Psalm 139

Psalm 139 (Psalm 138 after counting the Septuagint and Vulgate ) is a psalm from the biblical book of Psalms . It is known for its expressive and poetic pictures and has been set to music many times.

The first verse attributes the psalm to the Israelite King David .

Position in the Psalter and historical classification

Psalm 139  EU belongs to a group of eight so-called "David psalms" (Ps 138-145) within the 5th book of the psalm collection. The David psalms (cf. also the further collection Ps 3–41) are characterized by the same ascription לְדָוִד ( l ^e David ) in verse 1. The expression is traditionally understood as an indication of an authorship ("le-auctoris") and translated as "by David". The preposition l ^e can also mean “for” or “about” and then denotes the messianic meaning of the Psalm for the Jewish people . In the historical-critical exegesis an authorship of David for Ps 139 is largely excluded and a late date of origin in the wisdom of Judaism is assumed. This means that the text will not be published before the 5th century BC. BC.

content

The psalm describes how close God was to people from the beginning. He developed a theology of creation that made him appear not only the creator of the world as a whole or as a process, but also every person. Accordingly, it is God who formed a person in the womb . God appears as the omniscient and omnipresent, but who knows each and every one and affirms as wonderful.

This psalm is God-centered, not human-centered. God appears as the omniscient (verses 1–4), the inconceivable, omnipresent-supra-spatial (verses 5–12) omnipotent Creator (verses 13–18). It ends with David's complete turning away from all ungodly and complete surrender to God, trusting in his ability to guide him into eternity (verses 19-24).

Especially verse 5 ( You surround me on all sides and hold your hand over me. ) And verse 9 to 11 ( If I took the wings of the dawn and stayed at the outermost sea, then your hand would guide me there too and your right hand would hold me . ) are popular baptismal sayings because they give the baptized person protection and support.

The psalm is often reduced to the big father motif (see image of God ), which in the next step is interpreted either positively as Big Father Takes Care or negatively as Big Father is watching us .

reception

Edits

In 1527 Heinrich Vogtherr created the post-poetry " Domine probasti me, Lord God who you research me ".

Settings

• The Gregorian Introit of Easter Sunday Resurrexi
• Samuel Voelckel (1564–1621), motet "Domine, probasti me" , (1617).
• Johann Rosenmüller (1619–1684) Domine probasti me .
• Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644–1704), Domine Probasti me in F major [C. 37]
• Johann David Heinichen (1683–1729) Domine probasti me E minor (1726)
• Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767): Recitative: No, if I took wings like the dawn and came to the furthest of the wild sea ... , in: God wants to become human and mortal , cantata, TWV 1: 694
• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): Explore me, God, and experience my heart , cantata on the eighth Sunday after Trinity (BWV 136)
• Paul Blumenthal (1843–1930): Psalm 139 (verses 23 and 24)
• Johann Nepomuk David (1895–1977): Psalm 139 (“Lord, you research me”) for mixed choir
• Ernst Pepping (1901–1981): The 139th Psalm (“Lord, you research me”) for alto solo, 4-part mixed choir and orchestra
• Franz Koglmann (* 1947): 139th Psalm for mezzo-soprano, trumpet, trombone and tuba
• David Evan Thomas (* 1958): The Wings of the Morning (“O Lord, thou hast searched me”; 2003) for medium voice and piano. Text: English in the King James Version
• Rudi Spring (* 1962): Psalm 139 (op.68c; 1997) for alto, mixed unison choir and organ. Text: German by Martin Buber
• Tore Wilhelm Aas (* 1957): Your love (album "Get together", Oslo Gospel Choir) 4-part for gospel choir. Text: German by Mary B. Wenger / Stephanie Klein Your love

The Vulgate incipit “ Domine, probasti me ” was also the motto of the Order of the Yellow Ribbon .

literature

• Martin Buber , together with Franz Rosenzweig : THE WRITING / THE BOOK OF PRICES [Verlag Lambert Schneider GmbH], Heidelberg 1986 / Sylvia Majocchi (poet) - lyric interpr.
• Gustav Adolf Danell: Psalm 139, Uppsala / Leipzig 1951
• Frank-Lothar Hossfeld , Erich Zenger : The Psalms I. Psalm 1-50 . (= NEB.AT 29) Würzburg 1993. ISBN 3-429-01503-0
• Frank-Lothar Hossfeld, Erich Zenger: Psalms. Psalm 101-150 . (= HThKAT) Herder, Freiburg / Basel / Vienna 2008, ISBN 978-3-451-26827-4
• Hildebrecht Hommel : The omnipresent sky god. A study of the history of religion and forms. [ Atharva Veda 4, 16. - Plutarch , De superstitione 4. - Psalm 139 Biblia.], Leipzig 1926
• Matthias Köckert : Spied on and monitored, created terrifyingly wonderful: God and man in Psalm 139 . Hermann Spieckermann on his 60th birthday. In: Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche 107, 4/2010, pp. 415–447.
• Jörg Zink : You know me. The 139th Psalm, Wuppertal 1973; 1975; Neunkirchen-Vluyn 1983

Web links

Commons : Psalm 139  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Psalm 139 in the standard translation , the Luther Bible and other translations from bibleserver.com
• Psalm 139 in the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS) on bibelwissenschaft.de
• Sheet music in the public domain of settings for Psalm 139 in the Choral Public Domain Library - ChoralWiki (English)
• Songs that Ps 139 influenced at least in part
• On the view of death in Psalm 139

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Frank-Lothar Hossfeld, Erich Zenger: Die Psalmen I. Psalm 1-50 (= NEB.AT 29), p. 16
2. ↑ Frank-Lothar Hossfeld, Erich Zenger: Psalms. Psalm 101-150 (= HThKAT), pp. 719-721
3. ↑ z. B. Johan Wilhelm Beckman , Svensk psalmhistoria i sammandrag. 1863, p. 29.