Small Words Matter
One of the things that intrigued me about this psalm is the way it seems to play with the word ‘ak. This has been duly noticed by commentators who take the word to be either restrictive (“only”) or asseverative (“truly”). The question then becomes which of these two senses the psalmist has in mind or if both are meant. James Boice lamented, for example, that Marvin Tate took the word to be asseverative in his translation. Boice believed that what the psalmist really meant was that his confidence was in God alone, the most important theological statement of the psalm.
“The most important thing about psalm 62 is that the psalmist is making God his only object of trust.” (Boice, James M. Psalms, Vol., 510)
John Goldingay translates the word consistently with a “Yes” but primarily for rhetorical purposes (he believes the word can have more then one sense in the psalm). This shows how difficult it is to translate a word that, on the surface, seems to be so trivial. Let’s take a look at how the psalmist uses verses 1-2 and reworks it in 5-6:
Here are the two possible translations:
Truly my soul waits quietly for God; my deliverance comes from Him. Truly He is my rock and deliverance, my haven; I shall never be shaken. (TNK)
or
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly moved. (RSV)
I particularly like Goldingay’s translation:
Yes, towards God my spirit is silent; from him is my deliverance.
Yes, he is my crag and my deliverance, my haven: I shall not fall down for long.
I think this translation helps us see another way that the word ‘ak can be translated and which can be easily missed in our translations (Robert Alter does something similar but uses the word “only”). No matter how you translate ‘ak, the fact is that the word can be more nuanced than our translations will allow.
One of the interesting things about this psalm is that the psalmist declares his trust in God in the first part before talking about his attackers, and then he exhorts himself and the people in the second part. Here is what he says in verses 5-6:
Truly, wait quietly for God, O my soul, for my hope comes from Him. He is my rock and deliverance, my haven; I shall not be shaken. (TNK)
For God alone my soul waits in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. (RSV)
Here the TNK omits ‘ak in the second part. Once again Goldingay is consistent in his translation:
Yes, be silent for God, my spirit, for from him is my hope.
Yes, he is my crag and my deliverance, my haven: I shall not fall down.
‘ak is used two more times and one of them seems to favor an asseverative meaning in verse 10a:
Yes, human beings are a breath;
It seems to me that the psalmist has cleverly used this word to express both ideas. It is noteworthy that in its last occurrence, the word hebel is also used – a word that in verse 10 and in the book of Qohelet is fraught with ambiguity (see Ingram, “Ambiguity in Ecclesiastes”). I think that we have here a good example of how the style of the psalm dictates its rhythm by repeating a key word. Through this repetition the emphases of the psalm are brought to life. Maybe a way to paraphrase verses 1 and 2 could be:
Yes, my whole being is silent toward God and only God! From him is my deliverance
Yes, He and He alone is my rock and my deliverance; I will not be shaken for long.
If this paraphrase captures better what the psalmist may have meant is debatable. But I think Martin Tate is right when he says that
“the psalm is characterized by the sixfold use of ‘ak – the ‘nevertheless’ quality that marks the nature of a genuine faith commitment.” (Tate, Marvin. WBC, Psalms 51-100, 122)
Such a small word but capable of expressing the nevertheless quality by which our faith ought to be marked.
Tags: Hebrew, John Goldingay, Psalms
