Psalm 6 → 101

Reasoning: 7424 Output: 3959 Total: 11383

Argument

Short thesis: Psalm 101 reads naturally as the “next step” after Psalm 6: the lamenter of Psalm 6, rescued by YHWH’s hesed, turns in Psalm 101 into the Davidic ruler who vows to shape his house and city by hesed and mishpat, expelling the very “workers of iniquity” he dismissed at the end of Psalm 6. The two psalms link by exact phrases, shared roots, mirrored motifs (night/morning; house/city; eyes), and a plausible life-setting (a night of affliction → morning judicial resolve).

Hard lexical hooks (identical or near-identical forms/phrases)
- “All workers of iniquity”: Ps 6:9 סוּרוּ מִמֶּנִּי כָּל־פֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן; Ps 101:8 …כָּל־פֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן. The identical phrase (including kol + po‘ale ʼaven) is relatively marked in the Psalter.
- Same verb + preposition + 1cs “from me” with סור: Ps 6:9 סוּרוּ מִמֶּנִּי; Ps 101:4 יָסוּר מִמֶּנִּי. The collocation סור מן + ממני recurs, moving from an imperative addressed to evildoers (Ps 6) to a royal program (crookedness must depart, Ps 101).
- Hesed: Ps 6:5 הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי לְמַעַן חַסְדֶּךָ; Ps 101:1 חֶסֶד וּמִשְׁפָּט אָשִׁירָה. Ps 6 appeals to YHWH’s hesed; Ps 101 responds by singing of hesed (now joined with mishpat), as if answering the mercy received with a commitment to enact justice.
- Waiting for God to come: Ps 6:4–5 וְאַתָּה יְהוָה עַד־מָתָי; Ps 101:2 מָתַי תָּבוֹא אֵלָי. The distinctive “how long/when” plea for divine visitation is echoed in both.
- Eye/eyes motif, focused on what stands “before the eyes”: Ps 6:8 עָשְׁשָׁה מִכַּעַס עֵינִי; Ps 101:3 לֹא־אָשִׁית לְנֶגֶד עֵינַי דְּבַר־בְּלִיַּעַל; 101:5, 6, 7 repeat the “eyes” theme (גבה עיניים; עֵינַי בְנֶאֱמנֵי־אֶרֶץ; לְנֶגֶד עֵינַי). The “what is before my eyes” axis shifts from the psalmist’s failing eye (Ps 6) to the king’s disciplined gaze (Ps 101).

Form and volitive profile (how the speaker talks)
- Psalm 6 (individual lament): imperatives to God (אַל־בְּאַפְּךָ תּוֹכִיחֵנִי; רְפָאֵנִי; שׁוּבָה) and a climactic judicial declaration to enemies (סוּרוּ מִמֶּנִּי), then an assurance of being heard (שָׁמַע יְהוָה).
- Psalm 101 (royal vow/ethic): cohortatives and 1cs resolutions (אָשִׁירָה; אֲזַמֵּרָה; אַשְׂכִּילָה; אֶתְהַלֵּךְ; אַצְמִית). The speaker who begged now governs; prayer turns into policy.

Time and setting motifs that “progress”
- Night → morning: Ps 6:7 “בְּכָל־לַיְלָה” (a night of tears); Ps 101:8 “לַבְּקָרִים אַצְמִית” (each morning I will extirpate). The night vigil of affliction gives way to the morning court-session of justice, matching ANE/Israelite practice where kings/judges sat in judgment in the morning.
- Bed/house → house/city: Ps 6’s private interior (מִטָּתִי; עַרְשִׂי) yields to Ps 101’s “inside my house” and “the city of YHWH” (בְּקֶרֶב בֵּיתִי, 101:2,7; מֵעִיר־יְהוָה, 101:8). The sphere widens from the sufferer’s bed to the king’s household and then the city.

Ethical/judicial through-lines
- Expulsion of wrongdoers: Ps 6 ends with “Depart from me, all workers of iniquity.” Ps 101 specifies how that departure happens: the crooked heart must “depart from me” (4); deceivers will not “sit in my house” (7); and “every morning I will annihilate… to cut off from the city of YHWH all workers of iniquity” (8). Psalm 101 is, in effect, the operationalization of Psalm 6:9.
- Who may “sit with me” versus who must “depart”: Ps 101:6 “My eyes are on the faithful of the land, to sit with me” versus 101:7 “Not sit in my house… the doer of deceit.” This is the positive mirror-image of Ps 6’s negative expulsion formula.

Praise logic
- In Ps 6 the petitioner argues, “in death there is no remembrance… who will give you thanks?” (6:6). Ps 101 opens by paying that vow: “Of hesed and mishpat I will sing; to you, YHWH, I will make music” (101:1). The lament’s rationale (“spare me so I can thank you”) is fulfilled as vowed praise.

Shared roots and marked vocabulary
- סור (depart) + מן + ממני in both psalms (6:9; 101:4).
- כל־פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן is identical and relatively marked across the Psalter (6:9; 101:8).
- חֶסֶד in both, but with a significant shift: object of supplication (6:5) → theme and standard of rule (101:1).
- עד־מתי / מתי (6:4; 101:2) as a distinctive visitation formula.

Plausible historical/liturgical sequence
- A Davidic king, under divine displeasure or illness (bones and soul “terrified,” Ps 6:3–4), cries for YHWH to return and save “for your hesed” (6:5).
- YHWH hears (6:9–10), the enemies are turned back in a moment (6:11), and the king, restored, publicly articulates his royal program: to walk in integrity in his house (101:2), to purge slander, pride, deceit (101:5–7), and to cut off evildoers from the “city of YHWH” each morning (101:8). This matches ANE/Israelite patterns of post-deliverance vows and judicial-morning practice.

Superscriptional affinity
- Both are Davidic “mizmor” pieces (Ps 6:1; Ps 101:1). The shared Davidic frame makes the move from personal lament to royal ethic entirely natural.

In sum: Textually, Ps 6:9’s “Depart from me, all workers of iniquity” is answered line-for-line by Ps 101’s agenda (who may sit with me; who must depart; how they will be cut off), while Ps 6’s appeal to hesed and desire to praise is fulfilled by Ps 101’s song of hesed and mishpat. The night of tears becomes the morning of justice; the bed becomes the house and the city; the sufferer heard by YHWH becomes the ruler acting for YHWH—all with multiple, specific Hebrew hooks tying the two psalms together.

Evaluation

Score: 6.5

Evaluated at: 2025-11-21T03:52:09 (UTC)

Evaluator model: gpt-5

Evaluator version: v2

Reasoning: 3520 Output: 4816 Total: 8336

Vocabulary specificity: 5.0 / 10

Multiple precise overlaps: כל־פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן (6:9; 101:8), סוּר…מִמֶּנִּי (6:9; 101:4), night→morning (6:7; 101:8), eyes/house motifs, חֶסֶד. But many are common motifs; no counterarguments; distant books.

Prompt

Consider Psalm 6 and Psalm 101 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 101 logically follows on from Psalm 6? Consider stylistic similarities, similarities of form, similarities of vocab or ideas, shared roots (if you're doing the search in Hebrew), connections to sequences of events common in ancient Israelite life, mythology or history shared by the two psalms.

Rarer words are more significant than commoner words. Identical forms are more significant than similar forms. The same word class is more significant than different word classes formed from the same root. Identical roots are more significant than suppletive roots.

Psalm 6:
Psalm 6
1. לַמְנַצֵּ֣חַ
        בִּ֭נְגִינוֹת
        עַֽל־
        הַשְּׁמִינִ֗ית
        מִזְמ֥וֹר
        לְדָוִֽד׃
2. יְֽהוָ֗ה
        אַל־
        בְּאַפְּךָ֥
        תוֹכִיחֵ֑נִי
        וְֽאַל־
        בַּחֲמָתְךָ֥
        תְיַסְּרֵֽנִי׃
3. חָנֵּ֥נִי
        יְהוָה֮
        כִּ֤י
        אֻמְלַ֫ל
        אָ֥נִי
        רְפָאֵ֥נִי
        יְהוָ֑ה
        כִּ֖י
        נִבְהֲל֣וּ
        עֲצָֽtמָי׃
4. וְ֭נַפְשִׁי
        נִבְהֲלָ֣ה
        מְאֹ֑ד
        ואת
        וְאַתָּ֥ה
        יְ֝הוָ֗ה
        עַד־
        מָתָֽי׃
5. שׁוּבָ֣ה
        יְ֭הוָה
        חַלְּצָ֣ה
        נַפְשִׁ֑י
        ה֝וֹשִׁיעֵ֗נִי
        לְמַ֣עַן
        חַסְדֶּֽךָ׃
6. כִּ֤י
        אֵ֣ין
        בַּמָּ֣וֶת
        זִכְרֶ֑ךָ
        בִּ֝שְׁא֗וֹל
        מִ֣י
        יֽוֹדֶה־
        לָּֽךְ׃
7. יָגַ֤עְתִּי ׀
        בְּֽאַנְחָתִ֗י
        אַשְׂחֶ֣ה
        בְכָל־
        לַ֭יְלָה
        מִטָּתִ֑י
        בְּ֝דִמְעָתִ֗י
        עַרְשִׂ֥י
        אַמְסֶֽה׃
8. עָֽשְׁשָׁ֣ה
        מִכַּ֣עַס
        עֵינִ֑י
        עָֽ֝תְקָ֗ה
        בְּכָל־
        צוֹרְרָֽי׃
9. ס֣וּרוּ
        מִ֭מֶּנִּי
        כָּל־
        פֹּ֣עֲלֵי
        אָ֑וֶן
        כִּֽי־
        שָׁמַ֥ע
        יְ֝הוָ֗ה
        ק֣וֹל
        בִּכְיִֽי׃
10. שָׁמַ֣ע
        יְ֭הוָה
        תְּחִנָּתִ֑י
        יְ֝הוָ֗ה
        תְּֽפִלָּתִ֥י
        יִקָּֽח׃
11. יֵבֹ֤שׁוּ ׀
        וְיִבָּהֲל֣וּ
        מְ֭אֹד
        כָּל־
        אֹיְבָ֑י
        יָ֝שֻׁ֗בוּ
        יֵבֹ֥שׁוּ
        רָֽגַע׃

Psalm 101:
Psalm 101
1. לְדָוִ֗ד
        מִ֫זְמ֥וֹר
        חֶֽסֶד־
        וּמִשְׁפָּ֥ט
        אָשִׁ֑ירָה
        לְךָ֖
        יְהוָ֣ה
        אֲזַמֵּֽרָה׃
2. אַשְׂכִּ֤ילָה ׀
        בְּדֶ֬רֶךְ
        תָּמִ֗ים
        מָ֭תַי
        תָּב֣וֹא
        אֵלָ֑י
        אֶתְהַלֵּ֥ךְ
        בְּתָם־
        לְ֝בָבִ֗י
        בְּקֶ֣רֶב
        בֵּיתִֽי׃
3. לֹֽא־
        אָשִׁ֨ית ׀
        לְנֶ֥גֶד
        עֵינַ֗י
        דְּֽבַר־
        בְּלִ֫יָּ֥עַל
        עֲשֹֽׂה־
        סֵטִ֥ים
        שָׂנֵ֑אתִי
        לֹ֖א
        יִדְבַּ֣ק
        בִּֽי׃
4. לֵבָ֣ב
        עִ֭קֵּשׁ
        יָס֣וּר
        מִמֶּ֑נִּי
        רָ֝֗ע
        לֹ֣א
        אֵדָֽע׃
5. מלושני
        מְלָשְׁנִ֬י
        בַסֵּ֨תֶר ׀
        רֵעֵהוּ֮
        אוֹת֢וֹ
        אַ֫צְמִ֥ית
        גְּֽבַהּ־
        עֵ֭ינַיִם
        וּרְחַ֣ב
        לֵבָ֑ב
        אֹ֝ת֗וֹ
        לֹ֣א
        אוּכָֽל׃
6. עֵינַ֤י ׀
        בְּנֶֽאֶמְנֵי־
        אֶרֶץ֮
        לָשֶׁ֢בֶת
        עִמָּ֫דִ֥י
        הֹ֭לֵךְ
        בְּדֶ֣רֶךְ
        תָּמִ֑ים
        ה֝֗וּא
        יְשָׁרְתֵֽנִי׃
7. לֹֽא־
        יֵשֵׁ֨ב ׀
        בְּקֶ֥רֶב
        בֵּיתִי֮
        עֹשֵׂ֢ה
        רְמִ֫יָּ֥ה
        דֹּבֵ֥ר
        שְׁקָרִ֑ים
        לֹֽא־
        יִ֝כּ֗וֹן
        לְנֶ֣גֶד
        עֵינָֽי׃
8. לַבְּקָרִ֗ים
        אַצְמִ֥ית
        כָּל־
        רִשְׁעֵי־
        אָ֑רֶץ
        לְהַכְרִ֥ית
        מֵֽעִיר־
        יְ֝הוָ֗ה
        כָּל־
        פֹּ֥עֲלֵי
        אָֽוֶן׃