Psalm-46
-hebraicstudies.net-
Please do NOT visit this
site on שַׁבָּת - Shabbat or
on the מוֹעֲדִים - Mo’a’dim - Feasts!
Tanakh versions:
Throughout
this site I may use any of the following three versions of the TaNaKh: 1. “Jewish
Publication Society” (JPS-1917), 2. Mechon-Mamre.org” (MEC),
and 3. “Sefaria.org” (SEF).
Colour coded
details of the - TaNaKh:
1. Torah =
History & Law, 2. Nevi’im =
The Prophets. 3. *Ketuvim = all other Writings.
*The Ketuvim - Includes, Poetical books -
Psalms, Proverbs, Job, the Megillot, or
Scrolls - Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations of
Jeremiah, Ecclesiastes, and Esther, prophecy of Daniel, and
history of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles I & II.
Please Note: Some alterations or (additions) have been made relating to ‘Names’ and ‘Attributes’ having been corrected like it once was pre the now “Masoretic Text”.
YYYYYYY
Remember the following two
truth’s from our beloved Scriptures!
“Ye shall NOT ADD TO THE
WORD which I command you, NEITHER SHALL YE DIMINISH FROM IT, that ye may
keep the commandments of יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם -
the LORD your Eloleichem, which I command you”. Davarim - Deuteronomy 4:2.
YYYYYYY
With
Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
Davarim - Deuteronomy Chapter 31, verse 6.
JPS-1917 version of the Torah.
חִזְקוּ וְאִמְצוּ, אַל-תִּירְאוּ וְאַל-תַּעַרְצוּ מִפְּנֵיהֶם: כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, הוּא הַהֹלֵךְ עִמָּךְ-לֹא יַרְפְּךָ, וְלֹא יַעַזְבֶךָּ
“Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them; for יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheycha (God), He it is that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee’”.
Introduction of this special Psalm:
Tehillim - Psalm 46 is a short, but it is
rather powerful hymn that proclaims אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim (God) as refuge
and Sovereign over chaos; its superscription reads “For the Leader; a Psalm
of the sons of Korah; upon Alamoth.
A Song”.
Thankfully, the JPS-1917 rendering preserves the Psalm in a confident tone: אֱלֹהִים
is a present help in trouble, the city of אֱלֹהִים
is sustained by a life giving river, and the Divine voice stills nations and
nature alike. The Psalm moves from assurance in crisis (vv. 1-3), to vivid
imagery of a protected city and a calming river (vv. 4-6), to a theophany in which אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s voice dissolves hostile powers (vv. 7-9), and closes with the
summons to “Be still, and know that I am אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim” and a final
affirmation of אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s presence.
This study is, to say the least very comprehensive!
Let us now read Tehillim - Psalm 46 (JPS-1917 version).
1. For the Leader; (a Psalm) of the sons of Korah; upon Alamoth. A Song.
2. אֱלֹהִים - Elohim is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
3. Therefore will we not fear, though the earth do change, and though the mountains be moved into the heart of the seas;
4. Though the waters thereof roar and foam, though the mountains shake at the swelling thereof. Selah
5. There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, the holiest dwelling-place of the Most High.
6. אֱלֹהִים is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; אֱלֹהִים shall help her, at the approach of morning.
7. Nations were in tumult, kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted.
8. צְבָאוֹת-יְהוָה - the LORD of hosts is with us; the אֱלֹהִים of Jacob is our high tower. Selah.
9. Come, behold the works of יְהוָה - the LORD, who hath made desolations in the earth.
10. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth;
He breaketh the bow, and cutteth
the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariots in the
fire.
11. ‘Let be, and know that I am אֱלֹהִים - Elohim; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth’.
12. צְבָאוֹת-יְהוָה -
the LORD of hosts is with us; אֱלֹהִים -
the Elohim of Jacob is our high tower. Selah”.
YYYYYYY
The Psalm moves
from assurance in crisis (vv. 1-3), to vivid imagery of a protected city and a
calming river (vv. 4-6), to a theophany in which אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s voice dissolves
hostile powers (vv. 7-9), and closes with the summons to “Be still, and know that I am אֱלֹהִים - Elohim” and a final affirmation of אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s presence.
Let us now look at the background and its structure:
Superscription and setting:
The title locates
the poem in the Korahite collection and assigns a
musical direction, ‘Alamoth’, indicating a particular
musical or vocal quality.
Macro shape:
There are three movements in this Psalm:
1. trust in אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim amid upheaval
(vv. 1-3);
2. The image of the city made glad by a
river and kept by אֱלֹהִים
(vv. 4-6);
3. אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s decisive
intervention and the call to recognize divine sovereignty (vv. 7-11).
Key motifs:
Refuge/strength, earthquakes and waters as symbols of chaos, river/city as
order and life, Divine voice as decisive action, and stillness/knowledge as the
human response.
Below I will provide
the Hebrew phrase (transliterated where helpful) and a tight, word for word
look for each verse.
Verse
1.
Hebrew phrase: אֱלֹהִים
לָנוּ
מַחֲסֶה
וָעֹז
Saying: אֱלֹהִים
= our refuge and strength; two nouns in apposition that name אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s saving roles.
Verse
2.
Hebrew phrase: עֶזְרָה
בְצָרוֹת
נִמְצָא
מְאֹד
Saying: A present help in troubles; the verb nimtza
stresses availability; me’od intensifies the help’s
nearness.
Verse
3.
Hebrew phrase: עַל־כֵּן
לֹא־נִירָא
בְהָמִיר
אָרֶץ
Meaning: al’ken (therefore) lo’nirah
(we will not fear) b’hamir (in the shifting) aretz (earth).
Sense: Because אֱלֹהִים
is present, we will not fear even if the earth is overturned; the clause links
divine help to fearless trust.
Verse
4.
Hebrew phrase: וּבְמוֹט
הָרִים
בְּלֵב
יַמִּים
Meaning: uv’mot (and
in the trembling) ha’harim (the mountains) b’lev (into the heart) yamim
(seas).
Sense: Mountains tottering into the sea’s
heart, hyperbolic imagery of cosmic disturbance; the conjunction continues the
catalogue of chaos.
Verse
5.
Hebrew phrase: נָהָר
שֶׁנּוֹחֲלוֹתָיו
יְשַׂמְּחוּ
עִיר
אֱלֹהִים
Meaning: nahar (a
river) she’nochelotav (whose streams) y’samchehu (make glad’it) ir (city) אֱלֹהִים
(of Elohim).
Sense: A river whose
streams gladden the city of God; contrast between chaotic seas and a
sustaining river for the holy city.
Verse
6.
Hebrew phrase: אֱלֹהִים
בְּקִרְבָּהּ
לֹא תִמּוֹט
Meaning: אֱלֹהִים
(of Elohim), b’kirbah (in midst of her) lo (not) timot (she will be moved).
Sense: אֱלֹהִים
is in her midst; she shall
not be moved, assurance of divine protection for the city (the sanctuary/temple
city).
Verse
7.
Hebrew phrase: גּוֹיִם
רָעֲשׁוּ
מַמְלָכוֹת
נִדְּחוּ
Meaning: goyim (nations) ra’ashu
(were in tumult) mam’lachot (kingdoms) nidchu (were moved/overthrown).
Sense: Political turmoil; the language
prepares for a theophany in which אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s action unsettles hostile powers.
Verse
8.
Hebrew phrase: יְהוָה
צְבָאוֹת
עִמָּנוּ אֵל
יַעֲקֹב מָעוֹז
לָנוּ
Meaning: יְהוָה
(the LORD) tzevaot (of hosts) immanu
(with us) El (Elohim) Ya’akov (of Jacob) ma’oz (a
stronghold) lanu (for us).
Sense: צְבָאוֹת-יְהוָה
- the LORD of hosts is
with us; the אֱלֹהִים
of Jacob is our stronghold, communal confidence rooted in אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s presence.
Verse
9.
Hebrew phrase: הָבִ֣וּ
רְאוּ
מַעֲשֵׂה
יְהוָה
הַמַּשְׁחִית
בָּאָרֶץ
Meaning: havu (come) reu (behold) ma’aseh (the works) יְהוָה (of the LORD) hamashchit (who hath made desolations) ba’aretz
(in the earth).
Sense: An invitation to observe אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s decisive acts, including judgments that overturn the earth; the
imperative summons attention to divine power.
Verse
10.
Hebrew phrase: הַרְפּוּ
וּדְעוּ
כִּי־אֲנִי
אֱלֹהִים
Meaning: harpu
(cease/let go/be still) u’de’u (and know) ki’ani (that I am) אֱלֹהִים.
Sense: “Be still, and know that I am אֱלֹהִים”
a call to cease striving and recognize divine sovereignty; harpu
carries the sense of letting go or desisting.
Verse
11.
Hebrew phrase: יְהוָה
צְבָאוֹת
עִמָּנוּ
מִשְׂגָּב
לָנוּ
אֱלֹהֵי
יַעֲקֹב
Meaning: יְהוָה
(the LORD) tzevaot (of hosts) immanu
(with us) misgav (a high tower / stronghold) lanu (for us) אֱלֹהֵי
- Elohei
(El of) Ya’akov (Jacob).
Sense: Repeats and closes the Psalm’s central
affirmation: צְבָאוֹת-יְהוָה
- the LORD of hosts is
with us; אֱלֹהִים
is our stronghold!
Liturgical use: The Psalm’s musical superscription and
repeated refrains make it suitable for responsive reading or antiphonal
presentation.
Conclusion:
Psalm 46 in our
JPS-1917 version, tradition is a compact theological poem that models how a
community speaks faith into crisis: it names אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s roles (refuge,
strength), paints cosmic and civic imagery to dramatize danger and deliverance,
and culminates in a summons to stillness and recognition of אֱלֹהִים
- Elohim’s sovereignty. The Psalm does not deny the reality of ‘upheaval’;
rather, it relocates confidence in the presence and action of אֱלֹהִים
so that fear gives way to steadfast trust.
YYYYYYY
Please Note: “hebraicstudies” links are located
down the page!
This site was originally created, for those who desired to return to our blessed and wonderful faith. Thus be wise and work on your faith and pray at least two or three times a day (if possible) and always seek our beloved אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s guidance, for His love is always with us, especially when we seek Him, blessed be He! However this site has become very much a teaching site with hundreds of studies!
Remember what אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, blessed be
He, said the following, via several of our prophets...
“Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה- the LORD of hosts”. Mal’a’chi - Malachi 3:7. (JPS).
And Remember ...
Enjoy your Sabbath Rest, Shabbat Shalom!
אֲנִי
יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, בְּחֻקּוֹתַי
לֵכוּ; וְאֶת-מִשְׁפָּטַי
שִׁמְרוּ, וַעֲשׂוּ
אוֹתָם
וְאֶת-שַׁבְּתוֹתַי, קַדֵּשׁוּ; וְהָיוּ
לְאוֹת, בֵּינִי
וּבֵינֵיכֶם-לָדַעַת, כִּי
אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
“I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה - the LORD your Eloheichem; walk in My statutes,
and keep Mine ordinances, and do them; and hallow My Sabbaths, and they shall
be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה - the LORD your Eloheichem”.
Yechezkel - Ezekiel 20:19-20. (JPS).
YYYYYYY
“Hebraic Studies” motto is as
follows;
“The More Torah, the
More Life”
For אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim, Blessed be His Sanctified Name,
He
is the one who gave us our Life!”
May the שָׁלוֹם - Shalom = Peace of צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה= the LORD of hosts. be with you, and please always uphold our blessed שַׁבָּת - Shabbat, as well as the מוֹעֲדִים - Mo’a’dim - Feasts, and continue saying your daily תְּפִלָּה - Tefeelah’s (Prayers) and regular בְּרָכָה - Be’ra’chah’s (blessings) before food and drinks, etc!
שָׁלוֹם
עֲלֵיכֶם - Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!
Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
Enter ...
http://www.hebraicstudies.net/Site-Index.htm
Enter ...
https://www.hebraicstudies.net
-hebraicstudies.net-
Email the Rabbi
If the email link does not open - You can also copy the link
and use it.
Although the author
does not believe in having to copyright “Hebraic Studies” commenced in the mid
1980’,
but there have been occasions where there parts of his
studies have been taken and quoted out of context
under my name, and thus he has been misquoted by those who have
their own reasons for doing so.
Thus, it is only for
this reason these works are fully covered under strict ...
Copyright © 2025 - “Hebraic Studies” - All rights reserved.