Psalm 63 is the 63rd psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English Bible translations, Early Modern English translation of the Christianity, Christian Bible for the Church of England, wh ...

: "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee". In the slightly different numbering system of the Greek

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

version of the Bible and the Latin

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, this psalm is Psalm 62. In Latin, it is known as "Deus Deus meus". It is attributed to King David, set when he was in the wilderness of Judah, and its theme concerns being stranded in the wilderness away from one's family. The psalm forms a regular part of

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and other Protestant liturgies. It has been set to music.

Theme

The Psalm is composed of two parts: first (verses 1–8) an address to God: :''O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You''. Secondly, the psalmist's wishes of vengeance are then formulated in the third person in the last three verses. The first part, more developed, evokes desire, praise and then trust in God. The image of the arid earth in verse 1 does not express the absence of God as in other psalms, but rather the aspiration to meet. Confidence is then expressed by the symbolism of the protective bird. Perhaps also the wings recall the wings of the kerubim on the ark of the covenant, these representing the Lord. The change is evident in verse 10. There is now talk of vengeance towards the enemies of the psalmist, and some may evade this disconcerting psalm end. It is a question of a king in the last verse. Perhaps it is the psalmist himself, or a way of extending his prayer to the community. There is such a cry of vengeance in the

Book of Jeremiah The Book of Jeremiah () is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, and the second of the Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. The superscription at chapter Jeremiah 1#Superscription, Jeremiah 1:1–3 identifies the book as "th ...

11:20.

Uses

Early Church

The ancient church up to about 400 AD had the practice of beginning the singing of the Psalms at each Sunday service with Psalm 63, called "the morning hymn".

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; ; – 14 September 407) was an important Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and p ...

wrote that "it was decreed and ordained by the primitive hurchfathers, that no day should pass without the public singing of this Psalm". He also observed that "the spirit and soul of the whole Book of Psalms is contracted into this Psalm".

Catholicism

This psalm was already chosen by St Benedict of Nursia around 530, as the fourth and last psalm during the solemn office at the Sunday laudes (Rule of St. Benedict, chapter XI). Psalm 63 is still recited every Sunday at the Lauds by priests and religious communities, according to the liturgy of the Hours. In the triennial cycle of the Sunday Mass, it is read on the 22nd and 32nd Sundays of the ordinary time of the year A, and the 12th Sunday of the ordinary time of the year C.

Coptic Orthodox Church

In the Agpeya, the

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, this psalm is prayed in the offices of

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and Sext.

Book of Common Prayer

In the

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's ''

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'', this psalm is appointed to be read on the morning of the 12th day of the month.

Music

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

set the psalm in a metred version in German, "O Gott, du mein getreuer Gott", SWV 160, as part of the '' Becker Psalter'', first published in 1628. At the end of the 17th century, Michel-Richard de Lalande wrote a work in Latin according to this psalm (S.20). It is one of the great motets to celebrate the services at the royal chapel of the Château de Versailles, for the Sun King Louis XIV.

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composer

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8September 18411May 1904) was a Czech composer. He frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example of his predec ...

set part of Psalm 63 (together with part of Psalm 61) as No. 6 of his '' Biblical Songs'' in 1894.

Text

The following table shows the Hebrew text of the Psalm with vowels, alongside the

Koine Greek Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek language, Greek spoken and ...

text in the

and the English translation from the

. Note that the meaning can slightly differ between these versions, as the Septuagint and the

Masoretic text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; ) is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (''Tanakh'') in Rabbinic Judaism. The Masoretic Text defines the Jewish canon and its precise letter-text, with its vocaliz ...

come from different textual traditions.A 1917 translation directly from Hebrew to English by the

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can be foun
here
o
here
and an 1844 translation directly from the Septuagint by L. C. L. Brenton can be foun
here
Both translations are in the

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. In the Septuagint, this psalm is numbered Psalm 62.

Heading

Biblical commentator Cyril Rodd notes that the phrase "'When he was in the Wilderness of Judah' may refer to David's flight from

Absalom Absalom ( , ), according to the Hebrew Bible, was an Israelite prince. Born to David and Maacah, who was from Geshur, he was the only full sibling of Tamar. He is described in the Hebrew Bible as being exceptionally beautiful, as is his siste ...

(), but the time when

Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...

was pursuing David (; ) has also been suggested".

Verse 10

:''They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes.'' Other translations refer to

jackal Jackals are Canidae, canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe Canina (subtribe), canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-b ...

s rather than foxes. "It is the jackal rather than the fox which preys on dead bodies, and which assembles in troops on the battle-fields, to feast on the slain." Tristram, H. B. (1867), ''Natural History of the Bible'', p. 110, quoted by Kirkpatrick, A. (1906), i
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges on Psalm 63
accessed 4 December 2021

Notes

References

External links

* * * in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * Text of Psalm 63 according to th
1928 Psalter

A psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God — it is you I seek!
text and footnotes, usccb.org United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Psalm 63 – Love Better than Life
text and detailed commentary, enduringword.com

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 63 / Refrain: My soul is athirst for God, even for the living God.

Psalm 63
at biblegateway.com
Hymns for Psalm 63
hymnary.org {{Psalms 063