Psalm 6 → 141
Reasoning: 8768 Output: 4644 Total: 13412
Argument
Short answer: read Psalm 141 as the “second movement” of the same prayer begun in Psalm 6. Psalm 6 is the raw night‑lament of one near death; Psalm 141 is the ordered evening‑offering that follows, turning that lament into liturgy, pledging moral separation from the “doers of iniquity,” and anticipating the very reversal Psalm 6 predicts for the foes. Arguments, from strongest lexical hooks to broader form and setting: Lexical and phrase-level “hooks” (rarer and/or identical forms) - פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן “doers of iniquity” is identical in both and relatively marked: - Ps 6:9 ס֣וּרוּ מִמֶּנִּי כָל־פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן - Ps 141:4 …אִישִׁים פֹעֲלֵי־אָוֶן; 141:9 …מוֹקְשׁוֹת פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן This exact string links the adversaries in both psalms and lets 141 sound like the practical follow‑through to 6: in 6 the speaker drives them away; in 141 he prays not to be drawn in with them and for protection from their traps. - תְּפִלָּתִי “my prayer” (exact form, 1cs): - Ps 6:10 יְהוָה תְּפִלָּתִי יִקָּח “YHWH will take/accept my prayer” - Ps 141:2 תִּכּוֹן תְּפִלָּתִי קְטֹרֶת לְפָנֶיךָ; 141:5 …וְתְפִלָּתִי בְּרָעוֹתֵיהֶם Psalm 6 ends with confidence that the prayer is “received”; Psalm 141 opens by shaping that same prayer into cultic form (as incense/evening offering) and continues to deploy it against the wicked’s designs. - שְׁאוֹל “Sheol” in both: - Ps 6:6 בִּשְּׁאוֹל מִי יוֹדֶה־לָּךְ - Ps 141:7 …עֲצָמֵינוּ לְפִי שְׁאוֹל The Sheol motif (no praise there; bones near its “mouth”) ties the mortal danger of 6 to the imagery of 141. - עֶצֶם “bone” (same noun class/root): - Ps 6:3 נִבְהֲלוּ עֲצָמָי - Ps 141:7 נִפְזְרוּ עֲצָמֵינוּ Both describe extremity in bodily terms, strengthening the sense that 141 continues the same life‑threatening crisis. - קוֹל “voice” and שׁמע “hear” as prayer-audition language: - Ps 6:9–10 שָׁמַע יְהוָה קוֹל בִּכְיִי … שָׁמַע יְהוָה תְּחִנָּתִי - Ps 141:1 יְהוָה קְרָאתִיךָ חוּשָׁה לִּי; הַאֲזִינָה קוֹלִי בְּקָרְאִי לָךְ; 141:6 וְשָׁמְעוּ אֲמָרַי The same semantic field—cry/voice/hear—bridges the two. - נֶפֶשׁ “my life/soul” as direct object of a petition to YHWH (same syntactic slot): - Ps 6:5 חַלְּצָה נַפְשִׁי; הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי - Ps 141:8 אַל־תְּעַר נַפְשִׁי; 141:9 שָׁמְרֵנִי Both pray for the preservation of the same “נַפְשִׁי.” - עֵינִי “my eye(s)” (identical form): - Ps 6:8 עָשְׁשָׁה … עֵינִי - Ps 141:8 אֵלֶיךָ … עֵינָי Elegant progression: from eyes wasted by grief (6) to eyes fixed on YHWH (141). Conceptual and structural continuities - Lament → assurance → downfall of enemies: - Ps 6 moves from lament (vv. 2–8) to assurance that “YHWH has heard” and that enemies will be shamed/terrified/turn back (vv. 9–11). - Ps 141 ends with the same reversal in different imagery: “Let the wicked fall into their own nets while I pass by” (v. 10). That is the narrative outcome anticipated in Ps 6:11, now expressed as a trap‑reversal. - Distancing from the wicked: - Ps 6: “Depart from me, all you doers of iniquity” (ס֣וּרוּ … כָּל־פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן). - Ps 141: “Do not incline my heart to a bad word… with men, doers of iniquity; and let me not eat of their delicacies” (vv. 4–5). Psalm 141 operationalizes the separation demanded in Psalm 6: first he sends them away; then he prays not to be pulled back into their circle or table. - Prayer heard → prayer as offering: - Ps 6:10 “YHWH will accept my prayer.” - Ps 141:2 “Let my prayer be set as incense before you; the lifting of my hands as the evening offering.” The second psalm turns the assurance of acceptance in Ps 6 into a concrete cultic image—prayer functioning as incense/sacrifice. - Time-of-day sequence: - Ps 6: “All night I flood my bed… with my tears” (v. 7). - Ps 141: “Lifting up my palms as the evening offering” (v. 2). Night‑weeping gives way to the formal evening service—an apt liturgical “next moment.” The worshiper moves from private nocturnal anguish to public/temple‑framed prayer. - From “How long?” to “until I pass by”: - Ps 6:4 “YHWH—how long?” (עַד־מָתָי) - Ps 141:10 “together—while I pass by” (עַד־אֶעֱבוֹר) The “עַד” tension in Ps 6 resolves in Ps 141 into a concrete endpoint: safe passage through the peril. Form and style - Both are first‑person individual laments addressed directly to YHWH, heavy with imperatives/jussives directed to God (Ps 6: אַל־… תּוֹכִיחֵנִי; רְפָאֵנִי; שׁוּבָה; חַלְּצָה; הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי; Ps 141: קְרָאתִיךָ… חוּשָׁה; הַאֲזִינָה; שִׁיתָה… שָׁמְרָה; נִצְּרָה; שָׁמְרֵנִי). - Both close with an adversative wish/prediction about the wicked (6:11; 141:10). - Both are Davidic “mizmor” titles, linking them within the Davidic corpus (6 also carries performance instructions; 141 supplies cultic content via incense/“evening offering”). Shared motif set - Mortality/Sheol: no praise from Sheol (6:6) versus bones strewn at Sheol’s mouth (141:7). - Bodily extremity: bones, eyes, tears (6) versus bones, head/oil, eyes (141). - Audition: the call for God to hear, and the assurance that he has; a secondary “and they will hear my words” (141:6), pushing out from divine audition to human audience. Life-setting (Sitz im Leben) plausibility - A credible sequence in ancient Israelite piety: 1) A night of affliction, discipline, and tears (Ps 6: illness or danger bordering on death, fear of Sheol). 2) The next act is liturgical: presenting prayer as the evening tamid’s complement (incense), with uplifted hands (Ps 141:2). 3) Ethical resolve appropriate to penitential prayer: guard the mouth; refuse the elite’s “delicacies”; accept righteous reproof (141:3–5). This is a natural development of a penitential lament like Ps 6 (“do not discipline me in your wrath”). 4) Final entrustment to God’s protection from the snares of those same “doers of iniquity,” anticipating their downfall (141:9–10), which answers Ps 6:11. Why these links are significant - Several of the overlaps are not merely common psalmic vocabulary but marked: - The exact string פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן (twice in 141; once in 6) is a strong hook. - The exact form תְּפִלָּתִי in both, paired with “accept” (יקח) in 6 and “as incense” (תכון… קטרת) in 141, suggests deliberate conceptual echo. - The Sheol/bones pairing in both is not formulaic in every lament; it intensifies the shared scene of mortal danger. - The night/evening dovetail fits an actual daily worship rhythm. Put together, these lexical hooks, mirrored structures, and plausible life‑sequence let Psalm 141 be read as the liturgical, ethical, and anti‑wicked “follow‑on” to the raw night‑lament of Psalm 6: the same petitioner, same enemies (פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן), same threatened life and bones near Sheol, same plea to be heard, now evolved into prayer-as-incense, guarded lips, separation from the wicked’s table, and confidence that the wicked will stumble while he passes safely.
Evaluation
Score: 7.8
Evaluated at: 2025-11-22T04:10:03 (UTC)
Evaluator model: gpt-5
Evaluator version: v2
Reasoning: 4288 Output: 5492 Total: 9780
Checklist
- Has verse refs: Yes
- Factual error detected: No
- Only generic motifs: No
- Counterargument considered: No
- LXX/MT numbering acknowledged: No
Vocabulary specificity: 4.0 / 10
Multiple precise hooks: identical פֹעֲלֵי אָוֶן (6:9; 141:4,9), תפלתי (6:10; 141:2,5), Sheol/bones (6:6,3; 141:7), plus night→evening sequence. Though motifs are common and psalms far apart. No errors.
Prompt
Consider Psalm 6 and Psalm 141 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 141 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 141:
Psalm 141
1. מִזְמ֗וֹר
לְדָ֫וִ֥ד
יְהוָ֣ה
קְ֭רָאתִיךָ
ח֣וּשָׁה
לִּ֑י
הַאֲזִ֥ינָה
ק֝וֹלִ֗י
בְּקָרְאִי־
לָֽךְ׃
2. תִּכּ֤וֹן
תְּפִלָּתִ֣י
קְטֹ֣רֶת
לְפָנֶ֑יךָ
מַֽשְׂאַ֥ת
כַּ֝פַּ֗י
מִנְחַת־
עָֽרֶב׃
3. שִׁיתָ֣ה
יְ֭הוָה
שָׁמְרָ֣ה
לְפִ֑י
נִ֝צְּרָ֗ה
עַל־
דַּ֥ל
שְׂפָתָֽי׃
4. אַל־
תַּט־
לִבִּ֨י
לְדָבָ֪ר ׀
רָ֡ע
לְהִתְע֘וֹלֵ֤ל
עֲלִל֨וֹת ׀
בְּרֶ֗שַׁע
אֶת־
אִישִׁ֥ים
פֹּֽעֲלֵי־
אָ֑וֶן
וּבַל־
אֶ֝לְחַ֗ם
בְּמַנְעַמֵּיהֶֽם׃
5. יֶֽהֶלְמֵֽנִי־
צַדִּ֨יק ׀
חֶ֡סֶד
וְֽיוֹכִיחֵ֗נִי
שֶׁ֣מֶן
רֹ֭אשׁ
אַל־
יָנִ֣י
רֹאשִׁ֑י
כִּי־
ע֥וֹד
ו֝תְפִלָּתִ֗י
בְּרָעוֹתֵיהֶֽם׃
6. נִשְׁמְט֣וּ
בִֽידֵי־
סֶ֭לַע
שֹׁפְטֵיהֶ֑ם
וְשָׁמְע֥וּ
אֲ֝מָרַ֗י
כִּ֣י
נָעֵֽמוּ׃
7. כְּמ֤וֹ
פֹלֵ֣חַ
וּבֹקֵ֣עַ
בָּאָ֑רֶץ
נִפְזְר֥וּ
עֲ֝צָמֵ֗ינוּ
לְפִ֣י
שְׁאֽוֹל׃
8. כִּ֤י
אֵלֶ֨יךָ ׀
יְהֹוִ֣ה
אֲדֹנָ֣י
עֵינָ֑י
בְּכָ֥ה
חָ֝סִ֗יתִי
אַל־
תְּעַ֥ר
נַפְשִֽׁי׃
9. שָׁמְרֵ֗נִי
מִ֣ידֵי
פַ֭ח
יָ֣קְשׁוּ
לִ֑י
וּ֝מֹקְשׁ֗וֹת
פֹּ֣עֲלֵי
אָֽוֶן׃
10. יִפְּל֣וּ
בְמַכְמֹרָ֣יו
רְשָׁעִ֑ים
יַ֥חַד
אָ֝נֹכִ֗י
עַֽד־
אֶעֱבֽוֹר׃