My translation of Psalm 12:7

7

Thou

shalt

keep

them

,

O

Lord

,

1 אַתָּֽה

→

3 תִּשְׁמְרֵ֑

4 ם

→

2 יְהוָ֥ה

859

8104

1992

3068

Thou

shalt

preserve

them

from

this

generation

.

→

→

5 תִּצְּרֶ֓נּ

6 וּ׀

7 מִן

8 הַ

9 דּ֖וֹר

5341

587

4481

1755

for ever	.
10 ז֣וּ11 לְ12 עוֹלָֽם
2098 5769

1992. הֵם hêm, haym; or (prol.)

      הֵמָּה hêmmâh, haym´-maw; masc. plur. from 1931; they (only used when emphatic):—it, like, × (how, so) many (soever, more as) they (be), (the) same, × so, × such, their, them, these, they, those, which, who, whom, withal, ye.

Strong Number

prol. prolongation, prolonged
masc. masculine
plur. plural

5341. נָצַר nâtsar, naw-tsar´; a prim. root; to guard, in a good sense (to protect, maintain, obey, etc.) or a bad one (to conceal, etc.):—besieged, hidden thing, keep (-er, -ing), monument, observe, preserve (-r), subtil, watcher (-man).

prim. primitive

587. אֲנַחְנוּ ʾănachnûw, an-akh´-noo, appar. from 595; we:—ourselves, us, we.
appar. apparent, apparently

My own translation:

The Hebrew reads:

אַתָּה יְהוָה תִּשְׁמְרֵם

תִּצְּרֶנּוּ מִן־הַדּוֹר זוּ לְעוֹלָם

Transliteration:

Attah YHWH tishmerem;

titsrennu min-haddor zu le'olam.

A careful analysis is required because of the pronouns.

תִּשְׁמְרֵם (tishmerem) = "you will keep/guard them" (plural object).

תִּצְּרֶנּוּ (titsrennu) = "you will preserve him/it" (singular object suffix).

הֵם (-em) in תִּשְׁמְרֵם is clearly plural.

נּוּ (-ennu) in תִּצְּרֶנּוּ is grammatically singular, not plural.

This shift from plural to singular is one of the reasons translators differ in how they render the verse.

My own translation as a Hebrew scholar would be:

"You, O LORD, will guard them;

You will preserve each one from this generation forever."

Or more literally:

"You, O Yahweh, shall keep them;

You shall protect him from this generation forever."

The singular suffix in תִּצְּרֶנּוּ is often understood collectively, referring back to the group of righteous poor and needy mentioned in verses 5–6. Hebrew frequently moves from a plural antecedent to a singular collective expression.

The flow of the psalm supports this understanding:

Verse 5: God promises to arise for the oppressed poor and needy.

Verse 6: God's words are pure and trustworthy.

Verse 7: Because God's promise is trustworthy, He will preserve His afflicted people.

Thus, in context, the most natural translation is not that God is preserving His words, but that He is preserving the people to whom the promise was made.

A translation reflecting both grammar and context would be:

"You, O LORD, will keep them;

You will protect each of them from this corrupt generation forever."

Or:

"You, O LORD, will guard Your people;

You will preserve them from this generation forever."

Theologically, this verse is primarily about the preservation of God's faithful people amid a wicked generation, rather than a direct statement concerning the preservation of the words of Scripture. The immediate antecedent is the poor and needy of verse 5, while the singular object in תִּצְּרֶנּוּ functions as a collective singular referring to the individual member of that preserved group.