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Psalm 81:5-7
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 81:5-7
New Catholic Bible
5 For this is a law in Israel,
a decree of the God of Jacob.
6 He imposed this testimony on Joseph[a]
when he departed from the land of Egypt.
I now hear an unfamiliar voice:
7 “I lifted the burden from their shoulders;
their hands put aside the laborer’s basket.[b]
Footnotes
- Psalm 81:6 Joseph: see note on Ps 77:16. I now hear an unfamiliar voice: the “voice” is the “thunder” of God’s judgment against Egypt (v. 8). Some translate: “We heard a language we did not understand,” and regard it as referring to the fact that the people were aliens in a foreign land (see Ps 114:1; Deut 28:49; 33:19). Some also regard this as a reference to inspiration.
- Psalm 81:7 Burden . . . basket: allusion to the forced labor that the Israelites had to endure in Egypt (see Ex 1:11-14).
