Mazmur 6:9

6:9 The Lord has heard my appeal for mercy;

the Lord has accepted ¹  my prayer.

Mazmur 30:10

30:10 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me!

O Lord, deliver me!” ² 

Mazmur 34:20

34:20 He protects ³  all his bones; ⁴ 

not one of them is broken. ⁵ 

Mazmur 38:7

38:7 For I am overcome with shame ⁶ 

and my whole body is sick. ⁷ 

Mazmur 38:18

38:18 Yes, ⁸  I confess my wrongdoing,

and I am concerned about my sins.

Mazmur 45:3

45:3 Strap your sword to your thigh, O warrior! ⁹ 

Appear in your majestic splendor! ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 49:3

49:3 I will declare a wise saying; ¹¹ 

I will share my profound thoughts. ¹² 

Mazmur 51:2-3

51:2 Wash away my wrongdoing! ¹³ 

Cleanse me of my sin! ¹⁴ 

51:3 For I am aware of ¹⁵  my rebellious acts;

I am forever conscious of my sin. ¹⁶ 

Mazmur 55:4-5

55:4 My heart beats violently ¹⁷  within me;

the horrors of death overcome me. ¹⁸ 

55:5 Fear and panic overpower me; ¹⁹ 

terror overwhelms ²⁰  me.

Mazmur 65:7

65:7 You calm the raging seas ²¹ 

and their roaring waves,

as well as the commotion made by the nations. ²² 

Mazmur 69:25

69:25 May their camp become desolate,

their tents uninhabited! ²³ 

Mazmur 77:7

77:7 I asked, ²⁴  “Will the Lord reject me forever?

Will he never again show me his favor?

Mazmur 89:40

89:40 You have broken down all his ²⁵  walls;

you have made his strongholds a heap of ruins.

[6:9]  ¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is probably a preterite here; it is parallel to a perfect and refers to the fact that the Lord has responded favorably to the psalmist’s request.

[30:10]  ² tn Heb “be a helper to me.”

[34:20]  ³ tn The Hebrew participial form suggests such protection is characteristic.

[34:20]  ⁴ tn That is, he protects the godly from physical harm.

[34:20]  ⁵ sn Not one of them is broken. The author of the Gospel of John saw a fulfillment of these words in Jesus’ experience on the cross (see John 19:31-37), for the Roman soldiers, when they saw that Jesus was already dead, did not break his legs as was customarily done to speed the death of crucified individuals. John’s use of the psalm seems strange, for the statement in its original context suggests that the Lord protects the godly from physical harm. Jesus’ legs may have remained unbroken, but he was brutally and unjustly executed by his enemies. John seems to give the statement a literal sense that is foreign to its original literary context by applying a promise of divine protection to a man who was seemingly not saved by God. However, John saw in this incident a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ultimate deliverance and vindication. His unbroken bones were a reminder of God’s commitment to the godly and a sign of things to come. Jesus’ death on the cross was not the end of the story; God vindicated him, as John goes on to explain in the following context (John 19:38-20:18).

[38:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “for my loins are filled with shame.” The “loins” are viewed here as the seat of the psalmist’s emotions. The present translation assumes that נִקְלֶה (niqleh) is derived from קָלָה (qalah, “be dishonored”). Some derive it instead from a homonymic root קָלָה (qalah), meaning “to roast.” In this case one might translate “fever” (cf. NEB “my loins burn with fever”).

[38:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “there is no soundness in my flesh” (see v. 3).

[38:18]  ⁸ tn Or “for.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is asseverative here.

[45:3]  ⁹ tn Or “mighty one.”

[45:3]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew text has simply, “your majesty and your splendor,” which probably refers to the king’s majestic splendor when he appears in full royal battle regalia.

[49:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “my mouth will speak wisdom.” According to BDB 315 s.v. חָכְמָה the plural חָכְמוֹת (khokhmot, “wisdom”) indicates degree or emphasis here.

[49:3]  ¹² tn Heb “and the meditation of my heart [i.e., mind] is understanding.” The Hebrew term הָגוּת (hagut, “meditation”), derived from הָגָה (hagah, “to recite quietly; to meditate”), here refers to thoughts that are verbalized (see the preceding line). The plural form תְבוּנוֹת (tÿvunot, “understanding”) indicates degree or emphasis (see GKC 397-98 §124.e).

[51:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “Thoroughly wash me from my wrongdoing.”

[51:2]  ¹⁴ sn In vv. 1b-2 the psalmist uses three different words to emphasize the multifaceted character and degree of his sin. Whatever one wants to call it (“rebellious acts,” “wrongdoing,” “sin”), he has done it and stands morally polluted in God’s sight. The same three words appear in Exod 34:7, which emphasizes that God is willing to forgive sin in all of its many dimensions. In v. 2 the psalmist compares forgiveness and restoration to physical cleansing. Perhaps he likens spiritual cleansing to the purification rites of priestly law.

[51:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “know.”

[51:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and my sin [is] in front of me continually.”

[55:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “shakes, trembles.”

[55:4]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the terrors of death have fallen on me.”

[55:5]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “fear and trembling enter into me.”

[55:5]  ²⁰ tn Heb “covers.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive carries on the descriptive (present progressive) force of the preceding imperfect.

[65:7]  ²¹ tn Heb “the roar of the seas.”

[65:7]  ²² sn The raging seas…the commotion made by the nations. The raging seas symbolize the turbulent nations of the earth (see Ps 46:2-3, 6; Isa 17:12).

[69:25]  ²³ tn Heb “in their tents may there not be one who dwells.”

[69:25]  sn In Acts 1:20 Peter applies the language of this verse to Judas’ experience. By changing the pronouns from plural to singular, he is able to apply the ancient curse, pronounced against the psalmist’s enemies, to Judas in particular.

[77:7]  ²⁴ tn As in vv. 4 and 6a, the words of vv. 7-9 are understood as a quotation of what the psalmist said earlier. Therefore the words “I asked” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[89:40]  ²⁵ tn The king here represents the land and cities over which he rules.