Psalm 16 is the 16th psalm in the

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

: "Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust." In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

and Latin

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 15. The Latin version begins "Conserva me Domine". The psalm is attributed to

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

and described as a ''Michtam of David''. Psalms 56- 60 also share this title. Sarah Hoyt describes this term as "obscure".Hoyt, S. F.
The Holy One in Psalm 16, 10
''Journal of the American Oriental Society'', 1912, Vol. 32, No. 2 (1912), pp. 120-125, accessed 6 October 2021 Semitic scholar Paul Haupt suggests that it may mean "restricted by the

meter The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...

", or "conformed to poetical measure". The psalm forms a regular part of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

and Protestant liturgies. It has been set to music, including compositions by

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

and

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

Text

Hebrew Bible version

Following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 16:

King James Version

# Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. # O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; # But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. # Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips. # The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. # The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. # I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. # I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. # Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. # For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. # Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Composition

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

and Emilie Briggs summarized its contents as follows: According to the Briggs, the author of this Psalm drew on

Jeremiah Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...

23:6, 33:16;

Deuteronomy Deuteronomy ( grc, Δευτερονόμιον, Deuteronómion, second law) is the fifth and last book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called (Hebrew: hbo, , Dəḇārīm, hewords Moses.html"_;"title="f_Moses">f_Moseslabel=none)_and_th ...

33:12; and the

Book of Ezra The Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible; which formerly included the Book of Nehemiah in a single book, commonly distinguished in scholarship as Ezra–Nehemiah. The two became separated with the first printed rabbinic bibles of the earl ...

for phrases and concepts, and most likely wrote the Psalm in the Persian period (i.e., after 539 BCE).

Uses

Judaism

Verse 3 is found in

Pirkei Avot Pirkei Avot ( he, פִּרְקֵי אָבוֹת; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth''), which translates to English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethics, ethical teachings and Maxim ...

Chapter 6, no. 10. Psalm 16 is one of the ten psalms of the

Tikkun HaKlali ''Tikkun HaKlali'' ( he, תיקון הכללי, lit., "The General (or Comprehensive) Rectification"), also known as The General Remedy, is a set of ten Psalms whose recital serves as ''teshuvah'' (repentance) for all sins — in particular the ...

of Rebbe

Nachman of Breslov Nachman of Breslov ( he, רַבִּי נַחְמָן מִבְּרֶסְלֶב ''Rabbī'' ''Naḥmān mīBreslev''), also known as Reb Nachman of Bratslav, Reb Nachman Breslover ( yi, רבי נחמן ברעסלאווער ''Rebe Nakhmen Breslover'' ...

New Testament

The following verses of Psalm 16 are referenced in the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

: * Verses 8-11 are quoted in

Acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

* Verse 10b is quoted in

. In those cases both Peter and Paul applied Psalm 16 to

Jesus' resurrection The resurrection of Jesus ( grc-x-biblical, ἀνάστασις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ) is the Christian belief that God raised Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion, starting – or restoring – his exalted life as Christ and Lord ...

and not to David's life.

Book of Common Prayer

In the Church of England's ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

'', Psalm 16 is appointed to be read on the morning of the third day of the month.Church of England
Book of Common Prayer: The Psalter
as printed by

John Baskerville John Baskerville (baptised 28 January 1707 – 8 January 1775) was an English businessman, in areas including japanning and papier-mâché, but he is best remembered as a printer and type designer. He was also responsible for inventing "wov ...

in 1762, pp. 196ff

Musical settings

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

wrote a setting of a metric paraphrase of Psalm 16 in German, "Bewahr mich, Gott, ich trau auf dich",

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

112, for the ''

Becker Psalter The ''Becker Psalter'' is a German metrical psalter authored by the Leipzig theologian Cornelius Becker and first published by Jakob Apel in Leipzig in 1602 under the title ''Der Psalter Davids Gesangweis''. Several composers set the psalms contai ...

'', published first in 1628. In 1699,

wrote "''Conserva me Domine",'' H.230, for soloists, chorus, strings, and continuo. The

of verse 10 is used in Handel's oratorio ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

'', HWV 56.

References

External links

* * * in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * Text of Psalm 16 according to th
1928 Psalter

A miktam of David. / Keep me safe, O God; in you I take refuge.
text and footnotes, usccb.org United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 16 – The Benefits of a Life-Commitment to God
enduringword.com
Psalm 16 / Refrain: The Lord is at my right hand; I shall not fall.

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Hymns for Psalm 16
hymnary.org

{{Psalms 016 Works attributed to David