in verse 3 where God is acting in accordance to his loyalty and faithfulness in favor of Israel.
• The lexical domain of "sing" repeats itself 6 times, 3 times in verse 2 and 3 times in verses 4 and 5.

The lexical domain of "Names of Deities" here YHWH comes up five times and spread through out the Psalm. It is most probably the lexical domain that ties everything together and unifies the whole Psalm.

• Another lexical domains that comes five times is that of "Land". It is present in the middle and the end of our Psalm.
• The last lexical domains that comes five times is "Praise" that divides the Psalm in two half, probably pointing to an emotional pick in our Psalm.

The last lexical domain we mark here is "Right" in that it forms a poetic inclusio to our Psalm. It here comes out at a central element for our text because it connects the beginning to the end.

• We can understand from the lexical domains that this Psalm is foremost a call sent to the whole universe to sing and praise YHWH as the universal King who has justly saved his people in the past and will eventually judge with righteousness all humanity. Good exegesis of this Psalm must take this into consideration.
• The contextual domain of "dance and music" comes 10 times in the Psalm, at the beginning and at the middle of the Psalm.

The "Divine" contextual domain appears 9 times forming an inclusio for our Psalm. "Justice" is a contextual domain that we see 7 times in our text. It is present at the beginning, at the middle point and at the end of our Psalm. This contextual domain seems from this regards to be the unifying contextual domain of our Psalm.

• This analysis of the contextual domains shares some lights in the dynamic of this Psalm, notably that it revolves around manifesting outwardly our praise by dance and music to the divine because he is the ultimate incarnation of justice. The interpreter of the psalm must take note of this.
• Notes from the repeated roots

The repartition of the roots present and repeated in our Psalm support a symmetry around verses 5-6 with the Hebrew roots for "sound" and/or "lute". Two things can be said about the Psalm from this perspective. There is an emotional pick and tension around the repeated "lute" and "sound". The ultimate responses that men are to give are symbolized by using their voices and musical instruments to celebrate YHWH. The Psalm may therefore be divided into two govern by two action verbs all performed by YHWH and present each one of them only in one part: save and judge. In the first part, vv.1-5, YHWH has saved in the past, out of his righteousness. In the second part, vv. 6-9, YHWH will judge the earth in the future, still out of his righteousness. Because of this, the earth and God's people are called in both parts to sing and praise YHWH.

• Notes on the identity of the speaker and addressee

The MT text of Psalm does not provide an explicit identity about the author of the Psalm. Some ancient witness like the LXX adds "of David" thus providing an explicite Davidic link with the Psalm.

• The text of the Psalm also does not give an explicite addressee. We only know that the psalmist is addressing a group of people to which he identifies as sharing the same God. We see this in verse 1, where the verb sing is plural and in verse 3 where the psalmist mentions "our God" in reference to YHWH.
• There is no clear reference to the identity of the psalmist in some ancient texts like the Massoretic. Nonetheless, it is possible that the psalmist is David as suggest other ancient texts like the LXX.
• Is the Psalmist mentioned in the superscript David?

There is disagreement among ancient witnesses on the superscript. Some simply omits the name of David and have only "a psalm." This is the case of MT. On the other hand some witnesses like the LXX adds "of David" to the superscript, thus establishing a Davidic tie to the Psalm (Tate 1998:523). Argument in favor of David as the psalmist: A witness like the LXX might be depending on a manuscript older and more reliable than the one used by the MT. Also the background of the Psalm is pre-Davidic, especially as referring to event such as Exodus from Egypt. Argument against David as the psalmist: The addition "of David" is explained as harmonisation with other Davidic psalms. The back-ground of the Psalm is post-exilic as Israel commemorate their return from Babylon. The use of the expression "before YHWH" seems to favor the setting of the Temple. We have followed the MT text because a later addition is better explained as a scribal harmonization and/or explicitation less than an omission.

v. 1

Watch the Overview video on v. 1.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
ss	מִזְמ֡וֹר	A psalm.
1a	שִׁ֤ירוּ לַֽיהוָ֨ה ׀ שִׁ֣יר חָ֭דָשׁ	Sing to YHWH a new song
1b	כִּֽי־נִפְלָא֣וֹת עָשָׂ֑ה	for he has done wonderful deeds.
1c	הוֹשִֽׁיעָה־לּ֥וֹ יְ֝מִינ֗וֹ וּזְר֥וֹעַ קָדְשֽׁוֹ׃	His right hand and his holy arm have won for himself a victory.

Expanded Paraphrase

A psalm.

(YHWH has just won a great victory over our enemies! And, when someone wins a victory, we sing a 'new song' to them. Therefore,) Sing to YHWH'(, the victorious warrior,) a new song, for he has done wonderful deeds (just as he did long ago when he brought our fathers out of Egypt. When we were in distress, in exile among the nations, we called to YHWH for help, and YHWH rescued us.) His (strong) right hand and his holy arm have (defeated our enemies and) won for himself a victory.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The tense of qatal verbs of vv. 1-3 may be interpreted as referring to to timeless events (gnomic qatal) or as past-perfect meaning of qatal, thus referring to actions completed in the past but still relevant in the present. We have opted for the second interpretation notably because the gnomic is rare and restricted to certain literary environments. On the other hand, clauses beginning with for (כִּי) followed by qatal frequently ground preceding speech acts by presenting past events as the basis for the speech act. More to this, in victory songs such as Psalm 98, either the victory just won or generalised statements about past victories seem to be a reoccurring component. We have thus chosen to translate them with English present perfects (e.g., ‘Have won...Has made known...has revealed...etc.). For more detail follow the exegetical issue The Tense of the Qatal Verbs in Ps. 98:1–3.
• The superscript indicates the nature of the body of the psalm: it is a psalm. In some context it might be necessary to make explicit by saying: (This is a) Psalm.
• Although we have the diagram the second half of verse 1 with three options, there are actually more. The verb is feminine singular, and we must ask ourselves at what level is the waw linking "right hand" and "arm" operating. This difficulty is visible in the multiple ways different modern translations read:
  
• V. 1a - The noun phrase the wonderful deeds, the direct object of the verb "to do" is fronted and thus focused here.
  
• v. 1b - the conjunction for introduces a subordinate causal clause (v. 1b). Because v. 1b is a summary of YHWH's intervention in history, the conjunction is limited to v. 1b. See the illustration here up.
• 1) The waw is conjoining arm and right hand at the phrasal level Many modern versions simply translate the verb as plural with a compound subject (ESV or NET, for example). This may be justified by the principle of partial agreement in Biblical Hebrew, which stipulates that in a verb-compound subject construction, grammatical agreement happens between the verb and the first member of the compound subject. After studying the subject of partial agreement in Biblical Hebrew, Scheumann affirms that, "Within VS clauses, the verb is rarely plural when the verb and compound subject are contiguous (9%). When, however, the compound subject is non-contiguous to the verb, the verb actually tends to be plural (55.6%)" (Scheumann 2021: 13). We have taken this as our preferred option because the verb ישׁע is 3rd feminine singular in agreement with יָמִין (for its feminine gender, see, e.g., Ps 21:9), the first part of the compound subject.
• 2) The waw operates at the clausal level in such as way that we actually have two clauses with the verb elided in the second. We have not seen many modern versions taking this position, other than the NLT.
• 3) The waw is actually creating an apposition between arm and right hand. A few modern versions go with this view, like JPS 1985 which has "His right hand, His holy arm, has won Him victory". Gesenius classifies this type of waw as explicativum. He says that "Frequently wāw copulativum is also explanatory (like isque, et—quidem, and the German und zwar, English to wit), and is then called wāw explicativum, e.g. Gn 4.4 and (i.e. namely) of the fat thereof (unless it is simply copulative); Ex 24.12, 25:12 (to wit two); 27:14, 28:23, Ju 17:3 (in וּמַסֵּכָה; here as often elsewhere, to introduce an explanatory gloss, cf. Is 17:8, Ez 31:5, and especially P. Haupt, SBOT. Isaiah, p. 90, l. 21 ff.), 1 S 17:34 and that too with the bear; 2 S 13:20, Is 57:11, Jer 17:10, Am 3:11, 4:10, Ze 9:9, Pr 3:12, Neh 8:13, 2 Ch 23:10 (but in 1 S 28:3 the וּ before בְּעִירוֹ is to be omitted with the LXX); cf. also such combinations as וְעַד—מִן from... and even to..., Gn 13:3, 14:23, 19:4, 11, &c.—In 1 S 6:11 (see Driver on the passage), 2 S 1:23, &c., ו is equivalent to yea, and; in Is 3:27 even. וְ is used to express emphasis (=and especially), e.g. in Gn 3:16 וְהֵֽרֹנֵךְ; Is 2:1, ψ 18:1, perhaps also in Jb 10:17 yea, a whole host; 2 Ch 16:14" (GKC §154).
• 4) God the subject of the verb and translate "arm" and "right hand" as instruments used by God to accomplish the victory. Some modern versions have a fourth position that might not be relevant for our question. Those versions make God the subject of the verb and translate "arm" and "right hand" as instruments used by God to accomplish the victory, thus "by his arm and his right hand, he has..." (cf. CEV). Because this reading is more of a paraphrase, we have not included it in the diagram as an alternative construction of the Hebrew grammar.
• What is the new song about in verse 1? Interpreters have different views when it comes to the meaning of new song. We have listed two prominent views here:
• Option 1: Yahweh’s saving works and military victory
• Option 2: Yahweh’s faithfulness and loyalty to Israel
• Option 3: A fresh experience of God acts
• Option 4: Congregational Praise to YHWH at festival time

We have an exegetical issue that tackles the question and concludes that YHWH’s saving works actually prompt the new song. Follow What Prompts the “New Song” of Psalm 98:1?What_Prompts_the_“New_Song”_of_Psalm_98:1? for more details.

• Who is in view here in the command to sing? At least the following options that needs more attention: a) all humanity: We have in the Psalm both the people (am), normally referring to Israel, and the nations (goim) referring to the gentiles. More to this, we have the universal call, even extending to creation, to praise YHWH. Lastly, YHWH is presented at the end of the Psalm as the universal and ultimate judge. b) Israel alone: The psalm mentions "our God" pointing to the fact that the author has only Israel in his view. c) The universal community of believers of all times.
• The new song (cf. 33:3; 40:3; 96:1; 144:9; Isa 42:10; Rev 5:9; 14:3) celebrates the Lord’s victory (VanGemeren, 731)

Wonderful deeds have the purpose of amazing (SDBH:https://semanticdictionary.org/semdic.php?databaseType=SDBH&language=en#)

• The inauguration of a king's reign was celebrated with a 'shout' (cf. 1 Sam. 10:24) and with musical instruments (cf. 1 Kgs. 1:39-40) (cf. Brettler 1989).
• Singing a 'new song' is the appropriate response to victory over enemies (cf. Pss. 144:9; 149:1; Isa. 42:10).
• Isaiah prophesied that YHWH would bare 'his holy arm' and rescue his people from exile, and that all nations would see the victory of Israel's God (cf. Isa. 52).
• The fact that singing is motivated by the wonderful deeds shows that the psalmist is standing in awe before the deeds of YHWH. This is also confirmed by the fact that the victory is described as having been obtained by the strength and power of YHWH, pointing thus to a powerful intervention from YHWH. " The 'brought him victory' reflects the divine warrior concept" (Tate 1998: 524)
• YHWH is victorious warrior coming back (VanGemeren, 731.
• YHWH has saved the people from their foe (1 Sam 18:7).
• People sing new songs for their heroes when they are joyous (1 Sam 18:7)
• The propositional phrase לַ יהוָה: the recipient of a verb of speech, to YHWH. The vast majority of versions have here "to YHWH" but the context favors singing in honor of YHWH the victorious King for his wonderful deeds. Some French versions like NBS have "pour le Seigneur" or NFC which has "en l'honneur du Seigneur".
• The propositional phrase for himself: interest or benefactive, for him.
• The genitive his right hand: right-hand (Possession (body part)) of him (possessor); this expression refers to the power of the person (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 375) namely God. Because the expression is used in a context of divine victory, denoting how God acted, it refers less to the privileged status that one could get when he is closer to God.
• The genitive holy arm: arm (Entity) of holiness (characteristic), holy arm
• The genitive "his holy arm": arm (Possession (characteristic)) of him (possessor), his holy arm.
• The phrasehis right arm and his holy arm: addition, his right hand and his arm of righteousness. We have argued up for a partial agreement.
• The Hebrew verb to win a victory is a better rendering for our context be understood compared the rendering "to save".
  
• YHWH is depicted as a human being who wins a victory for himself by his right hand and his arm. This is the image of an ANE victorious king warrior and which permeates the whole psalm. He thus deserves a new song for his wonderful deeds. The translators should make sure that their rendering of this imagery if literal will not be misleading for their target language.

v. 2

Watch the Overview video on v. 2.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
2a	הוֹדִ֣יעַ יְ֭הוָה יְשׁוּעָת֑וֹ	YHWH has made known his victory;
2b	לְעֵינֵ֥י הַ֝גּוֹיִ֗ם גִּלָּ֥ה צִדְקָתֽוֹ׃	He has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.

Expanded Paraphrase

(The nations have seen how YHWH has rescued us, how he brought us back from exile, and thus) YHWH has made known his victory (to the nations). He has revealed his righteousness, (the quality by which he does right to us by his covenant,) in the sight of the nations. (YHWH's rescue is an expression of his covenant faithfulness to us.)

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The translation of the Hebrew the victory of our God and his victory in verses 2-3.

Translations seem to understand this phrase differently: which can be confusing for the translator who has in front some of them at the same time.

• Option 1: "to work salvation for him" (ESV, NIV, Jerome, LXX)
• Option 2: "to accomplish deliverance" (NET)
• Option 3: "to win the victory" (CEV, GNT, NLT, NEB, REB, NRSV, BDS, PDV)
• Option 4: "to make one victorious" (TOB, NBS)
• The exact hiphil perfect with the preposition lamed is used in Judges 7:2 in the context of war and may either be translated with each one of these options proposed here up.
• The interpretation is linked to how one views the event described as salvific here. We favor the idea that the context is that of a military victory. We have therefore decided to translate as "victory" in both verses. SDBH proposes for the hiphil this understanding. For more information one may go to the Venn diagram Ysh-to win a victory here down.
• The phrase his victory corresponds to the victory (Verbal notion) of him (subject), his victory, how he won a victory, the subject is actualling winning a victory. It is a subjective genitive: YHWH won a victory.
• The genitive phrase his righteousness refers to righteousness (Possession (characteristic)) of him (possessor), his righteousness, how righteous he is. In this context, YHWH has revealed how righteous he is.
• The prepositional phrase in the sight of the nations is spatial, before the eyes. This is actually an idiom which means "before", "in front of" or "in the sight of".
• The prepositional phrase in the sight of the nationsis seen by many versions as modifying the second clause, rather than the first. We have also preferred this alternative based on the poetry of the verse. This alternative offers a more balanced colas.
• the sight of the nations is rendered literally as the eyes (Possession (body part)) of the nations (possessor), the eyes of the nations.
• The nations should be understood here as Identifiability - implication, the nations. The definite article may point to the nations, including Israel, or nations more in the sense of "gentiles", that is, excluding Israel. How should we understand nations here then, any group of people or non-Israelite nations? The nations may refer to large body of people or often to the non-Israelite nations, especially when used in plural (SDBH). The word being plural here, we prefer this second option because "gôyim usually refers to nations, especially the surrounding pagan nations" (1999). 326 גוה. TWOT.
• To make known and to reveal can be understood as synonyms semantically and poetically speaking. Some language may find it difficult to have two different verbs and be forced to use one verb to translate both. This goes beyond merely seeing and looking at his victory and his righteousness to encompass experiencing his victory and his righteousness. The ideal nonetheless is to render by two different terms.
  
• The scope of the character in the revelation and the knowledge of the victory points in context to the greatness of YHWH and thus prompts awe in the psalmist. "The last phrase, in the sight of the nations, means that all the wold saw that Yahweh had defeated his enemies" (Bratcher and Reyburn 1991: 845).

v. 3

Watch the Overview video on v. 3.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
3a	זָ֘כַ֤ר חַסְדּ֨וֹ ׀ וֶֽאֱֽמוּנָתוֹ֮ לְבֵ֪ית יִשְׂרָ֫אֵ֥ל	He has remembered his loyalty and his faithfulness for the sake of the household of Israel.
3b	רָא֥וּ כָל־אַפְסֵי־אָ֑רֶץ אֵ֝֗ת יְשׁוּעַ֥ת אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃	All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.

Expanded Paraphrase

(In rescuing us,) He has remembered his loyalty and his faithfulness for the sake of the household of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God, (just as the prophet Isaiah said it would happen (Isa. 52:7–10)).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Vv. 3-4: Is the expression all the earth interpreted literally or not ? The expression is metaphorical because the imperatives of vv. 4-6 require volitional beings as subjects of the verbs. The expression is both a metonymy referring to all mankind and humanity independently of the area of the earth they inhabit (Crossway Bibles 2008: 1062). "The expression all the earth must often be rendered as 'all people everywhere' or 'all people living on the earth'" (Bratcher and Reyburn 1991: 846).
• There are four possibilities for the first line of the verse depending on three issues: (a) the emendation of the prepositional phrase "to Jacob" as visible in some ancient witness like the LXX; (b) the position of the prepositional phrases; and (c) the level at which the waw operates.
• Option 1: One prepositional phrase modifies the verb "remember" (preferred). This option does not read "to Jacob" but simply follows the MT text. In this case, "for the house of Israel" indicates the beneficiary of YHWH's remembrance, rather than indicating the object of his faithfulness and loyalty. Here YHWH remembers (in favor of Israel) his faithfulness and loyalty (for the common Hebrew idiom, see Jenni 2000: 129; cf. GNT). The waw operates at the nominal phrase level.
• Option 2: The prepositional phrase "to the house of Israel" modifies the direct objects of the verb "remember." In this situation, the faithfulness and loyalty are directed towards Israel. This reading does not emend the text in favor of the LXX reading "to Jacob." Here too, the waw operates at the nominal phrase level. Most modern versions position "to the house of Israel" after "his faithfulness and loyalty," following the order of the Hebrew text, which seems to suggest this interpretation. While being "faithful to (someone)" is a common English expression, אמונה ל־ is never attested in Classical Hebrew with this sense (cf. אמונה עם in Ps 89:25; אמונה ב־ in 1QpHab 8.2-3).
• Option 3: We emend the text in favor of the LXX reading, and the prepositional phrase "to Jacob" modifies the verb "remember." We have two clauses with the verb being elided in the second clause, where the implied verb "remember" is modified by the prepositional phrase "for the house of Israel." The waw functions at the clausal level.
• Option 4: The text is emended to the LXX reading. There is one clause with a compound direct object, with each noun modified by its respective prepositional phrase, "to Jacob" and " to Israel." The waw operates at the phrasal level.
• The genitive his loyalty can be seen as, loyalty (Possession (characteristic)) of him (possessor), his faithfulness, how faithful he is.
• The genitive his faithfulness means faihtfulness (Possession (characteristic)) of him (possessor), his faithfulness, how faithful he is.
• The meaning of the Hebrew term household depends on how one understands the name Israel. If it refers to a human, in which we have Jacob in view, then household may mean here "house" as a building. The house will be a belonging of Jacob or even the descendants of Jacob because the context is clearly communal. But if Israel means the people, then we are dealing here not with the house but with the household or family. We will then talk of an "entity-name" relationship: the household called Israel. We favour this option as the best for our context.
• The household of Israel comes from the house (Entity) of Israel (name), the people of Israel, Israel is considered here as a family; an entity or a group bearing the name Israel.
• for the sake of the household is a prepositional phrase of interest or benefactive, for the household.
  
• his loyalty and his faithfulnes is an addition, his loyalty and his faithfulness. This pair can be classified as correlated synonyms which is a type of Hebrew parallelism. The waw does not create an addition per se, but a synonymic relation between the two words.
• The ends of the earth signifies the ends (Specification of undivided whole) of the earth, the ends of the earth, The entirety of the earth is in view here.
• Our Godis a genitive for God (Kinship/relationship) of us (possessor), our God, The first person plural probably shows that the author is Israelite.
• The victory of our God: the victory (Verbal notion) of our God (subject), the victory of our God, the victory that our God won, how he won the victory.
• The earth (used in vv. 3, 4, and 9) and the land (, used in vv. 7 and 9) are semantically related word. The Venn diagram here down helps compare those two terms.
  
• All the ends of the earth must be understood as with a plural and definite, all the ends of the earth. This evokes the totality of humanity wherever they are on the earth.
• Remembrance here means that YHWH is going to act according to his covenantal relationship with Israel. The psalmist will benefit from this change of attitude and is grateful to YHWH. The universal scope of the victory shows the character of YHWH, which explains the feeling of awe of the psalmist.
• YHWH has a covenantal relationship with his people Covenants are not broken except when one party is not faithful (Ps. 25:14). One party in a covenant is to remind himself of his covenantal duties (Ex. 24:7, Lev. 26:45, Deut. 4:23)
• YHWH is the true God and others are idols (Ex. 8:10, Is. 45:21. YHWH is the universal reigning good King

Music for the king! (vv. 4-6)

• The section vv. 4-6 is central for the whole psalm. It is made up of an interesting symmetry, carefully organized as a chiasm to form a prominent unit.
  
• There is paragraph delimitation at vv. 3-4. At the level of v. 4a, the phrase All the earth is focused. Between vv. 3b, 4a, there is a shift with the subject. Finally, from vv. 1-3 to vv. 4-6, we go from qatal verbs to imperatives.

v. 4

Watch the Overview video on v. 4.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
4a	הָרִ֣יעוּ לַֽ֭יהוָה כָּל־הָאָ֑רֶץ	All the earth, shout to YHWH!
4b	פִּצְח֖וּ וְרַנְּנ֣וּ וְזַמֵּֽרוּ׃	Burst into song, cry aloud, and sing!

Expanded Paraphrase

(YHWH has become king over the whole earth!) All the' (people in the) earth (who have seen YHWH's great victory), shout to YHWH (and say 'Long live the king'! And because it is appropriate to celebrate a king's reign with music,) Burst into song, cry aloud, and sing!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• v. 4a - the vocative All the earth is clause-final, dividing the clause of v. 4a from the following three imperatives.

• "The basic meaning of the root רוע appears to be 'shout.' A shout can be raised for a variety of reasons and in a variety of circumstances, above all as a shout of rejoicing or a war cry. The lexical field therefore includes rnn, śmḥ, gîl as well as milḥāmâ; in either case the shout can be accompanied by šôp̱ār or ḥaṣōṣerôṯ" (Ringgren:412).
• The noun phrase the earth is an identifiability - unique referent, thus referring to the earth. There is only one earth, and the author has it in view here.
• The earth is understood as "the earth as opposed to the sky; sometimes used in a more specific sense to denote part of the earth, such as the dry land as opposed to the sea, or a specific region, area, country, or plot of lan" (SDBH).
• The noun phrase all the earth uses a singular and definite, all the earth. “all with a singular definite noun expresses the ‘totality of the individual members of the specific group or set’” (van der Merwe §36.5.1).
• The prepositional phrase to YHWH should be understood here as the recipient of a verb of speech, to YHWH. The Hebrew preposition lamed may rightly be seen as telling to whom the speech is addressed.
• The basic meaning of Hebrew verb rendered as burst into song is "cause to break or burst forth, break forth with" (BDB:822). The verb occurs several times in Isaiah (once in Ps 98:4) and mostly in the imperative form. In all contexts it is applied to the happy and joyous reaction of the redeemed—free from suffering and oppression (Isa 14:7; 44:23; 49:13; 52:9; 54:1). In 14:7 it is explicitly used in relation to the eschatological peace... as result of God’s salvation. In all these contexts the verb designates the joyous “outbreak into singing” (VanGemeren:654).
• The verb cry aloud in Hebrew is interesting. It "often indicates a loud, enthusiastic, and joyful shout. However, in at least two cases, it clearly lacks joy, but is either a moan of despair (Lam 2:19) or an expression of yearning for God’s presence (Ps 84:2 [3]). For this reason we may speculate that the root’s basic meaning is yell (see Prov 1:20 and 8:3 for this basic meaning), the tone determined by the context" (VanGemeren:1128–1132).
• The reasons and contexts where people cry aloud are multiple in the OT. People cry aloud as an act of worship (Lev. 9:24). People cry aloud for joy (1 Sam 4:5). People cry aloud for victory over foes (1 Sam 18:6). People cry aloud in sadness and distress (Gen. 27:34, Ex. 2:23). People cry aloud into the battle field (Job 39:25).
• SDBH adds on the verb cry aloud that in our verse, it is in the piel. In the piel, the verb means "to shout with joy, to proclaim with shouts of joy; (NIDOTTEE 1997: 1128). More to this, the universal call to worship YHWH shows how deep is the feeling of awe.
• To sing is an "action by which one expresses one's respect and gratitude to someone else by uttering words at a set or improvised tune, whether accompanied by musical instruments and dancing or not "(SDBH).

v. 5

Watch the Overview video on v. 5.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
5	זַמְּר֣וּ לַיהוָ֣ה בְּכִנּ֑וֹר בְּ֝כִנּ֗וֹר וְק֣וֹל זִמְרָֽה׃	Sing to YHWH with the lute, with the lute and the sound of music!

Expanded Paraphrase

Sing to YHWH with the lute, with the lute and the sound of music!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Vv. 5-6: Who is singing and shouting? The people, the Earth or Nature? Many commentaries see "all the earth" as the addressee of the imperatives of verses 5-6 (See Crossway Bibles 2008:1062 and Stream 2008: Ps 98.4–6). The Hebrew text however does not provide an explicit subject to the imperatives and we must ask ourselves who is singing and making noise. We have three options. (1) The people (of Israel) addressed in vv. 1-3. This option is less probable because our imperative start after a shift in addressee has happened in verse 4. (2) Nature is addressed in vv. 7-9. This option is also less possible because it implies that the subject of the imperatives is introduced after the verbs themselves. (3) The Earth of vv. 3-4, 9: This is our preferred option for the reason that it is the last addressee before the imperatives of verses 5-6. They are simply elided.
• to YHWH: the recipient of a verb of speech, to YHWH. The lamed may rightly be seen as telling to whom the speech is addressed.
• with the lute: instrumental, with the lute. Since we are dealing with a musical instrument, we may make explicit the verb used for string instruments: "using the lute", "playing/squeak the lute".
• With the lute and the sound of music: addition, with the lute and the sound of music. We have a list of musical instruments here.
• A lute is "musical instrument consisting of a sound box made of wood, out of the ends or sides of which projected two arms; the arms supported a crosspiece; strings descended from the crosspiece over the sound box and the number of strings could vary; often used to accompany singing" (SDBH).
• The lute is also a harp. It is a musical instrument. It was both used for sacred and secular things, whether in rejoicing (Isa. 5:12} or in sorrowing (Job 30: 31). It was commonly accompanied by singing to the music played upon it. Gen. 4:21; Ps. 33:2; 43:4; 49:5; 71:22; 1 Sa. 16:16, 23; and often besides (Gesenius 1842: harp).
• The lute was associated with joy and gladness (SDBH). Singing is motivated by joy and gratitude in this context because the psalmist has mentioned the victory of YHWH coupled with the fact that YHWH will now act in favor of Israel. "All life on earth must join the joyful celebration of God's kingship. The earth must prepare itself for his coming with an open welcome, shouting 'for joy,' bursting 'into jubilant song,' and making 'music' with a variety of instruments. The earth responds with a shout of joy" (Vangemeren:732).
• Singing is an "action by which one expresses one's respect and gratitude to someone else by uttering words at a set or improvised tune, whether accompanied by musical instruments and dancing or not "(SDBH).
• The sound of music: the sound (Entity) of the music (means), the sound of music, The sound produced by playing music, a melodic sound.

v. 6

Watch the Overview video on v. 6.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
6	בַּ֭חֲצֹ֣צְרוֹת וְק֣וֹל שׁוֹפָ֑ר הָ֝רִ֗יעוּ לִפְנֵ֤י ׀ הַמֶּ֬לֶךְ יְהוָֽה׃	With trumpets and the sound of the horn trumpet, shout before YHWH, the king !

Expanded Paraphrase

With trumpets and the sound of the horn trumpet (which announces the reign of a king), shout before YHWH, the king!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• v. 6 - the fronting of the adverbial phrase With trumpets and the sound of the horn trumpet shows that this information is focussed.
  
• A trumpet is to be understood as a "tubular or conical wind instrument with flared mouth and bright penetrating ringing tone; ◄ made out of metal; ► used for giving signals and during festivals and celebrations" (SDBH). Here is an image of a trumpet.
  
• The trumpet is used for summoning the congregation and breaking camp (Nu 10:2), when going to war against adversaries in their (Israel's) land, that YHWH might remember them and deliver them from their enemies (Nu10:9), on day of gladness, at appointed feasts/religious festivals, beginning of months (blown over burnt offerings and peace offerings) as a reminder before God (Nu 10:10), Trumpet included together with horn as in Hos 5:8.
• The prepositional phrase with trumpetsis instrumental. Since we are dealing with a musical instrument, we may make explicit the verb used for wind instruments: "using the trumpet", "blowing the trumpet". The trumpet is the instrument used.
• The waw of the phrasewith trumpets and the sound creates an addition between the trumpet and the sound.
• A horn trumpet is "a musical instrument, made from a ram's horn; sound is produced by blowing into the small end; it is used for giving signals and during festivals and celebrations" (SDBH).
• The horn trumpet is made from a rams horn. "Rams horn more a means of signalling than a musical Instrument...used to holy times (Ps 81:3) and the coming of YHWH (Ps 47:5)
• The genitive phrase the sound of the horn trumpet is literally the sound (Entity) of the trumpet (means (instrument)), that may be simplified as the sound produced by blowing the trumpet.
• The waw in the phrase and the sound of the horn trumpet makes an addition with the preceding phrasal elements.
• The prepositional phrase before the king is spatial. People shout in front of the king.
• The noun phrase the king should be interpreted as Identifiability - implication. We have in view one specific king, namely God here.
• The opposition YHWH, the King is status specification. The second member specifies the status/function of the first member (BHRG §29.3(2)). YHWH is a king.
• YHWH is KING is a root metaphor, especially in the Psalms (cf. Brettler 1989; Mays 1994).
• The context of our psalm is that of a military victory over foes. All musical instruments accompany the joy that follows the celebration and in our context, that of the victorious warrior returning. "These instruments were used in military contexts, for important announcements, and in worship" (Walton: 2009).
• The king is the supreme ruler of a nation or people, he has power, authority, honor and is responsible for administering justice (SDBH). He is "supreme secular and male ruler of a nation or people; this function is associated with authority, power, honor, but also with justice; also used as a reference to one's deity" (SDBH).
• The whole psalm is poetically structured around the kingship of YHWH. He is victorious (vv. 1-3), enthroned (vv. 4-6) and ruling (vv. 7-9). We have a poetic feature supporting this.
  

A ruler for all the earth! (vv. 7-9)

• There is a paragraph delimitation at vv. 6-7. First, between v. 6 and v. 7a, there is a shift with the subjects which shows a break. Secondly, From vv. 4-6 to 7-9a, the imperative verbs are followed by jussive/yiqtol verbs (vv. 4-6, 7-9a) pointing to a paragraph delimitation.
• Notes on the illocution type of verses 7a-9a. Determining the sentence type of those verses is a challenge because they can be a jussive or a yiqtol. If we are dealing with a yiqtol, the illocution type should be assertive. But because we have favored a jussive in our context, the illocution type is "Expressive". The author of the Psalm is expressing his emotions by appealing to a very strong image of nature manifesting before YHWH. The emotion here is that of praise.

v. 7

Watch the Overview video on v. 7.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
7a	יִרְעַ֣ם הַ֭יָּם וּמְלֹא֑וֹ	Let the sea and its fulness roar!
7b	תֵּ֝בֵ֗ל וְיֹ֣שְׁבֵי בָֽהּ׃	And [let] the land and those who dwell in it [roar]!

Expanded Paraphrase

(YHWH is not only the king over all the people of the earth, he is also the king over the natural world. So,) Let the sea and its fulness (celebrate YHWH's kingship and) roar! And [let] the land and those who dwell in it [roar]! (For YHWH is coming to rule, and thunder-like 'roaring' typically accompanies his glorious presence.)

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Vv. 7-8, Who is in view nature or cosmos? Verses 7-8 obviously use personnification and present a response from the elements of the non-human created order. Commentaries disagree here and we have three main views. (1) "Nature", as the environment where man lives (see McNeile 1942: 366, VanGemeren 2008:733, Matthews, Chavalas and Walton 2000: Ps. 98:8, Keil and Delitzsch 1996: 630, Tate 1998: 525, Kidner 1975: 386). Other commentaries hold to (2) cosmos as the whole non human creation here (see Carson 2018:993, Tanner and Jacobson 2014: 727, New Living Translation Study Bible 2008: Ps. 98:7-9, Bratcher and Reyburn 1991: 847, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown 1997: 375 ). Finally some commentaries think that nature and cosmos are both in view here especially because both fit well in this context (see Prinsloo 2003: 412 and La Bible Expliquée 2004: 831). All these options are viable but we have preferred to the nature here because the text does not explicitly mentions some other aspects of creation/cosmos such as the heavens, the skies and the stars, and the merism language "heavens and earth" as we can see in the creation story of Genesis. On the other way, the elements cited here are clearly part of nature.
• Notes for the conjugation of the verbs of verses 7-8: yiqtol or jussive? A vast majority of modern translations translate as jussive like ESV which has “Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who dwell in it! Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills sing for joy together”. See also English versions NIV, NET, NLT; German translations Luther 2017, HFA, NGÜ, ELB, EÜ, GNB, ZÜR; French versions TOB, NBS, NVSR, BDS, PDV, NFC, S21; and Spanish RVR95, NVI DHH. CEV (“Order the rivers to clap their hands”) and GNT (“Clap your hands, you rivers”) see a jussive here but render in a more emphatic way. Nonetheless some translations see a yiqtol at the level of verses 7-8. This is the case of Literal Standard Versions which sees here an imperfective and habitual dimension to the verses and has “The sea and its fullness roar, The world and the inhabitants in it”

Floods clap hand, together hills cry aloud”. The Smith's Literal Translation and the Douay-Rheims Bible both see a yiqtol here but with a future tone.

• The genitive phrase its fullness refers to the fulness (possession) of it (possessor). Its fullness can also be understood as the things that fill the sea, "animal and plant life in the sea" (VanGemeren 2008: 733) or "everything that is in the sea and on the land should praise God" (Carson 2018: 993).
• The waw of the phrase the sea and its fulness is a correlative conjunction; both the sea and its fullness. This understanding is not visible in many translations.
• Similarly the waw of the phrase the land and those who dwell is a correlative conjunction, referring to both the earth and the inhabitants. This understanding is similarly not visible in many translations.
• The prepositional phrase in it is spatial. The space in view here is the land.
• The noun phrase the sea refers to an identifiability - implication. This refers to one the sea, as the body of salty waters in general.
• The imagery here is that of a powerful reaction of the universe before the victory and coming of YHWH. This must be prompted by a feeling of awe before this powerful God doing wonders and wining victory for himself. It must be equally prompted by the anticipation of the future coming of YHWH.

• Water is a symbol of chaos (Pss. 74:13-14; 89:10) and threat to God's people (Pss. 18:17, 32:6; 124:4). It could be used to symbolize foreign enemies (cf. Pss. 18:17-18; 46:4, 7).
• The term translated as earth here is understood in Hebrew as "the earth as opposed to the sky, with special focus on the area that is inhabited by humans" (SDBH)

v. 8

Watch the Overview video on v. 8.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
8a	נְהָר֥וֹת יִמְחֲאוּ־כָ֑ף	Let the rivers clap their hands!
8b	יַ֝֗חַד הָרִ֥ים יְרַנֵּֽנוּ׃	Let the mountains cry aloud together

Expanded Paraphrase

(YHWH's coming is also cause for great joy. So,) Let the rivers clap their hands (in joyful appreciation)! Let the mountains cry aloud together (for joy).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• v. 8-9 - Two marked topics, "the rivers" and "the mountains" which are fronted. There is something unexpected happening in both clauses with an emphasis on both topics.
• There two syntactic alternatives with hands here. Option 1: hands functions as the direct object of the verb clap. Option 2: hands functions adverbially and modifies the main verb clap. Even though syntactically we have two options, the meaning remains the same, namely "to clap hands." SDBH remarks that the verb is an "action by which humans strike the palms of their hands together repeatedly" in three passages: Ps 98:8, Isa 55:12, and Ezek 25:6. In the latter two passages, the verb is connected with "hand" or "palm" in the singular but lacking together.
• There are two alternatives with the adverb together.
  
  Option 1: together functions adverbially and modifies the verb מָחָא (LXX, ISV). In this reading, the rivers are clapping together, in one accord. We disfavor this option because of the poetry which is less balanced metrically speaking. Option 2: together functions adverbially and modifies the verb cry aloud (most versions). In this option, together operates not with the first clause but with the second clause with the main verb cry aloud. This means that the mountains are shouting together. The best support against this option is poetic, since v. 8 is not well balanced poetically when together treated as part of v. 8b.
• v. 8b - The adverb together is focus, since the word mountains is clearly in parallel topic position to the word rivers. We have thus focus + topic + verb, filling the presupposition “The mountains will shout in X manner”, where X = together.

• Although the phrase before YHWH is placed in the MT in verse 9, we have joined it to the final clause of v. 8 with many versions like the ESV and NIV. This may be explained semantically, because the phrase fits only very awkwardly in the syntax of v. 9, but makes perfect sense attached to the verb "sing" of v. 8 (Bratcher and Reyburn 1991: 847). It is also worth noting that the LXX omits the phrase before YHWH, unlike in the parallel passages of Ps 96:13 and 1 Chr 16:33. Although the adverbial phrase fits well the poetry of the verse, this absence suggests that the phrase before YHWH was a later scribal addition that assimilates Ps. 98:9 to its parallel in 96:13, which also explains the syntactical difficulty of the phrase. Nonetheless, several old witnesses support the MT. Symmachus and Theodotion include the prepositional phrase, as do the Peshitta (ܫܒܚܘ ܠܡܪܝܐ "before the Lord") and the Psalms Targum (קדם ייי "before YHWH"). We have thus preferred this reading.
• The imageries used here points to nature joining to praise YHWH. This shows how great is YHWH. The psalmist is in awe probably here. Clap hands symbolizes joy and appreciation (SDBH) “Applause was obviously an expression of enthusiastic joy, as it was customary at enthronements (cf. Ps 47:1)” (Kraus, 265).
• Clap hands symbolizes joy and appreciation (SDBH). Two verbs are used for clapping in the OT: makha’ [4222, 4673] (98:8) and taqa‘ [8628, 9546]. Both are associated with victory. Victors clap for joy at the defeat of their enemies (47:1 [2]; Ezek 25:6; Nah 3:19). So when the rivers clap their hands, they do so to celebrate the Divine Warrior’s victory announced in 98:1–3 (see Keel 1997:335). (In Isa 55:12 trees clap their hands as the desert is turned into an oasis for the people of God.) Mark D. Futato, “The Book of Psalms,” in Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 7: The Book of Psalms, The Book of Proverbs (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2009), 314.
  
• “Hills and mountains are also personified in Scripture, usually in passages of celebration. They rejoice (Ps 98:8), leap (Ps 114:4, 6), sing (Is 44:23) and praise God’s name (Ps 89:12). They also “gird themselves with joy” (Ps 65:12 NRSV [NRSV NRSV. New Revised Standard Version] ). Ezekiel pictures God as addressing the mountains (Ezek 6:3), which in Micah 6:1—2 are summoned to hear a covenant lawsuit” (DBI 1936).
  
• Mountains are "a relatively high elevation of the earth’s surface; generally higher than a hill" (SDBH). The sea as the lowest & the mountains as the highest form a merism of all geographical creation.

v. 9

Watch the Overview video on v. 9.

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-clear
9a	לִֽפְֽנֵי־יְהוָ֗ה כִּ֥י בָא֮ לִשְׁפֹּ֪ט הָ֫אָ֥רֶץ	before YHWH! For he is coming to judge the earth.
9b	יִשְׁפֹּֽט־תֵּבֵ֥ל בְּצֶ֑דֶק	He will rule the land with righteousness;
9c	וְ֝עַמִּ֗ים בְּמֵישָׁרִֽים׃	and [he will rule] the peoples with equity.

Expanded Paraphrase

(Let everyone sing and celebrate) before YHWH (the king)! For he is coming (to carry out the function of a king:) to rule the earth (in such a way that justice is established and maintained.) He will (rid the land of injustice and) rule the land with righteousness; and [he will judge] the peoples with equity.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The prepositional phrase before YHWHis spatial.
• The phrase for he is coming can be interpreted differently either as a qatal or a participle. This is visible in our diagram's alternative.
  
  Option 1: If the phrase is a participle, it is understood as "for he is coming" emphasizing the immediacy of YHWH arrival with an eschatological emphasis. Some versions prefer this understanding. Option 2: If the phrase is a qatal, then it must be understood as "for he comes" like many translations put it or "for he has come". The emphasis is on the reality of a perfective action. This is not easy difficulty to solve but our prefer reading is definitely linked to the exegetical issue we are committing for this where we opt for a participle. Follow the link The morphology of בא in Psalm 98:9for more details.
• To what refers the earth, the land and the peoples? The verb to judge requires a volitional being for its subjects. "The earth", "the land" are used metaphorically here. We have a personification (Stream 2008: Ps 98.7–9). The definite articles of the two words show that the psalmist has a particular group in mind. "The 'earth' signifies here the inhabitants of the earth" (VanGemeren 2008:732). Both the Hebrew words for The earth' and "the land" appear together with the meaning of the world: 1Sam 2:8: land/world and earth, Job 34:13, Ps 19:5. The people is plural in the Hebrew and most certainly refers to nations as groups.
• How was judgment in the OT rendered? The people wait for the judge to come and judge their case. The judge moves around to make justice (1 Sam. 7:16-16). Judgment take place in some particular places in the kingdom (1 Sam. 7:16-16). Judgment is rendered in public (1 Sam. 7:16-16, Ex. 18:13).
• The subordinate clause to judge is a purpose. It may be translated as "in order to judge" thus giving the purpose for which YHWH is coming.
• The prepositional phrase with righteousness gives the manner with which YHWH will rule/judge. He will rule/judge with justice. Jenni classifies the Hebrew preposition with as "positive ethical property" (cf. Jenni 1992: 335), but under van der Merwe (2017: 343) classification we have here "the mode of an action" probably "a mode of performance".
• Righteousness is a "pattern of behavior of humans or deities that is in accordance to the requirements of the divine law and generally aimed at establishing or restoring this pattern as a standard, which in certain cases requires a victory over evil and results in prosperity and happiness" (SDBH). Righteousness characterizes how YHWH judges (Ps 7:11).
• The world/land is that area inhabited by humans as opposed to the sky (SDBH)
• The last prepositional phrase is with equity. Similarly to the preceding prepositional phrase, it gives the manner with which YHWH is acting. He will rule/judge with equity. Jenni classifies here as "positive ethical property" cf. Jenni 1992: 335, but under van der Merwe (2017: 343) classification we have here "the mode of an action" probably "a mode of performance".
• Kings acted both as warriors, fighting battles for their people, and as rulers/judges, establishing and maintaining justice in their kingdom.
• YHWH's authority is universal. As opposed to 'the gods' in Ps 82 who cause injustice and violence he judges with righteousness and equity. At a set time he will judge with equity (Ps 75:2). The way that YHWH judges is in accordance with with the requirements of the divine law and will result in victory over evil, prosperity and happiness (SDBH).

Legends

Grammatical diagram

The grammar layer visually represents the grammar and syntax of each clause. It also displays alternative interpretations of the grammar. (For more information, click "Grammar Legend" below.)

Grammar Legend

Visualization	Description
	The clause is represented by a horizontal line with a vertical line crossing through it, separating the subject and the verb.
	The object is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause. Infinitives and participles may also have objects. If the direct object marker (d.o.m.) is present in the text, it appears in the diagram immediately before the object. If the grammar includes a secondary object, the secondary object will appear after the object, separated by another vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause.
	The subject complement follows the verb (often omitted in Hebrew) separated with a line leaning toward the right. It can be a noun, a whole prepositional phrase or an adjective. The later two appear modifying the complement slot.
	When a noun further describes or renames the object, it is an object complement. The object complement follows the object separated by a line leaning toward the right.
	In a construct chain, the noun in the absolute form modifies the noun in the construct form.
	Participles are indicated in whatever position in the clause they are in with a curved line before the participle. Participles can occur as nominal, where they take the place of a noun, predicate, where they take the place of a verb, or attributive, where they modify a noun or a verb similar to adjectives or adverbs.
	Infinitives are indicated by two parallel lines before the infinitive that cross the horizontal line. Infinitive constructs can appear as the verb in an embedded clause. Infinitive absolutes typically appear as an adverbial.
	The subject of the infinitive often appears in construct to it. In this situation, the infinitive and subject are diagrammed as a construct chain.
	The object of the infinitive is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the infinitival clause.
	Modifiers are represented by a solid diagonal line from the word they modify. They can attach to verbs, adjectives, or nouns. If modifying a verb or adjective, it is an adverb, but if modifying a noun, it is an adjective, a quantifier, or a definite article. If an adverb is modifying a modifier, it is connected to the modifier by a small dashed horizontal line.
	Adverbials are indicated by a dashed diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. These are nouns or infinitives that function adverbially (modifying either a verb or a participle), but are not connected by a preposition.
	Prepositional phrases are indicated by a solid diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. The preposition is to the left of the diagonal line and the dependent of the preposition is on the horizontal line. They can modify verbs (adverbial) or nouns (adjectival).
	Embedded clauses are indicated by a "stand" that looks like an upside-down Y. The stand rests in the grammatical position that the clause fulfills. Extending from the top of the stand is a horizontal line for the clause. If introduced by a complementizer, for example כִּי, the complementizer appears before the stand. Embedded clauses can stand in the place of any noun.
	When clauses are joined by a conjunction, they are compound clauses. These clauses are connected by a vertical dotted line. The conjunction is placed next to the dotted line.
	Within a clause, if two or more parts of speech are compound, these are represented by angled lines reaching to the two compound elements connected by a solid vertical line. If a conjunction is used, the conjunction appears to the left of the vertical line. Almost all parts of speech can be compound.
	Subordinate clauses are indicated by a dashed line coming from the line dividing the subject from the predicate in the independent clause and leading to the horizontal line of the subordinate clause. The subordinating conjunction appears next to the dashed line.
	Relative clauses also have a dashed line, but the line connects the antecedent to the horizontal line of the relative clause. The relative particle appears next to the dashed line.
	Sentence fragments are represented by a horizontal line with no vertical lines. They are most frequently used in superscriptions to psalms. They are visually similar to discourse particles and vocatives, but most often consist of a noun phrase (that does not refer to a person or people group) or a prepositional phrase.
	In the body of the psalm, a horizontal line by itself (with no modifiers or vertical lines) can indicate either a discourse particle or a vocative (if the word is a noun referring to a person or people group). A discourse particle is a conjunction or particle that functions at the discourse level, not at the grammatical level. Vocatives can appear either before or after the clause addressed to them, depending on the word order of the Hebrew.
	Apposition is indicated by an equal sign equating the two noun phrases. This can occur with a noun in any function in a sentence.

Hebrew text colors
Default preferred text	The default preferred reading is represented by a black line. The text of the MT is represented in bold black text.
Dispreferred reading	The dispreferred reading is an alternative interpretation of the grammar, represented by a pink line. The text of the MT is represented in bold pink text, while emendations and revocalizations retain their corresponding colors (see below).
Emended text	Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold blue text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
Revocalized text	Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold purple text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
(Supplied elided element)	Any element that is elided in the Hebrew text is represented by bold gray text in parentheses.
( )	The position of a non-supplied elided element is represented by empty black parentheses. For example, this would be used in the place of the noun when an adjective functions substantivally or in the place of the antecedent when a relative clause has an implied antecedent.

Gloss text colors
Gloss used in the CBC	The gloss used in the Close-but-Clear translation is represented by bold blue text.
Literal gloss >> derived meaning	A gloss that shows the more literal meaning as well as the derived figurative meaning is represented in blue text with arrows pointing towards the more figurative meaning. The gloss used in the CBC will be bolded.
Supplied elided element	The gloss for a supplied elided element is represented in bold gray text.

Shapes and colours on grammatical diagram

(For more information, click "Phrase-level Legend" below.)

Phrase-level Legend

Visualization	Description
	The prepositional phrase is indicated by a solid green oval.
	The construct chain is indicated by a solid yellow oval.
	When the conjunction ו appears at the phrase-level (not clause-level), it is indicated by a solid light purple oval.
	The article is indicated by a solid blue oval.

Expanded paraphrase

(For more information, click "Expanded Paraphrase Legend" below.)

Expanded Paraphrase Legend

Expanded paraphrase legend
Close but Clear (CBC) translation	The CBC, our close but clear translation of the Hebrew, is represented in bold text.
Assumptions	Assumptions which provide background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences are represented in italics.

Footnotes

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