Psalms

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Psalm 16

1 A prayer of David. Protect me, O God, for I have taken shelter in you. 2 I say to the Lord, “You are the Lord, my only source of well-being.” 3 As for God’s chosen people who are in the land, and the leading officials I admired so much— 4 their troubles multiply; they desire other gods. I will not pour out drink offerings of blood to their gods, nor will I make vows in the name of their gods.⁠ 5 The Lord is the portion of my possession and my cup⁹;⁠ you make my future secure. 6 It is as if I have been given fertile fields or received a beautiful tract of land. 7 I will praise the Lord who guides me; yes, during the night my kidneys instruct me¹⁵.⁠ 8 I set the Lord before me continually¹⁶;⁠ because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 9 So my heart rejoices and I am happy; my life is safe. 10 You will not abandon me to Sheol; you will not allow your faithful follower to see the Pit. 11 You lead me in the path of life. I experience absolute joy in your presence; you always give me sheer delight.

Texts in conversation

Compare Numbers 18:20 and Psalm 16:5

Hebrew Bible

Summary

Numbers declares that the Levites will receive no land, as God himself is their portion and inheritance. Psalm 16 echoes this language, discussing land distribution and expressing that the psalmist’s inheritance is also God alone.

Passages

Numbers 18:20

Hebrew Bible

18 And their meat will be yours, just as the breast and the right hip of the raised offering is yours. 19 All the raised offerings of the holy things that the Israelites offer to the Lord, I have given to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual ordinance. It is a covenant of salt forever before the Lord for you and for your descendants with you.” 20 The Lord spoke to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion of property among them—I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites. 21 See, I have given the Levites all the tithes in Israel for an inheritance, for their service that they perform—the service of the tent of meeting. 22 No longer may the Israelites approach the tent of meeting, or else they will bear their sin and die.

750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Numbers

Psalm 16:5

Hebrew Bible

3 As for God’s chosen people who are in the land, and the leading officials I admired so much— 4 their troubles multiply; they desire other gods. I will not pour out drink offerings of blood to their gods, nor will I make vows in the name of their gods. 5 The Lord is the portion of my possession and my cup⁹; you make my future secure. 6 It is as if I have been given fertile fields or received a beautiful tract of land. 7 I will praise the Lord who guides me; yes, during the night my kidneys instruct me¹⁵.

600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

"... Psalm 16:5-6: The next four verses comprise a stanza of trust and a stanza of praise, both of which function as the psalmist’s confession of faith. In the trust-filled verses 5-6, the psalmist piles up a series of technical terms that draw one to conclude that the psalmist is a Levitical priest: portion, lot, boundaries, and inheritance describe the distribution of the land among God’s people. The tribe of Levi, notably, was given no land as its inheritance; the tithes and offerings of the land (Leviticus 6:16-18) and the Lord (Numbers 18:20) are described as their portion (on the distribution of the land, see also Joshua 13:14, 33; 14:4). The term cup symbolizes the abundance of God’s gifts (compare Psalm 23:5) and also indicates Israel’s ritual thanksgiving celebrations (compare Psalm 116:13). The term makes one think of the ritual duties of a priest, as does the reference in verse 4 to the psalmist refusing to pour out their drink offerings of blood ..."

Nancy L. DeClaissé-Walford, The Book of Psalms (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 2014), 220.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Psalms150 psalms

Compare Numbers 18:20 and Psalm 16:5

Summary

Passages

Numbers 18:20

Psalm 16:5

References

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