Mazmur 18:2
Konteks18:2 The Lord is my high ridge, 1 my stronghold, 2 my deliverer.
My God is my rocky summit where 3 I take shelter, 4
my shield, the horn that saves me, 5 and my refuge. 6
Mazmur 20:5
Konteks20:5 Then we will shout for joy over your 7 victory;
we will rejoice 8 in the name of our God!
May the Lord grant all your requests!
Mazmur 22:9
Konteks22:9 Yes, you are the one who brought me out 9 from the womb
and made me feel secure on my mother’s breasts.
Mazmur 23:4
Konteks23:4 Even when I must walk through the darkest valley, 10
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff reassure me. 13
Mazmur 27:4
Konteks27:4 I have asked the Lord for one thing –
this is what I desire!
I want to live 14 in the Lord’s house 15 all the days of my life,
so I can gaze at the splendor 16 of the Lord
and contemplate in his temple.
Mazmur 32:5-6
Konteks32:5 Then I confessed my sin;
I no longer covered up my wrongdoing.
I said, “I will confess 17 my rebellious acts to the Lord.”
And then you forgave my sins. 18 (Selah)
32:6 For this reason every one of your faithful followers 19 should pray to you
while there is a window of opportunity. 20
Certainly 21 when the surging water 22 rises,
it will not reach them. 23
Mazmur 39:1
KonteksFor the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David.
39:1 I decided, 25 “I will watch what I say
and make sure I do not sin with my tongue. 26
I will put a muzzle over my mouth
while in the presence of an evil man.” 27
Mazmur 42:8
Konteks42:8 By day the Lord decrees his loyal love, 28
and by night he gives me a song, 29
a prayer 30 to the living God.
Mazmur 65:1
KonteksFor the music director; a psalm of David, a song.
65:1 Praise awaits you, 32 O God, in Zion.
Vows made to you are fulfilled.
Mazmur 81:7
Konteks81:7 In your distress you called out and I rescued you.
I answered you from a dark thundercloud. 33
I tested you at the waters of Meribah. 34 (Selah)
Mazmur 84:3
Konteks84:3 Even the birds find a home there,
and the swallow 35 builds a nest,
where she can protect her young 36
near your altars, O Lord who rules over all,
my king and my God.
Mazmur 87:4
Konteks87:4 I mention Rahab 37 and Babylon to my followers. 38
Here are 39 Philistia and Tyre, 40 along with Ethiopia. 41
It is said of them, “This one was born there.” 42
Mazmur 93:1
Konteks93:1 The Lord reigns!
He is robed in majesty,
the Lord is robed,
he wears strength around his waist. 44
Indeed, the world is established, it cannot be moved.
Mazmur 110:3
Konteks110:3 Your people willingly follow you 45 when you go into battle. 46
On the holy hills 47 at sunrise 48 the dew of your youth 49 belongs to you. 50
Mazmur 127:1
KonteksA song of ascents, 52 by Solomon.
127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, 53
then those who build it work in vain.
If the Lord does not guard a city, 54
then the watchman stands guard in vain.
Mazmur 132:12
Konteks132:12 If your sons keep my covenant
and the rules I teach them,
their sons will also sit on your throne forever.”
[18:2] 1 sn My high ridge. This metaphor pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28.
[18:2] 2 sn My stronghold. David often found safety in such strongholds. See 1 Sam 22:4-5; 24:22; 2 Sam 5:9, 17; 23:14.
[18:2] 4 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).
[18:2] 5 tn Heb “the horn of my salvation”; or “my saving horn.”
[18:2] sn Though some see “horn” as referring to a horn-shaped peak of a hill, or to the “horns” of an altar where one could find refuge, it is more likely that the horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (cf. Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17). In the ancient Near East powerful warrior-kings would sometimes compare themselves to a goring bull that uses its horns to kill its enemies. For examples, see P. Miller, “El the Warrior,” HTR 60 (1967): 422-25, and R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 135-36. Ps 18:2 uses the metaphor of the horn in a slightly different manner. Here the Lord himself is compared to a horn. He is to the psalmist what the horn is to the ox, a source of defense and victory.
[18:2] 6 tn Or “my elevated place.” The parallel version of this psalm in 2 Sam 22:3 adds at this point, “my refuge, my savior, [you who] save me from violence.”
[20:5] 7 sn Your victory. Here the king is addressed (see v. 1).
[20:5] 8 tc The Hebrew verb דָּגַל (dagal) occurs only here in the Qal. If accepted as original, it may carry the nuance “raise a banner,” but it is preferable to emend the form to נגיל (“we will rejoice”) which provides better parallelism with “shout for joy” and fits well with the prepositional phrase “in the name of our God” (see Ps 89:16).
[22:9] 9 tn Or “the one who pulled me.” The verb is derived from either גָחָה (gakhah; see HALOT 187 s.v. גחה) or גִּיחַ (giyakh; see BDB 161 s.v. גִּיחַ) and seems to carry the nuance “burst forth” or “pull out.”
[23:4] 10 tn The Hebrew term צַלְמָוֶת (tsalmavet) has traditionally been understood as a compound noun meaning “shadow of death” (צֵל [tsel] + מָוֶת [mavet]; see BDB 853 s.v. צַלְמָוֶת). Other scholars prefer to vocalize the form צַלְמוּת (tsalmut) and understand it as an abstract noun (from the root צָלַם, tsalam) meaning “darkness.” An examination of the word’s usage favors the latter derivation. It is frequently associated with darkness/night and contrasted with light/morning (see Job 3:5; 10:21-22; 12:22; 24:17; 28:3; 34:22; Ps 107:10, 14; Isa 9:1; Jer 13:16; Amos 5:8). In some cases the darkness described is associated with the realm of death (Job 10:21-22; 38:17), but this is a metaphorical application of the word and does not reflect its inherent meaning. If the word does indeed mean “darkness,” it modifies גַיְא (gay’, “valley, ravine”) quite naturally. At the metaphorical level, v. 4 pictures the shepherd taking his sheep through a dark ravine where predators might lurk. The life-threatening situations faced by the psalmist are the underlying reality behind the imagery.
[23:4] 11 tn The imperfect verbal forms in v. 4, as in vv. 1-3, highlight what is typical in the psalmist’s experience.
[23:4] 12 tn The Hebrew term רַע (ra’) is traditionally translated “evil” here, perhaps suggesting a moral or ethical nuance. But at the level of the metaphor, the word means “danger, injury, harm,” as a sheep might experience from a predator. The life-threatening dangers faced by the psalmist, especially the enemies mentioned in v. 5, are the underlying reality.
[23:4] 13 tn The Piel of נָחַם (nakham), when used with a human object, means “comfort, console.” But here, within the metaphorical framework, it refers to the way in which a shepherd uses his implements to assure the sheep of his presence and calm their nerves. The underlying reality is the emotional stability God provides the psalmist during life threatening situations.
[27:4] 15 sn The
[32:5] 17 tn The Hiphil of ידה normally means “give thanks, praise,” but here, as in Prov 28:13, it means “confess.”
[32:5] 18 tn Heb “the wrongdoing of my sin.” By joining synonyms for “sin” in this way, the psalmist may be emphasizing the degree of his wrongdoing.
[32:6] 19 tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 18:25; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).
[32:6] 20 tn Heb “at a time of finding.” This may mean, “while there is time to ‘find’ [the
[32:6] 21 tn The Hebrew term רַק (raq) occasionally has an asseverative force.
[32:6] 22 sn The surging water is here a metaphor for trouble that endangers one’s life.
[32:6] 23 tn Heb “him.” The translation uses the plural “them” to agree with the plural “every one of your faithful followers” in the first line of v. 6.
[39:1] 24 sn Psalm 39. The psalmist laments his frailty and mortality as he begs the Lord to take pity on him and remove his disciplinary hand.
[39:1] 26 tn Heb “I will watch my ways, from sinning with my tongue.”
[39:1] 27 sn The psalmist wanted to voice a lament to the
[42:8] 28 sn The psalmist believes that the Lord has not abandoned him, but continues to extend his loyal love. To this point in the psalm, the author has used the name “God,” but now, as he mentions the divine characteristic of loyal love, he switches to the more personal divine name Yahweh (rendered in the translation as “the
[42:8] 29 tn Heb “his song [is] with me.”
[42:8] 30 tc A few medieval Hebrew
[65:1] 31 sn Psalm 65. The psalmist praises God because he forgives sin and blesses his people with an abundant harvest.
[65:1] 32 tn Heb “for you, silence, praise.” Many prefer to emend the noun דֻּמִיָּה (dumiyyah, “silence”) to a participle דּוֹמִיָּה (domiyyah), from the root דָּמָה (damah, “be silent”), understood here in the sense of “wait.”
[81:7] 33 tn Heb “I answered you in the hidden place of thunder.” This may allude to God’s self-revelation at Mount Sinai, where he appeared in a dark cloud accompanied by thunder (see Exod 19:16).
[81:7] 34 sn The name Meribah means “strife.” Two separate but similar incidents at the place called Meribah are recorded in the Pentateuch (Exod 17:1-7; Num 20:1-13). In both cases the Israelites complained about lack of water and the Lord miraculously provided for them.
[84:3] 35 tn The word translated “swallow” occurs only here and in Prov 26:2.
[84:3] 36 tn Heb “even a bird finds a home, and a swallow a nest for herself, [in] which she places her young.”
[84:3] sn The psalmist here romanticizes the temple as a place of refuge and safety. As he thinks of the birds nesting near its roof, he envisions them finding protection in God’s presence.
[87:4] 37 sn “Rahab,” which means “proud one,” is used here as a title for Egypt (see Isa 30:7).
[87:4] 38 tn Heb “to those who know me” (see Ps 36:10). Apparently the
[87:4] 40 map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.
[87:4] 42 tn Heb “and this one was born there.” The words “It is said of them” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarification and stylistic purposes (see v. 5). Those advocating the universalistic interpretation understand “there” as referring to Zion, but it seems more likely that the adverb refers to the nations just mentioned. The foreigners are identified by their native lands.
[93:1] 43 sn Psalm 93. The psalmist affirms that the
[93:1] 44 sn Strength is compared here to a belt that one wears for support. The Lord’s power undergirds his rule.
[110:3] 45 tn Heb “your people, free will offerings.” Perhaps the people, in their willingness to volunteer, are compared metaphorically to freewill offerings. Following the LXX, some revocalize the text and read “with you is nobility.”
[110:3] 46 tn Heb “in the day of your power.”
[110:3] 47 tc Heb “in splendor of holiness.” The plural construct form הַדְרֵי (hadrey, from הָדַר, hadar, “splendor”) occurs only here; it may indicate degree or perhaps refer by metonymy to garments (see Pss 29:2 and 96:9, where the phrase הַדְרַת קֹדֶשׁ [hadrat qodesh] refers to “holy attire”). If one retains the reading of the MT, this phrase should probably be taken with the preceding line. However, because of the subsequent references to “dawn” and to “dew,” it is better to emend the text to הַרְרֵי קֹדֶשׁ (harrey qodesh, “mountains of holiness”), a reading found in many medieval Hebrew
[110:3] 48 tn Heb “from the womb of dawn.” The Hebrew noun רֶחֶם (rekhem, “womb”) is probably used here metonymically for “birth.” The form מִשְׁחָר (mishkhar) occurs only here and should be emended to שַׁחַר (shakhar, “dawn”) with the mem (מ) being understood as dittographic (note the final mem [ם] on the preceding word). The phrase “womb [i.e., “birth”] of dawn” refers to sunrise.
[110:3] 49 sn The point of the metaphor is not entirely clear. The dew may symbolize the king’s youthful vitality or, more likely (note the parallelism), may refer to his army of strong, youthful warriors.
[110:3] 50 tn Heb “to you [is].”
[127:1] 51 sn Psalm 127. In this wisdom psalm the psalmist teaches that one does not find security by one’s own efforts, for God alone gives stability and security.
[127:1] 52 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
[127:1] 53 sn The expression build a house may have a double meaning here. It may refer on the surface level to a literal physical structure in which a family lives, but at a deeper, metaphorical level it refers to building, perpetuating, and maintaining a family line. See Deut 25:9; Ruth 4:11; 1 Sam 2:35; 2 Sam 7:27; 1 Kgs 11:38; 1 Chr 17:10, 25. Having a family line provided security in ancient Israel.
[127:1] 54 sn The city symbolizes community security, which is the necessary framework for family security.
