The parallelism in verse 5 is based on the general image of death in the first clause, which becomes the concrete and specific image of death, called Sheol, in the second clause. As will be seen in other verses, line a is a statement and line b is a rhetorical question, the equivalent of a strong negative statement, as in Good News Translation “no one can praise you there.”

This verse reflects the belief that in Sheol, the world of the dead, a person was cut off from God. This was a common belief at that time and held the greatest terror for the devout Israelite. Sheol was the destiny of all who died, the good and bad alike, Israelites and Gentiles as well. It was a dark, dusty, silent abyss in the depths of the earth, where there was no vitality, no joy, no life, but only a pale, shadowy, unreal existence, apart from God. For statements about Sheol see Numbers 16.30-32; Job 3.17-19; Psalms 30.9; 88.10-12; Isaiah 14.9-11; 38.18.

There is no remembrance: in Sheol God is “not remembered” (Good News Translation) nor is he praised; that is, there is no mention of him in prayer or praise. To “remember” Yahweh is to recount what he has done for his people.

Sheol or “the world of the dead” is sometimes rendered “the place where dead people go” or “where the dead people are put.” The translator must be careful that this is not identified with the local cemetery. In many languages it is best to avoid the passive form “you are not remembered” and say “after people have died they cannot think of you, God.” Bible en français courant translates: “After a person has died he does not think about you anymore; among the dead no one can praise you any longer.” Good News Translation has avoided the parallel use of Sheol in line b by using “there.” This may sometimes be translated “in that place no one will say you are great.”

Sheol in line b makes specific the more general death in line a and thus calls the reader’s attention more forcefully to death. The translator may be able to reflect the movement from death to Sheol more clearly than in Good News Translation by saying, for example, “When people are dead they no longer think of you (God). In that dark place of the dead, will anyone say a good word about you? Certainly not.” If the rhetorical question is not used, it may be possible to translate, for example, “when people die, they forget you (God); when they go to the place of the dead, they will no longer praise you.”

Good News Translation transforms the rhetorical question in the second line into a statement. If a rhetorical question is used, it must clearly imply a negative answer: “Who can praise you in Sheol? No one!” or “Can anyone praise you in Sheol? No!”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .