--> Psalm 5 is the fifth psalm of the

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

: "Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation". In Latin, it is known as "Verba mea auribus percipe Domine". The psalm is traditionally attributed to

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

. It is a reflection of how the righteous man prays for deliverance not only for freedom from suffering, but to allow himself to be able to serve God without distraction. The

New King James Version The New King James Version (NKJV) is an English translation of the Bible. The complete NKJV Bible was published in 1982 by Thomas Nelson, now HarperCollins. The NKJV is described by Thomas Nelson as being "scrupulously faithful to the origin ...

entitles it "A Prayer for Guidance". The psalm is a regular part of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

and other Protestant liturgies. It has been set to music by composers such as

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

and

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

Text

Hebrew

The following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 5:

King James Version

# Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation. # Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. # My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. # For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. # The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. # Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man. # But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. # Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face. # For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue. # Destroy thou them, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; for they have rebelled against thee. # But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. # For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

Themes

Folio 46v - David Beseeches God Against Evildoers

Psalm 5 is within the genre of the morning prayer, because the morning was very important in the

religions of the ancient Near East The religions of the ancient Near East were mostly polytheistic, with some examples of monolatry (for example, Yahwism and Atenism). Some scholars believe that the similarities between these religions indicate that the religions are related, a be ...

. Hence verse 4: :''In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.'' The Psalm opens as a

lament A lament or lamentation is a passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form. The grief is most often born of regret, or mourning. Laments can also be expressed in a verbal manner in which participants lament about somethin ...

, continues with praise, and requests that God punish evildoers. The psalmist describes the throat of the wicked as an open sepulcher. The Psalmist ends (verse 12 or 13) with a blessing extended to all those who trust in God.

Interpretation

The correct translation of the word Hebrew word הַנְּחִילֹ֗ות (in the superscription or verse 1) is unclear; the

NRSV The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches.Luther Bible The Luther Bible (german: Lutherbibel) is a German language Bible translation from Latin sources by Martin Luther. The New Testament was first published in September 1522, and the complete Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments with Apocry ...

give it as "for flute". The

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

and some Arabic translations attribute נחל from "inherit" meaning "per ea quae haereditatem consequitur"(vulgate) and κληρονομος (Septuagint). Accordingly, it would be translated into English as "in favor of those who receive the inheritance". Therefore Augustine, Cassiodorus and others interpreted it as "those heirs of God". A thoroughly

Christological In Christianity, Christology (from the Greek grc, Χριστός, Khristós, label=none and grc, -λογία, -logia, label=none), translated literally from Greek as "the study of Christ", is a branch of theology that concerns Jesus. Di ...

interpretation can be found in

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...

's work, who finds the third verse revealing that the humanization of man happens through the incarnation of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. Gerhard Ebeling sees in the Psalm both as complaining (verse 10) and also at the same time as exultation and rejoicing (verse 12).

Context

Psalm 5 uses musical instruments, flutes.

Psalm 4 Psalm 4 is the fourth psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English of the King James Version: "Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress." In Latin, it is known as "Cum invocarem". The p ...

is the first Psalm using a musical instrument, strings or "stringed instruments". A new theme is introduced, the name of God, in verse 11: :''But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you.'' This is the first of five psalms (Psalms 5 - 9) all speaking of "the name of God", with nine verses speaking to various aspects, namely Ps 5:11, Ps 6:5, Ps 7:17, Ps 8:1, Ps 8:9, Ps 9:2, Ps 9:5 and Ps 9:10. Various types of flow in the Book of Psalms are explored by various authors such as O. Palmer Robertson. An emphasis of a particular genre of Psalm, the lament. In Ps 5:1 where God is called on to 'listen to my lament'. The most common genre of Psalm in the book of Psalms will be the lament. Laments can be seen to occur more heavily in the first half of the book of Psalms,

Uses

Judaism

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

, verse 8 of psalm 5 is the second verse from ''

Ma Tovu Ma Tovu (Hebrew for "O How Good" or "How Goodly") is a prayer in Judaism, expressing reverence and awe for synagogues and other places of worship. The prayer begins with , where Balaam, sent to curse the Israelites, is instead overcome with awe a ...

''.

New Testament

Verse 9 is quoted in .

Catholic Church

According to the

Rule of St. Benedict The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' ( la, Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia ( AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Ru ...

(530 AD),

Psalm 1 Psalm 1 is the first psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English King James Version: "Blessed is the man", and forming "an appropriate prologue" to the whole collection.Kirkpatrick, A. F. (1906)Cambridge Bible for Schools and Collegeson ...

Psalm 20 Psalm 20 is the 20th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble". The Book of Psalms is part of the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and a book of the Christian Old T ...

were mainly reserved for office of

Prime A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...

. Since the time of St.

Benedict Benedict may refer to: People Names *Benedict (given name), including a list of people with the given name *Benedict (surname), including a list of people with the surname Religious figures * Pope Benedict I (died 579), head of the Catholic Chu ...

, the Rule of Benedict (530 AD) has used this psalm for the office

Lauds Lauds is a canonical hour of the Divine office. In the Roman Rite Liturgy of the Hours it is one of the major hours, usually held after Matins, in the early morning hours. Name The name is derived from the three last psalms of the psalter (148, ...

on Monday (Chapter XIII) In the Liturgy of the Hours, Psalm 5 is still recited or sung at Lauds on Monday of the first week.

Book of Common Prayer

In the Church of England's ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

'', Psalm 5 is appointed to be read on the morning of the first day of the month.Church of England
Book of Common Prayer: The Psalter
as printed by

John Baskerville John Baskerville (baptised 28 January 1707 – 8 January 1775) was an English businessman, in areas including japanning and papier-mâché, but he is best remembered as a printer and type designer. He was also responsible for inventing "wov ...

in 1762, p. 196ff

Music

Caspar cross Hamer (1546) created in 1537 the chorale ''An geystlich Bitlied'' drawn heavily from the Psalms.

composed a setting of a metred version in German, "Herr, hör, was ich will bitten dich",

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

101, published in 1628 in the ''

Becker Psalter The ''Becker Psalter'' is a German metrical psalter authored by the Leipzig theologian Cornelius Becker and first published by Jakob Apel in Leipzig in 1602 under the title ''Der Psalter Davids Gesangweis''. Several composers set the psalms contai ...

''.

composed a setting of Psalm 5 in English, "Lord, hear the voice" for men's chorus in 1839). In 1911,

dedicated a setting for choir and orchestra, "Intende voci orationis meæ", as an offertory for the coronation of

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

References

External links

* * * in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * Text of Psalm 5 according to th
1928 Psalter

For the leader; with wind instruments. A psalm of David. / Give ear to my words, O LORD; understand my sighing.
(text and footnotes) United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

(introduction and text) biblestudytools.com
Psalm 5 – A Morning Prayer
enduringword.com
Psalm 5 / Refrain: You, O Lord, will bless the righteous.

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Psalm 5
at biblegateway.com
Hymns for Psalm 5
hymnary.org {{Psalms 005 Works attributed to David