Psalms 136 — OURB

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136Hodu la-Yahweh ki'-tov ·Give thanks to Adonai for he is good·, and yadah ·extend hands in thankful praise·;ki' li-olam chas'do ·for his loving-kindness endures forever·.⁺^{Verse 2}Yadah ·Extend hands in thankful praise· to the Elohei of the elohim ·God of the deities·;for his chesed ·loving-kindness· endures forever.^{Verse 3}Yadah ·Extend hands in thankful praise· to the 'Adonei of the adoneim ·the Lord of the lords·;for his faithful love endures forever:^{Verse 4}To him who alone does great wonders;for his steadfast love endures forever:^{Verse 5}To him who by understanding made the heavens;for his loving kindness is everlasting:^{Verse 6}To him who spread out the earth above the waters;for his loyal love endures forever:^{Verse 7}To him who made the great lights;for his mercies are to eternity:^{Verse 8}The sun to rule by day;for his gracious love is everlasting;^{Verse 9}The moon and stars to rule by night;for his mercy continues forever:^{Verse 10}To him who struck down the Egyptian [person from Abode of slavery] firstborn;for his grace endures forever;^{Verse 11}And brought out Israel [God prevails] from among them;for his loyal devotion endures forever;^{Verse 12}With a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm;for his covenant ·binding contract between two or more parties· loyalty endures forever:^{Verse 13}To him who divided the Sea of Suf [Reed Sea] apart;ki' li-olam chas'do ·for his loving-kindness endures forever·.^{Verse 14}And made Israel [God prevails] to pass through the middle of it;for his chesed ·loving-kindness· endures forever.^{Verse 15}But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Sea of Suf [Reed Sea];for his faithful love endures forever:^{Verse 16}To him who led his people through the wilderness;for his steadfast love endures forever:^{Verse 17}To him who struck great kings;for his loving kindness is everlasting:^{Verse 18}And killed mighty kings;for his loyal love endures forever:^{Verse 19}Sihon king of the Amorites [Descendants of Talkers];for his mercies are to eternity:^{Verse 20}Og king of Bashan;for his gracious love is everlasting;^{Verse 21}And gave their land as an inheritance;for his mercy continues forever:^{Verse 22}Even a heritage to Israel [God prevails] his servant;for his grace endures forever;^{Verse 23}Who remembered us in our low estate;for his loyal devotion endures forever;^{Verse 24}And has delivered us from our adversaries;for his loving kindness endures forever:^{Verse 25}Who gives food to every creature;for his chesed ·loving-kindness· endures forever.^{Verse 26}Oh yadah ·extend hands in thankful praise· to the God of heaven;ki' li-olam chas'do ·for his loving-kindness endures forever·.

Commentary

Like the preceding Psalm, this Psalm allies itself to the Book of Deuteronomy. Psa 136:2 and Psa 136:3 (God of gods and Lord of lords) are taken from Deu 10:17; Psa 136:12 (with a strong hand and stretched-out arm) from Deu 4:34; Deu 5:15, and frequently (cf. Jer 32:21); Psa 136:16 like Deu 8:15 (cf. Jer 2:6). With reference to the Deuteronomic colouring of Psa 136:19-22, vid., on Psa 135:10-12; also the expression "Israel His servant" recalls Deu 32:36 (cf. Psa 135:14; Psa 90:13), and still more Isa 40:1, where the comprehension of Israel under the unity of this notion has its own proper place. In other respects, too, the Psalm is an echo of earlier model passages. Who alone doeth great wonders sounds like Psa 72:18 (Psa 86:10); and the adjective "great" that is added to "wonders" shows that the poet found the formula already in existence. In connection with Psa 136:5 he has Pro 3:19 or Jer 10:12 in his mind; תּבוּנה, like חכמה, is the demiurgic wisdom. Psa 136:6 calls to mind Isa 42:5; Isa 44:24; the expression is "above the waters," as in Psa 34:2 "upon the seas," because the water is partly visible and partly invisible מתּחת לארץ (Exo 20:4). The plural אורים, luces, instead of מארות, lumina (cf. Eze 32:8, מאורי אור), is without precedent. It is a controverted point whether אורת in Isa 26:19 signifies lights (cf. אורה, Psa 139:12) or herbs (Kg2 4:39). The plural ממשׁלות is also rare (occurring only besides in Psa 114:2): it here denotes the dominion of the moon on the one hand, and (going beyond Gen 1:16) of the stars on the other. בּלּילה, like בּיּום, is the second member of the stat. construct.

Up to this point it is God the absolute in general, the Creator of all things, to the celebration of whose praise they are summoned; and from this point onwards the God of the history of salvation. In Psa 136:13 גּזר (instead of בּקע, Psa 78:13; Exo 14:21; Neh 9:11) of the dividing of the Red Sea is peculiar; גּזרים (Gen 15:17, side by side with בּתרים) are the pieces or parts of a thing that is cut up into pieces. נער is a favourite word taken from Exo 14:27. With reference to the name of the Egyptian ruler Pharaoh (Herodotus also, ii. 111, calls the Pharaoh of the Exodus the son of Sesostris-Rameses Miumun, not Μενόφθας, as he is properly called, but absolutely Φερῶν), vid., on Psa 73:22. After the God to whom the praise is to be ascribed has been introduced with ל by always fresh attributes, the ל before the names of Sihon and of Og is perplexing. The words are taken over, as are the six lines of Psa 136:17-22 in the main, from Psa 135:10-12, with only a slight alteration in the expression. In Psa 136:23 the continued influence of the construction הודוּ ל is at an end. The connection by means of שׁ (cf. Psa 135:8, Psa 135:10) therefore has reference to the preceding "for His goodness endureth for ever." The language here has the stamp of the latest period. It is true זכר with Lamed of the object is used even in the earliest Hebrew, but שׁפל is only authenticated by Ecc 10:6, and פּרק, to break loose = to rescue (the customary Aramaic word for redemption), by Lam 5:8, just as in the closing verse, which recurs to the beginning, "God of heaven" is a name for God belonging to the latest literature, Neh 1:4; Neh 2:4. In Psa 136:23 the praise changes suddenly to that which has been experienced very recently. The attribute in Psa 136:25 (cf. Psa 147:9; Psa 145:15) leads one to look back to a time in which famine befell them together with slavery.

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