Psalm 1 Footnotes

(See Psalm 001 Literally Rendered)

NOTE: Some footnote topics cover numerous texts. They have been recorded, and will be copied into documents discussing those topics. If you see footnote repetition from one text to another, this will explain why.

Regarding the accuracy of these conclusions: Were I gifted by the Spirit of Yehovah to do this work, it would be infallible, as was the case for all ministerially gifted persons in the Bible. No true prophet of God ever erred while prophesying. No true teacher of God ever taught any erroneous teaching. The standards of God have not changed, and the Spirit of God hasn’t weakened over the centuries. Since I am not gifted, my conclusions contain numerous errors, and must be considered and challenged if you (the reader) will not be deceived. I know some answers are correct, but I will have to change some answers as I learn more and as folks like you show me that my proposed answers need changing. If you don’t like this factor of uncertainty, ask Yehovah to give me a ministerial gift along these lines in His Word so that I can give infallible responses. If He does so, you will then be responsible to believe whatever He communicates through me. In the meantime, don’t be a sucker.

Regarding Hebrew words: If you see what appears to be computer nonsense when a Hebrew word is being discussed, your computer does not have the font to view it. If you desire to see the same article with the Hebrew word being visible and correct, let me know; I will send you a PDF form of the same document. (You will need an Adobe Acrobat reader to see it, which is freely available from the Adobe web site.)

¹ Happy gives the sense of this word more than blessed, since blessed is covered with a much more frequently used different word. While some find fault with the origins of the word happy, it is a good word, describing one who is content, settled and pleased.

² Translators were very sloppy with these tenses. Yet, the tenses are a vital part of this text (and indeed for all others).

³ Counsel has a different meaning in Biblical Hebrew. In English, it means advice. In Hebrew, it always means advice combined with obtaining the responsibility to carry out that advice. Thus, a counselor is always a participant in carrying out his counsel.

⁴ A culpable one is a person who is guilty at any level of guilt. That guilt can be minor (“Who spilled this milk?”) or major (“Who murdered these villagers?”). Biblical culpability is always major, and the culprits are always direct enemies of Yehovah.

⁵ “Stood in the way” doesn’t mean “blocked the path,” but rather “took a stand for the sinners’ way.”

⁶ A sinner is a city or a person or a nation or a land who does not act according to righteousness, truth and justice as revealed by Yehovah in the Bible. A sinner may sin against another person or group, but most often a sinner sins against Yehovah. A sinner is someone who commits unrighteousness against another person or group, or against Yehovah. A sinner (in the pagan, Godless sense) is a person who does acts that a supposed god or a master views as sin (though a false god sees and views nothing), or who refuses to do acts that a supposed god requires (though a false god has no power to require anything). A sinner against Yehovah is a person who does acts that Yehovah declares to be sin, or who refuses to do acts that Yehovah requires. The person may not realize that these acts are sin, but that does not relieve the person of responsibility if the person did those acts. Accidents can be sin (for example, manslaughter is an accident, but blood was still shed), but they are viewed differently. If anyone sins intending to sin as an act of rebellion against Yehovah (taking a stand against His authority), having received the knowledge of the truth, that person has sealed his own damnation.

⁷ A settlement is a communal area of residence. This word is used today in Israel for a small town where the residents hold separate homes, but work together as a community being corporately responsible to each other. It isn’t exactly a kibbutz (a true commune where almost all property is owned in common, and where responsibilities are delegated to each person according to a voluntary communist system), but it is like a corporation. In this Psalm, the settlement of scorners is like a corporation of angry, violently contemptuous folks who are working together to openly undermine, insult and damage targeted folks and groups. The Nazis easily fit these descriptions.

⁸ Delight is no weak word. Anyone who delights in something will pursue it with great zeal on as continual a basis as possible.

⁹ Teaching is the literal meaning of Torah. Many have held its meaning to be ‘law’, but this is never the case. A law is a set of rules with specific goals either given by a ruler or agreed by men in order to run and conduct society in peace and/or in order. While the Torah seems to fit this description, this is not its main purpose, but instead is a secondary purpose. Its main purposes are (a) to teach the Israelis how to live until they come to faith, (b) to teach the Israelis of things to come, (c) to teach the Israelis Yehovah’s character, (d) to teach the Israelis Yehovah’s righteousness, justice, will, Grace, etc., (e) to teach the Israelis how and what to teach the non-Jewish peoples and individuals about these items listed above. It also (f) teaches the Israelis to be a ‘show-and-tell’ people, physically living these teachings so that others can learn by watching them, by eating with them, by doing business with them, by asking them questions, etc. Yehovah has not assigned other peoples, races or cultures these ‘show-and-tell’ responsibilities. Individuals from other races may voluntarily join the Israelis in their assignment, and thus come under the Teaching in participation of the ‘show-and-tell’ assignment, but that is not necessary for non-Jewish folks and/or groups to become righteous before Yehovah. Replacing faith by living a ‘show-and-tell’ life ruins the point of the Teaching! This Teaching (Torah) is intended to lead to faith, not to supplant it. In the same way, replacing the Teaching by faith, so that the Teaching is ignored or considered abolished, ruins all understanding of Biblical faith, and leads to a pagan faith that uses Biblical terms and claims to follow the Biblical God, but does not, turning the Biblical God’s Word into a lie. The Teaching was entrusted to the Jews. It is still entrusted to the Jews. It is for the benefit of all. Any individual or group who attempts to steal Israel’s assignment, claiming it as his or her own, is participating in Replacement Theology, making Yehovah a liar. Anyone who looks into the Torah and believes all ofit as it is given, and who fears God, turning to Yehovah and His Word (including His promised Messiah) in faith, has properly understood the Torah and its objectives.

¹⁰ Yehovah is a contraction (abbreviation) of the three tenses of the Hebrew verb, to be:

He will be, He is, He was

 

Yēhēyĕh+Hōvĕh+Häyäh

Take just the bold letters (if your program allows you to see bold), and you will have

Yĕhōväh

which is the correct pronunciation of His Name, and which means He will be, is, was. This also defines part of His Character (changelessness) and existence status (He always was, is and always will be).

¹¹ English would demand nightly instead of night. I found the Hebrew to consistently use the formula, ‘daily and night’. The word daily looks like the spelling for ‘their day’, which I found interesting (so that it could read, “he will meditate their day and night in His Teaching.” This was an observation, but I am not convinced that it is the case. I am convinced that ‘daily and night’ is correct, and that it gives information about that night that nightly would not and could not give. Daily indicates a continuance in each day: ‘every day’. Night, on the other hand, speaks of only one night, as if it is referring to one specific night. Other Biblical texts speak of that night:

John 9:4 The night cometh, when no man can work.

¹² Be sure to ask yourself why this person will meditate daily and night in His Teaching; this represents some very intense meditating.

¹³ Splittings of waters are places where a water stream or river diverts into more than one flow.

¹⁴ (You should be asking yourself, “Who is this person?” Do not assume before you ask.)

¹⁵ Understand so as akin to established. This the word used for ‘yes’ in Hebrew. It only has one form (and therefore doesn’t show plurality or the feminine gender) when used this way. The Hebrew of these first two words of this verse look like “No yes”!

¹⁶ Chaff is made of the very light, dried parts of plants that are separated from the seeds (as in wheat seeds or wheat kernels) by rubbing them and tossing them into the air; even small breezes will blow the dried chaff parts away from the kernels of wheat.

¹⁷ Stand is the opposite of fall. The same Hebrew word means stand up or arise. Anyone who stands in a judgment has been exonerated (viewed as not participant in any guilt, but completely justified and innocent).

¹⁸ (You must ask yourself, “Exactly which judgment does this mean?”)

¹⁹ Righteous has to do with something being plumb, straight (like in a plumb line used in construction, a string with a weight on the end). The standard of righteousness comes from a supposed god or the One True God, for all righteousness goes back to some god (be it false or real). Yehovah holds the standard of Biblical righteousness. The word justified is the same word. One who is justified is viewed as righteous. To justify is either to bring a guilty person (or group) into the state of being righteous, or it is to declare an innocent person (or group) as innocent, straight (before the god/God who holds the standard).

²⁰ Way is a very important Biblical word. It is derekh in Hebrew, and appears directly related to the English words direct, directly, direction. The Bible often uses way as if the reader would already know that there is only one possible way being discussed. Do not confuse this word with paths (which I will discuss when we come across that word).

²¹ The Hebrew word has the following acceptations according to the lexicon: perish, vanish, go astray, be destroyed, be exterminated, to blot out, do away with. Since another word rightly covers blot out, I have chosen another acceptation that combines perish with do away with. This is to damn. This word goes beyond execution, having to do with the everlasting state of destruction for some, and the total destruction for objects. Perish doesn’t quite have the force of this word.