Psalm 45:1-2, 7-8 (Lectionary Translation)

1 My heart is stirring with a noble song;
let me recite what I have fashioned for the king; *
my tongue shall be the pen of a skilled writer.

2 You are the fairest of men; *
grace flows from your lips,
because God has blessed you forever.

7 Your throne, O God, endures for ever and ever, *
a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom;
you love righteousness and hate iniquity.

8 Therefore God, your God, has anointed you *
with the oil of gladness above your fellows.

PSALM 45: 1-3; 7-8 (A New Rendering from the Hebrew)

“The Name of Joy”

This rendering follows the Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT), in which the verse numbering is different from the lectionary version above. In the MT, verse 1 is composed of “superscriptions” – i.e. notes about the origins of the song, its assigned tune, and its meaning (a “meditation on friendships”). The body of the psalm begins in verse 2.

1 From the Director’s Collection:
Set to the ‘Lilies’ tune,
Composed by the Rebel Choir -
A Song for Meditation on Friendships.

2 Something good is stirring in my heart,
as I find the words to say what I will do
for the one who so possesses me.

Speaking out this goodness that’s so sure,
my tongue’s calligraphy is swift and pure.

3 You are more beautiful than human heart can bear -
you with molten longing on your lips.

So beautiful, the powers that we all adore
kneel always for your blessing at your door.

7 Your full moon waxes over boundless time,
Your forces, too, increase in ageless life sublime.

Your tribe is gathering on level ground,
your band of equals, where everyone belongs.

8 Your love of doing justice in this world is matched
only by the way you hate to see things fall apart.

No wonder then, that your deep inner strength -
the measured stroke of love within you - shouts it out:
the Name of Joy you share with us, your friends.

NOTES TO THE TEXT OF THE RENDERING

1 Verse 1 has five “superscriptions” in a row. This may indicate the antiquity of the poem that has been used and re-used in various contexts. Here, the redactor seems to be “quoting” the old (“royal”) song with a more universal meaning: human and divine longing, bonded in deep mutual love (for other examples, see Hosea 1-3; Jeremiah 2; Ezekiel 16 and 23; Isaiah 62:1-5).

2 I read the idiom ma’asai l’… as meaning “what I do for…” rather than “my deeds to…” -
cf. Genesis 30:31 (“if you do this for me”).

“… the one who so possesses me…” The Hebrew mlk is commonly translated “king” – proper in many cases. However, this psalm has a meaning deeper than the historical context of ancient Israelite monarchy. Cognates of mlk in Arabic and Aramaic indicate a root meaning of “possessing exclusively” and/or “counselling.”

3 “You are more beautiful…” – The “you” in this phrase is masculine in the MT. However, the older (consonantal) text allows masculine and feminine. Scholars argue that in the “royal psalm” the masculine is a king, and the feminine is his bride - the whole psalm celebrating a royal wedding. My rendering is more universally adapted to human/divine friendships. Male, female and “other” all find love in this profound bond.

“…with molten longing…” The root ytsk is multivalent: “pouring,” “flowing,” and “casting” (like “cast metal”) are all correct. This last meaning (“cast”) evokes the process by which liquid metal flows and then becomes firm – hence “molten” (cf. 1 Kings 7:23 – “the molten sea”). The sense of “yearning” is essential to the word chen; English words like “grace” and “favor” lack the passionate intimacy of the Hebrew.

“…the powers that we all adore…” - rendering ‘elohim in its root meaning of “powers” and the root brk as “kneeling” (the posture of giving and receiving blessing).

7 “Your full moon waxes…” – The Hebrew ks’ has a little-known meaning of “full moon (of a festival)” as in Proverbs 7:20. The more common meaning “throne” is forced on most translations by the historical context of the “royal psalm.”

“…ageless life sublime” – The two roots ‘lm (’olam) and ‘d (‘ad) are often linked

in Scripture, and translated (weakly) as “forever.” The first of these (‘lm) means “concealed,” “mature,” and “long time” (both future and past) – as well as “world.” I render it “always” in verse 3. But in verse 7, ‘olam and ‘ad appear together, evoking a continuous process of eternal time. As T. S. Eliot wrote: “all time is eternally present.”

“Your tribe is gathering…” – While the word shevet certainly means “rod” or “staff” (as in Psalm 23) - a connotation that lends itself to a “royal psalm” - it also means “tribe.”

8 “…you hate to see things fall apart” – The root meaning of rsh’ (resha’) is “disjointed.” Moral systems tend to blame the agency of “demons” or “bad people” (resha’im) for the evil in the world. A more holistic ethic traces evil to thoughts and actions that are “falling apart” – i.e. out of harmony with essential goodness.

“…your deep inner strength” – rendering ‘elohim here as an internal “power.”

“… the measured stroke of love…” – Translators of the “royal psalm” cling (of course) to the meaning “anoint” for the Hebrew root mshch (mashach). The original sense, however, can be found in two cognates: the Assyrian (“measure” – see Ezekiel 28:14, “the far-reaching cherub”) and the Arabic (“stroke/wipe”).

“…the Name of Joy…” – The word used here for “joy” (sasson) has the root meaning of “an enticing call.” Again, the “royalists” like to read shemen sasson as “oil of exultation.” Certainly “oil” goes together with “anointing (a king).” But we find in Jeremiah 33:9 the more universal idiom shem sasson - “Name of Joy.” So my correction here from shemen (“oil”) to shem (“name”) is a reasonable poetic license that the reader will I hope forgive.