זִמְרָת

From the study of Isaiah 12:2

Range of meaning

Two Hebrew roots look the same. (1) zmr I, 'to sing, make music, play an instrument' (as in mizmôr, 'psalm'), giving 'song, praise'. (2) zmr II, linked with Ugaritic ḏmr ('strength, warrior'; used in personal names) and Arabic ḏimār ('what one must protect'), giving 'strength, protection, might'. HALOT lists a separate zimrāh II, 'strength, protection', for Exod 15:2, Isa 12:2 and Ps 118:14. The unusual form zimrāt (no 'my' written, and an older -at ending) is explained either as an archaic noun ending or as a 'my' (-î) lost before the following yāh.

Against the English

KJV, ESV, NASB, NLT and BSB: 'strength and (my) song'. NIV: 'strength and my defense'. NRSV and NJPS (at Exodus 15:2): 'strength and might'. The choice decides whether the line is one emphatic idea ('my strength and might', a pair of near-synonyms) or two ('he is my power, and he is what I sing about').

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 15:2 and Ps 118:14 have the same phrase. The Greek Septuagint of Exodus 15:2 translates 'helper and protector', a protection reading, while the Septuagint of Isaiah 12:2 has 'my glory and my praise', a song reading. The Vulgate here has 'laus mea' ('my praise'). The Ugaritic parallels were brought into the discussion by twentieth-century scholars such as F. M. Cross and D. N. Freedman.

From the study of Exodus 15:2

Range of meaning

(1) Song or music, from zāmar I 'to sing, make music' (compare mizmôr 'psalm'). (2) Possibly strength or protection, from a second root zmr, related to Arabic ḏamara 'to protect, be brave' and Ugaritic ḏmr 'strength, warrior'. HALOT lists a separate zimrāh II with this meaning.

Against the English

KJV, ESV, NASB, NLT and BSB have 'song'. NIV (2011) has 'defense'. NRSV and NJPS have 'might'. The Septuagint has 'protector'. The choice changes the picture: a God who is what I sing about, or a God who is my shield.

How it drifted

This is a real ambiguity, not a drift. 'Song' became standard through the Latin Vulgate ('laus mea', 'my praise') and the King James tradition. Comparative evidence from Ugaritic, discovered in the 20th century, made the 'strength' reading widely known.

Used elsewhere in the period

Without the 'my' ending, the form is odd if it means 'my song'. Two explanations are offered: the -î ending was lost next to the y of yāh (a copying slip, zimrātî yāh → zimrāt yāh), or the 'my' of ʿozzî carries over to both words. Some witnesses, including the Samaritan Pentateuch, reportedly read zimrātî. The identical line in Isa 12:2 and Ps 118:14 keeps the same form, so the wording was fixed early.

From the study of Psalm 118:14

Range of meaning

Two candidates: (1) 'song, music of praise', from zāmar 'to sing, make music' (the root of mizmôr, 'psalm'); (2) 'strength, might, protection', from a second root zmr found in Ugaritic, Amorite personal names and Arabic (dhimār, 'what one must protect, honour'). HALOT lists the second sense for these passages; BDB keeps 'song'.

Against the English

KJV, ESV, NASB and BSB keep 'song'. NIV (2011) has 'defense', and NRSV and NJPS have 'might'. If 'song' is right, the line moves from strength to praise. If 'might' is right, the line doubles one idea for emphasis, a very common pattern in Hebrew poetry.

Used elsewhere in the period

Found only in Exod 15:2, Isa 12:2 and here, always in this same formula. Ugaritic dmr ('strength, warrior') and names like Zimri-Lim (king of Mari) support the 'might' sense. The Septuagint reads hymnēsis/ainesis ('praise'), and the Vulgate laus ('praise'), so the ancient translators understood 'song'. A Hebrew word for 'song' that sounds the same probably encouraged a deliberate double meaning.