| Psalm 90 | |
| Subtitle: | "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations" |
| Image Upright: | 1.2 |
| Text: | attributed to Moses |
| Language: | Hebrew (original) |
| Written: | by Ethan the Ezrahite |
Psalm 90 is the 90th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 89. In Latin, it is known as "Domine refugium tu factus es nobis in generatione et generatione".[1] It is the opening psalm of Book 4 of the psalms.[2] Uniquely among the Psalms, it is attributed to Moses. It is well known for its reference in verse 10 to human life expectancy being 70 or 80 ("threescore years and ten", or "if by reason of strength ... fourscore years", in the King James Version): it is believed that this verse was the influence for the opening words of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.[3]
The psalm forms a regular part of Jewish, Catholic liturgies. It has been set to music, for example by Baroque composers Heinrich Schütz in German. Charles Ives completed a choral setting in 1924.
The following table shows the Hebrew text[4] [5] of the Psalm with vowels alongside an English translation based upon the JPS 1917 translation (now in the public domain).
| Verse | Hebrew | English translation (JPS 1917) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling-place in all generations. | ||
| 2 | Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God. | ||
| 3 | Thou turnest man to contrition; And sayest: 'Return, ye children of men.' | ||
| 4 | For a thousand years in Thy sight Are but as yesterday when it is past, And as a watch in the night. | ||
| 5 | Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep; In the morning they are like grass which groweth up. | ||
| 6 | In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; In the evening it is cut down, and withereth. | ||
| 7 | For we are consumed in Thine anger, And by Thy wrath are we hurried away. | ||
| 8 | Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, Our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance. | ||
| 9 | For all our days are passed away in Thy wrath; We bring our years to an end as a tale that is told. | ||
| 10 | The days of our years are threescore years and ten, Or even by reason of strength fourscore years; Yet is their pride but travail and vanity; For it is speedily gone, and we fly away. | ||
| 11 | Who knoweth the power of Thine anger, And Thy wrath according to the fear that is due unto Thee? | ||
| 12 | So teach us to number our days, That we may get us a heart of wisdom. | ||
| 13 | Return, O LORD; how long? And let it repent Thee concerning Thy servants. | ||
| 14 | O satisfy us in the morning with Thy mercy; That we may rejoice and be glad all our days. | ||
| 15 | Make us glad according to the days wherein Thou hast afflicted us, According to the years wherein we have seen evil. | ||
| 16 | Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants, And Thy glory upon their children. | ||
| 17 | And let the graciousness of the Lord our God be upon us; Establish Thou also upon us the work of our hands; Yea, the work of our hands establish Thou it. |
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Aleppo Codex (10th century), and Codex Leningradensis (1008).
The extant manuscript of Aq, a translation into Koine Greek made in, contains verse 17.[6]
By its header ("A Prayer of Moses, the man of God") this psalm is attributed to Moses. Theologian Albert Barnes notes "its marked unlikeness to the Psalms of David".[7] Commentator C S Rodd suggests it was written later than Moses' era,[8] but even from a biblical literalist perspective one writer warns against assuming with any certainty that this is the oldest psalm, because some psalms are anonymous and so "we don't know who wrote them or when".[9]
The title "the man of God" is given to Moses in Deuteronomy 33:1 in the introduction to the Blessing of Moses. The term also appears in Joshua 14:6 and Ezra 3:2 as a title especially appropriate to him, denoting that he was faithful to God and a man approved by God.
In the New Testament, verse 4 is quoted in Peter 3:8.
In the Divine Office of the Roman Catholic Church, Psalm 90 is appointed to be read at Lauds (Morning Prayer) on the Monday of the fourth week of the month.
In the Church of England's Book of Common Prayer, this psalm is appointed to be read on the morning of the 18th day of the month.[12]
The hymn O God, our help in ages past" is a lyrical version of Psalm 90 written by Isaac Watts.
Heinrich Schütz set the psalm in a metred version in German as part of the Becker Psalter, first published in 1628, "Herr Gott Vater im höchsten Thron", SWV 188.
Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote Lord, thou hast been our refuge, a motet for choir, semi-choir and orchestra (or organ) based on the psalm in 1921. Charles Ives composed a choral setting of the psalm in English, Psalm 90, in 1923/24. Frederic Lord wrote a setting for baritone, choir and orchestra.[13] Herbert Blendinger set verses 1-4 in German, "Herr, du bist unsere Zuflucht für und für", as Psalmgebet, a solo cantata for soprano, trumpet and organ, Op. 82, in 2000.
. Ernst Würthwein . The Text of the Old Testament . . Grand Rapids, MI . 1995 . Erroll F.. Rhodes . 0-8028-0788-7 . January 26, 2019.
header to this psalm in the New King James Version