The Meaning of Psalms 90:17 Explained

Psalms 90:17

KJV: And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

YLT: And let the pleasantness of Jehovah our God be upon us, And the work of our hands establish on us, Yea, the work of our hands establish it!

Darby: And let the beauty of Jehovah our God be upon us; and establish thou the work of our hands upon us: yea, the work of our hands, establish thou it.

ASV: And let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us; And establish thou the work of our hands upon us; Yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And let the beauty  of the LORD  our God  be upon us: and establish  thou the work  of our hands  upon us; yea, the work  of our hands  establish  thou it. 

What does Psalms 90:17 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 90:1-17 - The Message Of The Passing Years
The majestic music of this great psalm separates it from all the rest. It is like the deep bass stop of a mighty organ. Moses' authorship is stamped upon it. It is worthy of the man who had seen God face to face.
Psalms 90:1-6. The transitoriness of human life is contrasted with the stability of God. He is the asylum and home of all the generations of mankind, Deuteronomy 33:27. The earth and its mountains the universe and its worlds, were born of Him; but He Himself had no origin, no beginning. Time is but a sigh, a breath, the swift rush of the mountain-torrent, a tale told by the camp-fire at night, the grass of a morning's growth.
Psalms 90:7-12. A wail is borne in these verses from the forty years of wanderings. The ceaseless succession of graves was the bitter harvest of Israel's rebellions. Oh, that we might apply our hearts to wisdom that we may not fail of God's rest!
Psalms 90:13-17. In the closing words Moses utters a sublime prayer which includes us all. Let us seek to do some good work before we go, and may our children be a nobler generation than ourselves! But all beauty of character and permanence of work must emanate from God. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 90

1  Moses, setting forth God's providence
3  Complains of human fragility
7  Divine chastisement
10  and brevity of life
12  He prays for the knowledge and sensible experience of God's good providence

What do the individual words in Psalms 90:17 mean?

And let be the beauty of Yahweh our God upon us and the work of our hands establish for us and Yes the work of our hands establish
וִיהִ֤י ׀ נֹ֤עַם אֲדֹנָ֥י אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ עָ֫לֵ֥ינוּ וּמַעֲשֵׂ֣ה יָ֭דֵינוּ כּוֹנְנָ֥ה עָלֵ֑ינוּ וּֽמַעֲשֵׂ֥ה יָ֝דֵ֗ינוּ כּוֹנְנֵֽהוּ

וִיהִ֤י ׀  And  let  be 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect Jussive, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
נֹ֤עַם  the  beauty 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: נׄעַם  
Sense: kindness, pleasantness, delightfulness, beauty, favour.
אֲדֹנָ֥י  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲדֹנָי  
Sense: my lord, lord.
אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ  our  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
עָ֫לֵ֥ינוּ  upon  us 
Parse: Preposition, first person common plural
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
וּמַעֲשֵׂ֣ה  and  the  work 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מַעֲשֶׂה  
Sense: deed, work.
יָ֭דֵינוּ  of  our  hands 
Parse: Noun, fdc, first person common plural
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
כּוֹנְנָ֥ה  establish 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperative, masculine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: כּוּן 
Sense: to be firm, be stable, be established.
עָלֵ֑ינוּ  for  us 
Parse: Preposition, first person common plural
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
וּֽמַעֲשֵׂ֥ה  and  Yes  the  work 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מַעֲשֶׂה  
Sense: deed, work.
יָ֝דֵ֗ינוּ  of  our  hands 
Parse: Noun, fdc, first person common plural
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
כּוֹנְנֵֽהוּ  establish 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperative, masculine singular, third person masculine singular
Root: כּוּן 
Sense: to be firm, be stable, be established.