Psalms 80:6
He ordained it for a testimony in Joseph, when he came out of the land of Egypt: he heard a tongue which he knew not.
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- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Testimonium in Joseph posuit illud, cum exiret de terra Ægypti ; linguam quam non noverat, audivit.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- μαρτύριον ἐν τῷ Ἰωσὴφ ἔθετο αὐτόν, ἐν τῷ ἐξελθεῖν αὐτὸν ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου. γλῶσσαν ἣν οὐκ ἔγνω ἤκουσεν,
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 81:6
- עֵ֤דוּת בִּֽיה֘וֹסֵ֤ף שָׂמ֗וֹ בְּ֭צֵאתוֹ עַל אֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרָ֑יִם שְׂפַ֖ת לֹא יָדַ֣עְתִּי אֶשְׁמָֽע
Haydock's commentary
Joseph. Who represents all the family of Israel, as he took care of it. (Calmet) (Psalm lxxix. 2.) (Worthington)
Not. The Israelites heard the voice of God at Sinai, (St. Jerome, &c.; Calmet) and for the last time, where forced to hear the insults of the Egyptians at their heels; (Haydock) whose language was barbarous to them, (Psalm cxiii. 1.; Menochius) and not well understood by all, as they had very little society together. Joseph spoke to his brethren by an interpreter. (Haydock)
Some explain this of Joseph himself, when he first came into Egypt, (Chaldean. Bossuet) or of the Israelites, at their arrival there. (Vatable)
But this agrees not with the Vulgate or Hebrew, (Haydock) the latter of which is very confused and incorrect, though it be adopted (Calmet) by St. Jerome: "I heard a tongue which I knew not, I withdrew," &c., (Haydock) or, making a small alteration, "God hast established this festival in Joseph, when He appeared in the land of Egypt to rescue his people: then said the Lord, I made him hear a language which he knew not, that I was the protector of my people, I will remove," &c. (Calmet)
The authors of the Pin. disc. take this liberty, which would make the sense pretty clear. But the Hebrew means, "I heard," &c. Some not being able to understand this, have substituted, "He heard," with the German version. (Berthier)
The ancient Greek interpreters seem to have read the same, as no variation is noticed. (Calmet)
If, however, we must explain the Hebrew of St. Jerome, we must suppose that, "I knew not, means I condemned, as it often does; and God certainly reprobated the harsh language of the Egyptian task-masters, and came to deliver his people from oppression, Exodus ii. 25., and iii. 8., and v. 14. (Haydock)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm LXXXI
8. “A testimony in Joseph He made that” ( ver. 5 ). Look you, brethren, what is it? Joseph is interpreted augmentation. Ye remember, ye know of Joseph sold into Egypt: Joseph sold into Egypt is Christ passing over to the Gentiles. There Joseph after tribulations was exalted, and here Christ, after the suffering of the Martyrs, was glorified. Thenceforth to Joseph the Gentiles rather belong, and thenceforth augmentation; because, “Many are the children of her that was desolate, rather than of her that hath the husband.” “He made it, till he should go out of the land of Egypt.” Observe that also here the “fifth of the sabbath” is signified: when Joseph went out from the land of Egypt, that is, the people multiplied through Joseph, he was caused to pass through the Red Sea. Therefore then also the waters brought forth creeping things of living souls. …
St John Chrysostom The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on the Gospel of St. John, John 5.31,32
How then saith Moses, “The Lord spake, and Moses answered”? ( Ex. xix. 19 ); and David, “He had heard a tongue which he knew not” ( Ps. lxxxi. 5 ); and Moses again, “Is there any such people which hath ‘heard the voice of God’?” ( Deut. iv. 33 .)
St Gregory of Nyssa Answer to Eunomius' Second Book
But some who have carefully studied the Scriptures tell us that the Hebrew tongue is not even ancient like the others, but that along with other miracles this miracle was wrought in behalf of the Israelites, that after the Exodus from Egypt, the language was hastily improvised for the use of the nation. And there is a passage in the Prophet which confirms this. For he says, “when he came out of the land of Egypt he heard a strange language.” If, then, Moses was a Hebrew, and the language of the Hebrews was subsequent to the others, Moses, I say, who was born some thousands of years after the Creation of the world, and who relates the words of God in his own language, does he not clearly teach us that he does not attribute to God such a language of human fashion, but that he speaks as he does because it was impossible otherwise than in human language to express his meaning, though the wor …