was one of David’s chief musicians (1 Chronicles 16:5), so the psalms “of Asaph” most likely mean psalms belonging to the Temple collection. Psalms “of the Sons of Korah” (42–49) formed the repertoire of this family of Temple singers. Composed as songs to be sung, many psalms have notes regarding the melody. For example, a note at the beginning of Psalm 22 specifies that it is to be sung to a song entitled “The Deer of the Dawn”; Psalms 69 and 80 were to be sung to the tune “Lilies,” which must have been familiar to the Israelites. Other psalms have notes about the instruments to be played in accompaniment: Psalms 4, 54, 55, 61, and 67 contain the reference “with stringed instruments”; Psalm 5, “for the flutes.” Unfortunately, these melodies have been lost, so the Psalter has come down to us as a collection of prayers to be recited rather than as the hymnal of songs it originally was. Editorial decisions also account for the numbering of the psalms. When the Hebrew psalms were translated into Greek, Psalms 9–10 were combined as one psalm. Thus, in Greek (and Latin) translations, all the psalms from Psalm 10 on are one number short. The familiar psalm beginning “The Lord is my shepherd” is number 22 in Greek and 23 in Hebrew. This “one number short” situation continues until the Hebrew Psalm 147, which is divided into Psalms 146 and 147 in Greek. Thus, there remain 150 psalms in both Hebrew and Greek collections! Most contemporary English translations follow the Hebrew numbering. Variations are also noticeable in the verse numbering in different translations. The Hebrew Psalter gives verse numbers to the titles. Consequently, the reference to David and Bathsheba in the title of Psalm 51 is verses 1-2 and “Have mercy” begins verse 3. However, in many English translations, especially those associated with the New Revised Standard Version, the titles have no verse number. In these versions, “Have mercy” is verse 1 of Psalm 51. This study guide follows the NRSV (Catholic Edition). Understanding the differences in numbering will help avoid confusion when comparing different translations or when reading commentaries on the psalms. page 12 | The Psalms
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