Psalm 133 Text
From Psalms: Layer by Layer
Psalm 133/Text
Choose a PsalmNavigate Psalm 133
Dwelling Together
Psalm 133
Listen & Read: Psalm 133
Read along and listen to our audio recordings for Psalm 133. Choose between simple, unaffected audio recordings (in Hebrew or English), or a dramatized reading that takes into account our emotional, discourse, and poetic analyses. You can also choose between a text-only view, or a view overlaid with our summary At-a-Glance, Expanded Paraphrase, or Participant Analysis tracking.
| Simple Reading (Hebrew) |
Simple Reading (English) |
| Dramatic Reading (Hebrew) |
Dramatic Reading (English) |
Text Only (Hebrew and English) The text below is divided according to the psalm's poetic lines. For additional information, see our Poetic Structure layer.
| Text (Hebrew) | Verse | Text (CBC) The Close-but-clear translation (CBC) exists to provide a window into the Hebrew text according to how we understand its syntax and word-to-phrase-level semantics. It is not intended to be used as a stand-alone translation or base text, but as a supplement to Layer-by-Layer materials to help users make full use of these resources. |
|---|---|---|
שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּֽעֲל֗וֹת לְדָ֫וִ֥ד
|
1a | [Belonging to] the song of the ascents. By David.
|
הִנֵּ֣ה מַה־טּ֖וֹב וּמַה־נָּעִ֑ים
|
1b | Look, how good and how delightful
|
שֶׁ֖בֶת אַחִ֣ים גַּם־יָֽחַד׃
|
1c | is brothers' dwelling — even together!
|
כַּשֶּׁ֚מֶן הַטּ֨וֹב עַל־הָרֹ֗אשׁ
|
2a | [It is] like the good oil on the head,
|
יֹרֵ֗ד עַל־הַזָּ֫קָ֥ן זְקַ֥ן אַֽהֲרֹ֑ן
|
2b | flowing down onto the beard, the beard of Aaron;
|
שֶׁ֜יֹּרֵ֗ד עַל־פִּ֥י מִדּוֹתָֽיו:
|
2c | which flows down onto the collar of his garments.
|
כְּטַ֥ל חֶרְמ֗וֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד֘ עַל־הַרְרֵ֪י צִ֫יּ֥וֹן
|
3a | [It is] like the dew of Hermon, which flows down onto the hills of Zion.
|
כִּ֚י שָׁ֨ם׀ צִוָּ֣ה יְ֖הֹוָה אֶת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה
|
3b | For there YHWH has sent the blessing—
|
חַ֜יִּ֗ים עַד־הָֽעוֹלָֽם:
|
3c | life everlasting.
|
Structure Overlay Below, the text has been overlaid with our summary structural analysis. For details on the structure, see the Structure At-a-Glance here.
| Text (Hebrew) | Verse | Text (CBC) |
|---|---|---|
| שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּֽעֲל֗וֹת לְדָ֫וִ֥ד | 1a | [Belonging to] the song of the ascents. By David. |
| הִנֵּ֣ה מַה־טּ֖וֹב וּמַה־נָּעִ֑ים | 1b | Look, how good and how delightful |
| שֶׁ֖בֶת אַחִ֣ים גַּם־יָֽחַד׃ | 1c | is brothers' dwelling— even together! |
| כַּשֶּׁ֚מֶן הַטּ֨וֹב | עַל־הָרֹ֗אשׁ | 2a | [It is] like the good oil on the head, |
| יֹרֵ֗ד עַל־הַזָּ֫קָ֥ן זְקַ֥ן אַֽהֲרֹ֑ן | 2b | flowing down onto the beard, the beard of Aaron; |
| שֶׁ֜יֹּרֵ֗ד עַל־פִּ֥י מִדּוֹתָֽיו: | 2c | which flows down onto the collar of his garments. |
| כְּטַ֥ל חֶרְמ֗וֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד֘ עַל־הַרְרֵ֪י צִ֫יּ֥וֹן | 3a | [It is] like the dew of Hermon, which flows down onto the hills of Zion. |
| כִּ֚י שָׁ֨ם׀ צִוָּ֣ה יְ֖הֹוָה אֶת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה | 3b | For there YHWH has sent the blessing— |
| חַ֜יִּ֗ים עַד־הָֽעוֹלָֽם: | 3c | life everlasting. |
Expanded paraphrase The expanded paraphrase seeks to capture the implicit information within the text and make it explicit for readers today. It is based on the CBC translation and uses italic text to provide the most salient background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences.
| Text (Hebrew) | Verse | Expanded Paraphrase |
|---|---|---|
| שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּֽעֲל֗וֹת לְדָ֫וִ֥ד הִנֵּ֣ה מַה־טּ֖וֹב וּמַה־נָּעִ֑ים שֶׁ֖בֶת אַחִ֣ים גַּם־יָֽחַד׃ | 1 | [Belonging to] the song of the Israelites' ascents up to Jerusalem, where the temple was, for holy festivals. This psalm was written By David. Look, how good and how right that brothers (the twelve brothers of Israel, from whom the twelve tribes descended, so representing all the families of Israel) dwell in the land—but even dwell together, they travel from all over the country (north and south) for the sake of worshiping YHWH in Jerusalem! |
| כַּשֶּׁ֚מֶן הַטּ֨וֹב עַל־הָרֹ֗אשׁ יֹרֵ֗ד עַל־הַזָּ֫קָ֥ן זְקַ֥ן־אַֽהֲרֹ֑ן שֶׁ֜יֹּרֵ֗ד עַל־פִּ֥י מִדּוֹתָֽיו׃ | 2 | Brothers dwelling together is a blessing that flows from YHWH. [It is] like the valuable anointing oil on the head which is a picture of YHWH's election and blessing of priests. When it is flowing down onto the beard, the beard of Aaron, it is a reminder of the consecration of the first high priest of Israel, which initiated the covenant, the source and guarantee of YHWH's acceptance of Israel into relationship with God. The anointing of the priesthood is a blessing from God to the people because it provides them with someone who seeks God's forgiveness (Exod 32:11-14; Lev 16:15-16) and blessings on their behalf (Num 6:24-26). The oil which flows down abundantly over Aaron's beard and onto the collar of his priestly garments, covering everything, is an image of the abundant blessings flowing from God to his people. |
| כְּטַ֥ל־חֶרְמ֗וֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד֘ עַל־הַרְרֵ֪י צִ֫יּ֥וֹן כִּ֚י שָׁ֨ם׀ צִוָּ֣ה יְ֖הוָה אֶת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה חַ֜יִּ֗ים עַד־הָֽעוֹלָֽם׃ | 3 | Likewise, when brothers gather in Jerusalem to dwell together and with YHWH, there in Jerusalem blessings come down from heaven: [it is] like the life-giving dew of Mount Hermon, the highest mountain in Israel. This dew, which flows down abundantly from the north onto the hills of Zion in the south, waters the lands all around Jerusalem, enabling crops to grow and blessing the entire nation. This gift of water for the lands symbolizes all of YHWH's blessings on the land and the absence of covenant curses, enabling life to flourish. For it is there, in Jerusalem, that YHWH chose to make his dwelling place (Ps 132:13-14) and to live among his people; it is there that YHWH has sent the blessing—life everlasting, that is, ongoing life in the land in covenant unity with each other and with YHWH, mediated by the priesthood. Jerusalem is where it all originated and where we come to celebrate it. |
Participant Tracking Text Participant Analysis focuses on the characters in the psalm and asks, “Who are the main participants (or characters) in this psalm, and what are they saying or doing? Our full analysis can be found in the Participant Analysis layer.
There are 5 participants/characters in Psalm 133:
Profile List
| David |
| YHWH |
| Congregation of Israel |
| "Families" |
| Aaron |
| Oil |
| Dew |
Profile Notes
- Families: The word אַחִים "brothers" are not necessarily biological brothers, but rather a way to denote the extended family/the entire congregation of Israel. In the context of this psalm, these are the pilgrims who have been traveling to Jerusalem for a holy festival.
- Oil and Dew: Though not exactly participants per se, these two liquids play a prominent role in this psalm. They are used for comparison to the pleasantness of the congregation's unity, and they display the heart of the psalm's message.
- Aaron: The first high priest of the people of Israel. Here, he is not an active participant, but rather is used as a symbol for the priesthood.
| Hebrew | Line | English |
|---|---|---|
| שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּעֲל֗וֹת לְדָ֫וִ֥ד | 1a | The song of the ascents. By David. |
| הִנֵּ֣ה מַה־טּ֭וֹב וּמַה־נָּעִ֑ים | 1b | Look, how good and how right |
| שֶׁ֖בֶת אַחִ֣ים גַּם־יָֽחַד׃ | 1c | that brothers dwell—even together! |
| כַּשֶּׁ֤מֶן הַטּ֨וֹב ׀ עַל־הָרֹ֗אשׁ | 2a | [It is] like the valuable oil on the head, |
| יֹרֵ֗ד עַֽל־הַזָּקָ֥ן זְקַֽן־אַהֲרֹ֑ן | 2b | flowing down onto the beard, the beard of Aaron; |
| שֶׁ֝יֹּרֵ֗ד עַל־פִּ֥י מִדּוֹתָֽיו׃ | 2c | which flows down onto the collar of his garments. |
| כְּטַל־חֶרְמ֗וֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד֮ עַל־הַרְרֵ֪י צִ֫יּ֥וֹן | 3a | [It is] like the dew of Hermon, which flows down onto the hills of Zion. |
| כִּ֤י שָׁ֨ם ׀ צִוָּ֣ה יְ֭הוָה אֶת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה | 3b | For there YHWH has sent the blessing— |
| חַ֝יִּ֗ים עַד־הָעוֹלָֽם׃ | 3c | life everlasting. |