Watered Down

Psalms 29:1 (KJV) [[A Psalm of David.]] Give unto the LORD, O ye mighty, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

(Proverbs 8 also read)

I first started having questions about the translation of this verse when I compared the Authorized and the NASB.  Notice the slight difference by the addition of a word.

(Psa 29:1 NAS77) A Psalm of David. Ascribe to the LORD, O sons of the mighty, Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

The extra word is “sons”.  With my limited expertise in Hebrew, all I could do was look at the Blue Letter Bible tools, and noticed that according to them, the Hebrew word “ben” is in the original manuscripts, but for some reason the authorized version does not include it.

So the idea of the sons is biblical.

Now go another step.

The word “mighty” is usually translated as God and in the singular.  Out of 245 times the word appears in the Hebrew it is translated as God 239 times.  Why not here?  I guess the translators were in one of those moods.  The thing is it’s consistent through all the translations I have except one.

So?  Part of the reason that we are excited about who God is involves the fact that we are sons of God. 

Relative Value

(Psa 29:6 KJV)  He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.

(Proverbs 28 also read)

Different translations put this different ways but a number of them have Lebanon and Sirion jumping around like crazy animals.  Lebanon is a country.  Sirion is a name used for Mount Hermon.  This is an interesting word picture and one that is open to speculation.  Was David just waxing poetic?  Did he have some massive earthquake in mind?  

We need to be careful in how we think about scripture.  Much of what we read hits home and speaks to us on a regular basis.  The Ten Commandments or the Love Chapter come to mind.  Some might be vital to what we believe.  Others may just get us scratching our heads.  I think this fits in the last group.

So?  Read, think and apply when it is appropriate.  At other times just sit back and wonder.  Maybe write yourself a note to think about this some night when you can’t sleep.  It could give you interesting dreams and more to think about.