Comparing the verse numbers in Psalms from English to the Hebrew? An example.

Many of us deal with the Psalms completely in English, and that's fine.  If you decide, however, to compare those Psalms to the Hebrew for the first time, you may get confused.  As I was looking at Psalm 13 for this weekend's study, I decided to write a quick post on what to look for if you are comparing the English and the Hebrew for the first time.

The verse numbers don't always line up.
The first thing we notice with this psalm is that it has a title, which is translated in the NASB, "For the choir director. A Psalm of David."  This is actually verse one in the Hebrew.  Verse one in English starts, "How long," but that is the start of verse two in the Hebrew.  So, you may end up with a verse more than you anticipated in the Hebrew.

Incidentally, that means that the titles in Hebrew are canonical.  Different scholars will debate whether that means the titles are inspired.  I'm of the camp that believe they are; if they are preserved by God in the canon of Scripture, then it is part of Holy Writ for our profit (2 Tm 3:16-17).  This means that Psalm 13 authoritatively and inerrantly declares King David to be the author.

Sometimes, the verse numbers really don't line up.
I said that you may get an extra verse in the Hebrew, but that isn't the case in this psalm.  That's because verse six in Hebrew is both verses five and six in English.  See my screenshot below:


This means that, if you are like me and easily confuse numbers, you will have to concentrate twice as hard in keep the numbers straight.

(This all is to say nothing of the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament.  In that case, we are talking about Psalm 12, not 13!)

If you want superb help in your studies, make certain to study Dr. Barrick's notes on the Psalms.

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