Canonical 150 — the standard Hebrew/Masoretic Psalter.
Psalm 151 — the chief extra Davidic psalm; Septuagint, Orthodox, and Dead Sea Scroll witness.
Psalms 152–155 — the Syriac Apocryphal Psalms of David; partially witnessed at Qumran.
Psalms of Solomon — separate Jewish pseudepigraphal psalm collection, eighteen psalms.
Odes of Solomon — separate early hymn collection, not technically psalms of David.
Psalms 152 to 155 are additional Psalms found in two Syriac biblical manuscripts and several manuscripts of Elijah of Anbar [fr]'s "Book of Discipline",[1] first identified by the orientalist librarian Giuseppe Simone Assemani in 1759.[2] Together with Psalm 151 they are also called the Five Apocryphal Psalms of David or the "Five Syriac Psalms".[3] In addition to Psalm 151, Psalms 154–155 were found in the Dead Sea Scrolls in 11QPsa, though 151–155 all were likely composed in Hebrew.[4]
Psalms 152–155
Psalm 152
"Spoken by David when he was contending with the lion and the wolf which took a sheep from his flock."[5] This text has survived only in Syriac[6] although the original language may have been Hebrew. The text has six verses, the tone is non-rabbinical, and it was probably composed in Israel during the Hellenistic period[7] (c. 323–31 BC).
Psalm 153
"Spoken by David when returning thanks to God, who had delivered him from the lion and the wolf and he had slain both of them."[5] This text has survived only in Syriac.[6] Date and provenance are like Psalm 152. It is listed as the fifth of the apocryphal psalms by Wright.[5]
Psalm 154
This Psalm survived in Syriac biblical manuscripts and also was found in Hebrew[6] in the Dead Sea scroll 11QPs(a)154 (also known as 11Q5 – The Great Psalms Scroll), a first-century AD manuscript.[8] It is listed as the second of the apocryphal psalms by Wright who calls it "The Prayer of Hezekiah when enemies surrounded him".[5] Gurtner suggests that this psalm may have sectarian resonances: the "many ones" (154:1) and the "community" (154:4) may refer to the people and community at Qumran.[4]
Psalm 155
This psalm is extant in Syriac and was also found in the Dead Sea Scroll 11QPs(a)155 (also called 11Q5 – The Great Psalms Scroll), a first-century CE Hebrew manuscript.[6] Because the psalm is a generic psalm of repentance it is not possible to suggest date and origin, save that its origin is clearly pre-Christian.[9] The psalm has been compared to Psalms 22 and 51 as well as the Prayer of Manasseh.[4]
Psalm 151
1 I was small among my brethren, and youngest in my father's house: I tended my father's sheep.
2 My hands formed a musical instrument, and my fingers tuned a psaltery.
3 And who shall tell my Lord? the Lord himself, he himself hears.
4 He sent forth his angel, and took me from my father's sheep, and he anointed me with the oil of his anointing.
5 My brothers were handsome and tall; but the Lord did not take pleasure in them.
6 I went forth to meet the Philistine; and he cursed me by his idols.
7 But I drew his own sword, and beheaded him, and removed reproach from the children of Israel.
Another version
(RSV)
My hands made a harp, my fingers fashioned a lyre.
3 And who will declare it to my Lord? The Lord himself; it is he who hears.
4 It was he who sent his messenger and took me from my father's sheep, and anointed me with his anointing oil.
5 My brothers were handsome and tall, but the Lord was not pleased with them.
6 I went out to meet the Philistine, and he cursed me by his idols.
7 But I drew his own sword; I beheaded him, and removed reproach from the people of Israel.
Some Apocryphal Psalms in Syriac.
In a Syriac MS., formerly belonging to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, but now deposited in the University Library of Cambridge, I find the following apocryphal Psalms, which, with the exception of the first, have not yet, so far as I know, been printed anywhere. The MS. contains the Kethabha dhe-Dhurrasha, or 'Book of Discipline,' a large theological treatise, composed on a very artificial plan, by Elias, bishop of Peroz-Shabhor or al-Anbar (who lived about a.d. 920; see Assemani, B.O. iii. 1, p. 258 sq.). At the end of the first section of this work, the scribe has added a few excerpts for the purpose of filling up some blank leaves. These are: (1) the Psalms in question, ff. 115a-116b; (2) explanations of some difficult words in 'the Book of the Paradise'; and (3) a disputation between a Jacobite and a Nestorian, ff. 116b-117b. The scribe was the well known Homo of Al-Kosh, near Mosul, "the village of the prophet Nahum." He has recorded his name in several subscriptions, but as the MS. is imperfect at the end, the exact date of writing is not given. It must, however, roughly speaking, lie between a.d. 1675 and 1712 (see Hoffmann, Opusc. Nestor., pp. Ill, IV), and the watermark in the paper----three crescents with a rather small adjunct of this shape [*] in one corner of the page----would seem to belong to the latter part of the xviith century.
These same Psalms, five in number, are also found, with the same adjuncts, in the Vatican MS. of Elias of al-Anbar's work, Cod. Vat. Syr. clxxxiii, ff. 117b-119a (see Assemani's Catalogue, t. iii, p. 385). Professor Guidi has, with his usual kindness, collated this MS. for me. It is dated A. Gr. 2014 = a.d. 1703, and was written at Al-Kosh by one Khaushabha bar Daniel. |258
The Psalms are five in number, of which the first is that ordinarily numbered as Ps. cli in Greek and Syriac Hexaplar MSS. (see, for example, the Codex Ambrosianus, ed. Ceriani, f. 38b). I reproduce the text, so far as possible, exactly as it stands in the MSS. |264
Five Psalms of David, which are not written in the order of the psalms.
I. Ps. cli. A Thanksgiving of David.
(1) I was the youngest among my brethren, and a youth in my father's house. (2) I used to feed my father's flock, and I found a lion and a wolf, and slew them and rent them. (3) My hands made an organ, and my fingers fashioned a harp. (4) Who will show me my Lord? He, my Lord, is become my God.1 (5) He sent His angel and took me away from my father's flock, and anointed me with the oil of anointing. (6) My brethren, the fair and the tall, in them the Lord had no pleasure. (7) And I went forth to meet the Philistine, and he cursed me by his idols. (8) But I drew his sword and cut off his head, and took away the reproach from the children of Israel.
II. The Prayer of Hezekiah when enemies surrounded him.
(1) With a loud voice glorify ye God; in the assembly of many proclaim ye His glory. (2) Amid the multitude of the upright glorify His praise; and speak of His glory with the righteous. (3) Join yourselves (literally, your soul) to the good and to the perfect, to glorify the Most High. (4) Gather yourselves together to make known His strength; and be not slow in showing forth His deliverance [and His strength] and His glory to all babes. (5) That the honour of the Lord may be known, wisdom hath been given; and to tell of His works it hath been made known to men: (6) to make known unto babes His strength, and to make them that lack understanding (literally, heart) to comprehend His glory; (7) who are far from His entrances and distant from His gates: (8) because the Lord of Jacob is exalted, and His glory is upon all His works. (9) And a man who glorifies the Most High, in him will He take pleasure; as in one who offers fine meal, and as in one who offers he-goats and calves; (10) and as in one who makes fat the altar with a multitude of burnt offerings; and as the smell of incense from the hands of the just. (11) From thy upright gates 2 shall be heard His voice, and from the voice of the upright admonition. (12) And |265 in their eating shall be satisfying in truth, and in their drinking, when they share together. (13) Their dwelling is in the law of the Most High, and their speech is to make known His strength. (14) How far from the wicked is speech of Him, and from all transgressors to know Him! (15) Lo, the eye of the Lord taketh pity on the good, and unto them that glorify Him will He multiply mercy, and from the time of evil will He deliver their soul. (16) Blessed be the Lord, who hath delivered the wretched from the hand of the wicked; who raiseth up a horn out of Jacob and a judge of the nations out of Israel; (17) that He may prolong His dwelling in Zion, and may adorn our age in Jerusalem.
III. When the People obtained permission from Cyrus to return home.
(1) O Lord, I have cried unto Thee; hearken Thou unto me. (2) I have lifted up my hands to Thy holy dwelling-place; incline Thine ear unto me. (3) And grant me my request;3 my prayer withhold not from me. (4) Build up my soul, and destroy it not; and lay it not bare before the wicked. (5) Them that recompense evil things turn Thou away from me, O judge of truth. (6) O Lord, judge me not according to my sins, because no flesh is innocent before Thee. (7) Make plain to me, O Lord, Thy law, and teach me Thy judgments; (8) and many shall hear of Thy works, and the nations shall praise Thine honour. (9) Remember me and forget me not; and lead me not into things that be too hard for me. (10) The sins of my youth make Thou to pass from me, and my chastisement let them not remember against me. (11) Cleanse me, O Lord, from the evil leprosy, and let it no more come unto me. (12) Dry up its roots in (literally, from) me, and let not its leaves sprout within me. (13) Great art Thou, O Lord; therefore my request shall be fulfilled from before Thee. (14) To whom shall I complain that he may give unto me? and what can the strength of men add [unto me]? (15) From before Thee, O Lord, is my confidence; I cried unto the Lord and He heard me, and healed the breaking of my heart. (16) I slumbered and slept; I dreamed and was helped, and the Lord sustained me. (17) They sorely pained my heart; I will return thanks because the Lord delivered |266 me. (18) Now will I rejoice in their shame; I have hoped in Thee, and I shall not be ashamed. (19) Give Thou honour for ever, even for ever and ever. (20) Deliver Israel Thine elect, and them of the house of Jacob Thy proved one.
IV. Spoken by David when he was contending with the lion and the wolf which took a sheep from his flock.
(1) O God, O God, come to my aid; help Thou me and save me; deliver Thou my soul from the slayer. (2) Shall I go down to Sheol by the mouth of the lion? or shall the wolf confound me? (3) Was it not enough for them that they lay in wait for my father's flock, and rent in pieces a sheep of my father's drove, but they were wishing also to destroy my soul? (4) Have pity, O Lord, and save Thy holy one from destruction; that he may rehearse Thy glories in all his times, and may praise Thy great name: (5) when Thou hast delivered him from the hands of the destroying lion and of the ravening wolf, and when Thou hast rescued my captivity from the hands of the wild beasts. (6) Quickly, O my Lord (Adonai), send from before Thee a deliverer, and draw me out of the gaping pit, which imprisons me in its depths.
V. Spoken by David when returning thanks to God, who had delivered him from the lion and the wolf and he had slain both of them.
(1) Praise the Lord, all ye nations; glorify Him, and bless His name: (2) Who rescued the soul of His elect from the hands of death, and delivered His holy one from destruction: (3) and saved me from the nets of Sheol, and my soul from the pit that cannot be fathomed. (4) Because, ere my deliverance could go forth from before Him, I was well nigh rent in two pieces by two wild beasts. (5) But He sent His angel, and shut up from me the gaping mouths, and rescued my life from destruction. (6) My soul shall glorify Him and exalt Him, because of all His kindnesses which He hath done and will do unto me.
The Psalm 152, also called Hezekiah's Prayer is an apocryphal psalm from the Peshitta.
Hezekiah's Prayer
Loudly glorify God; in the assembly of many proclaim His glory.
In the midst of the multitude of the just glorify His praise; and speak of His glory with the righteous.
Join the good and the perfect, to glorify the Most High.
Gather to make His strength known; and don't be slow in showing His deliverance, His strength and His glory to all the children.
To know the honor of the Lord, wisdom was given; and to tell of His works it was made known to men:
to make children aware of His strength, and cause them to lack understanding in order to understand His glory;
who are far from His entrances and far from His doors:
for the Lord of Jacob is exalted, and His glory is over all His works.
And a man who glorifies the Most High will take pleasure in him; as in those who offer a good meal, and as in those who offer goats and calves;
and as in one who fattens the altar with a multitude of burnt offerings; and like the smell of incense from the hands of the righteous.
From your righteous gates his voice will be heard, and from the voice of righteous warning.
And in eating they must be satisfying in truth, and in drinking, when they share together.
Their abode is in the law of the Most High and their discourse is to make his strength known.
How far from the wicked is His speaking, and from all wrongdoers to know Him!
Behold, the eye of the Lord have mercy on the good, and for those who glorify him he will multiply mercy, and from the time of evil he will deliver their souls.
Blessed be the Lord, who delivered the poor from the hand of the wicked; who raises a horn from Jacob and a judge of the nations from Israel;
that he might prolong his abode in Zion, and might adorn our age in Jerusalem.
Ps 151
1 Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: let his praise be in the church of the saints.2 Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: and let the children of Sion be joyful in their king.3 Let them praise his name in choir: let them sing to him with the timbrel and the psaltery.4 For the Lord is well pleased with his people: and he will exalt the meek unto salvation.5 The saints shall rejoice in glory: they shall be joyful in their beds.6 The high praise of God shall be in their mouth: and two-edged swords in their hands:7 To execute vengeance upon the nations, chastisements among the people:8 To bind their kings with fetters, and their nobles with manacles of iron.9 To execute upon them the judgment that is written: this glory is to all his saints. Alleluia.
Ps 152
1 Praise ye the Lord in his holy places: praise ye him in the firmament of his power.2 Praise ye him for his mighty acts: praise ye him according to the multitude of his greatness.3 Praise him with sound of trumpet: praise him with psaltery and harp.4 Praise him with timbrel and choir: praise him with strings and organs.5 Praise him on high sounding cymbals: praise him on cymbals of joy: let every spirit praise the Lord. Alleluia.
Psalm 151
This psalm is found in the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. It's included in some manuscripts of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
"I was small among my brothers, and the youngest in my father's house; I tended my father's sheep. My hands made a harp, my fingers fashioned a lyre. And who will tell my Lord? The Lord himself; it is he who hears. It was he who sent his messenger and took me from my father's sheep, and anointed me with his anointing oil. My brothers were handsome and tall, but the Lord was not pleased with them. I went out to meet the Philistine, and he cursed me by his idols. But I drew his own sword; I beheaded him, and removed reproach from the children of Israel."
Psalm 152
This psalm is attributed to the Prayer of Manasseh, which is found in some versions of the Old Testament Apocrypha.
"O Lord, I have sinned, I have transgressed, and I have sinned against Your commandments. I have set up idols and worshipped them. But now I bend the knee of my heart, begging for Your kindness. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I acknowledge my transgressions. Absolve me, O Lord, absolve me, and destroy me not with my transgressions. Do not be angry with me forever, nor store up evil for me. Do not condemn me to the depths of the earth. For You, O Lord, are the God of those who repent, and in me You will show all Your goodness. For unworthy as I am, You will save me in Your great mercy. And I will praise You continually all the days of my life. For all the host of heaven sings Your praise, and Yours is the glory forever. Amen."
Psalm 153
This psalm is part of the Syriac Psalter and can be found in some other apocryphal collections.
"Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord. Turn away from evil and do good, and dwell forever in the land. For the Lord loves justice and will not forsake his faithful ones. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever. The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom, and their tongues speak what is just. The law of their God is in their hearts; their feet do not slip."
Psalm 154
This psalm is also part of the Syriac Psalter and can be found in some other apocryphal collections.
"The mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. For the Lord has redeemed Jacob and will be glorified in Israel. Shout for joy, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth; burst into song, O mountains. For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones. Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them. Let the wilderness and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops."
Psalm 155
This psalm is part of the Syriac Psalter and is found in some other apocryphal collections.
"O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me. Hear my voice when I call to you. May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice. Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies. Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it. Yet my prayer is ever against the deeds of evildoers; their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs, and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken. They will say, ‘As one plows and breaks up the earth, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.’ But my eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign Lord; in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death. Keep me from the snares they have laid for me, from the traps set by evildoers. Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by in safety."