Psalm 64

Verses 6–7 (Vulgate: Psalm 63:7-8) have been the subject of confusion in early Bible translations: the King James Version translates the Hebrew as: :"They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search: both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded." But in the Vulgate, Jerome, based on the Septuagint text, rendered this as :Scrutati sunt iniquitates; defecerunt scrutantes scrutinio. Accedet homo ad cor altum, et exaltabitur Deus. Sagittæ parvulorum factæ sunt plagæ eorum, which translates to "They have searched after iniquities: they have failed in their search. Man shall accede to a lofty heart: And God shall be exalted. The arrows of children are their wounds." The adjective altum in Latin has both the meanings "high" and "deep", and it is here used to translate LXX βαθεῖα "deep", but it offered itself to an interpretation of an "exalted heart". The "arrows of children" (Sagittæ parvulum) render LXX βέλος νηπίων, which has no correspondence in the Hebrew text as it has come down to us. Jerome's translation gave rise to mystical interpretations involving the Sacred Heart in early modern Christian tradition. For example, Serafino Porrecta, in his Commentaria in Psalterium Davidicum, interprets this in terms of Christ himself being the Man who can "accede to that exalted heart", Hic [Christus] solus accessit ad illum cor altum. The arrow of God leads to a turning to God. In verse 4 the wicked shoot arrows secretly at the righteous. In verse 7, God shoots an arrow (arrows, plural, in some translations) at the wicked, but for some these will be saving arrows, as in verse 9: men will "proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done". ==Uses==

Catholic Church This psalm was chosen by St. Benedict of Nursia around 530, for the solemn office at the lauds of Wednesday. In the Rule of St. Benedict, it was recited or sung after Psalm 51 (50) and followed by Psalm 65 (64) (chapter XIII). A number of abbeys still retain this tradition dating from the 6th century. In the current Liturgy of the Hours, Psalm 64 is recited or sung at the midday office on the Saturday of the second week of a four-weekly cycle of liturgical prayers. Book of Common Prayer In the Church of England's Book of Common Prayer, this psalm is appointed to be read on the morning of the 12th day of the month. == Music ==

Heinrich Schütz set Psalm 64 in a metred version in German, "Erhör mein Stimm, Herr, wenn ich klag", SWV 161, as part of the Becker Psalter, first published in 1628. Zdeněk Fibich composed a setting, Hud. 155, for mixed choir in 1879. ==Text==

The following table shows the Hebrew text of the Psalm with vowels, alongside the Koine Greek text in the Septuagint and the English translation from the King James Version. Note that the meaning can slightly differ between these versions, as the Septuagint and the Masoretic Text come from different textual traditions. In the Septuagint, this psalm is numbered Psalm 63. ==Notes==