Psalm 30 v4 - Building our house on the rock

Quóniam fortitúdo mea, et refúgium meum es tu: et propter nomen tuum dedúces me, et enútries me.

For you are my strength and my refuge; and for your name's sake you will lead me, and nourish me.

Looking at the Latin

The key vocabulary for the Vulgate version of this verse is:

fortitudo, inis, f. strength, might, power. a defense

refugium, ii, n.  a refuge, a place of refuge; fortress, high tower, dwelling place, hiding place, etc.

nomen, mis, n. name; God himself; the perfections of God, His glory, majesty, wisdom, power, goodness,

deduco, duxi ductum, ere 3, to lead or bring down; guide, lead, conduct

enutrio ire ivi iteum to nourish, sustain

There are two key differences between the Septuagint/Vulgate and Hebrew Masoretic Text versions of this verse, as well as a number of minor variants:

Vulgate	Quóniam fortitúdo mea, et refúgium meum es tu: et propter nomen tuum dedúces me, et enútries me.
Vetus	Quia fortitudo mea, et refugium meum es tu: et propter nomen tuum dux mihi eris, et enutries me.
Romanum	quoniam firmamentum meum et refugium meum es tu et propter nomen tuum dux mihi eris et enutries me
Neo-Vulgate	Quoniam fortitudo mea et refugium meum es tu et propter nomen tuum deduces me et pasces me.
Pian	Nam tu es petra mea et arx mea, Et propter nomen tuum deduces me et diriges me.
JH	Quia petra mea et munitio mea tu es et propter nomen tuum dux meus eris et enutries me

The first text variant is that the Hebrew makes the first phrase ‘You are my rock’, which is arguably more consistent with some of the Gospel uses of the word than the Septuagint/Vulgate version.

The second is that rather than ‘nourish’, the Masoretic Text has 'preserve'.

The difference nuances are reflected in the range of English translations:

DR	For you are my strength and my refuge; and for your name's sake you will lead me, and nourish me.
Brenton	For thou art my strength and my refuge; and thou shalt guide me for thy name’s sake, and maintain me.
Collegeville	Be my protector, my God, and save me,  for you are my courage and my refuge, and for Your name’s sake You will lead me and nourish me.
RSV	Yea, thou art my rock and my fortress; for thy name's sake lead me and guide me,
Cover	For thou art my strong rock, and my castle be thou also my guide, and lead me for thy Name’s sake.
Knox	Thou dost strengthen and defend me; thou, for thy own honour, dost guide and escort me;
Grail	for you are my rock, my stronghold. For your name's sake, lead me and guide me.

Our rock, our strength?

Theodoret of Cyr pointed to the link between the Hebrew's use of the word rock, and the Gospel story of building a house on a rock (a story also alluded to in the Prologue to the Benedictine Rule):

Now, it is likely that the Old Testament term agreed with that in the Gospels, which gives a glimpse of the prudent person build­ing the house on the rock, which  the  force neither of winds nor of rain and floods ruined on account of its stability.

St Cassiodorus, on the other hand, used the Vulgate text version to link the verse to the Passion:

Strength refers to the endurance of what He suffered, refuge to the end of His ills, when He overcame the injustices of this world with the climax of a glorious death.

Lead and nourish

St Cassiodorus continued, on the second half of the verse:

For His name's sake the Lord led humanity, for through the diffusion of that most salutary preaching He made that name more widely acknowledged through all nations. Or this is to be understood as referring to His  members,  as has already been said. He is rightly called our Leader since we follow Him and do not avoid the tracks of His teaching. He also said He was nourished until the Catholic Church could attain perfection by His gift.

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
In finem. Psalmus David, pro extasi	Unto the end, a psalm for David, in an ecstasy
1 In te, Dómine, sperávi non confúndar in ætérnum: * in justítia tua líbera me.	In you, O Lord, have I hoped, let me never be confounded: deliver me in your justice.
2  Inclína ad me aurem tuam, * accélera ut éruas me.	3 Bow down your ear to me: make haste to deliver me.
3  Esto mihi in Deum protectórem, et in domum   refúgii: * ut salvum me fácias.	Be unto me a God, a protector, and a house of refuge, to save me.
4  Quóniam fortitúdo mea, et refúgium meum es   tu: * et propter nomen tuum dedúces me, et enútries me.	4 For you are my strength and my refuge; and for your name's sake you will lead me, and nourish me.
5  Edúces me de láqueo hoc, quem abscondérunt mihi: * quóniam tu es protéctor meus.	5 You will bring me out of this snare, which they have hidden for me: for you are my protector.
6  In manus tuas comméndo spíritum meum: * redemísti me, Dómine, Deus veritátis.	6 Into your hands I commend my spirit: you have redeemed me, O Lord, the God of truth.

And you can find the next part in this series here.