Mazmur 7:9

7:9 May the evil deeds of the wicked ¹  come to an end! ² 

But make the innocent ³  secure, ⁴ 

O righteous God,

you who examine ⁵  inner thoughts and motives! ⁶ 

Mazmur 35:27

35:27 May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice!

May they continually say, ⁷  “May the Lord be praised, ⁸  for he wants his servant to be secure.” ⁹ 

Mazmur 37:25

37:25 I was once young, now I am old.

I have never seen a godly man abandoned,

or his children ¹⁰  forced to search for food. ¹¹ 

Mazmur 58:11

58:11 Then ¹²  observers ¹³  will say,

“Yes indeed, the godly are rewarded! ¹⁴ 

Yes indeed, there is a God who judges ¹⁵  in the earth!”

Mazmur 142:7

142:7 Free me ¹⁶  from prison,

that I may give thanks to your name.

Because of me the godly will assemble, ¹⁷ 

for you will vindicate me. ¹⁸ 

[7:9]  ¹ tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (rÿsha’im, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21). They oppose God and his people.

[7:9]  ² tn The prefixed verbal form is a jussive, expressing an imprecation here.

[7:9]  ³ tn Or “the godly” (see Ps 5:12). The singular form is collective (see the plural “upright in heart” in v. 10), though it may reflect the personal focus of the psalmist in this context.

[7:9]  ⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form expresses the psalmist’s prayer or wish.

[7:9]  ⁵ tn For other uses of the verb in this sense, see Job 7:18; Pss 11:4; 26:2; 139:23.

[7:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “and [the one who] tests hearts and kidneys, just God.” The translation inverts the word order to improve the English style. The heart and kidneys were viewed as the seat of one’s volition, conscience, and moral character.

[35:27]  ⁷ tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 27a are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-26).

[35:27]  ⁸ tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, “may the Lord be magnified [in praise].” Another option is to take the verb as an imperfect, “the Lord is great.”

[35:27]  ⁹ tn Heb “the one who desires the peace of his servant.”

[37:25]  ¹⁰ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

[37:25]  ¹¹ tn Heb “or his offspring searching for food.” The expression “search for food” also appears in Lam 1:11, where Jerusalem’s refugees are forced to search for food and to trade their valuable possessions for something to eat.

[58:11]  ¹² tn Following the imperfects of v. 10, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive probably indicates a result or consequence of what precedes.

[58:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “man.” The singular is representative here.

[58:11]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “surely [there] is fruit for the godly.”

[58:11]  ¹⁵ tn The plural participle is unusual here if the preceding אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) is here a plural of majesty, referring to the one true God. Occasionally the plural of majesty does take a plural attributive (see GKC 428-29 §132.h). It is possible that the final mem (ם) on the participle is enclitic, and that it was later misunderstood as a plural ending. Another option is to translate, “Yes indeed, there are gods who judge in the earth.” In this case, the statement reflects the polytheistic mindset of pagan observers who, despite their theological ignorance, nevertheless recognize divine retribution when they see it.

[142:7]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “bring out my life.”

[142:7]  ¹⁷ tn Or “gather around.”

[142:7]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew idiom גָּמַל עַל (gamal ’al) means “to repay,” here in a positive sense.