Psalm 9

I concur with the OPC/URC proposal to use  “Halifax” with both Psalms 9 and 10, on the grounds that 1) Psalms 9 and 10 together form an alphabetic acrostic (slightly irregular in form, but clear nonetheless), 2) besides Psalms 1-2, Psalm 10 is the only Psalm in Book 1 of the Psalter that doesn’t have a title, and 3) the Septuagint treats Psalms 9-10 as a single song.

Hence Psalms 9-10 appear to have been written as one song, and only later got divided. Or, at the very least, Psalm 10 was written as a response to Psalm 9. This raises interesting questions for our canonical interpretation of the Psalm!

I also really like Psalm 9 to St. Denio (Joanna) — and I spent a fair amount of time working on that text — so I think that there are two good options here. My only concern with St. Denio is that I think that it is altogether too triumphant a tune for parts of this text. St. Denio is the tune used with “Immortal, Invisible, God only Wise” — now sing that tune with Psalm 9:13 — “LORD, see what I suffer from malice and hate! Have pity and lift me away from death’s gate.” On the other hand, it works really well with the opening and closing of the Psalm, so I won’t object.

Text: Sing Psalms, 2003 (CMD)

1 I’ll praise you, LORD, with all my heart; your wonders I’ll proclaim.
2 I will rejoice in you, Most High, and praise your holy name.
3 Before you all my en’mies fall, they turn their backs and flee.
4 For you upheld my right and cause and judged me righteously.

5 You have rebuked the nations, LORD; the wicked you destroyed.
You blotted out the heathen’s name, forever made it void.
6 The enemy has met their doom, destroyed eternally.
You have uprooted all their towns; they’re lost to memory.

7 The LORD forever reigns on high; his throne for judgment stands.
8 He’ll judge the world in righteousness, with justice rule the lands.
9 The LORD will be a hiding place for those who are oppressed,
and he will be a strong defense for those who are distressed.

10 All those who know your name, O LORD, in you their trust will place,
for you do not abandon those who seek your gracious face.
11 Sing praises to the LORD who sits in Zion on his throne;
among the nations of the world proclaim what he has done.

12 For he, th’avenger of man’s blood, remembers evermore;
the cry of the afflicted one he never will ignore.
13 O LORD, see how my enemies are persecuting me.
Have mercy! From the gates of death lift me and set me free:

14 so that in Zion’s city gates your praise I may declare,
and that I may exult with joy in your salvation there.
15 The nations all have fallen down into the pit they made;
their feet are tangled in the net that they themselves have laid.

16 The LORD is known by righteous acts; his justice always stands.
The wicked are ensnared in traps, the work of their own hands.
17 The wicked will return to where the dead have their abode,
where all the heathen nations go that have forgotten God.

18 The needy will not be ignored, forgotten all their days;
the hopes and longings of the poor will not be crushed always.
19 Arise, LORD! Let not man prevail; judge nations from your throne.
20 That they may know how frail they are, with fear, LORD, strike them down.

Tune: Halifax (George F. Handel, 1748; harm. Austin Lovelace, b. 1919)

Commentary

Psalm 9 is titled, “To the Choirmaster: According to Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.”

The title, “To the Choirmaster,” reminds us that the Psalms were written for the worship of the temple. It is usually a futile endeavor to try to recreate the personal situation of the Psalmist when he was writing — especially since song writers throughout the ages have frequently composed songs that were not merely expressions of their current emotional state. “A Psalm of David” also reminds us of the Davidic context of Book 1 of the Psalter. Whether it means “by David,” “for David,” “about David,” or something else, it clearly shows us that the Davidic monarchy is the central focus of books 1-2 of the Psalms. They presuppose the Davidic monarchy as the context for Israel’s worship.

The rest of the title, “Almuth labben,” has occasioned much controversy. Some take this literally, “according to Death to a Son” (Jerome), or it could mean “sung to a high voice” (Delitzsch). Others, like the ESV, prefer to leave it untranslated and assume that it is a musical or liturgical term that is unknown to us!

Psalm 9:1-12 takes the form of a communal thanksgiving as Israel gives praise to God for maintaining the just cause of David. But then in verses 13-18, the tone begins to change towards a plea for help. In 9:19-20, the Psalmist is now calling on God to arise and judge the nations. (And then Psalm 10 continues with the communal lament, asking God why he allows the wicked to prosper in 10:1-11, and then repeating the plea for God to arise and “break the arm of the wicked” in 10:12-15, before concluding with an affirmation of confidence that the LORD will hear and act — “so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more”).

Structure:

If Psalms 9-10 were originally a single song, does this mean that they should be interpreted (and sung) together? Or should we take the Hebrew division of the Psalm as an inspired division and thus read them and sing them separately? I like the approach taken here — by putting both Psalms to the same tune, but retaining the Hebrew numbering, it becomes possible to sing/read them together, while also permitting them to be sung/read separately.

The Sing Psalms text also enables us to do this. The chief weakness of this translation (in terms of structure) is the stanza break after verse 13, which results in the stanza ending with a colon. This is one place where the St. Denio/Joanna text is superior. It has ten stanzas — each of which contains two biblical verses. (This is why we originally crafted the 11 11 11 11 text — we were only convinced to go with the CMD text by our desire to hold Psalms 9 and 10 together — and St. Denio is simply way too confident for Psalm 10).

Translation Notes:

Those who have ever worked on metrical psalmody will know that it is rare that you are ever satisfied with a text.Verses 19-20 provide a good example. In verse 19, Halifax is superior:

“Arise, O LORD! Let not man prevail; let the nations be judged before you!” (ESV)
“Arise, LORD! Let not man prevail; judge nations from your throne” (Halifax)
“Arise, O my God! Let not man win the day, let nations be judged in your presence, I pray” (St. Denio).

But I prefer how the St. Denio text renders verse 20:

“Put them in fear, O LORD! Let the nations know that they are but men!” (ESV)
“Strike terror within them, O LORD, always then let nations know truly that they are but men” (St. Denio)
“That they may know how frail they are, with fear, LORD, strike them down” (Halifax).

But the attempt to blend the best of each was thwarted by the constraints of meter and inflection!

Tune Notes:

Since Psalms 9 and 10 blend together notes of triumph and lament, Halifax is one of the few tunes that can carry the whole Psalm. Austin Lovelace’s harmonization of Handel’s tune provides a strong but dark tone. While in a minor key, it moves back and forth to the relative major, allowing for a variety of brightness and darkness in the tune — mirroring the Psalmist’s trust in the Lord, even as he pours out his pleas and petitions.

Halifax is used in the BPS with Psalm 89, in the BPW with Psalms 55 and 89, and in the Trinity Psalter with Psalm 140.

Conclusion

Psalms 9-10 work well together liturgically. Psalm 9 works well as a song of praise as we come into the presence of the living God, followed by Psalm 10, as we lament our afflictions and troubles and call upon the LORD to do justice. I think that sometimes we focus so much on the confession of sin that we lose sight that many afflictions are not due to our sin, but to the assault of our enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil.

I have not been able to find any recordings of Halifax.

I have not yet preached on Psalm 9.

— Peter J. Wallace