Mazmur 37:28

37:28 For the Lord promotes ¹  justice,

and never abandons ²  his faithful followers.

They are permanently secure, ³ 

but the children ⁴  of evil men are wiped out. ⁵ 

Mazmur 55:23

55:23 But you, O God, will bring them ⁶  down to the deep Pit. ⁷ 

Violent and deceitful people ⁸  will not live even half a normal lifespan. ⁹ 

But as for me, I trust in you.

Mazmur 69:4

69:4 Those who hate me without cause are more numerous than the hairs of my head.

Those who want to destroy me, my enemies for no reason, ¹⁰  outnumber me. ¹¹ 

They make me repay what I did not steal! ¹² 

[37:28]  ¹ tn Heb “loves.” The verb “loves” is here metonymic; the Lord’s commitment to principles of justice causes him to actively promote these principles as he governs the world. The active participle describes characteristic behavior.

[37:28]  ² tn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to this generalizing statement.

[37:28]  ³ tn Or “protected forever.”

[37:28]  ⁴ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

[37:28]  ⁵ tn Or “cut off”; or “removed.” The perfect verbal forms in v. 28b state general truths.

[55:23]  ⁶ tn The pronominal suffix refers to the psalmist’s enemies (see v. 19).

[55:23]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ tn Heb “men of bloodshed and deceit.”

[55:23]  ⁹ tn Heb “will not divide in half their days.”

[69:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Pss 35:19; 38:19).

[69:4]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew verb עָצַם (’atsam) can sometimes mean “are strong,” but here it probably focuses on numerical superiority; note the parallel verb רָבַב (ravav, “be many”).

[69:4]  ¹² tn Heb “that which I did not steal, then I restore.” Apparently אָז (’az, “then”) is used here to emphasize the verb that follows.

[69:4]  sn They make me repay what I did not steal. The psalmist’s enemies falsely accuse him and hold him accountable for alleged crimes he did not even commit.