The two words testimony and law are used synonymously here, as they are in 19.7 (see comments there); they both refer to the Torah, God’s Law given the people of Israel by Moses. In verse 5 Good News Translation has placed “the people of Israel” in line a and “the descendants of Jacob” in line b, for greater ease of understanding. In languages being translated for the first time, it may be necessary to provide a note that identifies the descendants of Jacob with the people of Israel. If this is not done, readers may think that these are two different groups. Alternatively, it is possible to handle this problem in the translation by saying “God gives laws to the people of Israel, who are the descendants of Jacob.”

In verses 5c-6 the psalmist again emphasizes the duty of each generation to obey God’s command and to transmit to the succeeding generation the story of the great things that God has done for Israel (see Deut 6.7). In verse 6a the next generation is further defined as the children yet unborn, which Good News Translation does not formally represent, since it is redundant. Should the translator wish to include it, something like the following can serve as a model for verse 6: “… so that the next generation, children yet to be born, might learn God’s laws and in turn should teach them to their children.” In the last line of verse 6 the verb arise is used in the sense of beginning an action; it does not mean to stand up.

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 .