the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Dictionaries
Neginah
Fausset's Bible Dictionary
or NEGINAH Hebrew neginath (singular). Title of Psalm 61. The construct form; translated therefore "upon the instrumental music of David." As Habakkuk 3:19 "to the chief singer on my stringed instruments"; also Amos 6:5, "invent instruments of music like David." NEGINOTH (plural), the general name for all stringed instruments (1 Samuel 18:6; 1 Samuel 18:10; 1 Samuel 19:9; 1 Samuel 16:16-18; 1 Samuel 16:23; Psalms 33:2; Psalms 92:3; Psalms 68:25; Psalms 150:4), played with the hand or a plectrum or quill; from nigeen , "performed music." Psalm 4's title: for "on" translated (...) "to be accompanied with stringed instruments" (Hengstenberg); chapters 6, 54, 55, 67, 76.
But Delitzsch: "Neginah denotes not a particular stringed instrument, but the music on such instruments (often a taunting song in Hebrew, Psalms 69:12; Job 30:9); Neginoth is the music formed by numerous notes running into one another, not various instruments." In Habakkuk 3:19 the direction is the prophet's to the precentor or "chief singer," how the ode was to be performed in the temple liturgy. He had a stringed instrument of his own ("my") of a form adapted to accompany his subject; or rather (Hengstenberg) the "my" is Israel's sacred national temple music. As Shigionoth in the beginning marks the melody erratic and enthusiastically irregular as suited to the subject, so Neginoth at the close directs as to the instrument to be used (compare Isaiah 38:20).
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Fausset, Andrew R. Entry for 'Neginah'. Fausset's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/fbd/n/neginah.html. 1949.
