OET interlinear PSA 79:1

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / exclamations

אֱֽלֹהִ֡ים בָּ֤אוּ גוֹיִ֨ם ׀ בְּֽ⁠נַחֲלָתֶ֗⁠ךָ

ʼElohīm (Some words not found in UHB: song of,Asaph ʼElohīm they_went nations in,inheritance_of,your defiled DOM temple_of your_holiness_of,your laid DOM Yerushalayim into,heaps_of_ruins )

Asaph is using a phrase that expresses a strong feeling of anguish over the invasion of Israel. If your language has a comparable way to express this feeling, you could use it in your translation. Alternate translation: [O God, nations have invaded your inheritance]

Note 2 topic: writing-participants

גוֹיִ֨ם

nations

Here Asaph is introducing the nations as new participants in the psalm. He does not specify which nations, but refers to foreign peoples in general. Your language may have its own way of introducing new participants that you can use in your translation. Alternate translation: [foreign nations]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

בְּֽ⁠נַחֲלָתֶ֗⁠ךָ

(Some words not found in UHB: song of,Asaph ʼElohīm they_went nations in,inheritance_of,your defiled DOM temple_of your_holiness_of,your laid DOM Yerushalayim into,heaps_of_ruins )

Here Asaph is speaking of the land of Israel being different than other parts of the earth by calling it God’s inheritance. This means the land that God specially reserved for him and his people. Your language may have a comparable expression that you can use in your translation, or you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [into your special possession]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

בְּֽ⁠נַחֲלָתֶ֗⁠ךָ

(Some words not found in UHB: song of,Asaph ʼElohīm they_went nations in,inheritance_of,your defiled DOM temple_of your_holiness_of,your laid DOM Yerushalayim into,heaps_of_ruins )

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of inheritance, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [into what you have inherited]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

קָדְשֶׁ֑⁠ךָ

(Some words not found in UHB: song of,Asaph ʼElohīm they_went nations in,inheritance_of,your defiled DOM temple_of your_holiness_of,your laid DOM Yerushalayim into,heaps_of_ruins )

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of holiness, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [you who are holy]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism

בָּ֤אוּ גוֹיִ֨ם ׀ בְּֽ⁠נַחֲלָתֶ֗⁠ךָ טִ֭מְּאוּ אֶת־הֵיכַ֣ל קָדְשֶׁ֑⁠ךָ שָׂ֖מוּ אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלִַ֣ם לְ⁠עִיִּֽים

(Some words not found in UHB: song of,Asaph ʼElohīm they_went nations in,inheritance_of,your defiled DOM temple_of your_holiness_of,your laid DOM Yerushalayim into,heaps_of_ruins )

These three phrases all describe the enemy’s attack on what belongs to God. Each phrase intensifies the devastation, moving from invasion to defilement to destruction. See how you as a team have decided to translate the parallel phrases in the Psalms and follow that approach here and throughout this psalm. For more information on how to translate parallel phrases see the Psalm 79 Introduction. Alternate translation: [nations have invaded your land, made your holy temple unclean, and turned Jerusalem into piles of rubble]