Mazmur 34:7
Konteks34:7 The Lord’s angel camps around
the Lord’s 1 loyal followers 2 and delivers them. 3
Mazmur 34:1
KonteksWritten by David, when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, causing the king to send him away. 5
34:1 I will praise 6 the Lord at all times;
my mouth will continually praise him. 7
Mazmur 5:1-12
KonteksFor the music director, to be accompanied by wind instruments; 9 a psalm of David.
5:1 Listen to what I say, 10 Lord!
Carefully consider my complaint! 11
5:2 Pay attention to my cry for help,
my king and my God,
for I am praying to you!
5:3 Lord, in the morning 12 you will hear 13 me; 14
in the morning I will present my case to you 15 and then wait expectantly for an answer. 16
5:4 Certainly 17 you are not a God who approves of evil; 18
evil people 19 cannot dwell with you. 20
5:5 Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence; 21
you hate 22 all who behave wickedly. 23
the Lord despises 26 violent and deceitful people. 27
5:7 But as for me, 28 because of your great faithfulness I will enter your house; 29
I will bow down toward your holy temple as I worship you. 30
5:8 Lord, lead me in your righteousness 31
because of those who wait to ambush me, 32
remove the obstacles in the way in which you are guiding me! 33
5:9 For 34 they do not speak the truth; 35
their stomachs are like the place of destruction, 36
their throats like an open grave, 37
their tongues like a steep slope leading into it. 38
May their own schemes be their downfall! 40
Drive them away 41 because of their many acts of insurrection, 42
for they have rebelled against you.
5:11 But may all who take shelter 43 in you be happy! 44
May they continually 45 shout for joy! 46
Shelter them 47 so that those who are loyal to you 48 may rejoice! 49
5:12 Certainly 50 you reward 51 the godly, 52 Lord.
Like a shield you protect 53 them 54 in your good favor. 55
Mazmur 24:1-10
KonteksA psalm of David.
24:1 The Lord owns the earth and all it contains,
the world and all who live in it.
24:2 For he set its foundation upon the seas,
and established 57 it upon the ocean currents. 58
24:3 Who is allowed to ascend 59 the mountain of the Lord? 60
Who may go up to his holy dwelling place?
24:4 The one whose deeds are blameless
and whose motives are pure, 61
who does not lie, 62
or make promises with no intention of keeping them. 63
24:5 Such godly people are rewarded by the Lord, 64
and vindicated by the God who delivers them. 65
24:6 Such purity characterizes the people who seek his favor,
Jacob’s descendants, who pray to him. 66 (Selah)
Rise up, 68 you eternal doors!
Then the majestic king 69 will enter! 70
24:8 Who is this majestic king? 71
The Lord who is strong and mighty!
The Lord who is mighty in battle!
24:9 Look up, you gates!
Rise up, you eternal doors!
Then the majestic king will enter!
24:10 Who is this majestic king?
The Lord who commands armies! 72
He is the majestic king! (Selah)
Mazmur 55:23
Konteks55:23 But you, O God, will bring them 73 down to the deep Pit. 74
Violent and deceitful people 75 will not live even half a normal lifespan. 76
But as for me, I trust in you.
Mazmur 55:1
KonteksFor the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a well-written song 78 by David.
55:1 Listen, O God, to my prayer!
Do not ignore 79 my appeal for mercy!
Mazmur 4:1-8
KonteksFor the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm of David.
4:1 When I call out, answer me,
O God who vindicates me! 81
Though I am hemmed in, you will lead me into a wide, open place. 82
Have mercy on me 83 and respond to 84 my prayer!
4:2 You men, 85 how long will you try to turn my honor into shame? 86
How long 87 will you love what is worthless 88
and search for what is deceptive? 89 (Selah)
4:3 Realize that 90 the Lord shows the godly special favor; 91
the Lord responds 92 when I cry out to him.
4:4 Tremble with fear and do not sin! 93
Meditate as you lie in bed, and repent of your ways! 94 (Selah)
4:5 Offer the prescribed sacrifices 95
and trust in the Lord! 96
4:6 Many say, “Who can show us anything good?”
Smile upon us, Lord! 97
than those who have abundant grain and wine. 99
4:8 I will lie down and sleep peacefully, 100
for you, Lord, make me safe and secure. 101
[34:7] 1 tn Heb “his”; the referent (the
[34:7] 2 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[34:7] 3 tn The prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same generalizing force as the active participle in the first line. See GKC 329 §111.u.
[34:1] 4 sn Psalm 34. In this song of thanksgiving the psalmist praises God for delivering him from distress. He encourages others to be loyal to the Lord, tells them how to please God, and assures them that the Lord protects his servants. The psalm is an acrostic; vv. 1-21 begin with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. (Verse 6 begins with the letter he (ה) and v. 7 with the letter zayin (ז). The letter vav (ו), which comes between ה and ז, seems to be omitted, although it does appear at the beginning of v. 6b. The final verse of the psalm, which begins with the letter pe (פ), is outside the acrostic scheme.
[34:1] 5 tn Heb “By David, when he changed his sense before Abimelech and he drove him away and he went.”
[34:1] sn Pretended to be insane. The psalm heading appears to refer to the account in 1 Sam 21:10-15 which tells how David, fearful that King Achish of Gath might kill him, pretended to be insane in hopes that the king would simply send him away. The psalm heading names the king Abimelech, not Achish, suggesting that the tradition is confused on this point. However, perhaps “Abimelech” was a royal title, rather than a proper name. See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 278.
[34:1] 7 tn Heb “continually [will] his praise [be] in my mouth.”
[5:1] 8 sn Psalm 5. Appealing to God’s justice and commitment to the godly, the psalmist asks the Lord to intervene and deliver him from evildoers.
[5:1] 9 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word נְחִילוֹת (nÿkhilot), which occurs only here, is uncertain. Many relate the form to חָלִיל (khalil, “flute”).
[5:1] 11 tn Or “sighing.” The word occurs only here and in Ps 39:3.
[5:3] 12 sn In the morning is here viewed as the time of prayer (Pss 59:16; 88:13) and/or of deliverance (Ps 30:5).
[5:3] 13 tn The imperfect is here understood in a specific future sense; the psalmist is expressing his confidence that God will be willing to hear his request. Another option is to understand the imperfect as expressing the psalmist’s wish or request. In this case one could translate, “
[5:3] 15 tn Heb “I will arrange for you.” Some understand a sacrifice or offering as the implied object (cf. NEB “I set out my morning sacrifice”). The present translation assumes that the implied object is the psalmist’s case/request. See Isa 44:7.
[5:3] 16 tn Heb “and I will watch.”
[5:4] 18 tn Heb “not a God [who] delights [in] wickedness [are] you.”
[5:4] 19 tn The Hebrew text has simply the singular form רע, which may be taken as an abstract noun “evil” (the reference to “wickedness” in the preceding line favors this; cf. NEB, NASB, NRSV) or as a substantival adjective “evil one” (the references to evil people in the next two verses favor this; cf. NIV “with you the wicked cannot dwell”).
[5:4] 20 tn Heb “cannot dwell as a resident alien [with] you.” The negated imperfect verbal form here indicates incapability or lack of permission. These people are morally incapable of dwelling in God’s presence and are not permitted to do so.
[5:4] sn Only the godly are allowed to dwell with the Lord. Evil people are excluded. See Ps 15.
[5:5] 21 tn Heb “before your eyes.”
[5:5] 22 sn You hate. The
[5:5] 23 tn Heb “all the workers of wickedness.”
[5:6] 24 tn The imperfect verbal form indicates God’s typical response to such individuals. Another option is to translate the verb as future (“You will destroy”); the psalmist may be envisioning a time of judgment when God will remove the wicked from the scene.
[5:6] 25 tn Heb “those who speak a lie.” In the OT a “lie” does not refer in a general philosophical sense to any statement that fails to correspond to reality. Instead it refers more specifically to a slanderous and/or deceitful statement that promotes one’s own selfish, sinful interests and/or exploits or harms those who are innocent. Note the emphasis on violence and deceit in the following line.
[5:6] 26 tn The imperfect verbal form highlights the
[5:6] 27 tn Heb “a man of bloodshed and deceit.” The singular אִישׁ (’ish, “man”) is used here in a collective or representative sense; thus the translation “people” is appropriate here. Note the plural forms in vv. 5-6a.
[5:7] 28 sn But as for me. By placing the first person pronoun at the beginning of the verse, the psalmist highlights the contrast between the evildoers’ actions and destiny, outlined in the preceding verses, with his own.
[5:7] 29 sn I will enter your house. The psalmist is confident that God will accept him into his presence, in contrast to the evildoers (see v. 5).
[5:7] 30 tn Heb “in fear [of] you.” The Hebrew noun יִרְאָה (yir’ah, “fear”), when used of fearing God, is sometimes used metonymically for what it ideally produces: “worship, reverence, piety.”
[5:8] 31 tn God’s providential leading is in view. His צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “righteousness”) includes here the deliverance that originates in his righteousness; he protects and vindicates the one whose cause is just. For other examples of this use of the word, see BDB 842 s.v.
[5:8] 32 tn Heb “because of those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 27:11; 56:2.
[5:8] 33 tn Heb “make level before me your way.” The imperative “make level” is Hiphil in the Kethib (consonantal text); Piel in the Qere (marginal reading). God’s “way” is here the way in which he leads the psalmist providentially (see the preceding line, where the psalmist asks the Lord to lead him).
[5:9] 35 tn Heb “for there is not in his mouth truthfulness.” The singular pronoun (“his”) probably refers back to the “man of bloodshed and deceit” mentioned in v. 6. The singular is collective or representative, as the plural in the next line indicates, and so has been translated “they.”
[5:9] 36 tn Heb “their inward part[s] [is] destruction.” For a discussion of the extended metaphor in v. 9b, see the note on the word “it” at the end of the verse.
[5:9] 37 tn Heb “their throat is an open grave.” For a discussion of the extended metaphor in v. 9b, see the note on the word “it” at the end of the verse. The metaphor is suggested by the physical resemblance of the human throat to a deeply dug grave; both are dark chasms.
[5:9] 38 tn Heb “they make smooth their tongue.” Flattering, deceitful words are in view. See Ps 12:2. The psalmist’s deceitful enemies are compared to the realm of death/Sheol in v. 9b. Sheol was envisioned as a dark region within the earth, the entrance to which was the grave with its steep slopes (cf. Ps 88:4-6). The enemies’ victims are pictured here as slipping down a steep slope (the enemies’ tongues) and falling into an open grave (their throat) that terminates in destruction in the inner recesses of Sheol (their stomach). The enemies’ קרב (“inward part”) refers here to their thoughts and motives, which are destructive in their intent. The throat is where these destructive thoughts are transformed into words, and their tongue is what they use to speak the deceitful words that lead their innocent victims to their demise.
[5:9] sn As the psalmist walks down the path in which God leads him, he asks the
[5:10] 39 tn Heb “declare/regard them as guilty.” Declaring the psalmist’s adversaries guilty is here metonymic for judging them or paying them back for their wrongdoing.
[5:10] 40 tn Heb “may they fall from their plans.” The prefixed verbal form is a jussive, expressing an imprecation. The psalmist calls judgment down on the evildoers. Their plans will be their downfall in that God will judge them for their evil schemes.
[5:10] 41 tn Or “banish them.”
[5:10] 42 tn The Hebrew noun used here, פֶּשַׁע (pesha’), refers to rebellious actions. The psalmist pictures his enemies as rebels against God (see the next line).
[5:11] 43 sn Take shelter. “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear and serve the Lord (Pss 5:11-12; 31:17-20; 34:21-22).
[5:11] 44 tn The prefixed verbal form is a jussive of wish or prayer. The psalmist calls on God to reward his faithful followers.
[5:11] 45 tn Or perhaps more hyperbolically, “forever.”
[5:11] 46 tn As in the preceding line, the prefixed verbal form is a jussive of wish or prayer.
[5:11] 47 tn Heb “put a cover over them.” The verb form is a Hiphil imperfect from סָכַךְ (sakhakh, “cover, shut off”). The imperfect expresses the psalmist’s wish or request.
[5:11] 48 tn Heb “the lovers of your name.” The phrase refers to those who are loyal to the Lord. See Pss 69:36; 119:132; Isa 56:6.
[5:11] 49 tn The vav (ו) with prefixed verbal form following the volitional “shelter them” indicates purpose or result (“so that those…may rejoice).
[5:12] 51 tn Or “bless.” The imperfect verbal forms here and in the next line highlight how God characteristically rewards and protects the godly.
[5:12] 52 tn Or “innocent.” The singular form is used here in a collective or representative sense.
[5:12] 53 tn Heb “surround.” In 1 Sam 23:26 the verb describes how Saul and his men hemmed David in as they chased him.
[5:12] 54 tn Heb “him.” The singular form is used here in a collective or representative sense and is thus translated “them.”
[5:12] 55 tn Or “with favor” (cf. NRSV). There is no preposition before the noun in the Hebrew text, nor is there a pronoun attached. “Favor” here stands by metonymy for God’s defensive actions on behalf of the one whom he finds acceptable.
[24:1] 56 sn Psalm 24. The psalmist affirms the universal kingship of the sovereign creator, reminds his people that only the morally pure are qualified to worship him, and celebrates his splendor as a mighty warrior king.
[24:2] 57 tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite, referring to the creation of the world.
[24:2] 58 sn He…established it upon the ocean currents. The description reflects ancient Israelite prescientific cosmology, which is based on outward appearances. The language also suggests that God’s creative work involved the subjugation of chaos, symbolized by the sea.
[24:3] 59 tn The imperfects in v. 3 are modal, expressing potential or permission.
[24:3] 60 sn In this context the Lord’s mountain probably refers to Zion/Jerusalem (see Isa 2:2-3).
[24:4] 61 tn Heb “the innocent of hands and the pure of heart.” The “hands” allude to one’s actions, the “heart” to one’s thought life and motives.
[24:4] 62 tn Heb “who does not lift up for emptiness my life.” The first person pronoun on נַפְשִׁי (nafshiy, “my life”) makes little sense here; many medieval Hebrew
[24:4] 63 tn Heb “and does not swear an oath deceitfully.”
[24:5] 64 tn Heb “he (the righteous individual described in v. 4) lifts up a blessing from the
[24:5] 65 tn “and vindication from the God of his deliverance.”
[24:6] 66 tn Heb “this [is the] generation of the ones seeking him, the ones seeking your face, Jacob.” To “seek the
[24:6] sn This verse presents a somewhat idealized view of Jacob’s descendants as devoted worshipers of the Lord.
[24:7] 67 tn Heb “lift up your heads.” The gates of the Lord’s dwelling place are here personified. The idiom “lift up the head” often means “be confident, bold” (see Judg 8:28; Job 10:15; Ps 83:2; Zech 1:21).
[24:7] 68 tn Heb “lift yourselves up.”
[24:7] 69 tn Or “king of glory.”
[24:7] 70 tn Following the imperatives of the preceding lines, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose or result.
[24:8] 71 sn Who is this majestic king? Perhaps the personified gates/doors ask this question, in response to the command given in v. 7.
[24:10] 72 tn Traditionally, “the
[55:23] 73 tn The pronominal suffix refers to the psalmist’s enemies (see v. 19).
[55:23] 74 tn Heb “well of the pit.” The Hebrew term שַׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 30:9; 49:9; 103:4).
[55:23] 75 tn Heb “men of bloodshed and deceit.”
[55:23] 76 tn Heb “will not divide in half their days.”
[55:1] 77 sn Psalm 55. The suffering and oppressed author laments that one of his friends has betrayed him, but he is confident that God will vindicate him by punishing his deceitful enemies.
[55:1] 78 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. See the note on the phrase “well-written song” in the superscription of Ps 52.
[55:1] 79 tn Heb “hide yourself from.”
[4:1] 80 sn Psalm 4. The psalmist asks God to hear his prayer, expresses his confidence that the Lord will intervene, and urges his enemies to change their ways and place their trust in God. He concludes with another prayer for divine intervention and again affirms his absolute confidence in God’s protection.
[4:1] 81 tn Heb “God of my righteousness.”
[4:1] 82 tn Heb “in distress (or “a narrow place”) you make (a place) large for me.” The function of the Hebrew perfect verbal form here is uncertain. The translation above assumes that the psalmist is expressing his certitude and confidence that God will intervene. The psalmist is so confident of God’s positive response to his prayer, he can describe God’s deliverance as if it had already happened. Such confidence is consistent with the mood of the psalm (vv. 3, 8). Another option is to take the perfects as precative, expressing a wish or request (“lead me”). See IBHS 494-95 §30.5.4c, d. However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.
[4:1] 83 tn Or “show me favor.”
[4:2] 85 tn Heb “sons of man.”
[4:2] 86 tn Heb “how long my honor to shame?”
[4:2] 87 tn The interrogative construction עַד־מֶה (’ad-meh, “how long?”), is understood by ellipsis in the second line.
[4:2] 89 tn Heb “a lie.” Some see the metonymic language of v. 2b (“emptiness, lie”) as referring to idols or false gods. However, there is no solid immediate contextual evidence for such an interpretation. It is more likely that the psalmist addresses those who threaten him (see v. 1) and refers in a general way to their sinful lifestyle. (See R. Mosis, TDOT 7:121.) The two terms allude to the fact that sinful behavior is ultimately fruitless and self-destructive.
[4:3] 90 tn Heb “and know that.”
[4:3] 91 tn Heb “that the
[4:4] 93 sn The psalmist warns his enemies that they need to tremble with fear before God and repudiate their sinful ways.
[4:4] 94 tn Heb “say in your heart(s) on your bed(s) and wail/lament.” The verb דֹמּוּ (dommu) is understood as a form of דָמָם (“wail, lament”) in sorrow and repentance. Another option is to take the verb from II דָמָם (damam, “be quiet”); cf. NIV, NRSV “be silent.”
[4:5] 95 tn Or “proper, right.” The phrase also occurs in Deut 33:19 and Ps 51:19.
[4:5] 96 sn Trust in the
[4:6] 97 tn Heb “lift up upon us the light of your face,
[4:6] sn Smile upon us. Though many are discouraged, the psalmist asks the Lord to intervene and transform the situation.
[4:7] 98 tn Heb “you place joy in my heart.” Another option is to understand the perfect verbal form as indicating certitude, “you will make me happier.”
[4:7] 99 tn Heb “from (i.e., more than) the time (when) their grain and their wine are abundant.”
[4:8] 100 tn Heb “in peace at the same time I will lie down and sleep.”
[4:8] 101 tn Heb “for you,
