The Meaning of מִטּוֹב in Psalm 39:3

Introduction

The Masoretic Text of Psalm 39:3 reads as follows:

נֶאֱלַ֣מְתִּי ד֭וּמִיָּה הֶחֱשֵׁ֣יתִי מִטּ֑וֹב

וּכְאֵבִ֥י נֶעְכָּֽר׃

The prepositional phrase מִטּ֑וֹב at the end of the first line has been interpreted in a variety of ways, as illustrated by the following translations:

• I was speechless and quiet; I kept silent, even from speaking good, and my pain intensified. (CSB)
• I withdrew into silence, and more than was good, I kept silent. My pain became unbearable. (TOB)
• So I was completely quiet, silent. I kept my peace, but it did no good. My pain got worse. (CEB)

The CSB understands the phrase מִטּ֑וֹב to modify the absence of speech implied by הֶחֱשֵׁ֣יתִי "I kept silent." The TOB interprets the מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב as comparative "more than." The CEB interprets the מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב as privative, that is "away from good," i.e., producing no good. We evaluate each of these three possibilities in the argument maps below.

Argument Maps

(Not) speaking טוֹב

A number of translations interpret the prepositional phrase מִטּ֑וֹב as modifying the implied lack of speaking in הֶחֱשֵׁ֣יתִי "I kept silent," as illustrated by the CSB: "I was speechless and quiet; I kept silent, even from speaking good, and my pain intensified."

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[(Not) speaking טוֹב]: The prepositional phrase מִטּ֑וֹב should be understood as modifying the implied "not speaking" in the preceding verb הֶחֱשֵׁ֣יתִי "I kept silent" (Ibn Ezra :C:; Radak :C:; Ḥakham 1979, 223 :C:; Cohen-Tzemach 1996, 174 :C:; Craigie 2004, 309 :C:).#dispreferred
 + <Shorthand for merism>: The term "from good" stands for "from good to evil" (Hitzig 1863, 219 :C:; Kirkpatrick 1897, 204 :C:), that is, as a merism for "anything," so must modify what is not to be spoken, as found in other passages.#dispreferred
  + [Genesis 31:24]: "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad (מִטּ֥וֹב עַד־רָֽע)" (NIV) >> "Be careful to say nothing to Jacob, not a word (מִטּ֥וֹב עַד־רָֽע)" (REB); cf. 2 Samuel 13:22.#dispreferred
 - <Other formulations>: There are other ways to express this idea which would have been much less ambiguous.
  + [Other formulations]: See, e.g., שָׂ֭רִים עָצְר֣וּ בְמִלִּ֑ים "the princes refrained from talking" (Job 29:9, ESV); הֶעְתִּ֖יקוּ מֵהֶ֣ם מִלִּֽים "they have not a word to say (Job 32:15, ESV).
 + <Syntactic construction>: Elsewhere, verbs of speaking are modified by מִן complements.#dispreferred
  + [Genesis 31:24]: "Be careful not to say (תְּדַבֵּ֥ר) anything to Jacob, either good or bad (מִטּ֥וֹב עַד־רָֽע)" (NIV) >> "Be careful to say (תְּדַבֵּ֥ר) nothing to Jacob, not a word (מִטּ֥וֹב עַד־רָֽע)" (REB); cf. 2 Samuel 13:22.#dispreferred
 - <V. 2>: Following the commitment to keep silent in order to avoid sinning, it is unclear what it would mean to "refrain from speaking even good things" in the presence of the wicked.
  + [V. 2]: "I decided, 'I will guard my ways from sinning with my tongue. I will keep a muzzle for my mouth while the wicked are still in my presence'" (CBC).

Comparative מִן

At least one translation reflects a comparative interpretation of מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב: "I withdrew into silence, and more than was good, I kept silent. My pain became unbearable." (TOB)

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[Comparative מִן]: The מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב should be interpreted as comparative: "more than good" (Barthélemy et al. 2005, 233 :M:; Goldingay 2006, 556 :C:).#dispreferred
 + <Context>: This interpretation makes sense in the context. Prolonged "silence under affliction is not actually a good thing" (Goldingay 2006, 556 :C:), and it seems that the psalmist stayed silent longer than he should have under the circumstances. #dispreferred
 - <Scale of silence>: The comparative interpretation suggests that some silence is good, though not as much as had been exhibited by the psalmist. This intended sense seems foreign to the rest of the psalm.
 + <מִן of comparison>: The preposition מִן occurs elsewhere with a comparative sense (see DCH).#dispreferred
  + [מִן of comparison]: See, e.g., "She is more righteous than me" (צָֽדְקָ֣ה מִמֶּ֔נִּי; Gen 38:26); "sweeter than honey" (מָתוֹק מִדְּבַשׁ; Judg 14:18), among others.#dispreferred
  <_ <Prepositional dependent: טוֹב>: The מִן of comparison never occurs with the dependent "good" (טוֹב).
   - [Psalm 52:5]: "You love evil more than good" (אָהַ֣בְתָּ רָּ֣ע מִטּ֑וֹב).#dispreferred
    <_ <Evaluative טוֹב>: The function of טוֹב suggested by "keeping silent more than good" is evaluative, not the absolute nominal sense of טוֹב found in Psalm 52:5.

Privative מִן (preferred)

A number of translations reflect a privative interpretation of מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב, as illustrated by the CEB: "So I was completely quiet, silent. I kept my peace, but it did no good. My pain got worse."

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[Privative מִן]: The מִן in מִטּ֑וֹב should be interpreted as privative: "away from good" (Briggs & Briggs 1906, 346 :C:; Ḥakham 1979, 223 :C:; Kraus 1993, 417 :C:; Barthélemy et al. 2005, 233 :M:; Jacobson & Tanner 2014, 363 :C:; Botha 2017, 242 :A:; Böhler 2021, 708 :C:).
 + <Surrounding co-text>: "His self-repression only made him still more uncomfortable" (Briggs & Briggs 1906, 346) and "instead of the silence resulting in her situation getting better, her situation in fact grew worse" (Jacobson & Tanner 2014, 363 :C:).
  + [Surrounding co-text]: "but my pain was stirred up. My heart became hot inside me; when I was sighing a fire would burn" (Ps 39:3b-4a, CBC).
 + <Literary context of surrounding Psalms>: In intertextual dialogue with surrounding Psalms, the present verse "is possibly a direct response to the promise of Ps 34:13" (Botha 2017, 252 n. 53 :A:; cf. Ps 37:16), which includes "seeing good" as a consequence of keeping silent.
  + [Psalm 34:13]: "Who is the person who desires life, who wants to live a long time, \[who loves\] to see good (טוֹב)? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit!" (CBC).
 + <Literary context of the Psalter>: Psalms 39 and 73 share many common elements. Asaph begins Psalm 73 declaring that "God is good (טוֹב) to Israel" (v. 1) and closes the psalm with the conclusion that "nearness to God is what is good (טוֹב) for him" (v. 28). Similarly, the psalmist's declaration, "I am a sojourner with you" (Ps 39:13), also "suggests closeness to God" (Cohen-Tzemach 1996, 175 :C:), but the psalmist's expectation to receive good (טוֹב) was not fulfilled.
 + <Symmachus>: This interpretation is compatible with Symmachus' explicit translation.
  + [Symmachus]: ἐσιωπήθην μὴ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθῷ "I kept silent, not being among the good," in other words: "being far from good."
 + <מִן of separation>: "Complements headed by מִן can also be used in other situation types and imply a separation between an entity and a landmark" (Sjörs & Canu Højgaard 2026 :G:). As in the present case, in many of these instances "מִן has a still more pregnant force ... in which the idea of precluding from anything is only indirectly contained in the preceding verb" (GKC §119y :G:).
  + [מִן of separation]: See, e.g., Ps 18:22 "and have not wickedly departed from my God" (ESV; וְלֹֽא־רָ֝שַׁ֗עְתִּי מֵאֱלֹהָֽי׃); Ps 30:4 "you restored me to life, so that I did not go down to the pit" (CBC; חִ֝יִּיתַ֗נִי *מִיָּֽרְדִי*־בֽוֹר); Ps 83:5 "Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation" (KJV; לְ֭כוּ וְנַכְחִידֵ֣ם מִגּ֑וֹי).
 + <Syntactic collocation>: The only other place חשׁה occurs with מִן in the psalms is also read as privative/separation.
  + [Psalm 28:1]: "you are silent away from me" >> "you are silent to me" (תֶּֽחֱשֶׁ֥ה מִמֶּ֑נִּי).

Conclusion (B)

The formulation הֶחֱשֵׁ֣יתִי מִטּ֑וֹב is extremely terse and requires semantic expansion, which has led to the variation of interpretations surveyed above. The suggestion of another verbal idea, such as "I kept silent from [speaking] good things," however, finds no precedent in Biblical Hebrew.

Rather, simple interpretations within the known functions of the preposition מִן should be preferred, such as comparative or privative (or, separation). In the former case, however, the implication involves a duration of silence that is good, though the psalmist's silence went beyond this level, such that he "kept silent more than good." Such a suggestion of an appropriate level of silence (but not too much!) is unknown to silence-keeping as mourning in the Bible.

The most plausible interpretation, therefore, is a privative reading of מִן, which makes better sense of the suffering mentioned in the following verse and the necessity to speak (v. 4c), as well as the use the verbal collocation in Psalm 28:1, the use of of טוֹב in the surrounding context of Book 1 of the Psalms and beyond. Further, privative מִן is often found in highly schematized constructions which require some syntactic expansion. We recommend the interpretation in line with our CBC: "I kept silent to no good," which could be expanded as: "I kept silent without [any] good [result] from it." This provides further justification for the following sentences, which describe the suffering from silence and the breaking of that silence, once the psalmist could not hold in his speech any longer.

Research

Translations

Ancient

• LXX: καὶ ἐσίγησα ἐξ ἀγαθῶν
  • "and I was silent from good things"
• Aquila: ἐσίγησα ἀπὸ ἀγαθοῦ
  • "I was silent away from good."
• Symmachus: ἐσιωπήθην μὴ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθῷ.
  • "I kept silent, not being among the good."
• Iuxta Hebraeos: tacui de bono
  • "I was silent away from good."
• Peshitta: ܘܕܘܝܬ ܡܢ ܛܒܬܐ
  • "I grieved on account of good."
• Targum: בטלית מן פתגמי אוריתא
  • "I ceased from the words of the Law."

Modern

(Not) speaking טוֹב

• I was speechless and quiet; I kept silent, even from speaking good, and my pain intensified. (CSB; cf. CJB, GNT, NASB, NIV)
• Y me hacía el mudo: no decía nada. ¡Ni siquiera hablaba de lo bueno! Pero mi dolor iba en aumento (DHH; cf. RVC)

Comparative מִן

• Je me suis enfermé dans le silence, et plus qu'il n'était bon, je me suis tu. Ma douleur devint insupportable (TOB)

Privative מִן

• I was mute and silent; I held my peace to no avail, and my distress grew worse. (ESV)
• So I was completely quiet, silent. I kept my peace, but it did no good. My pain got worse. (CEB)
• Je suis resté muet, dans le silence, je me suis tu, quoique malheureux, et ma douleur était vive. (SG21)
• Je suis resté muet, silencieux ; je me suis tu, loin du bonheur ; ma douleur était extrême. (NBS)
• Je suis donc resté muet, silencieux. Je me suis tu, mais je n’ai rien gagné : ma souffrance a augmenté. (PDV)
•  Ich verstummte in Schweigen, schwieg – fern vom Guten. Da wurde mein Schmerz erregt. (ELB; cf. EÜ; LUT 2017, ZÜR)

Secondary Literature

Barthélemy, Dominique. 2005. Critique Textuelle de l'Ancient Testament: Tome 4. Psaumes. Fribourg: Academic Press Fribourg.

Böhler, Dieter. 2021. Psalmen 1–50. Freiburg, Basel, Wien: Herder Verlag.

Botha, Phil. 2017. "Psalm 39 and its Place in the Development of a Doctrine of Retribution in the Hebrew Bible," OTE 30.2: 240–264.

Briggs, Charles A. & Briggs, Emilie G. 1906. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Psalms. Volume 1. New York, NY: C. Scribner’s Sons.

Cohen-Tzemach, David. 1996. "Chapter 39" (in Hebrew). Pages 172–175 in Psalms: Volume 1. Olam HaTaNaKh. Tel Aviv: דודזון–עתי.

Craigie, Peter C. 2004. Psalms 1–50. Second edition. Nashville, TN: Nelson.

Delitzsch, Franz. 1871. Biblical Commentary on the Psalms: Vol. 2. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

Goldingay John. 2006. Psalms 1–41. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.

Ḥakham, Amos. 1979. The Book of Psalms: Books 1–2 (in Hebrew). Jerusalem: Mossad Harav Kook.

Hitzig, Ferdinand. 1863. Die Psalmen: übersetzt und ausgelegt. Erster Band. Leipzig und Heidelberg: C. F. Winterische Verlagshandlung.

Ibn Ezra. Ibn Ezra on Psalms.

Jacobson, Rolf A. & Tanner, Beth. 2014. “Book One of the Psalter: Psalms 1–41,” in The Book of Psalms (NICOT). Grand Rapids, MI; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Kirkpatrick, Alexander, F. 1897. The Book of Psalms with Introduction and Notes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Kraus, Hans-Joachim, 1993. A Continental Commentary: Psalms 1–59. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

Radak. Radak on Psalms.

Sjörs, Ambjörn & Christian Canu Højgaard. 2026. "Oblique Arguments," in Geoffrey Khan et al. (eds.) Cambridge Grammar of Biblical Hebrew. Cambridge: University of Cambridge & Open Book.

References

39:3