In verse 17 the figure I will make a horn to sprout means to give power to, or else, to cause a son to be born who will be powerful; and I have prepared a lamp means to give life, continuity, success (Dahood: “a natural metaphor for the preservation of the dynasty”); see 1 Kings 11.36. For horn see 18.2 (and see Ezek 29.21). The parallels David and my anointed stand for the Davidic dynasty, that is, David’s direct royal descendants: Yahweh guarantees that they will continue to be kings of the people of Israel. Bible en français courant translates “I will cause to be born in Zion a powerful king of the descendants of David. Like a lit lamp I will maintain there the king I have consecrated.” And Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates “There I will bring about the rebirth of David’s power. I have prepared a lamp for the king I have chosen.” There and Good News Translation‘s “Here,” repeated in the next line, refer to Zion, the place where God rules. It may be clearer to say “In Zion….” Good News Translation‘s “preserve the rule…” may sometimes be rendered “I will make his rule to go on and on.” If the translator wishes to combine the metaphor with its meaning, one may say, for example, “like a lamp that will burn forever,” as Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch does.

The psalm closes with Yahweh’s promise to defeat (clothe with shame) the enemies of the king and to make his kingdom prosper and flourish. The word translated crown here is the same one used in 89.39 (which see). If the figure of a crown is maintained in translation, a natural way of translating will be “but the crown he wears will shine (or, sparkle) brightly.” Translators should attempt to maintain the parallelism of clothe with shame and to wear a crown. In many languages this will not be possible, particularly in languages where the crown will have to be substituted by some other symbol of authority which is not “worn” on the body.

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 .