Mazmur 6:5

6:5 For no one remembers you in the realm of death, ¹ 

In Sheol who gives you thanks? ² 

Mazmur 9:7

9:7 But the Lord ³  rules ⁴  forever;

he reigns in a just manner. ⁵ 

Mazmur 17:13

17:13 Rise up, Lord!

Confront him! ⁶  Knock him down! ⁷ 

Use your sword to rescue me from the wicked man! ⁸ 

Mazmur 49:8

49:8 (the ransom price for a human life ⁹  is too high,

and people go to their final destiny), ¹⁰ 

[6:5]  ¹ tn Heb “for there is not in death your remembrance.” The Hebrew noun זֵכֶר (zekher, “remembrance”) here refers to the name of the Lord as invoked in liturgy and praise. Cf. Pss 30:4; 97:12. “Death” here refers to the realm of death where the dead reside. See the reference to Sheol in the next line.

[6:5]  ² tn The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “no one.”

[6:5]  sn In Sheol who gives you thanks? According to the OT, those who descend into the realm of death/Sheol are cut off from God’s mighty deeds and from the worshiping covenant community that experiences divine intervention (Pss 30:9; 88:10-12; Isa 38:18). In his effort to elicit a positive divine response, the psalmist reminds God that he will receive no praise or glory if he allows the psalmist to die. Dead men do not praise God!

[9:7]  ³ tn The construction vav (ו) + subject highlights the contrast between the exalted Lord and his defeated foes (see v. 6).

[9:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “sits” (i.e., enthroned, see v. 4). The imperfect verbal form highlights the generalization.

[9:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “he establishes for justice his throne.”

[17:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “Be in front of his face.”

[17:13]  ⁷ tn Or “bring him to his knees.”

[17:13]  ⁸ tn Heb “rescue my life from the wicked [one] [by] your sword.”

[49:8]  ⁹ tn Heb “their life.” Some emend the text to “his life,” understanding the antecedent of the pronoun as “brother” in v. 7. However, the man and brother of v. 7 are representative of the human race in general, perhaps explaining why a plural pronoun appears in v. 8. Of course, the plural pronoun could refer back to “the rich” mentioned in v. 6. Another option (the one assumed in the translation) is that the suffixed mem is enclitic. In this case the “ransom price for human life” is referred to an abstract, general way.

[49:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and one ceases forever.” The translation assumes an indefinite subject which in turn is representative of the entire human race (“one,” that refers to human beings without exception). The verb חָדַל (khadal, “cease”) is understood in the sense of “come to an end; fail” (i.e., die). Another option is to translate, “and one ceases/refrains forever.” In this case the idea is that the living, convinced of the reality of human mortality, give up all hope of “buying off” God and refrain from trying to do so.