News at Eleven: Though I walk in the vale

of death's shadow,
I fear no harm,
for You are with me.

Of course he's right that there are fewer syllables here than in "through the valley of the shadow of death." But if what you're after is condensing, why not something a little wilder, like "deathshadow valley"? Or "death's shadowvalley"? Why use the distinctly 19th century word "vale"?

But therein lies the problem, right?

from The Los Angeles Times: 'The Book of Psalms,' translated by Robert Alter

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