Discovery BoxPsalms 74:16 
Context74:16 You established the cycle of day and night; 1
you put the moon 2 and sun in place. 3
Psalms 89:36
Context89:36 His dynasty will last forever. 4
His throne will endure before me, like the sun, 5
Psalms 104:22
Context104:22 When the sun rises, they withdraw
and sleep 6 in their dens.
Psalms 121:6
Context121:6 The sun will not harm you by day,
or the moon by night. 7
Psalms 136:8
Context136:8 the sun to rule by day,
for his loyal love endures,
Psalms 148:3
Context148:3 Praise him, O sun and moon!
Praise him, all you shiny stars! 8
1 tn Heb “To you [is] day, also to you [is] night.”
2 tn Heb “[the] light.” Following the reference to “day and night” and in combination with “sun,” it is likely that the Hebrew term מָאוֹר (ma’or, “light”) refers here to the moon.
3 tn Heb “you established [the] light and [the] sun.”
4 tn Heb “his offspring forever will be.”
5 tn Heb “and his throne like the sun before me.”
6 tn Heb “lie down.”
7 sn One hardly thinks of the moon’s rays as being physically harmful, like those of the sun. The reference to the moon may simply lend poetic balance to the verse, but it is likely that the verse reflects an ancient, primitive belief that the moon could have an adverse effect on the mind (note the English expression “moonstruck,” which reflects such a belief). Another possibility is that the sun and moon stand by metonymy for harmful forces characteristic of the day and night, respectively.
8 tn Heb “stars of light.”
