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Targum Psalms

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Psalm 82

1 A hymn composed by Asaph. God, his presence abides in the assembly of the righteous who are strong in Torah; he will give judgment in the midst of the righteous judges.⁠ 2 How long, O wicked, will you judge falsely, and lift up the faces of the wicked forever? 3 Judge the poor and the orphan; acquit the needy and the poor. 4 Save the poor and needy, from the hands of the wicked deliver them. 5 They do not know how to do good, and they do not understand the Torah, they walk in darkness; because of this, the pillars of the earth’s foundations shake. 6 I said, “You are reckoned as angels, and all of you are like angels of the height.”⁠ 7 But truly you will die like the sons of men; and like one of the leaders you will fall. 8 Arise, O Lord, judge all the inhabitants of the earth; for you will possess all the Gentiles.

Texts in conversation

Compare Psalm 82:1 and Targum Psalm 82:1

Hebrew Bible · Targum

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Summary

Psalm 82 shows God in a divine council with the patron deities of the nations, criticizing them for being unjust. The Aramaic Targum changes it to an assembly of Torah teachers, reading “gods” as judges or angels to avoid a polytheistic interpretation.

Passages

Psalm 82:1

Hebrew Bible
1 A psalm of Asaph. God stands in the assembly of El; in the midst of the gods he renders judgment. 2 He says, “How long will you make unjust legal decisions and show favoritism to the wicked? (Selah) 3 Defend the cause of the poor and the fatherless. Vindicate the oppressed and suffering. 4 Rescue the poor and needy. Deliver them from the power of the wicked. 5 They neither know nor understand. They stumble around in the dark, while all the foundations of the earth crumble.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

Targum Psalm 82:1

Targum
1 A hymn composed by Asaph. God, his presence abides in the assembly of the righteous who are strong in Torah; he will give judgment in the midst of the righteous judges. 2 How long, O wicked, will you judge falsely, and lift up the faces of the wicked forever? 3 Judge the poor and the orphan; acquit the needy and the poor. 4 Save the poor and needy, from the hands of the wicked deliver them. 5 They do not know how to do good, and they do not understand the Torah, they walk in darkness; because of this, the pillars of the earth’s foundations shake.
200–600 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Targum Psalms

References

"... It should be noted that despite the disapproval by R. Simeon bar Yohai in the early second century C.E. to the interpretation of 'bene Elohim' as angels, some ambiguity exists in such expressions as 'sons of the judges' and 'sons of the great' used by the authors of the Targums. Pseudo-Jonathan translates bene elohim in Genesis 6:2 and 4 with 'sons of the great.' In Deuteronomy 32:8, which discusses the division of the nations according to the 'angels of the nations,' Pseudo-Jonathan uses the same expression, 'sons of the great,' to describe the same angels as the 'princes of the nations.' ... Targum Psalm 82 makes a shift from a divine interpretation of אלהים ('gods') to one of perhaps human judges or at least judges. Psalm 82:1 contains the phrase בעדת אל, usually translated as 'the assembly of God,' but the Targum of Psalm 82 has interpreted the text to read ('in the congregation of the righteous who are mighty in Torah') ..."
Archie T. Wright, The Origin of Evil Spirits: The Reception of Genesis 6.1–4 in Early Jewish Literature (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2005), 65–66.

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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Psalm 82:1 and Targum Psalm 82:1

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