Psalm 10 — Hebrew and Greek compared
Disparate in this chapter: 10:5, 10:10, 10:15
Each card keeps the independently rendered source readings above their shared comparison and reception notes. The badge records the source’s governing classification; disparate readings are marked in red. Each reading retains its original reference.
Psalm 10
Why stand far away?
Verse 10:1 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:1] Why, YHWH, do You stand far away,
hiding Yourself in times of distress?
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:22] Why, Lord, have You stood far away,
overlooking us at fitting times in distress?
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew speaks of hiding; Greek of overlooking, with the object supplied for English. This Hebrew psalm has no superscription; it corresponds to the continuation of Greek Psalm 9, beginning at verse 22.
Verse 10:2 Similar
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:2] In the wicked man’s pride, the afflicted burns;
may they be caught in the schemes they devised.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:23] As the ungodly man exalts himself, the poor man is set ablaze;
they are caught in the counsels they devise.
Classification & Notes
Similar. Text: Both juxtapose arrogant wickedness, the afflicted person’s burning distress, and entrapment in schemes. Hebrew’s first verb can suggest hot pursuit; the identity of the plural they is not supplied by either source.
Verse 10:3 Divergent
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:3] For the wicked boasts of his soul’s desire;
the greedy man blesses and spurns YHWH.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:24] For the sinner is praised for the desires of his soul,
and the one who acts unjustly is blessed.
Classification & Notes
Divergent. Text: Hebrew has active boasting and the difficult blessing language beside spurning YHWH; Greek has passive praise and blessing. Greek places the provocation of the Lord at the beginning of its next verse. Hebrew’s blesses is retained without silently supplying an object or replacing it with curses.
Verse 10:4 Divergent
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:4] The wicked, with his nose held high, does not seek;
“There is no God”—that is all his scheming.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:25] The sinner provoked the Lord.
According to the abundance of his anger, he will not seek out;
God is not before him.
Classification & Notes
Divergent. Text: The Greek opening corresponds to the end of Hebrew 10:3. Hebrew stresses haughtiness and godless scheming; Greek speaks of abundant anger and God’s absence from before him. The compressed Greek subject and pronoun sequence remains provisional; it is not harmonized into Hebrew.
Verse 10:5 Disparate
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:5] His ways prosper at all times;
Your judgments are high above, beyond his sight;
as for all his adversaries, he snorts at them.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:26] His ways are profaned at every time;
Your judgments are removed from before him;
he will lord it over all his enemies.
Classification & Notes
Disparate. Text: The provisional Hebrew sense prosper contrasts with Greek be profaned; lofty judgments beyond sight contrast with judgments removed. Contemptuous snorting becomes domination over enemies. The cumulative portrayal differs substantially.
Verse 10:6 Similar
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:6] He says in his heart, “I will not be shaken;
through generation after generation I will meet no adversity.”
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:27] For he said in his heart, “I will certainly not be shaken,
from generation to generation, without adversity.”
Classification & Notes
Similar. Text: Both voice the wicked man’s confidence in lasting immunity from harm. Hebrew’s compressed relative clause is expanded minimally for English.
Verse 10:7 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:7] His mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and oppression;
under his tongue are trouble and wickedness.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:28] His mouth is full of cursing, bitterness, and deceit;
under his tongue are toil and trouble.
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Both condemn corrupt speech; Hebrew oppression and wickedness differ from Greek bitterness and toil.
Verse 10:8 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:8] He sits in ambush near villages;
in hiding places he kills the innocent;
his eyes secretly watch for the helpless.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:29] He sits in ambush with rich people,
to kill an innocent person in hiding places;
his eyes look toward the needy.
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew locates the ambush near villages; Greek places rich people with the ambusher. The object of predatory attention remains the vulnerable.
Verse 10:9 Divergent
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:9] He lurks in hiding like a lion in its thicket;
he lurks to snatch the afflicted;
he snatches the afflicted, drawing him into his net.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:30] He lurks in hiding like a lion in its enclosure;
he lurks to seize a poor man,
to seize a poor man as he drags him away.
Classification & Notes
Divergent. Text: The lion and seizure agree, with thicket versus enclosure. Hebrew’s net is in this verse; the corresponding Greek trap begins its next verse. No clause is duplicated to force identical boundaries.
Verse 10:10 Disparate
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:10] He crouches, bows down,
and the helpless fall by his strong ones.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:31] In his trap he will humble him;
he will bow down and fall as he lords it over the needy.
Classification & Notes
Disparate. Text: The difficult Hebrew portrays crouching and helpless people falling through his strong ones, possibly his powerful limbs or forces. Greek continues the trap clause, then describes bowing and falling while dominating the needy. Agency in these compressed clauses is uncertain; the different subjects and sequence remain visible.
Verse 10:11 Similar
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:11] He says in his heart, “God has forgotten;
He has hidden His face; He will never see.”
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:32] For he said in his heart, “God has forgotten;
He turned His face away so as never to see.”
Classification & Notes
Similar. Text: Both report the oppressor’s false assurance that God neither remembers nor sees.
Verse 10:12 Similar
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:12] Arise, YHWH! God, lift up Your hand;
do not forget the afflicted.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:33] Arise, Lord God; let Your hand be raised;
do not forget the needy.
Classification & Notes
Similar. Text: Hebrew directly commands God to lift His hand; Greek asks that His hand be raised. Both petition remembrance of the oppressed.
Verse 10:13 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:13] Why has the wicked spurned God,
saying in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:34] For what reason did the ungodly provoke God?
For he said in his heart, “He will not call to account.”
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew’s quoted denial directly addresses God as You; Greek speaks of Him in the third person.
Verse 10:14 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:14] You have seen, for You observe trouble and vexation,
to take them into Your hand.
To You the helpless entrusts himself;
You have been a helper to the orphan.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:35] You see, for You perceive trouble and anger,
to hand them over into Your hands.
To You, therefore, the poor man has been left;
You were helping the orphan.
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew’s entrusting is active, whereas Greek says the poor man has been left to God. Greek explicitly has plural hands and a plural object them; the referents of the compressed handing-over language remain uncertain.
Verse 10:15 Disparate
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:15] Break the arm of the wicked and evil man;
call his wickedness to account until You find none.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:36] Crush the arm of the sinful and evil man;
his sin will be sought out, and he will certainly not be found because of it.
Classification & Notes
Disparate. Text: Hebrew directly petitions God to seek wickedness until none is found; Greek makes sin the subject of a passive search and then leaves the subject of not being found unexpressed. The English he provisionally refers to the wrongdoer; the Greek syntax needs further review and is not silently recast as Hebrew’s outcome.
Verse 10:16 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:16] YHWH is King forever and ever;
nations have perished from His land.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:37] The Lord will reign forever and for the age of the age;
you will perish, nations, from His land.
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew declares present kingship and nations already perished; Greek uses future reign and directly addresses the nations with a future warning.
Verse 10:17 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:17] You have heard the desire of the humble, YHWH;
You will establish their heart; Your ear will attend,
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:38] The Lord heard the desire of the needy;
Your ear attended to the preparation of their heart,
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Hebrew addresses God and expects Him to establish the heart; Greek begins in the third person and says His ear attended its preparation. Both continue into the following purpose clause.
Verse 10:18 Different
Hebrew–English: Literal-Smooth (Rabbinic Priority)
[10:18] to judge for the orphan and the oppressed,
so that mortal man from the earth may terrify no more.
Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)
[9:39] to judge for the orphan and the lowly,
so that a human being on the earth may no longer boast greatly.
Classification & Notes
Different. Text: Both seek justice for the vulnerable; Hebrew ends human terrorizing, Greek human boasting. Greek Psalm 9 ends here.