Mazmur 15:4

15:4 He despises a reprobate, ¹ 

but honors the Lord’s loyal followers. ² 

He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise. ³ 

Mazmur 29:9

29:9 The Lord’s shout bends ⁴  the large trees ⁵ 

and strips ⁶  the leaves from the forests. ⁷ 

Everyone in his temple says, “Majestic!” ⁸ 

Mazmur 34:2

34:2 I will boast ⁹  in the Lord;

let the oppressed hear and rejoice! ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 47:4

47:4 He picked out for us a special land ¹¹ 

to be a source of pride for ¹²  Jacob, ¹³  whom he loves. ¹⁴  (Selah)

Mazmur 50:23

50:23 Whoever presents a thank-offering honors me. ¹⁵ 

To whoever obeys my commands, I will reveal my power to deliver.” ¹⁶ 

Mazmur 57:5

57:5 Rise up ¹⁷  above the sky, O God!

May your splendor cover the whole earth! ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 57:11

57:11 Rise up ¹⁹  above the sky, O God!

May your splendor cover the whole earth! ²⁰ 

Mazmur 64:10

64:10 The godly will rejoice in the Lord

and take shelter in him.

All the morally upright ²¹  will boast. ²² 

Mazmur 71:16

71:16 I will come and tell about ²³  the mighty acts of the sovereign Lord.

I will proclaim your justice – yours alone.

Mazmur 72:15

72:15 May he live! ²⁴  May they offer him gold from Sheba! ²⁵ 

May they continually pray for him!

May they pronounce blessings on him all day long! ²⁶ 

Mazmur 80:18

80:18 Then we will not turn away from you.

Revive us and we will pray to you! ²⁷ 

Mazmur 89:1

Psalm 89 ²⁸ 

A well-written song ²⁹  by Ethan the Ezrachite.

89:1 I will sing continually ³⁰  about the Lord’s faithful deeds;

to future generations I will proclaim your faithfulness. ³¹ 

Mazmur 92:4

92:4 For you, O Lord, have made me happy by your work.

I will sing for joy because of what you have done. ³² 

Mazmur 118:27

118:27 The Lord is God and he has delivered us. ³³ 

Tie the offering ³⁴  with ropes

to the horns of the altar! ³⁵ 

Mazmur 136:16

136:16 to the one who led his people through the wilderness,

for his loyal love endures,

Mazmur 144:9

144:9 O God, I will sing a new song to you!

Accompanied by a ten-stringed instrument, I will sing praises to you,

Mazmur 145:7

145:7 They will talk about the fame of your great kindness, ³⁶ 

and sing about your justice. ³⁷ 

Mazmur 145:12

145:12 so that mankind ³⁸  might acknowledge your mighty acts,

and the majestic splendor of your kingdom.

[15:4]  ¹ tn Heb “despised in his eyes [is] a rejected [one].” The Hebrew term נִמְאָס (nim’as, “rejected [one]”) apparently refers here to one who has been rejected by God because of his godless behavior. It stands in contrast to “those who fear God” in the following line.

[15:4]  ² tn Heb “those who fear the Lord.” The one who fears the Lord respects his sovereignty and obeys his commandments. See Ps 128:1; Prov 14:2.

[15:4]  ³ tn Heb “he takes an oath to do harm and does not change.” The phrase “to do harm” cannot mean “do harm to others,” for the preceding verse clearly characterizes this individual as one who does not harm others. In this context the phrase must refer to an oath to which a self-imprecation is attached. The godly individual takes his commitments to others so seriously he is willing to “swear to his own hurt.” For an example of such an oath, see Ruth 1:16-17.

[29:9]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form is descriptive in function; the psalmist depicts the action as underway.

[29:9]  ⁵ tc Heb “the deer.” Preserving this reading, some translate the preceding verb, “causes [the deer] to give premature birth” (cf. NEB, NASB). But the Polel of חוּל/חִיל (khul/khil) means “give birth,” not “cause to give birth,” and the statement “the Lord’s shout gives birth to deer” is absurd. In light of the parallelism (note “forests” in the next line) and v. 5, it is preferable to emend אַיָּלוֹת (’ayyalot, “deer”) to אֵילוֹת (’elot, “large trees”) understanding the latter as an alternate form of the usual plural form אַיָּלִים (’ayyalim).

[29:9]  ⁶ tn The verb is used in Joel 1:7 of locusts stripping the leaves from a tree. The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the descriptive function of the preceding imperfect. See GKC 329 §111.t.

[29:9]  ⁷ tn The usual form of the plural of יַעַר (ya’ar, “forest”) is יְעָרִים (yÿ’arim). For this reason some propose an emendation to יְעָלוֹת (yÿ’alot, “female mountain goats”) which would fit nicely in the parallelism with “deer” (cf. NEB “brings kids early to birth”). In this case one would have to understand the verb חָשַׂף (khasaf) to mean “cause premature birth,” an otherwise unattested homonym of the more common חָשַׂף (“strip bare”).

[29:9]  sn The Lord’s thunderous shout is accompanied by high winds which damage the trees of the forest.

[29:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “In his temple, all of it says, ‘Glory.’”

[34:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “my soul will boast”; or better, “let my soul boast.” Following the cohortative form in v. 1, it is likely that the prefixed verbal form here is jussive.

[34:2]  ¹⁰ tn The two prefixed verbal forms in this verse are best taken as jussives, for the psalmist is calling his audience to worship (see v. 3).

[47:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he chose for us our inheritance.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite (see “subdued” in v. 3).

[47:4]  ¹² tn Heb “the pride of.” The phrase is appositional to “our inheritance,” indicating that the land is here described as a source of pride to God’s people.

[47:4]  ¹³ tn That is, Israel.

[47:4]  ¹⁴ sn Jacob whom he loves. The Lord’s covenantal devotion to his people is in view.

[50:23]  ¹⁵ sn The reference to a thank-offering recalls the earlier statement made in v. 14. Gratitude characterizes genuine worship.

[50:23]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and [to one who] sets a way I will show the deliverance of God.” Elsewhere the phrase “set a way” simply means “to travel” (see Gen 30:36; cf. NRSV). The present translation assumes an emendation of וְשָׂם דֶּרֶךְ (vÿsam derekh) to וְשֹׁמֵר דְּרָכַּי (vÿshomer dÿrakhay, “and [the one who] keeps my ways” [i.e., commands, see Pss 18:21; 37:34). Another option is to read וְשֹׁמֵר דַּרְכּוֹ (vÿshomer darko, “and [the one who] guards his way,” i.e., “the one who is careful to follow a godly lifestyle”; see Ps 39:1).

[57:5]  ¹⁷ tn Or “be exalted.”

[57:5]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “over all the earth [be] your splendor.” Though no verb appears, the tone of the statement is a prayer or wish. (Note the imperative form in the preceding line.)

[57:11]  ¹⁹ tn Or “be exalted.”

[57:11]  ²⁰ tn Heb “over all the earth [be] your splendor.” Though no verb appears, the tone of the statement is a prayer or wish. (Note the imperative form in the preceding line.)

[64:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “upright in heart.”

[64:10]  ²² tn That is, about the Lord’s accomplishments on their behalf.

[71:16]  ²³ tn Heb “I will come with.”

[72:15]  ²⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. Because the form has the prefixed vav (ו), some subordinate it to what precedes as a purpose/result clause. In this case the representative poor individual might be the subject of this and the following verb, “so that he may live and give to him gold of Sheba.” But the idea of the poor offering gold is incongruous. It is better to take the jussive as a prayer with the king as subject of the verb. (Perhaps the initial vav is dittographic; note the vav at the end of the last form in v. 14.) The statement is probably an abbreviated version of the formula יְחִי הַמֶּלֶךְ (yÿkhiy hammelekh, “may the king live”; see 1 Sam 10:24; 2 Sam 16:16; 1 Kgs 1:25, 34, 39; 2 Kgs 11:12).

[72:15]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and he will give to him some gold of Sheba.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one give”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are the tribute bearers in view here.

[72:15]  ²⁶ tn As in the preceding line, the prefixed verbal forms are understood as jussives with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one pray…and may one bless”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are in view here.

[80:18]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and in your name we will call.”

[89:1]  ²⁸ sn Psalm 89. The psalmist praises God as the sovereign creator of the world. He recalls God’s covenant with David, but then laments that the promises of the covenant remain unrealized. The covenant promised the Davidic king military victories, but the king has now been subjected to humiliating defeat.

[89:1]  ²⁹ 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 88.

[89:1]  ³⁰ tn Or “forever.”

[89:1]  ³¹ tn Heb “to a generation and a generation I will make known your faithfulness with my mouth.”

[92:4]  ³² tn Heb “the works of your hands.”

[118:27]  ³³ tn Heb “and he has given us light.” This may be an elliptical expression, with “his face” being implied as the object (see Num 6:25; Pss 31:16; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19). In this case, “his face has given us light” = “he has smiled on us,” or “he has shown us his favor.” Another option (the one reflected in the translation) is that “light” here symbolizes divine blessing in the form of deliverance. “Light” is often used as a metaphor for deliverance and the life/blessings it brings. See Pss 37:6; 97:11; 112:4; Isa 49:6; 51:4; Mic 7:8. Some prefer to repoint the form וְיָאֵר (vÿya’er; vav [ו] conjunctive + jussive) and translate the statement as a prayer, “may he give us light.”

[118:27]  ³⁴ tn The Hebrew noun חַג (khag) normally means “festival,” but here it apparently refers metonymically to an offering made at the festival. BDB 291 s.v. חַג 2 interprets the word in this way here, citing as comparable the use of later Hebrew חֲגִיגָה, which can refer to both a festival and a festival offering (see Jastrow 424 s.v. חֲגִיגָה).

[118:27]  ³⁵ tn The second half of v. 27 has been translated and interpreted in a variety of ways. For a survey of major views, see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 122.

[145:7]  ³⁶ tn Heb “the fame of the greatness of your goodness.”

[145:7]  ³⁷ tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 7 are understood as imperfects, indicating how the psalmist expects his audience to respond to his praise. Another option is to take the forms as jussives, indicating the psalmist’s wish, “may they talk…and sing.”

[145:12]  ³⁸ tn Heb “the sons of man.”