Discovery BoxPsalms 78:68-72 
Context78:68 He chose the tribe of Judah,
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
78:69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above; 1
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently. 2
78:70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
78:71 He took him away from following the mother sheep, 3
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation. 4
78:72 David 5 cared for them with pure motives; 6
he led them with skill. 7
1 tc Heb “and he built like the exalting [ones] his sanctuary.” The phrase כְּמוֹ־רָמִים (kÿmo-ramim, “like the exalting [ones]”) is a poetic form of the comparative preposition followed by a participial form of the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”). The text should be emended to כִּמְרֹמִים (kimromim, “like the [heavenly] heights”). See Ps 148:1, where “heights” refers to the heavens above.
2 tn Heb “like the earth, [which] he established permanently.” The feminine singular suffix on the Hebrew verb יָסַד (yasad, “to establish”) refers to the grammatically feminine noun “earth.”
3 tn Heb “from after the ewes he brought him.”
4 tn Heb “to shepherd Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.”
5 tn Heb “He”; the referent (David, God’s chosen king, mentioned in v. 70) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “and he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart.”
7 tn Heb “and with the understanding of his hands he led them.”
