That our sons may be as plants. The stanza which these words introduce is a very remarkable one, having nothing at all corresponding to it in the rest of the Psalter. It has been thought by some to be an antique document, quoted by the writer of the psalm, as suited for a festal occasion.
Our translation makes it a picture of the condition to which the writer hopes that Israel may one day come; but the best recent critics see in it a description of Israel's actual condition in the writer's day.
Professor Cheyne translates, "Because our sons are as plants;" and Dr. Kay, "What time our sons are as plants." Grown up in their youth; literally, grown large. The sons are compared to ornamental trees or shrubs, growing outside a building.
That our daughters may be as cornerstones, polished (or, "carved") after the similitude of a palace. The daughters are like carved pillars, lighting up the angular recesses of the structure.