Verses 3-6 are an “entrance liturgy” in which the pilgrims ask about requirements for entering the Temple (verse 3) and are answered, probably by priests (verses 4-6), in a fashion similar to that in Psalm 15.

The hill of the LORD is Mount Zion (see comment at 2.6), and his holy place is the Temple. The pilgrims want to know what Yahweh requires of those who want to worship in his Temple (see Good News Translation “has the right … may”). Revised Standard Version shall ascend … shall stand may convey merely the idea of simple future tense, as if the psalmist simply wants to know who will go up Mount Zion and go into the Temple. But the question is about what kind of person will be allowed to worship in the Temple. So New English Bible “Who may go up … who may stand,” Bible en français courant “Who will be allowed,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “Who has access to the Lord’s hill? Who dares walk on the holy ground?” are much better. The two verbs ascend and stand picture the pilgrims chanting as they go up the Temple mount and stop before the entrance to the Temple.

The translator may wish to make explicit that the purpose of climbing Mount Zion and entering the Temple is to worship Yahweh. His holy place or “his holy Temple” may sometimes be translated as “the Temple that has been dedicated for worshiping the LORD” or “the worship house which the people have set apart for worshiping God.”

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 .