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Psalms

About this book
Psalm 19

1 For the music director, a psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God;⁠ the sky displays his handiwork. 2 Day after day it speaks out; night after night it reveals his greatness. 3 There is no actual speech or word, nor is its voice literally heard. 4 Yet its voice echoes throughout the earth; its words carry to the distant horizon. In the sky he has pitched a tent for the sun.⁠ 5 Like a bridegroom it emerges from its chamber; like a strong man it enjoys running its course. 6 It emerges from the distant horizon, and goes from one end of the sky to the other;⁠ nothing can escape its heat.⁠ 7 The law of the Lord is perfect and preserves one’s life. The rules set down by the Lord are reliable and impart wisdom to the inexperienced.⁠ 8 The Lord’s precepts are fair and make one joyful. The Lord’s commands are pure and give insight for life. 9 The commands to fear the Lord are right and endure forever. The judgments given by the Lord are trustworthy and absolutely just. 10 They are of greater value than gold, than even a great amount of pure gold; they bring greater delight than honey, than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb. 11 Yes, your servant finds moral guidance there; those who obey them receive a rich reward. 12 Who can know all his errors? Please do not punish me for sins I am unaware of.⁠ 13 Moreover, keep me from committing flagrant sins; do not allow such sins to control me. Then I will be blameless and innocent of blatant rebellion. 14 May my words and my thoughts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord,⁠ my sheltering rock and my redeemer.

Texts in conversation

Compare Psalms 19:1 and 3 Enoch 46:3

Hebrew Bible · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

In 3 Enoch, the stars leave the sky to sing songs and hymns in God's presence, providing a more literal interpretation of the heavens declaring the glory of God from Psalm 19.

Passages

Psalms 19:1

Hebrew Bible
1 For the music director, a psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky displays his handiwork. 2 Day after day it speaks out; night after night it reveals his greatness. 3 There is no actual speech or word, nor is its voice literally heard. 4 Yet its voice echoes throughout the earth; its words carry to the distant horizon. In the sky he has pitched a tent for the sun. 5 Like a bridegroom it emerges from its chamber; like a strong man it enjoys running its course. 6 It emerges from the distant horizon, and goes from one end of the sky to the other; nothing can escape its heat.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

3 Enoch 46:3

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses · Hebrew Book of Enoch
3 And they all enter in counted order under the guidance of (lit. through, by the hands of) RAHATIEL to Raqia' ha-shSHamayim to serve the world. And they go out in counted order to praise the Holy One, blessed be He, with songs and hymns, according as it is written (Ps. xix. 1): "The heavens declare the glory of God". 4 But in the time to come the Holy One, blessed be He, will create them anew, as it is written (Lam. iii. 23): "They are new every morning". And they open their mouth and utter a song. Which is the song that they utter? (Ps. viii. 3): "When I consider your heavens".
400–600 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 3 Enoch

References

“... j . "Counted in . . . counted out": I.e. in the evening they enter the sky to give light to the world; in the morning they depart and ascend to the throne to praise God. Cf. MidraS Tehillim 19:7 (to Ps 19:3) (ed. Buber, 83b) for the stars worshiping God during the day. ...”
Philip S. Alexander, “3 (Hebrew Apocalypse of) Enoch,” in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, ed. James H. Charlesworth (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1983), 1:299.

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

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Psalms 19:1 and 3 Enoch 46:3

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