REVISION OF THE PSALTER.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 17747, 26 April 1923, Page 11

REVISION OF THE PSALTER.

SOME SUGGESTED CHANGES. DRASTIC CUTS. (raoir oue own correspondent.) LONDON, March 17. The full text of the suggested alterations in the Psalms has been issued from Church House, in the form of the "Revised Psalter" (Permissive Lse) Measure. 1023." This measure, prepared on the instructions of the House of Bishops, is part of the general scheme for amending the Prayer Book. The National Assembly of the Church of England must give their approval to the revised Psalter before it can be adopted for public worship. The alterations, if sanctioned, will constitute an alternative text of the Psalms, to be used at thf discretion of ministers. The measure is to have effect within the Provinces of Canterbury and York only, and will como into operation on the first Sunday in Advent next after it- is passed. Oue can quite understand the deep religious sensibilities that are outraged by proposals to alter the Commandments, but there is not likely to be anything like the same opposition to the suggested modification of the Psalms. In fact, public opinion, both inside and outside the Church, has long bet-n agreed that Psalms breathing forth a revengeful or denunciatory spirit were not divinely inspired. The schedules contain , the alterations suggested by the Psalter Revision Committee, which consisted of Bishop Ryle (Dean of Westminster), chairman, the Bishop of Ely, the Archdeacon of Warrington, "Sir Edward Clarke, K.C., and Mr E. G. P. Wyatt. This committee was appointed by the National Assembly on November 18th, 1920, the terms of its reference being "to consider and report upon the revision of the Psalms, and their use in public Worship." The committee considered that, at a time when the thought of the spread of the Kingdom of God throughout the world occupies so prominent a place in the policy of the Church, the Psalmist's use of the word "peoples" (instead of "people") might with advantage be recovered; and that in many passages "nations," or "peoples," might be substituted for "heathen," especially where the context seemed to point to the extension of the rule of Jehovah rather than to the corruptions of idolatory. Some of the obscurities in the Psalter are attributed to early corruptions in tlie original Hobrew text. In many instances the committee say they have been obliged to let the inevitable obscurities in the translation remain; and in one famous instance (Psalm 2, 12), rather than resort to any conjectural emendation, they have prefered to adhere to the rendering of Coverdale, "Kiss the Son," although, as a translation, it is probably indefensible. In one passage only, owing to the desperate condition of the text (Psalm 141, 7, 8), the committee have recommended that the two verses should be omitted, on the ground that no translation seemed to give any satisfactory sense. The committee were not prepared to recommend the insertion of the headings of the Psalms. Omissions. The manner in which the Psalmist's version of unforgettable doom for tie ungodly is to be tempered is shown by the omissions proposed. Psalm 55 is to be omitted altogether. It contains such expressions as:— Break their teeth, O God, in their mouths, let them fall away like water that runneth apace. Let them consume away like a snail. The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance; he shall wash his footsteps in the blood of the ungodly. Verses are to be left out from eight other Psalms, and in each case the sentiments are for death and condemnation, as, for example, in Psalm 68, verses 21 to 23, inclusive: "That thy, foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies; and that the tongue of the dog may be red through the same." Psalm 109, verses 5 to 19 inclusive, demands: "Let his children be fatherless and his wife a widow. Let his children be vagabonds and beg their bread." Examples. No fewer than 346 are suggested in the wording the verses of various Psalms. A i.oniparison of the revised version with the old text in a selection of these alterations is given below. In each instance the revised version is printed first. Psalm 2, verse 1: Why do the nations so furiously rage together . . .? Why do the heathen so furiously rage together . . .? Psalm 10, verse 2:— The ungodly in his pride doth perseute the poor. The ungodly for his own lust doth doth persecute the poor. Psalm 37, verse 20: — As for the ungoldly, they shall perish; and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the flower of the field; yea, even as the smoke shall they consume away. As for the ungodly, they shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall consume as the fat of the lambs; yea> even as the smoke shall they consume away. Psalm 62, verse 9: — As for the children of men, they are but vanity, the children of men are deceitful; tried in the balances they are altogether lighter than vanity itself. As for the children of men, they are but vanity; the children of men are deceitful upon the weights, they are altogether lighter than vanity itself. Psalm 72, verse 6: — He shall come down like rain upon the tender grass; even as the drops that water the earth. _ He shall come down like the rain into a tleece of wool; even as the drops that water the earth. Psalm 91, verse . 9:— Because thou hast saidj the .Lord is mv refuge; thou hast mad© the !&£ost High thy habitation. For Thou, Lord, art my hope; Thou hast set thine house of defence very hl flany of the alterations consist of a simplified phrasing; while others give a different emphasis to a verse, by a change in punctuation. For instance. Psalm 121, verse 1, now reads: "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. "Into the Pit." The revisers appear to have a very strong objection to the word "hell." Thev have altered Psalm do, v. 16 from Let death come hastily upon them, and let them go down quick into hell; to Let death come hastily upon them, and let them go down alive into the While Psalm 88, v. 2: For my soul is full of trouble; and my life draweth nigh unto hell becomes For my life is full of trouble; and my life draweth nigh unto the grave. A typical, instance of clearing away

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an obscurity is in Psalm 77, v. 2. At present this reads: — In, the time of my trouble I sought the Lord; my sore ran, and ceased not in the night season. Eevised, the verse reads: — In the time of my trouble I sought the Lord; I stretched forth my hands unto Him, and ceased not in the night season. Here and there even famous verses find amendment. For instance, Psalm 68, v. 11: The Lord gave the word; great was the company of the preachers has been changed to: — The Lord gave the word: great was the company of women that bare the tidings. "Rebellious" is recommended in substitution for "runagates," and "violent men" for "naughty men." 'Tor honour cometh neither from the East nor from the West; nor yet from the South," for "For promotion cometh neither from the East nor from the West: nor yet from the South"; "I will make mention of Egypt and Babylon," for "I will think upos; Eahab and Babylon"; "For judgment shall turn again until righteousness," for "Until righteousness turn again unto judgment"; "In the day of thy power shall thy people offer themselves willingly with an holy worship: tlio' young men shall be as the dew of the morning," for "In the day of thv J power shall thy people offer thee freewill offerings with an holy worship, the dew of thy birth is as the womb of the morning"; and "He giveth to his beloved rest," for "He giveth his be loved sleep." Taken as a whole, the revision seems to have been aimed at making the Psalm clearer and more intelligible to