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UHB 1 לַ⁠מְנַצֵּ֥חַ עַֽל־יְדוּת֗וּן [fn] לְ⁠אָסָ֥ף מִזְמֽוֹר׃ ‡

ULT For the chief musician; after the manner of Jeduthun. A psalm of Asaph.

WEBBE For the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm by Asaph.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of Asaph.

FBV For Jeduthun, the music director. A psalm of Asaph.

BBE To the chief music-maker. After Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A Psalm.

Moff From the Choirmaster’s collection. To Jeduthun’s tune. An Asaphite song.

ASV For the Chief Musician; after the manner of Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.

Drby To the chief Musician. On Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A Psalm.

RV For the Chief Musician; after the manner of Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.

KJB-1769 To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalm of Asaph.

KJB-1611 ¶ To the chiefe musician, to Ieduthun, a Psalme of Asaph.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Psalm 77 Introduction

Structure and Formatting

1. Superscription 2. Lament and sleepless searching (1–6) 3. Questions about God’s favor (7–10) 4. Remembering Yah’s deeds (11–15) 5. God’s power over the waters and leading his people (16–20)

Structure and Formatting

Psalm 77 is a psalm of Asaph in which the psalmist moves from intense distress and questioning to renewed confidence by remembering God’s past saving actions. 1. Purpose: to express a lament and then to renew trust in God by recalling his mighty deeds. 2. Content: The psalm begins with the psalmist crying out in trouble and asking a series of questions about whether God has rejected him. It then turns to remembrance of God’s works and ends with vivid storm-and-sea imagery that recalls God leading his people. 3. Message: When God seems absent, the psalmist responds by remembering who God is and what he has done for his people.

Translation Issues in This Psalm

1. Rhetorical questions: Verses 7–9 contain a series of questions that function primarily to express grief and uncertainty, not to request information. 2. Figurative language for inner life: The psalm uses terms like “soul,” “heart,” and “spirit” to describe a person’s internal experience. 3. Body-part imagery for God’s power: Expressions like “right hand” and “arm” refer to God’s power and ability to act. 4. Nature imagery: The psalm personifies waters, clouds, skies, and the earth, and uses war/storm imagery such as “arrows” for lightning. 5. Key names and titles: The psalm includes the divine name “Yah,” the title “the Most High,” and references to Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and Aaron. 6. Selah: The term “Selah” appears in verses 3, 9, and 15 as a likely musical direction.See: writing-poetry

Note 1 topic: translate-unknown

לַ⁠מְנַצֵּ֥חַ

(la⁠mənaʦʦēaḩ)

For the chief musician is an instruction about who should lead people in singing or playing music with this psalm. This could refer to the person in charge of music for temple worship. If your readers would not be familiar with this role, you could use a more general term. Alternate translation: [For the music director] or [For the worship leader]

Note 2 topic: translate-names

עַֽל־יְדוּת֗וּן

(ˊal-yədūtūn)

See how you translated the expression “on Jeduthun” in the superscription to Psalm 39.

Parallel PSA 77:0

Psalm 77 Introduction

Structure and Formatting

Structure and Formatting

Translation Issues in This Psalm