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Psalm 95 Academics
Academic Resources
Explore our academic Psalms resources for Psalm 95, including our Layer-by-Layer analysis, select Exegetical Issues, and Overview Videos.
Overview 
- This page will introduce and provide orientation to Psalm 95 as a whole. It covers the message, structure, background and participants of the psalm.
Layer-by-Layer Analysis 
- The heart of our process is our layer-by-layer exegetical analysis, where we unfold the semantics, story behind, discourse, and poetics of each psalm.
Grammar & Semantics
Semantics is the study of how language is used to represent meaning. The goal of semantic analysis is to understand the meaning of words and how they relate to each other in context. Our Semantics analysis consists of the following sub-layers:
- Grammar & Textual Criticism
- Lexical Semantics
- Phrase-Level Semantics
- Verbal Semantics
Story Behind
The Story Behind the Psalm shows how each part of the psalm fits together into a single coherent whole. Here, we analyze the meaning of sentences and larger units of discourse, up to and including the entire psalm. This also include historical background and figurative imagery.
Discourse
Our Discourse Layer moves beyond semantic-level meaning, and analyzes features of the text dependent on the speaker, addressee, and macrosyntax.
Poetics
Exploring the Psalms as poetry is crucial for understanding and experiencing the psalms and thus for faithfully translating them into another language.
Verse-by-Verse Notes 
- Explore the psalm verse-by-verse and section-by-section.
Psalm 95 Exegetical Issues 
- These issues examine the top three tough questions for each psalm, explaining different scholarly interpretations, and offering our perspective.
- When examining Ps 95:7c–9, it is clear by v. 9 that YHWH is the speaker. The point at which YHWH's speech begins, however, is not clear.
- The clause הַ֝יּ֗וֹם אִֽם־בְּקֹל֥וֹ תִשְׁמָֽעוּ (v. 7c) has been interpreted in different ways. For example, the NET interprets אִם as an optative particle for a rhetorical, unfinished sentence ("Today, if only you would obey him," emphasis added). Meanwhile, the ESV interprets אִם as a conditional particle introducing the clause that follows ("Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts...," emphasis added). Alternatively, it has been suggested that אִם is a conditional particle for the preceding clause ("[We are] the sheep of his hand today, if you will obey his voice and not harden your hearts," emphasis added).
- Psalm 95 finishes with YHWH's oath, אִם־יְ֝בֹא֗וּן אֶל־מְנוּחָתִֽי "They will not enter into my rest!" (95:11b). From the original context of the rebellion at Meribah/Massah (see v. 9), it is clear that the "rest" not to be enjoyed was the promised land. For the original audience of the psalm (and contemporary readership), however, belonging to a later generation than those who were denied entry into the promised land of Canaan, the denotation of "rest" is not clear. If one of the purposes of the psalm is to make the hearer feel hopeful that they, unlike their ancestors, will enter into YHWH's rest, this raises the question: what is the denotation of "my rest" (מְנוּחָתִי) in this new context?
Psalm 95 Videos 
- There are no videos currently available for this psalm.