Mazmur 6:9

6:9 The Lord has heard my appeal for mercy;

the Lord has accepted ¹  my prayer.

Mazmur 34:20

34:20 He protects ²  all his bones; ³ 

not one of them is broken. ⁴ 

Mazmur 65:7

65:7 You calm the raging seas ⁵ 

and their roaring waves,

as well as the commotion made by the nations. ⁶ 

Mazmur 9:8

9:8 He judges the world fairly;

he makes just legal decisions for the nations. ⁷ 

[6:9]  ¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is probably a preterite here; it is parallel to a perfect and refers to the fact that the Lord has responded favorably to the psalmist’s request.

[34:20]  ² tn The Hebrew participial form suggests such protection is characteristic.

[34:20]  ³ tn That is, he protects the godly from physical harm.

[34:20]  ⁴ sn Not one of them is broken. The author of the Gospel of John saw a fulfillment of these words in Jesus’ experience on the cross (see John 19:31-37), for the Roman soldiers, when they saw that Jesus was already dead, did not break his legs as was customarily done to speed the death of crucified individuals. John’s use of the psalm seems strange, for the statement in its original context suggests that the Lord protects the godly from physical harm. Jesus’ legs may have remained unbroken, but he was brutally and unjustly executed by his enemies. John seems to give the statement a literal sense that is foreign to its original literary context by applying a promise of divine protection to a man who was seemingly not saved by God. However, John saw in this incident a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ultimate deliverance and vindication. His unbroken bones were a reminder of God’s commitment to the godly and a sign of things to come. Jesus’ death on the cross was not the end of the story; God vindicated him, as John goes on to explain in the following context (John 19:38-20:18).

[65:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “the roar of the seas.”

[65:7]  ⁶ sn The raging seas…the commotion made by the nations. The raging seas symbolize the turbulent nations of the earth (see Ps 46:2-3, 6; Isa 17:12).

[9:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “the peoples.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 8 either describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions (“will judge…”).