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A quick survey of English translations of Psalm 4:4 shows that there is little agreement about how ragaz should be rendered:

NIV In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Selah
NASB Tremble, and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
BBE Let there be fear in your hearts, and do no sin; have bitter feelings on your bed, but make no sound. (Selah.)
NRSV When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah
NKJV Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah

The definition given by Strong's seems to support all of these senses. Perhaps the ambiguity was intentional on the part of the Psalmist. But it seems odd that some translations treat the word as a command ("Be angry") and others as a condition ("In your anger"). How does the Hebrew grammar work here?

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  • The verb is not the "hot head" version of anger but the reactionary version, which is normal and typical of someone with a value system. Please see the commentary for the nuance of this Hebrew verb here. So essentially the various translations are appropriate, if you understand the nuance of this verb.
    – Joseph
    Commented Mar 26, 2013 at 22:19
  • @Joseph: Thanks for the reminder. It was actually your answer that got me looking at this Psalm. ;) It sounds like, at the very least, if the command was to "be a hothead" the Psalmist could have used another word.
    – Jon Ericson
    Commented Mar 26, 2013 at 22:27

1 Answer 1

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The apostle Paul cites the first portion of Psalms 4:4 verbatim in Ephesians 4:26:

Ephesians 4:26

ὀργίζεσθε καὶ μὴ ἁμαρτάνετε

Psalms 4:4 LXX

ὀργίζεσθε καὶ μὴ ἁμαρτάνετε

The lexical form of the verb in question in Psalms 4:4 is רָגַז (ragaz). רִגְזוּ (rigzu) is certainly conjugated in binyan Pa'al (Kal), 2nd person, plural number, and imperative mood. The verb itself has the sense of extreme anger, to the point of causing one to tremble.

Personally, I don't understand the A.V.'s translation, "Stand in awe." Eevn if that is antiquated English, I still don't think it rightly captures the sense of the verb. In addition, the LXX translated it as ὀργίζεσθε (orgizesthe), which means "Be angry!" And, that's another thing, why would the translators of the A.V. translate Psa. 4:4 as "Stand in awe!" and Eph. 4:26 as "Be ye angry!" when they're the same in Greek (LXX v. Textus Receptus)? Did they not realize the apostle Paul was quoting Psa. 4:4?

Anyway, "be angry!" would be the proper translation.

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  • How does the translation of a Greek text written a long time later in history impact how the Hebrew text should be translated? There is a new question that if edited/refocused, this would be a good answer to it. But as to how this question is written, the NT is anachronistic.
    – Dan
    Commented Mar 2, 2017 at 21:19
  • @Dan, I assume that by the "Greek text written a long time later in history" you mean Ephesians?
    – user33515
    Commented Mar 6, 2017 at 4:45
  • @user33515 correct. I think the LXX is helpful, but Ephesians is anachronistic to the interpretation of the Psalm from the Hebrew grammar.
    – Dan
    Commented Mar 6, 2017 at 5:15

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