A useful commentary – The Book of Psalms: A Translation with Commentary

The famous chorus by the Hebrew slaves in Verdi’s opera Nabucco {Nebuchadnezzar in English} is based on the famous Psalm 137.

My wife and I were fortunate to see this performance in Naples famous San Carlo theatre in 2018. Sam Carlo is the oldest continuous opera house in the world having opened in 1737.

The chorus was singing to applause so much that the conductor did an encore immediately! First time I heard an encore mid-performance.

So, if psalms 137 and 27 are your favourites, you will not like the translations here by Alter. This is because he has departed from the beautiful lines that we are familiar with.

You may appreciate his commentary though. So, my advice is to read this book before purchasing! As they said, one man’s meat is another man’s poison!

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