Psalm 10 → 131
Reasoning: 8448 Output: 4251 Total: 12699
Argument
Here are ways to argue that Psalm 131 is a deliberate, logical sequel to Psalm 10. 1) Mirrored and shared Hebrew vocabulary (with more weight given to rarer/marked items) - The גבה root (“to be high/exalted”): - Psalm 10:4 רָשָׁע כְּגֹבַהּ אַפּוֹ “the wicked, in the height of his nose/anger.” - Psalm 131:1 לֹא־גָבַהּ לִבִּי “my heart is not high.” - Same root; Ps 131 explicitly negates the proud posture that characterizes the wicked in Ps 10. Because גבה is comparatively marked, this is a strong lexical link. - The רום root (“to be high, lifted up”): - Psalm 10:5 מָרוֹם מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ “Your judgments are on high (out of his sight).” - Psalm 131:1 וְלֹא־רָמוּ עֵינַי “my eyes are not raised.” - Same root in two different but closely related forms; in Ps 10 height is the sphere the wicked ignores, in Ps 131 the worshiper refuses self-heightening. - Heart/eyes/soul triad (internal posture vocabulary): - Psalm 10 repeatedly: אָמַר בְּלִבּוֹ “he says in his heart” (vv. 6, 11, 13); עֵינָיו “his eyes” (v. 8); נַפְשׁוֹ “his soul/desire” (v. 3). - Psalm 131:1–2 explicitly counters each organ: לֹא־גָבַהּ לִבִּי; וְלֹא־רָמוּ עֵינַי; דּוֹמַמְתִּי נַפְשִׁי. - The shift from the wicked’s internal organs (Ps 10) to the humble worshiper’s organs (Ps 131) is thematically tight and formally noticeable. - Permanence formula with עולם/עד: - Psalm 10:16 יְהוָה מֶלֶךְ עוֹלָם וָעֶד “YHWH is king forever and ever.” - Psalm 131:3 מֵעַתָּה וְעַד־עוֹלָם “from now and forever.” - The rare collocation עולם/עד appears at the climax of both psalms, strengthening an editorial seam from divine kingship forever (Ps 10) to Israel’s hope forever (Ps 131). - “Way/walk” field: - Psalm 10:5 דְרָכָיו “his ways” (of the wicked). - Psalm 131:1 לֹא־הִלַּכְתִּי “I did not walk” in great/wonderful things. - Different roots (דרך/הלך) but deliberate semantic echo: the wicked’s “ways” vs the humble’s renounced “walking” in exalted matters. - “Seek/inquire” vs not prying into “great/wonderful”: - Psalm 10:4, 13 בַל־יִדְרֹשׁ … לֹא תִדְרֹשׁ “he will not seek/inquire” and “You will not call to account,” mocking inquiry. - Psalm 131:1 “I did not walk in great things and wonders beyond me,” a humble refusal to pry. Not the same root, but a conceptual counter to the wicked’s theology of “no inquiry.” 2) Thematic and structural progression - From protest to poise: - Psalm 10 begins with “לָמָה יְהוָה תַּעֲמֹד בְּרָחוֹק” (“Why do you stand far off?”) and catalogs the predator’s pride and violence. - Psalm 131 answers with a chosen interior quiet: “שִׁוִּיתִי וְדוֹמַמְתִּי נַפְשִׁי” (“I have leveled and stilled my soul”). - That is a classic lament-to-trust arc: the plea and agitation of Ps 10 resolves into humbled rest in Ps 131. - Antithetical posture of the self: - Psalm 10: the wicked says “בַּל אֶמּוֹט” (“I shall not be moved,” v. 6), and fills his mouth with deceit (v. 7). - Psalm 131: the worshiper refuses grandiosity and self-exaltation and practices silent composure. The noisy, grasping self of Ps 10 becomes the quieted self of Ps 131. - Answer to Ps 10’s conclusion: - Psalm 10 culminates: “יְהוָה מֶלֶךְ עוֹלָם וָעֶד” and “תָּכִין לִבָּם” (“You will establish their heart,” v. 17). - Psalm 131 shows the established heart in practice: low heart, low eyes, leveled soul, then extends the individual trust to the community: “יַחֵל יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל־יְהוָה מֵעַתָּה וְעַד־עוֹלָם.” - Divine kingship forever (Ps 10) meets Israel’s hope forever (Ps 131). - The oppressor vs the humble: - Psalm 10 characterizes the רָשָׁע by גֹבַהּ and רום imagery; Psalm 131 enacts the opposite—no high heart, no raised eyes—modeling the עָנָוִים whose desire God hears in Ps 10:17. 3) Child/orphan and family-care motifs - Psalm 10:14, 18: “You have been the helper of the orphan” … “to judge the orphan and the crushed.” The vulnerable child depends on God’s intervention. - Psalm 131:2: the weaned child on its mother—an image of secure dependence and contentment. - In ancient Israel, weaning (cf. Genesis 21:8; 1 Samuel 1:22–28) marked survival and transition to stable belonging, often celebrated. Read together, the orphan protected by God in Ps 10 matures into the securely attached, quieted child of Ps 131. The vulnerability resolved in Ps 10’s petitions is embodied in Ps 131’s serenity. 4) Pilgrimage and nearness - Psalm 10 complains of divine farness (“stand far off”). - Psalm 131 is a Shir ha-Maʿalot (Song of Ascents), used while ascending to the temple—physically and spiritually moving into God’s presence. As a sequel, it enacts the move from perceived distance to nearness and trust. 5) Davidic framing - Psalm 10 belongs to the acrostic pair 9–10, traditionally Davidic through its linkage to Psalm 9’s heading. - Psalm 131 is explicitly “לְדָוִד.” A Davidic voice that models humble kingship offers a fitting response to the arrogant antiking (the רָשָׁע) of Psalm 10. 6) A possible editorial reading if placed consecutively - Psalm 10: The arrogant one with a high nose and raised face preys on the weak; the psalmist cries for God to arise, judge, and establish the humble heart; YHWH is king forever. - Psalm 131: The righteous speaker shows the established, non-exalted heart and non-raised eyes; the soul is calmed like a child safely weaned; the community is summoned to hope in that eternal king “from now and forever.” In short, the two psalms share and reverse key lexemes and images (גבה/רום; heart/eyes/soul; עולם/עד), move from lament to quiet trust, transform the “orphan” motif into a “weaned child” picture of secure dependence, and pair God’s eternal kingship (Ps 10) with Israel’s eternal hope (Ps 131). These interlocks make it easy to justify Psalm 131 as a logical sequel to Psalm 10.
Evaluation
Score: 6.5
Evaluated at: 2025-12-12T03:58:58 (UTC)
Evaluator model: gpt-5
Evaluator version: v2
Reasoning: 3264 Output: 5083 Total: 8347
Checklist
- Has verse refs: Yes
- Factual error detected: No
- Only generic motifs: No
- Counterargument considered: No
- LXX/MT numbering acknowledged: No
Vocabulary specificity: 3.5 / 10
Accurate, multiple lexical links (גבה/רום; heart–eyes–soul; orphan→child; עולם/עד) and coherent progression. But these lexemes/formulas are common (e.g., “מעתה ועד עולם”); no decisive editorial marker; counterpoints unaddressed.
Prompt
Consider Psalm 10 and Psalm 131 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 131 logically follows on from Psalm 10? 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 10:
Psalm 10
1. לָמָ֣ה
יְ֭הוָה
תַּעֲמֹ֣ד
בְּרָח֑וֹק
תַּ֝עְלִ֗ים
לְעִתּ֥וֹת
בַּצָּרָֽה׃
2. בְּגַאֲוַ֣ת
רָ֭שָׁע
יִדְלַ֣ק
עָנִ֑י
יִתָּפְשׂ֓וּ ׀
בִּמְזִמּ֖וֹת
ז֣וּ
חָשָֽׁבוּ׃
3. כִּֽי־
הִלֵּ֣ל
רָ֭שָׁע
עַל־
תַּאֲוַ֣ת
נַפְשׁ֑וֹ
וּבֹצֵ֥עַ
בֵּ֝רֵ֗ךְ
נִ֘אֵ֥ץ ׀
יְהוָֽה׃
4. רָשָׁ֗ע
כְּגֹ֣בַהּ
אַ֭פּוֹ
בַּל־
יִדְרֹ֑שׁ
אֵ֥ין
אֱ֝לֹהִ֗ים
כָּל־
מְזִמּוֹתָֽיו׃
5. יָ֘חִ֤ילוּ
דרכו
דְרָכָ֨יו ׀
בְּכָל־
עֵ֗ת
מָר֣וֹם
מִ֭שְׁפָּטֶיךָ
מִנֶּגְדּ֑וֹ
כָּל־
צ֝וֹרְרָ֗יו
יָפִ֥יחַ
בָּהֶֽם׃
6. אָמַ֣ר
בְּ֭לִבּוֹ
בַּל־
אֶמּ֑וֹט
לְדֹ֥ר
וָ֝דֹ֗ר
אֲשֶׁ֣ר
לֹֽא־
בְרָֽע׃
7. אָלָ֤ה ׀
פִּ֣יהוּ
מָ֭לֵא
וּמִרְמ֣וֹת
וָתֹ֑ךְ
תַּ֥חַת
לְ֝שׁוֹנ֗וֹ
עָמָ֥ל
וָאָֽוֶן׃
8. יֵשֵׁ֤ב ׀
בְּמַאְרַ֬ב
חֲצֵרִ֗ים
בַּֽ֭מִּסְתָּרִים
יַהֲרֹ֣ג
נָקִ֑י
עֵ֝ינָ֗יו
לְֽחֵלְכָ֥ה
יִצְפֹּֽנוּ׃
9. יֶאֱרֹ֬ב
בַּמִּסְתָּ֨ר ׀
כְּאַרְיֵ֬ה
בְסֻכֹּ֗ה
יֶ֭אֱרֹב
לַחֲט֣וֹף
עָנִ֑י
יַחְטֹ֥ף
עָ֝נִ֗י
בְּמָשְׁכ֥וֹ
בְרִשְׁתּֽוֹ׃
10. ודכה
יִדְכֶּ֥ה
יָשֹׁ֑חַ
וְנָפַ֥ל
בַּ֝עֲצוּמָּ֗יו
חלכאים
חֵ֣יל
כָּאִֽים׃
11. אָמַ֣ר
בְּ֭לִבּוֹ
שָׁ֣כַֽח
אֵ֑ל
הִסְתִּ֥יר
פָּ֝נָ֗יו
בַּל־
רָאָ֥ה
לָנֶֽצַח׃
12. קוּמָ֤ה
יְהוָ֗ה
אֵ֭ל
נְשָׂ֣א
יָדֶ֑ךָ
אַל־
תִּשְׁכַּ֥ח
עניים
עֲנָוִֽים׃
13. עַל־
מֶ֤ה ׀
נִאֵ֖ץ
רָשָׁ֥ע ׀
אֱלֹהִ֑ים
אָמַ֥ר
בְּ֝לִבּ֗וֹ
לֹ֣א
תִדְרֹֽשׁ׃
14. רָאִ֡תָה
כִּֽי־
אַתָּ֤ה ׀
עָ֘מָ֤ל
וָכַ֨עַס ׀
תַּבִּיט֮
לָתֵ֢ת
בְּיָ֫דֶ֥ךָ
עָ֭לֶיךָ
יַעֲזֹ֣ב
חֵלֶ֑כָה
יָ֝ת֗וֹם
אַתָּ֤ה ׀
הָיִ֬יתָ
עוֹזֵֽר׃
15. שְׁ֭בֹר
זְר֣וֹעַ
רָשָׁ֑ע
וָ֝רָ֗ע
תִּֽדְרוֹשׁ־
רִשְׁע֥וֹ
בַל־
תִּמְצָֽא׃
16. יְהוָ֣ה
מֶ֭לֶךְ
עוֹלָ֣ם
וָעֶ֑ד
אָבְד֥וּ
ג֝וֹיִ֗ם
מֵֽאַרְצֽוֹ׃
17. תַּאֲוַ֬ת
עֲנָוִ֣ים
שָׁמַ֣עְתָּ
יְהוָ֑ה
תָּכִ֥ין
לִ֝בָּ֗ם
תַּקְשִׁ֥יב
אָזְנֶֽךָ׃
18. לִשְׁפֹּ֥ט
יָת֗וֹם
וָ֫דָ֥ךְ
בַּל־
יוֹסִ֥יף
ע֑וֹד
לַעֲרֹ֥ץ
אֱ֝נ֗וֹשׁ
מִן־
הָאָֽרֶץ׃
Psalm 131:
Psalm 131
1. שִׁ֥יר
הַֽמַּֽעֲל֗וֹת
לְדָ֫וִ֥ד
יְהוָ֤ה ׀
לֹא־
גָבַ֣הּ
לִ֭בִּי
וְלֹא־
רָמ֣וּ
עֵינַ֑י
וְלֹֽא־
הִלַּ֓כְתִּי ׀
בִּגְדֹל֖וֹת
וּבְנִפְלָא֣וֹת
מִמֶּֽנִּי׃
2. אִם־
לֹ֤א
שִׁוִּ֨יתִי ׀
וְדוֹמַ֗מְתִּי
נַ֫פְשִׁ֥י
כְּ֭גָמֻל
עֲלֵ֣י
אִמּ֑וֹ
כַּגָּמֻ֖ל
עָלַ֣י
נַפְשִֽׁי׃
3. יַחֵ֣ל
יִ֭שְׂרָאֵל
אֶל־
יְהוָ֑ה
מֵֽ֝עַתָּ֗ה
וְעַד־
עוֹלָֽם׃