Psalm 20 Text
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Psalm 20/Text
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May YHWH answer you!
Psalm 20
Please note: Resources for Psalm 20 are in the process of being reformatted for visual consistency and improved functionality.
Listen & Read: Psalm 20
Read along and listen to our audio recordings for Psalm 20. Choose between simple, unaffected audio recordings (in Hebrew or English), or a dramatized reading that takes into account our emotional and discourse analyses. You can also choose between a text-only view, or a view overlaid with our summary At-a-Glance, Expanded Paraphrase, or Participant Analysis tracking.
| Simple Reading (Hebrew) Forthcoming. |
Simple Reading (English) Forthcoming. |
| Dramatic Reading (Hebrew) Forthcoming. |
Dramatic Reading (English) Forthcoming. |
Text Only (Hebrew and English) The text below is divided according to the psalm's poetic lines. For additional information, see our Poetic Structure layer.
| Text (Hebrew) | Verse | Text (CBC) The Close-but-clear translation (CBC) exists to provide a window into the Hebrew text according to how we understand its syntax and word-to-phrase-level semantics. It is not intended to be used as a stand-alone translation or base text, but as a supplement to Layer-by-Layer materials to help users make full use of these resources. |
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לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃
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1a | For the director. A psalm by David.
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יַֽעַנְךָ֣ יְ֭הוָה בְּי֣וֹם צָרָ֑ה
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2a | May YHWH answer you on the day of trouble!
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יְ֝שַׂגֶּבְךָ֗ שֵׁ֤ם ׀ אֱלֹהֵ֬י יַעֲקֹֽב׃
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2b | May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
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יִשְׁלַֽח־עֶזְרְךָ֥ מִקֹּ֑דֶשׁ
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3a | May he send you help from the sanctuary
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וּ֝מִצִּיּ֗וֹן יִסְעָדֶֽךָּ׃
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3b | and sustain you from Zion!
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יִזְכֹּ֥ר כָּל־מִנְחֹתֶ֑ךָ
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4a | May he remember every offering of yours
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וְעוֹלָתְךָ֖ יְדַשְּׁנֶ֣ה סֶֽלָה׃
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4b | and accept your burnt offering! Selah.
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יִֽתֶּן־לְךָ֥ כִלְבָבֶ֑ךָ
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5a | May he give you that which is according to your heart’s desire,
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וְֽכָל־עֲצָתְךָ֥ יְמַלֵּֽא׃
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5b | and may he fulfil your whole plan!
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נְרַנְּנָ֤ה ׀ בִּ֘ישׁ֤וּעָתֶ֗ךָ
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6a | May we shout for joy over your victory,
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וּבְשֵֽׁם־אֱלֹהֵ֥ינוּ נִדְגֹּ֑ל
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6b | and in the name of our God, may we array ourselves with banners!
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יְמַלֵּ֥א יְ֝הוָ֗ה כָּל־מִשְׁאֲלוֹתֶֽיךָ׃
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6c | May YHWH fulfil all your requests!
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עַתָּ֤ה יָדַ֗עְתִּי כִּ֤י הֹושִׁ֥יעַ׀ יְהוָ֗ה מְשִׁ֫יחֹ֥ו
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7a | Now, I know that YHWH has granted victory to his anointed.
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יַ֭עֲנֵהוּ מִשְּׁמֵ֣י קָדְשׁ֑וֹ
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7b | He will answer him from his holy heaven
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בִּ֝גְבֻר֗וֹת יֵ֣שַׁע יְמִינֽוֹ׃
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7c | with the saving mighty deeds of his right hand.
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אֵ֣לֶּה בָ֭רֶכֶב וְאֵ֣לֶּה בַסּוּסִ֑ים
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8a | Some [boast] in chariotry and others [boast] in horses,
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וַאֲנַ֓חְנוּ ׀ בְּשֵׁם־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵ֣ינוּ נַזְכִּֽיר׃
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8b | but we will boast in the name of YHWH our God.
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הֵ֭מָּה כָּרְע֣וּ וְנָפָ֑לוּ
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9a | They have collapsed and fallen,
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וַאֲנַ֥חְנוּ קַּ֝֗מְנוּ וַנִּתְעוֹדָֽד׃
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9b | but we have risen and stood upright.
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יְהוָ֥ה הוֹשִׁ֑יעָה הַ֝מֶּ֗לֶךְ
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10a | YHWH, grant victory to the king!
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יַעֲנֵ֥נוּ בְיוֹם־קָרְאֵֽנוּ׃
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10b | May he answer us on the day of our calling!
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Text (Hebrew)
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Verse | Text (CBC)
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Structure Overlay Below, the text has been overlaid with our summary structural analysis. For details on the structure, see the Structure At-a-Glance here.
| Text (Hebrew) | Verse | Text (CBC) |
|---|---|---|
| לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃ | 1a | For the director. A psalm by David. |
| יַֽעַנְךָ֣ יְ֭הוָה בְּי֣וֹם צָרָ֑ה | 2a | May YHWH answer you on the day of trouble! |
| יְ֝שַׂגֶּבְךָ֗ שֵׁ֤ם ׀ אֱלֹהֵ֬י יַעֲקֹֽב׃ | 2b | May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! |
| יִשְׁלַֽח־עֶזְרְךָ֥ מִקֹּ֑דֶשׁ | 3a | May he send you help from the sanctuary |
| וּ֝מִצִּיּ֗וֹן יִסְעָדֶֽךָּ׃ | 3b | and sustain you from Zion! |
| יִזְכֹּ֥ר כָּל־מִנְחֹתֶ֑ךָ | 4a | May he remember every offering of yours |
| וְעוֹלָתְךָ֖ יְדַשְּׁנֶ֣ה סֶֽלָה׃ | 4b | and accept your burnt offering! Selah. |
| יִֽתֶּן־לְךָ֥ כִלְבָבֶ֑ךָ | 5a | May he give you that which is according to your heart’s desire, |
| וְֽכָל־עֲצָתְךָ֥ יְמַלֵּֽא׃ | 5b | and may he fulfil your whole plan! |
| נְרַנְּנָ֤ה ׀ בִּ֘ישׁ֤וּעָתֶ֗ךָ | 6a | May we shout for joy over your victory, |
| וּבְשֵֽׁם־אֱלֹהֵ֥ינוּ נִדְגֹּ֑ל | 6b | and in the name of our God, may we array ourselves with banners! |
| יְמַלֵּ֥א יְ֝הוָ֗ה כָּל־מִשְׁאֲלוֹתֶֽיךָ׃ | 6c | May YHWH fulfil all your requests! |
| עַתָּ֤ה יָדַ֗עְתִּי כִּ֤י הֹושִׁ֥יעַ׀ יְהוָ֗ה מְשִׁ֫יחֹ֥ו | 7a | Now, I know that YHWH has granted victory to his anointed. |
| יַ֭עֲנֵהוּ מִשְּׁמֵ֣י קָדְשׁ֑וֹ | 7b | He will answer him from his holy heaven |
| בִּ֝גְבֻר֗וֹת יֵ֣שַׁע יְמִינֽוֹ׃ | 7c | with the saving mighty deeds of his right hand. |
| אֵ֣לֶּה בָ֭רֶכֶב וְאֵ֣לֶּה בַסּוּסִ֑ים | 8a | Some [boast] in chariotry and others [boast] in horses, |
| וַאֲנַ֓חְנוּ ׀ בְּשֵׁם־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵ֣ינוּ נַזְכִּֽיר׃ | 8b | but we will boast in the name of YHWH our God. |
| הֵ֭מָּה כָּרְע֣וּ וְנָפָ֑לוּ | 9a | They have collapsed and fallen, |
| וַאֲנַ֥חְנוּ קַּ֝֗מְנוּ וַנִּתְעוֹדָֽד׃ | 9b | but we have risen and stood upright. |
| יְהוָ֥ה הוֹשִׁ֑יעָה הַ֝מֶּ֗לֶךְ | 10a | YHWH, grant victory to the king! |
| יַעֲנֵ֥נוּ בְיוֹם־קָרְאֵֽנוּ׃ | 10b | May he answer us on the day of our calling! |
Expanded paraphrase The expanded paraphrase seeks to capture the implicit information within the text and make it explicit for readers today. It is based on the CBC translation and uses italic text to provide the most salient background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences.
This resource is forthcoming.
Participant Tracking Text Participant Analysis focuses on the characters in the psalm and asks, “Who are the main participants (or characters) in this psalm, and what are they saying or doing? Our full analysis can be found in the Participant Analysis layer.
