Psalm 11 → 106
Reasoning: 7360 Output: 7740 Total: 15100
Argument
Here are multiple, independent ways to argue that Psalm 106 can be read as a logical sequel to Psalm 11. I list them from “tighter/textual” to “broader/formal-historical,” and within the textual points I privilege rarer or more distinctive items. 1) Psalm 106 as the narrated working-out of Psalm 11’s thesis - Psalm 11 states a principle in aphoristic form: the Lord is enthroned, He examines people, He hates the violent, and He will rain fiery judgment on the wicked, but the upright will behold His face (11:4–7). Psalm 106 then narrates Israel’s history as an extended case study of that very principle: the people repeatedly act wickedly/rebelliously and incur plagues, fire, defeat, and exile; nevertheless God saves and remembers His covenant, and the faithful are called to persistent righteousness and praise. - In other words, Psalm 11 gives the theology; Psalm 106 supplies the historical proof. 2) Psalm 106 answers Psalm 11’s rhetorical crisis question - Psalm 11:3: “If the foundations are destroyed, what has the righteous done?” (צַדִּיק מַה־פָּעָל). Psalm 106:3 responds programmatically: “Blessed are those who keep justice, who do righteousness at all times” (אַשְׁרֵי שֹׁמְרֵי מִשְׁפָּט, עֹשֵׂה צְדָקָה בְכָל־עֵת). The verb “do” (עשה) in 106:3 picks up the action-verb in 11:3 (פעל) conceptually; and the “righteous/righteousness” lexeme (צדק/צדקה) is shared. - Thus, 106:3 is a practical, communal “answer” to 11:3’s existential “what can the righteous do?” 3) Shared and mirrored key lexemes and motifs (rarer/marked links first) - Fire against the wicked: - Psalm 11:6: “He will rain on the wicked… fire and brimstone… scorching wind” (אֵשׁ וְגָפְרִית; וְרוּחַ זִלְעָפוֹת). The collocation with רשעים is pointed. - Psalm 106:18: “Fire blazed in their assembly; a flame burned up the wicked” (וַתִּבְעַר־אֵשׁ… תְּלַהֵט רְשָׁעִים). Fire + רשעים recurs, now as narrated history (cf. Korah/Dathan/Abiram). - Even though 106 does not reuse גפרית or זִלְעָפוֹת (rare words), it concretizes 11:6’s announced judgment with a historical instance of fire consuming רשעים. - Righteousness word-field: - Psalm 11:3,5,7: צַדִּיק / צְדָקוֹת. - Psalm 106:3,31: צְדָקָה / לִצְדָקָה (Pinchas “reckoned as righteousness”). - This is more than generic overlap: 11 ends by grounding hope in YHWH’s love for צְדָקוֹת; 106 shows what counted as צְדָקָה historically and commends “doing צְדָקָה… at all times.” - Righteous vs. wicked polarity: - Psalm 11:2,5–6: הָרְשָׁעִים / רָשָׁע; the wicked are violent and under judgment. - Psalm 106 throughout: רְשָׁעִים (v.18), and a sustained catalogue of wicked deeds (מַעֲלָלִים vv.29,39; זְנוּת v.39; shedding innocent blood v.38). - Psalm 106 gives the “wickedness” that Psalm 11 warns about, including an escalation to child sacrifice. - Testing motif inverted: - Psalm 11:4–5: YHWH’s eyes test/examine (יֶחֱזוּ… יִבְחֲנוּ; יִבְחָן). - Psalm 106:14: “They tested God” (וַיְנַסּוּ־אֵל). The direction is flipped: the Judge who tests (Ps 11) is impiously “tested” by Israel (Ps 106), helping 106 feel like the narrative “pushback” that Psalm 11’s theology anticipates. - Seeing/vision field: - Psalm 11:4 “His eyes behold” (עֵינָיו יֶחֱזוּ); 11:7 “the upright will behold His face” (יָשָׁר יֶחֱזוּ פָנֵימוֹ). - Psalm 106:5 “to see the good of Your chosen” (לִרְאוֹת); 106:44 “He saw their distress” (וַיַּרְא). While different roots (חזה vs ראה), the reciprocal “seeing” motif binds the movement from divine scrutiny (11) to divine intervention and human worship (106). - Holiness/throne/temple sphere: - Psalm 11:4 “YHWH in his holy temple… His throne is in heaven” (בְּהֵיכַל קָדְשׁוֹ; כִּסְאוֹ). - Psalm 106:47 “to give thanks to Your holy name” (לְשֵׁם קָדְשֶׁךָ). Psalm 106 relocates the holy presence from a vantage point of heavenly surveillance (Ps 11) to a liturgical target of thanksgiving. - Snare imagery: - Psalm 11:6 “He will rain… snares” (פַּחִים). - Psalm 106:36 “they became a snare to them” (לְמוֹקֵשׁ). Not the same lexeme, but the same ensnarement idea: in 11 it is God’s judgment; in 106 the nations’ idols become the trap—again, the principle of Ps 11 worked out historically. 4) Structural and performative continuity - Psalm 11 ends with communion language (“upright will behold His face”). Psalm 106 immediately opens with the communal act that befits such a vision: Hallelujah + thanksgiving (106:1–2). It is as if the “upright who behold” now “utter His mighty acts” and “declare all His praise.” - Psalm 106:2’s rhetorical “Who can utter the mighty deeds of YHWH?” matches Psalm 11’s theocentric frame, where God’s enthronement and inspection are the controlling realities. The answer in 106 is: the gathered community that remembers, confesses, and praises. 5) Narrative sequencing that matches Psalm 11’s pressure points - Psalm 11’s crisis: the wicked lying in ambush “to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart” (לִירוֹת בְּמוֹ־אֹפֶל לְיִשְׁרֵי־לֵב), and “foundations destroyed.” - Psalm 106’s history supplies multiple “foundation-shaking” moments: rebellion in Egypt and at the sea, golden calf, Korah’s revolt, Baal Peor, shedding innocent blood, exile (vv. 6–43). Those are precisely the kinds of events that make one ask Psalm 11:3’s question. - In Psalm 11, advice is given to flee “like a bird to your mountain” (נֻדוּ… הַרְכֶם צִפּוֹר)—flight from threat. In Psalm 106 the tragic end-point is not prudent flight but forced scattering among the nations (וּלְזָרוֹתָם בָּאֲרָצוֹת, v.27), which then sets up the closing plea to be gathered (וְקַבְּצֵנוּ מִן־הַגּוֹיִם, v.47). Read together, 106 plays out what happens when trust (Ps 11:1) is abandoned: you do not flee to safe refuge; you are scattered and must be regathered by God. - Psalm 11:6’s “portion of their cup” (מְנַת כּוֹסָם) signals a distributive, retributive logic; Psalm 106 narrates that logic repeatedly in concrete episodes: plague (מַגֵּפָה), fire, foreign domination, and only then compassionate deliverance. 6) Form-critical complementarity - Psalm 11 is a compact “individual trust/answer-to-temptation” psalm; Psalm 106 is a communal confession/history psalm with doxology. A common editorial technique in the Psalter is to place a didactic “principle” psalm before a “historical exemplum.” Reading 106 after 11 fits that pattern well: the individual’s maxim (11) is authenticated by the community’s long memory (106). - The closing doxology of Psalm 106 (vv. 47–48) consummates Psalm 11’s trajectory: trust in the enthroned Judge leads to gathered praise of His holy name “from everlasting to everlasting.” 7) Additional lexical bridges (lighter-weight but cumulative) - Love of righteous acts vs. persistent practice: - Psalm 11:7: “YHWH loves righteous deeds” (צְדָקוֹת אָהֵב). - Psalm 106:3: “doing righteousness at all times” (עֹשֵׂה צְדָקָה בְכָל־עֵת); 106:31 Pinchas “reckoned as righteousness.” - Violence motif: - Psalm 11:5: “the one who loves violence” (וְאֹהֵב חָמָס). - Psalm 106:38: “they shed innocent blood,” an extreme instantiation of ḥamas-like violence. - Holiness vocabulary: - Psalm 11:4: קֹדֶשׁ (temple). - Psalm 106:47: קָדְשֶׁךָ (holy name). - Salvation vocabulary: - Psalm 11:1: “In YHWH I have taken refuge” (חָסִיתִי). - Psalm 106:4–5,10,47: “visit me with your salvation” (בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ); “He saved them” (וַיּוֹשִׁיעֵם). Different roots, but the same soteriological arc: trust/refuge → divine salvation. 8) Liturgical logic - If these were performed in sequence, Psalm 11 would catechize a posture of trust under threat; Psalm 106 would lead the congregation to confess where they (and their ancestors) defied that posture, to acknowledge the justice of the afflictions Psalm 11 threatens, and to ask for covenantal mercy that restores the congregation so they can do precisely what Psalm 11:7 envisions: the upright beholding God’s face and praising. In sum: Psalm 11 lays down the moral-theological axiom of God’s enthroned scrutiny, love of righteousness, and purgation of the wicked, while Psalm 106 narrates Israel’s history as the proving ground of that axiom—recounting fiery judgment on the wicked, the blessedness of enacted righteousness, the inversion whereby Israel “tests” God, and the final movement to restored worship. The shared lexemes (especially צדיק/צדקה, רשע/רשעים, אש with רשעים), mirrored “testing,” and the answer to “what can the righteous do?” together make a strong case that Psalm 106 can be read as logically following Psalm 11.
Evaluation
Score: 6.5
Evaluated at: 2025-12-25T02:36:26 (UTC)
Evaluator model: gpt-5
Evaluator version: v2
Reasoning: 4224 Output: 8572 Total: 12796
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
Strong, specific links (11:6↔106:18 fire; 11:5 test vs 106:14; 11:3↔106:3 righteousness/doing) and a plausible sequencing. Yet much is generic; 106’s primary pairing is with 105; no editorial markers.
Prompt
Consider Psalm 11 and Psalm 106 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 106 logically follows on from Psalm 11? 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 11:
Psalm 11
1. לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ
לְדָ֫וִ֥ד
בַּֽיהוָ֨ה ׀
חָסִ֗יתִי
אֵ֭יךְ
תֹּאמְר֣וּ
לְנַפְשִׁ֑י
נודו
נ֝֗וּדִי
הַרְכֶ֥ם
צִפּֽוֹר׃
2. כִּ֤י
הִנֵּ֪ה
הָרְשָׁעִ֡ים
יִדְרְכ֬וּן
קֶ֗שֶׁת
כּוֹנְנ֣וּ
חִצָּ֣ם
עַל־
יֶ֑תֶר
לִיר֥וֹת
בְּמוֹ־
אֹ֝֗פֶל
לְיִשְׁרֵי־
לֵֽב׃
3. כִּ֣י
הַ֭שָּׁתוֹת
יֵֽהָרֵס֑וּן
צַ֝דִּ֗יק
מַה־
פָּעָֽל׃
4. יְהוָ֤ה ׀
בְּֽהֵ֘יכַ֤ל
קָדְשׁ֗וֹ
יְהוָה֮
בַּשָּׁמַ֢יִם
כִּ֫סְא֥וֹ
עֵינָ֥יו
יֶחֱז֑וּ
עַפְעַפָּ֥יו
יִ֝בְחֲנ֗וּ
בְּנֵ֣י
אָדָֽם׃
5. יְהוָה֮
צַדִּ֢יק
יִ֫בְחָ֥ן
וְ֭רָשָׁע
וְאֹהֵ֣ב
חָמָ֑ס
שָֽׂנְאָ֥ה
נַפְשֽׁוֹ׃
6. יַמְטֵ֥ר
עַל־
רְשָׁעִ֗ים
פַּ֫חִ֥ים
אֵ֣שׁ
וְ֭גָפְרִית
וְר֥וּחַ
זִלְעָפ֗וֹת
מְנָ֣ת
כּוֹסָֽם׃
7. כִּֽי־
צַדִּ֣יק
יְ֭הוָה
צְדָק֣וֹת
אָהֵ֑ב
יָ֝שָׁ֗ר
יֶחֱז֥וּ
פָנֵֽימוֹ׃
Psalm 106:
Psalm 106
1. הַֽלְלְויָ֨הּc ׀
הוֹד֣וּ
לַיהוָ֣ה
כִּי־
ט֑וֹב
כִּ֖י
לְעוֹלָ֣ם
חַסְדּֽוֹ׃
2. מִ֗י
יְ֭מַלֵּל
גְּבוּר֣וֹת
יְהוָ֑ה
יַ֝שְׁמִ֗יעַ
כָּל־
תְּהִלָּתֽוֹ׃
3. אַ֭שְׁרֵי
שֹׁמְרֵ֣י
מִשְׁפָּ֑ט
עֹשֵׂ֖ה
צְדָקָ֣ה
בְכָל־
עֵֽת׃
4. זָכְרֵ֣נִי
יְ֭הוָה
בִּרְצ֣וֹן
עַמֶּ֑ךָ
פָּ֝קְדֵ֗נִי
בִּישׁוּעָתֶֽךָ׃
5. לִרְא֤וֹת ׀
בְּט֘וֹבַ֤ת
בְּחִירֶ֗יךָ
לִ֭שְׂמֹחַ
בְּשִׂמְחַ֣ת
גּוֹיֶ֑ךָ
לְ֝הִתְהַלֵּ֗ל
עִם־
נַחֲלָתֶֽךָ׃
6. חָטָ֥אנוּ
עִם־
אֲבוֹתֵ֗ינוּ
הֶעֱוִ֥ינוּ
הִרְשָֽׁעְנוּ׃
7. אֲב֘וֹתֵ֤ינוּ
בְמִצְרַ֨יִם ׀
לֹא־
הִשְׂכִּ֬ילוּ
נִפְלְאוֹתֶ֗יךָ
לֹ֣א
זָ֭כְרוּ
אֶת־
רֹ֣ב
חֲסָדֶ֑יךָ
וַיַּמְר֖וּ
עַל־
יָ֣ם
בְּיַם־
סֽוּף׃
8. וַֽ֭יּוֹשִׁיעֵם
לְמַ֣עַן
שְׁמ֑וֹ
לְ֝הוֹדִ֗יעַ
אֶת־
גְּבוּרָתֽוֹ׃
9. וַיִּגְעַ֣ר
בְּיַם־
ס֭וּף
וַֽיֶּחֱרָ֑ב
וַיּוֹלִיכֵ֥ם
בַּ֝תְּהֹמ֗וֹת
כַּמִּדְבָּֽר׃
10. וַֽ֭יּוֹשִׁיעֵם
מִיַּ֣ד
שׂוֹנֵ֑א
וַ֝יִּגְאָלֵ֗ם
מִיַּ֥ד
אוֹיֵֽב׃
11. וַיְכַסּוּ־
מַ֥יִם
צָרֵיהֶ֑ם
אֶחָ֥ד
מֵ֝הֶ֗ם
לֹ֣א
נוֹתָֽר׃
12. וַיַּאֲמִ֥ינוּ
בִדְבָרָ֑יו
יָ֝שִׁ֗ירוּ
תְּהִלָּתֽוֹ׃
13. מִֽ֭הֲרוּ
שָׁכְח֣וּ
מַעֲשָׂ֑יו
לֹֽא־
חִ֝כּ֗וּ
לַעֲצָתֽוֹ׃
14. וַיִּתְאַוּ֣וּ
תַ֭אֲוָה
בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר
וַיְנַסּוּ־
אֵ֝֗ל
בִּֽישִׁימֽוֹן׃
15. וַיִּתֵּ֣ן
לָ֭הֶם
שֶׁאֱלָתָ֑ם
וַיְשַׁלַּ֖ח
רָז֣וֹן
בְּנַפְשָֽׁם׃
16. וַיְקַנְא֣וּ
לְ֭מֹשֶׁה
בַּֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה
לְ֝אַהֲרֹ֗ן
קְד֣וֹשׁ
יְהוָֽה׃
17. תִּפְתַּח־
אֶ֭רֶץ
וַתִּבְלַ֣ע
דָּתָ֑ן
וַ֝תְּכַ֗ס
עַל־
עֲדַ֥ת
אֲבִירָֽם׃
18. וַתִּבְעַר־
אֵ֥שׁ
בַּעֲדָתָ֑ם
לֶ֝הָבָ֗ה
תְּלַהֵ֥ט
רְשָׁעִֽים׃
19. יַעֲשׂוּ־
עֵ֥גֶל
בְּחֹרֵ֑ב
וַ֝יִּשְׁתַּחֲו֗וּ
לְמַסֵּכָֽה׃
20. וַיָּמִ֥ירוּ
אֶת־
כְּבוֹדָ֑ם
בְּתַבְנִ֥ית
שׁ֝֗וֹר
אֹכֵ֥ל
עֵֽשֶׂב׃
21. שָׁ֭כְחוּ
אֵ֣ל
מוֹשִׁיעָ֑ם
עֹשֶׂ֖ה
גְדֹל֣וֹת
בְּמִצְרָֽיִם׃
22. נִ֭פְלָאוֹת
בְּאֶ֣רֶץ
חָ֑ם
נ֝וֹרָא֗וֹת
עַל־
יַם־
סֽוּף׃
23. וַיֹּ֗אמֶר
לְֽהַשְׁמִ֫ידָ֥ם
לוּלֵ֡י
מֹ֘שֶׁ֤ה
בְחִיר֗וֹ
עָמַ֣ד
בַּפֶּ֣רֶץ
לְפָנָ֑יו
לְהָשִׁ֥יב
חֲ֝מָת֗וֹ
מֵֽהַשְׁחִֽית׃
24. וַֽ֭יִּמְאֲסוּ
בְּאֶ֣רֶץ
חֶמְדָּ֑ה
לֹֽא־
הֶ֝אֱמִ֗ינוּ
לִדְבָרֽוֹ׃
25. וַיֵּרָגְנ֥וּ
בְאָהֳלֵיהֶ֑ם
לֹ֥א
שָׁ֝מְע֗וּ
בְּק֣וֹל
יְהוָֽה׃
26. וַיִשָּׂ֣א
יָד֣וֹ
לָהֶ֑ם
לְהַפִּ֥יל
א֝וֹתָ֗ם
בַּמִּדְבָּֽר׃
27. וּלְהַפִּ֣יל
זַ֭רְעָם
בַּגּוֹיִ֑ם
וּ֝לְזָרוֹתָ֗ם
בָּאֲרָצֽוֹת׃
28. וַ֭יִּצָּ֣מְדוּ
לְבַ֣עַל
פְּע֑וֹר
וַ֝יֹּאכְל֗וּ
זִבְחֵ֥י
מֵתִֽים׃
29. וַ֭יַּכְעִיסוּ
בְּמַֽעַלְלֵיהֶ֑ם
וַתִּפְרָץ־
בָּ֝֗ם
מַגֵּפָֽה׃
30. וַיַּעֲמֹ֣ד
פִּֽ֭ינְחָס
וַיְפַלֵּ֑ל
וַ֝תֵּעָצַ֗ר
הַמַּגֵּפָֽה׃
31. וַתֵּחָ֣שֶׁב
ל֭וֹ
לִצְדָקָ֑ה
לְדֹ֥ר
וָ֝דֹ֗ר
עַד־
עוֹלָֽם׃
32. וַ֭יַּקְצִיפוּ
עַל־
מֵ֥י
מְרִיבָ֑ה
וַיֵּ֥רַע
לְ֝מֹשֶׁ֗ה
בַּעֲבוּרָֽם׃
33. כִּֽי־
הִמְר֥וּ
אֶת־
רוּח֑וֹ
וַ֝יְבַטֵּ֗א
בִּשְׂפָתָֽיו׃
34. לֹֽא־
הִ֭שְׁמִידוּ
אֶת־
הָֽעַמִּ֑ים
אֲשֶׁ֤ר
אָמַ֖ר
יְהוָ֣ה
לָהֶֽם׃
35. וַיִּתְעָרְב֥וּ
בַגּוֹיִ֑ם
וַֽ֝יִּלְמְד֗וּ
מַֽעֲשֵׂיהֶֽם׃
36. וַיַּעַבְד֥וּ
אֶת־
עֲצַבֵּיהֶ֑ם
וַיִּהְי֖וּ
לָהֶ֣ם
לְמוֹקֵֽשׁ׃
37. וַיִּזְבְּח֣וּ
אֶת־
בְּ֭נֵיהֶם
וְאֶת־
בְּנֽוֹתֵיהֶ֗ם
לַשֵּֽׁדִים׃
38. וַיִּֽשְׁפְּכ֨וּ
דָ֪ם
נָקִ֡י
דַּם־
בְּנֵ֘יהֶ֤ם
וּֽבְנוֹתֵיהֶ֗ם
אֲשֶׁ֣ר
זִ֭בְּחוּ
לַעֲצַבֵּ֣י
כְנָ֑עַן
וַתֶּחֱנַ֥ף
הָ֝אָ֗רֶץ
בַּדָּמִֽים׃
39. וַיִּטְמְא֥וּ
בְמַעֲשֵׂיהֶ֑ם
וַ֝יִּזְנ֗וּ
בְּמַ֥עַלְלֵיהֶֽם׃
40. וַיִּֽחַר־
אַ֣ף
יְהוָ֣ה
בְּעַמּ֑וֹ
וַ֝יְתָעֵ֗ב
אֶת־
נַחֲלָתֽוֹ׃
41. וַיִּתְּנֵ֥ם
בְּיַד־
גּוֹיִ֑ם
וַֽיִּמְשְׁל֥וּ
בָ֝הֶ֗ם
שֹׂנְאֵיהֶֽם׃
42. וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם
אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֑ם
וַ֝יִּכָּנְע֗וּ
תַּ֣חַת
יָדָֽם׃
43. פְּעָמִ֥ים
רַבּ֗וֹת
יַצִּ֫ילֵ֥ם
וְ֭הֵמָּה
יַמְר֣וּ
בַעֲצָתָ֑ם
וַ֝יָּמֹ֗כּוּ
בַּעֲוֺנָֽם׃
44. וַ֭יַּרְא
בַּצַּ֣ר
לָהֶ֑ם
בְּ֝שָׁמְע֗וֹ
אֶת־
רִנָּתָֽם׃
45. וַיִּזְכֹּ֣ר
לָהֶ֣ם
בְּרִית֑וֹ
וַ֝יִּנָּחֵ֗ם
כְּרֹ֣ב
חסדו
חֲסָדָֽיו׃
46. וַיִּתֵּ֣ן
אוֹתָ֣ם
לְרַחֲמִ֑ים
לִ֝פְנֵ֗י
כָּל־
שׁוֹבֵיהֶֽם׃
47. הוֹשִׁיעֵ֨נוּ ׀
יְה֘וָ֤ה
אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ
וְקַבְּצֵנוּ֮
מִֽן־
הַגּ֫וֹיִ֥ם
לְ֭הֹדוֹת
לְשֵׁ֣ם
קָדְשֶׁ֑ךָ
לְ֝הִשְׁתַּבֵּ֗חַ
בִּתְהִלָּתֶֽךָ׃
48. בָּ֤רֽtוּךְ־
יְהוָ֨ה
אֱלֹהֵ֪י
יִשְׂרָאֵ֡ל
מִן־
הָ֤עוֹלָ֨ם ׀
וְעַ֬ד
הָעוֹלָ֗ם
וְאָמַ֖ר
כָּל־
הָעָ֥ם
אָמֵ֗ן
הַֽלְלוּ־
יָֽהּ׃