What Does Psalm 105:9 Mean in the King James?
Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac;
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The promise is already crossing a generation: covenant with Abraham, oath reaching Isaac.
THE MEANING
This verse presents a promise that reaches beyond its first recipient: the covenant is made with Abraham, and the oath reaches Isaac. Its continuity is part of the promise itself, and the reader meets that pledged word as something still held.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The promise ends with the first person who receives it.
THE ROOT
כָּרַת
karat
GROWS FROM
כרת
k-r-t
to cut, cut off
The Hebrew verb beneath “made” means “cut.” With covenant (בְּרִית, berit) carried over from the preceding line, the verse gives the promise the shape of a bond enacted and marked; the English smooths that image into “made.”
ALSO GROWS
karat: to cut or cut off
כָּרַת
This is the verb used for the covenant made with Abraham, revealing the cut language beneath the English rendering.
keritut: severance; a decree of divorce
כְּרִיתֻת
The same root can describe a severed bond, giving its use in the covenant phrase a sharp sense of a relationship being marked.
שְׁבוּעָתוֹ
shevu'ato
GROWS FROM
שבע
to swear, bind by an oath
The root connects the oath to the act of swearing it: pledge and sworn commitment belong to one word family. Here the oath reaches Isaac, carrying the commitment beyond Abraham.
ALSO GROWS
nishbaʿ: he swore
נִשְׁבַּע
This verb from the same root makes the spoken oath an act of commitment.
hishbiaʿ: to put under oath; to adjure
הִשְׁבִּיעַ
This form shows the root can also name the act of binding someone by an oath.
יִצְחָק
Yitzḥaq
GROWS FROM
צחק
to laugh
Isaac’s name carries the laughter root within it. The oath is attached to that name, so the promise’s continuing line carries laughter in its very sound and meaning.
ALSO GROWS
tzachaq: to laugh
צָחַק
This verb is the root from which Isaac’s name is formed.
tzechoq: laughter
צְחוֹק
This noun makes explicit the laughter held within Isaac’s name.
THE PATTERN
A pledged word reaches beyond its first recipient and is reaffirmed across generations.
And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;Where in God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:THE THREAD
Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;The Hebrew uses the שׁבע (sh-b-ʿ, shava, swear) word family in both “oath” and “sware.” Spoken to Isaac, this verse makes explicit how the oath in Psalm 105:9 carries forward the pledge sworn to Abraham.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us