Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for Bible-translators and others doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still early looks into the drafted texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

ULT A miktam of David.

WEBBE A Poem by David.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET A prayer of David.

FBV A psalm (miktam) of David.

BBE Michtam. Of David.

Moff A golden ode of David.

ASV Michtam of David.

Drby Michtam of David.

RV Michtam of David.

KJB-1769 Michtam of David.

KJB-1611 ¶ Michtam of Dauid.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Psalm 16 Introduction

Structure and Formatting

Psalm 16 is considered to be one of the “psalms of trust.” See the Introduction to Psalms for more information about the psalms of trust. 1. David’s prayer (1) 2. David recalls what he said to Yahweh (2) 3. David’s delight in godly people (3) 4. The sorrows of those who pursue gods besides Yahweh and David’s refusal to participate in their idolatry (4) 5. David acknowledges that Yahweh is in control of his destiny and has greatly blessed him (5–6) 6. David blesses Yahweh for guiding him (7) 7. David’s resolve to continually focus on Yahweh (8a) 8. David’s trust that God will protect him from troubles (8b–c) 9. The result of David’s trust in God (9) 10. David’s trust that God will protect his life (10) 11. David’s acknowledgement that Yahweh has made him know “the path of life” and that an intimate relationship with Yahweh results in abundant and eternal joys (11)The superscription to this psalm identifies it as a “miktam.” See the discussion of that term in the introduction to Psalms.

Religious and Cultural Concepts in This Psalm

Land and inheritance imagery in 16:5–6.

The historical and cultural background for 16:5–6 is the inheritance of land. 16:6 uses the imagery of measuring cords (lines) which were used to measure and distribute land. These verses probably also have as their background the distribution of the Promised Land to the tribes of Israel and Yahweh promising to be the inheritance of the tribe of Levi. If it would help you to better understand and translate these verses, you can read more about the inheritance of land in Joshua 18–19 and God providing for the Levites in Numbers 18:20–24.

Messiah

In Peter’s sermon (Acts 2:14–36), he quotes Psalm 16:8–11 in 2:25–28 and then explains that David was a prophet and was speaking of the resurrection of the Messiah.(See: resurrection and anoint)

Translation Issues in This Psalm

What does David mean by “you will not abandon my soul to Sheol. You will not hand over your godly one to see the pit” in 16:10?

The word “Sheol” refers to the place or location of the dead (where dead people go). The word “pit” also refers to the grave. In this verse David is not saying that God will keep him from ever dying. 1 Kings 2:1–10 records that David died of old age. Here David is asserting his trust that God will save him from dying an unnatural death. In other words, he trusts that God will save him from being killed by evil men. Notice that this psalm begins with a prayer for protection. (See: hades)