Mazmur 101:1--106:48
KonteksA psalm of David.
101:1 I will sing about loyalty and justice!
To you, O Lord, I will sing praises!
101:2 I will walk in 2 the way of integrity.
When will you come to me?
I will conduct my business with integrity in the midst of my palace. 3
101:3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest. 4
I hate doing evil; 5
I will have no part of it. 6
101:4 I will have nothing to do with a perverse person; 7
I will not permit 8 evil.
101:5 I will destroy anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.
I will not tolerate anyone who has a cocky demeanor and an arrogant attitude. 9
101:6 I will favor the honest people of the land, 10
and allow them to live with me. 11
Those who walk in the way of integrity will attend me. 12
101:7 Deceitful people will not live in my palace. 13
Liars will not be welcome in my presence. 14
101:8 Each morning I will destroy all the wicked people in the land,
and remove all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
The prayer of an oppressed man, as he grows faint and pours out his lament before the Lord.
102:1 O Lord, hear my prayer!
Pay attention to my cry for help! 16
102:2 Do not ignore me in my time of trouble! 17
Listen to me! 18
When I call out to you, quickly answer me!
102:3 For my days go up in smoke, 19
and my bones are charred like a fireplace. 20
102:4 My heart is parched 21 and withered like grass,
for I am unable 22 to eat food. 23
102:5 Because of the anxiety that makes me groan,
my bones protrude from my skin. 24
102:6 I am like an owl 25 in the wilderness;
I am like a screech owl 26 among the ruins. 27
I am like a solitary bird on a roof.
102:8 All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who mock me use my name in their curses. 29
102:9 For I eat ashes as if they were bread, 30
and mix my drink with my tears, 31
102:10 because of your anger and raging fury.
Indeed, 32 you pick me up and throw me away.
102:11 My days are coming to an end, 33
and I am withered like grass.
102:12 But you, O Lord, rule forever, 34
and your reputation endures. 35
102:13 You will rise up and have compassion on Zion. 36
For it is time to have mercy on her,
for the appointed time has come.
102:14 Indeed, 37 your servants take delight in her stones,
and feel compassion for 38 the dust of her ruins. 39
102:15 The nations will respect the reputation of the Lord, 40
and all the kings of the earth will respect 41 his splendor,
102:16 when the Lord rebuilds Zion,
and reveals his splendor,
102:17 when he responds to the prayer of the destitute, 42
and does not reject 43 their request. 44
102:18 The account of his intervention 45 will be recorded for future generations;
people yet to be born will praise the Lord.
102:19 For he will look down from his sanctuary above; 46
from heaven the Lord will look toward earth, 47
102:20 in order to hear the painful cries of the prisoners,
and to set free those condemned to die, 48
102:21 so they may proclaim the name of the Lord in Zion,
and praise him 49 in Jerusalem, 50
102:22 when the nations gather together,
and the kingdoms pay tribute to the Lord. 51
102:23 He has taken away my strength in the middle of life; 52
he has cut short my days.
102:24 I say, “O my God, please do not take me away in the middle of my life! 53
You endure through all generations. 54
102:25 In earlier times you established the earth;
the skies are your handiwork.
102:26 They will perish,
but you will endure. 55
They will wear out like a garment;
like clothes you will remove them and they will disappear. 56
your years do not come to an end.
102:28 The children of your servants will settle down here,
and their descendants 58 will live securely in your presence.” 59
By David.
103:1 Praise the Lord, O my soul!
With all that is within me, praise 61 his holy name!
103:2 Praise the Lord, O my soul!
Do not forget all his kind deeds! 62
103:3 He is the one who forgives all your sins,
who heals all your diseases, 63
103:4 who delivers 64 your life from the Pit, 65
who crowns you with his loyal love and compassion,
103:5 who satisfies your life with good things, 66
so your youth is renewed like an eagle’s. 67
103:6 The Lord does what is fair,
and executes justice for all the oppressed. 68
103:7 The Lord revealed his faithful acts 69 to Moses,
his deeds to the Israelites.
103:8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful;
he is patient 70 and demonstrates great loyal love. 71
103:9 He does not always accuse,
and does not stay angry. 72
103:10 He does not deal with us as our sins deserve; 73
he does not repay us as our misdeeds deserve. 74
103:11 For as the skies are high above the earth,
so his loyal love towers 75 over his faithful followers. 76
103:12 As far as the eastern horizon 77 is from the west, 78
so he removes the guilt of our rebellious actions 79 from us.
103:13 As a father has compassion on his children, 80
so the Lord has compassion on his faithful followers. 81
103:14 For he knows what we are made of; 82
he realizes 83 we are made of clay. 84
103:15 A person’s life is like grass. 85
Like a flower in the field it flourishes,
103:16 but when the hot wind 86 blows by, it disappears,
and one can no longer even spot the place where it once grew.
103:17 But the Lord continually shows loyal love to his faithful followers, 87
and is faithful to their descendants, 88
103:18 to those who keep his covenant,
who are careful to obey his commands. 89
103:19 The Lord has established his throne in heaven;
his kingdom extends over everything. 90
103:20 Praise the Lord, you angels of his,
you powerful warriors who carry out his decrees
and obey his orders! 91
103:21 Praise the Lord, all you warriors of his, 92
you servants of his who carry out his desires! 93
103:22 Praise the Lord, all that he has made, 94
in all the regions 95 of his kingdom!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
104:1 Praise the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, you are magnificent. 97
You are robed in splendor and majesty.
104:2 He covers himself with light as if it were a garment.
He stretches out the skies like a tent curtain,
104:3 and lays the beams of the upper rooms of his palace on the rain clouds. 98
He makes the clouds his chariot,
and travels along on the wings of the wind. 99
104:4 He makes the winds his messengers,
and the flaming fire his attendant. 100
104:5 He established the earth on its foundations;
it will never be upended.
104:6 The watery deep covered it 101 like a garment;
the waters reached 102 above the mountains. 103
104:7 Your shout made the waters retreat;
at the sound of your thunderous voice they hurried off –
104:8 as the mountains rose up,
and the valleys went down –
to the place you appointed for them. 104
104:9 You set up a boundary for them that they could not cross,
so that they would not cover the earth again. 105
104:10 He turns springs into streams; 106
they flow between the mountains.
104:11 They provide water for all the animals in the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
104:12 The birds of the sky live beside them;
they chirp among the bushes. 107
104:13 He waters the mountains from the upper rooms of his palace; 108
the earth is full of the fruit you cause to grow. 109
104:14 He provides grass 110 for the cattle,
and crops for people to cultivate, 111
so they can produce food from the ground, 112
104:15 as well as wine that makes people feel so good, 113
and so they can have oil to make their faces shine, 114
as well as food that sustains people’s lives. 115
104:16 The trees of the Lord 116 receive all the rain they need, 117
the cedars of Lebanon which he planted,
104:17 where the birds make nests,
near the evergreens in which the herons live. 118
104:18 The wild goats live in the high mountains; 119
the rock badgers find safety in the cliffs.
104:19 He made the moon to mark the months, 120
and the sun sets according to a regular schedule. 121
104:20 You make it dark and night comes, 122
during which all the beasts of the forest prowl around.
104:21 The lions roar for prey,
seeking their food from God. 123
104:22 When the sun rises, they withdraw
and sleep 124 in their dens.
104:23 Men then go out to do their work,
and labor away until evening. 125
104:24 How many living things you have made, O Lord! 126
You have exhibited great skill in making all of them; 127
the earth is full of the living things you have made.
104:25 Over here is the deep, wide sea, 128
which teems with innumerable swimming creatures, 129
living things both small and large.
104:26 The ships travel there,
and over here swims the whale 130 you made to play in it.
104:27 All of your creatures 131 wait for you
to provide them with food on a regular basis. 132
104:28 You give food to them and they receive it;
you open your hand and they are filled with food. 133
104:29 When you ignore them, they panic. 134
When you take away their life’s breath, they die
and return to dust.
104:30 When you send your life-giving breath, they are created,
and you replenish the surface of the ground.
104:31 May the splendor of the Lord endure! 135
May the Lord find pleasure in the living things he has made! 136
104:32 He looks down on the earth and it shakes;
he touches the mountains and they start to smolder.
104:33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I exist! 137
104:34 May my thoughts 138 be pleasing to him!
I will rejoice in the Lord.
104:35 May sinners disappear 139 from the earth,
and the wicked vanish!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!
105:1 Give thanks to the Lord!
Call on his name!
Make known his accomplishments among the nations!
105:2 Sing to him!
Make music to him!
Tell about all his miraculous deeds!
105:3 Boast about his holy name!
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
105:4 Seek the Lord and the strength he gives!
Seek his presence continually!
105:5 Recall the miraculous deeds he performed,
his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed, 141
105:6 O children 142 of Abraham, 143 God’s 144 servant,
you descendants 145 of Jacob, God’s 146 chosen ones!
105:7 He is the Lord our God;
he carries out judgment throughout the earth. 147
105:8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,
the promise he made 148 to a thousand generations –
105:9 the promise 149 he made to Abraham,
the promise he made by oath to Isaac!
105:10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as a lasting promise, 150
105:11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion of your inheritance.”
105:12 When they were few in number,
just a very few, and resident aliens within it,
105:13 they wandered from nation to nation,
and from one kingdom to another. 151
105:14 He let no one oppress them;
he disciplined kings for their sake,
105:15 saying, 152 “Don’t touch my chosen 153 ones!
Don’t harm my prophets!”
105:16 He called down a famine upon the earth;
he cut off all the food supply. 154
105:17 He sent a man ahead of them 155 –
Joseph was sold as a servant.
105:18 The shackles hurt his feet; 156
his neck was placed in an iron collar, 157
105:19 until the time when his prediction 158 came true.
The Lord’s word 159 proved him right. 160
105:20 The king authorized his release; 161
the ruler of nations set him free.
105:21 He put him in charge of his palace, 162
and made him manager of all his property,
105:22 giving him authority to imprison his officials 163
and to teach his advisers. 164
105:23 Israel moved to 165 Egypt;
Jacob lived for a time 166 in the land of Ham.
105:24 The Lord 167 made his people very fruitful,
and made them 168 more numerous than their 169 enemies.
105:25 He caused them 170 to hate his people,
and to mistreat 171 his servants.
105:26 He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
105:27 They executed his miraculous signs among them, 172
and his amazing deeds in the land of Ham.
they did not disobey his orders. 174
105:29 He turned their water into blood,
and killed their fish.
105:30 Their land was overrun by frogs,
which even got into the rooms of their kings.
105:31 He ordered flies to come; 175
gnats invaded their whole territory.
105:32 He sent hail along with the rain; 176
there was lightning in their land. 177
105:33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,
and broke the trees throughout their territory.
105:34 He ordered locusts to come, 178
innumerable grasshoppers.
105:35 They ate all the vegetation in their land,
and devoured the crops of their fields. 179
105:36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power. 180
105:37 He brought his people 181 out enriched 182 with silver and gold;
none of his tribes stumbled.
105:38 Egypt was happy when they left,
for they were afraid of them. 183
105:39 He spread out a cloud for a cover, 184
and provided a fire to light up the night.
105:40 They asked for food, 185 and he sent quails;
he satisfied them with food from the sky. 186
105:41 He opened up a rock and water flowed out;
a river ran through dry regions.
105:42 Yes, 187 he remembered the sacred promise 188
he made to Abraham his servant.
105:43 When he led his people out, they rejoiced;
his chosen ones shouted with joy. 189
105:44 He handed the territory of nations over to them,
and they took possession of what other peoples had produced, 190
105:45 so that they might keep his commands
and obey 191 his laws.
Praise the Lord!
106:1 Praise the Lord!
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
and his loyal love endures! 193
106:2 Who can adequately recount the Lord’s mighty acts,
or relate all his praiseworthy deeds? 194
106:3 How blessed are those who promote justice,
and do what is right all the time!
106:4 Remember me, O Lord, when you show favor to your people!
Pay attention to me, when you deliver,
106:5 so I may see the prosperity 195 of your chosen ones,
rejoice along with your nation, 196
and boast along with the people who belong to you. 197
106:6 We have sinned like 198 our ancestors; 199
we have done wrong, we have done evil.
106:7 Our ancestors in Egypt failed to appreciate your miraculous deeds,
they failed to remember your many acts of loyal love,
and they rebelled at the sea, by the Red Sea. 200
106:8 Yet he delivered them for the sake of his reputation, 201
that he might reveal his power.
106:9 He shouted at 202 the Red Sea and it dried up;
he led them through the deep water as if it were a desert.
106:10 He delivered them from the power 203 of the one who hated them,
and rescued 204 them from the power 205 of the enemy.
106:11 The water covered their enemies;
not even one of them survived. 206
106:12 They believed his promises; 207
they sang praises to him.
106:13 They quickly forgot what he had done; 208
they did not wait for his instructions. 209
106:14 In the wilderness they had an insatiable craving 210 for meat; 211
they challenged God 212 in the desert.
106:15 He granted their request,
then struck them with a disease. 213
106:16 In the camp they resented 214 Moses,
and Aaron, the Lord’s holy priest. 215
106:17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it engulfed 216 the group led by Abiram. 217
106:18 Fire burned their group;
the flames scorched the wicked. 218
106:19 They made an image of a calf at Horeb,
and worshiped a metal idol.
106:20 They traded their majestic God 219
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
106:21 They rejected 220 the God who delivered them,
the one who performed great deeds in Egypt,
106:22 amazing feats in the land of Ham,
mighty 221 acts by the Red Sea.
106:23 He threatened 222 to destroy them,
but 223 Moses, his chosen one, interceded with him 224
and turned back his destructive anger. 225
106:24 They rejected the fruitful land; 226
they did not believe his promise. 227
106:25 They grumbled in their tents; 228
they did not obey 229 the Lord.
106:26 So he made a solemn vow 230
that he would make them die 231 in the desert,
106:27 make their descendants 232 die 233 among the nations,
and scatter them among foreign lands. 234
106:28 They worshiped 235 Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead. 236
106:29 They made the Lord angry 237 by their actions,
and a plague broke out among them.
106:30 Phinehas took a stand and intervened, 238
and the plague subsided.
106:31 This brought him a reward,
an eternal gift. 239
106:32 They made him angry by the waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered 240 because of them,
106:33 for they aroused 241 his temper, 242
and he spoke rashly. 243
106:34 They did not destroy the nations, 244
as the Lord had commanded them to do.
106:35 They mixed in with the nations
and learned their ways. 245
106:36 They worshiped 246 their idols,
which became a snare to them. 247
106:37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons. 248
106:38 They shed innocent blood –
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan.
The land was polluted by bloodshed. 249
106:39 They were defiled by their deeds,
and unfaithful in their actions. 250
106:40 So the Lord was angry with his people 251
and despised the people who belong to him. 252
106:41 He handed them over to 253 the nations,
and those who hated them ruled over them.
106:42 Their enemies oppressed them;
they were subject to their authority. 254
106:43 Many times he delivered 255 them,
but they had a rebellious attitude, 256
and degraded themselves 257 by their sin.
106:44 Yet he took notice of their distress,
when he heard their cry for help.
106:45 He remembered his covenant with them,
and relented 258 because of his great loyal love.
106:46 He caused all their conquerors 259
to have pity on them.
106:47 Deliver us, O Lord, our God!
Gather us from among the nations!
Then we will give thanks 260 to your holy name,
and boast about your praiseworthy deeds. 261
106:48 The Lord God of Israel deserves praise, 262
in the future and forevermore. 263
Let all the people say, “We agree! 264 Praise the Lord!” 265
[101:1] 1 sn Psalm 101. The psalmist, who appears to be a king, promises to promote justice in his land and vows to rid his royal court of evildoers.
[101:2] 2 tn Heb “take notice of.”
[101:2] 3 tn Heb “I will walk about in the integrity of my heart in the midst of my house.”
[101:3] 4 tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”
[101:3] 5 tn Heb “the doing of swerving [deeds] I hate.” The Hebrew term סֵטִים (setim) is probably an alternate spelling of שֵׂטִים (setim), which appears in many medieval Hebrew
[101:3] 6 tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”
[101:4] 7 tn Heb “a perverse heart will turn aside from me.” The adjective עִקֵּשׁ (’iqqesh) has the basic nuance “twisted; crooked” and by extension refers to someone or something that is morally perverse (see Ps 18:26). It appears frequently in the Book of Proverbs, where it is used of evil people (22:5), speech (8:8; 19:1), thoughts (11:20; 17:20), and life styles (2:15; 28:6).
[101:4] 8 tn Heb “know.” The king will not willingly allow perverse individuals to remain in his royal court.
[101:5] 9 tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”
[101:6] 10 tn Heb “my eyes [are] on the faithful of the land.”
[101:6] 11 tn The Hebrew text simply reads, “in order to live with me.”
[101:6] 12 tn Heb “one who walks in the way of integrity, he will minister to me.”
[101:7] 13 tn Heb “he will not live in the midst of my house, one who does deceit.”
[101:7] 14 tn Heb “one who speaks lies will not be established before my eyes.”
[102:1] 15 sn Psalm 102. The psalmist laments his oppressed state, but longs for a day when the Lord will restore Jerusalem and vindicate his suffering people.
[102:1] 16 tn Heb “and may my cry for help come to you.”
[102:2] 17 tn Heb “do not hide your face from me in the day of my trouble.” The idiom “to hide the face” can mean “to ignore” (see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9) or carry the stronger idea of “to reject” (see Pss 29:7; 30:7; 88:14).
[102:2] 18 tn Heb “turn toward me your ear.”
[102:3] 19 tn Heb “for my days come to an end in smoke.”
[102:3] 20 tn The Hebrew noun מוֹ־קֵד (mo-qed, “fireplace”) occurs only here, in Isa 33:14 (where it refers to the fire itself), and perhaps in Lev 6:2.
[102:4] 21 tn Heb “struck, attacked.”
[102:4] 23 sn I am unable to eat food. During his time of mourning, the psalmist refrained from eating. In the following verse he describes metaphorically the physical effects of fasting.
[102:5] 24 tn Heb “from the sound of my groaning my bone[s] stick to my flesh.” The preposition at the beginning of the verse is causal; the phrase “sound of my groaning” is metonymic for the anxiety that causes the groaning. The point seems to be this: Anxiety (which causes the psalmist to groan) keeps him from eating (v. 4). This physical deprivation in turn makes him emaciated – he is turned to “skin and bones,” so to speak.
[102:6] 25 tn The Hebrew term קָאַת (qa’at) refers to some type of bird (see Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). Modern translations have frequently rendered this as some type of owl (NIV, REB “desert owl”; NRSV “owl”).
[102:6] 26 tn The Hebrew term כוֹס (khos) refers to a bird (see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16), probably a type of owl (cf. NIV, REB “owl”; NRSV “little owl”).
[102:6] 27 sn By comparing himself to a screech owl among the ruins, the psalmist may be highlighting his loneliness (see v. 7), though he may also be comparing his cries for help to the owl’s screech.
[102:7] 28 tn This probably refers to the psalmist’s inability to sleep. Another option is to translate, “I keep watch,” in which case it might refer to watching for a response from the
[102:8] 29 tn Heb “by me they swear.” When the psalmist’s enemies call judgment down on others, they hold the psalmist up as a prime example of what they desire their enemies to become.
[102:9] 30 sn Mourners would sometimes put ashes on their head or roll in ashes as a sign of mourning (see 2 Sam 13:19; Job 2:8; Isa 58:5).
[102:11] 33 tn Heb “my days [are] like an extended [or “lengthening”] shadow,” that is, like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness.
[102:12] 34 tn Heb “sit” (i.e., sit enthroned, see Ps 9:7). The imperfect verbal form highlights the generalization.
[102:12] 35 tn Heb “and your remembrance [is] for a generation and a generation.”
[102:13] 36 tn The imperfect verbal forms are understood as expressing the psalmist’s confidence in God’s intervention. Another option is to take them as expressing the psalmist’s request or wish, “You, rise up and have compassion!”
[102:14] 38 tn The Poel of חָנַן (khanan) occurs only here and in Prov 14:21, where it refers to having compassion on the poor.
[102:14] 39 tn Heb “her dust,” probably referring to the dust of the city’s rubble.
[102:15] 40 tn Heb “will fear the name of the
[102:15] 41 tn The verb “will fear” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the preceding line).
[102:17] 42 tn The Hebrew adjective עַרְעָר (’arar, “destitute”) occurs only here in the OT. It is derived from the verbal root ערר (“to strip oneself”).
[102:17] 44 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 16-17 are functioning as future perfects, indicating future actions that will precede the future developments described in v. 15.
[102:18] 45 tn The Hebrew text has simply “this,” referring to the anticipated divine intervention on behalf of Zion (vv. 13, 16-17). The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[102:19] 46 tn Heb “from the height of his sanctuary.”
[102:19] 47 tn The perfect verbal forms in v. 19 are functioning as future perfects, indicating future actions that will precede the future developments described in v. 18.
[102:20] 48 tn Heb “the sons of death.” The phrase “sons of death” (see also Ps 79:11) is idiomatic for those condemned to die.
[102:21] 49 tn Heb “his praise.”
[102:21] 50 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[102:22] 51 tn “and the kingdoms to serve the
[102:23] 52 tn Heb “he has afflicted my strength in the way.” The term “way” refers here to the course of the psalmist’s life, which appears to be ending prematurely (vv. 23b-24).
[102:24] 53 tn Heb “do not lift me up in the middle of my days.”
[102:24] 54 tn Heb “in a generation of generations [are] your years.”
[102:26] 56 tn The Hebrew verb חָלַף (khalaf) occurs twice in this line, once in the Hiphil (“you will remove them”) and once in the Qal (“they will disappear”). The repetition draws attention to the statement.
[102:27] 57 tn Heb “you [are] he,” or “you [are] the one.” The statement may echo the
[102:28] 58 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
[102:28] 59 tn Heb “before you will be established.”
[103:1] 60 sn Psalm 103. The psalmist praises God for his mercy and willingness to forgive his people.
[103:1] 61 tn The verb “praise” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the preceding line).
[103:2] 62 tn Or “his benefits” (see 2 Chr 32:25, where the noun is also used of kind deeds performed by the
[103:3] 63 tn This relatively rare noun refers to deadly diseases (see Deut 29:22; Jer 14:18; 16:4; 2 Chr 21:19).
[103:4] 65 tn The Hebrew term שַׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 30:9; 49:9; 55:24.
[103:5] 66 tc Heb “who satisfies with the good of your ornaments.” The text as it stands makes little, if any, sense. The translation assumes an emendation of עֶדְיֵךְ (’ed’ekh, “your ornaments”) to עֹדֵכִי (’odekhiy, “your duration; your continuance”) that is, “your life” (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 18).
[103:5] 67 sn The expression your youth is renewed like an eagle’s may allude to the phenomenon of molting, whereby the eagle grows new feathers.
[103:6] 68 tn Heb “the
[103:7] 69 tn Heb “made known his ways.” God’s “ways” in this context are his protective and salvific acts in fulfillment of his promise (see also Deut 32:4; Pss 18:30; 67:2; 77:13 [note vv. 11-12, 14]; 138:5; 145:17).
[103:8] 70 tn Heb “slow to anger” (see Ps 86:15).
[103:8] 71 tn Heb “and great of loyal love” (see Ps 86:15).
[103:9] 72 tn The Hebrew verb נָטַר (natar) is usually taken to mean “to keep; to guard,” with “anger” being understood by ellipsis. The idiom “to guard anger” is then understood to mean “to remain angry” (see Lev 19:18; Jer 3:5, 12; Nah 1:2). However, it is possible that this is a homonymic root meaning “to be angry” (see HALOT 695 s.v. נטר).
[103:10] 73 tn Heb “not according to our sins does he do to us.”
[103:10] 74 tn Heb “and not according to our misdeeds does he repay us.”
[103:11] 75 tn For this sense of the verb גָבַר (gavar), see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 17, 19.
[103:11] 76 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[103:12] 79 tn The Hebrew term פֶּשַׁע (pesha’, rebellious act”) is here used metonymically for the guilt such actions produce.
[103:13] 80 tn Or “sons,” but the Hebrew term sometimes refers to children in general.
[103:13] 81 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[103:14] 82 tn Heb “our form.”
[103:14] 83 tn Heb “remembers.”
[103:14] 84 tn Heb “we [are] clay.”
[103:15] 85 tn Heb “[as for] mankind, like grass [are] his days.” The Hebrew noun אֱנוֹשׁ (’enosh) is used here generically of human beings. What is said is true of all mankind.
[103:16] 86 tn Heb “[the] wind.” The word “hot” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
[103:17] 87 tn Heb “but the loyal love of the
[103:17] 88 tn Heb “and his righteousness to sons of sons.”
[103:18] 89 tn Heb “to those who remember his precepts to do them.”
[103:19] 90 tn Heb “his kingdom rules over all.”
[103:20] 91 tn Heb “[you] mighty ones of strength, doers of his word, by listening to the voice of his word.”
[103:21] 92 tn Heb “all his hosts.”
[103:21] 93 tn Heb “his attendants, doers of his desire.”
[103:22] 94 tn Heb “all his works,” which includes mankind.
[104:1] 96 sn Psalm 104. The psalmist praises God as the ruler of the world who sustains all life.
[104:1] 97 tn Heb “very great.”
[104:3] 98 tn Heb “one who lays the beams on water [in] his upper rooms.” The “water” mentioned here corresponds to the “waters above” mentioned in Gen 1:7. For a discussion of the picture envisioned by the psalmist, see L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 44-45.
[104:3] 99 sn Verse 3 may depict the Lord riding a cherub, which is in turn propelled by the wind current. Another option is that the wind is personified as a cherub. See Ps 18:10 and the discussion of ancient Near Eastern parallels to the imagery in M. Weinfeld, “‘Rider of the Clouds’ and ‘Gatherer of the Clouds’,” JANESCU 5 (1973): 422-24.
[104:4] 100 tc Heb “and his attendants a flaming fire.” The lack of agreement between the singular “fire” and plural “attendants” has prompted various emendations. Some read “fire and flame.” The present translation assumes an emendation to “his attendant” (יו in the Hebrew text being virtually dittographic).
[104:4] sn In Ugaritic mythology Yam’s messengers appear as flaming fire before the assembly of the gods. See G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 42.
[104:6] 101 tc Heb “you covered it.” The masculine suffix is problematic if the grammatically feminine noun “earth” is the antecedent. For this reason some emend the form to a feminine verb with feminine suffix, כִּסַּתָּה (kisattah, “[the watery deep] covered it [i.e., the earth]”), a reading assumed by the present translation.
[104:6] 103 sn Verse 6 refers to the condition described in Gen 1:2 (note the use of the Hebrew term תְּהוֹם [tÿhom, “watery deep”] in both texts).
[104:8] 104 tn Heb “from your shout they fled, from the sound of your thunder they hurried off.”
[104:8] sn Verses 7-8 poetically depict Gen 1:9-10.
[104:9] 105 tn Heb “a boundary you set up, they will not cross, they will not return to cover the earth.”
[104:10] 106 tn Heb “[the] one who sends springs into streams.” Another option is to translate, “he sends streams [i.e., streams that originate from springs] into the valleys” (cf. NIV).
[104:12] 107 tn Heb “among the thick foliage they give a sound.”
[104:13] 108 tn Heb “from his upper rooms.”
[104:13] 109 tn Heb “from the fruit of your works the earth is full.” The translation assumes that “fruit” is literal here. If “fruit” is understood more abstractly as “product; result,” then one could translate, “the earth flourishes as a result of your deeds” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB).
[104:14] 110 tn Heb “causes the grass to sprout up.”
[104:14] 111 tn Heb “for the service of man” (see Gen 2:5).
[104:14] 112 tn Heb “to cause food to come out from the earth.”
[104:15] 113 tn Heb “and wine [that] makes the heart of man happy.”
[104:15] 114 tn Heb “to make [the] face shine from oil.” The Hebrew verb צָהַל (tsahal, “to shine”) occurs only here in the OT. It appears to be an alternate form of צָהַר (tsahar), a derivative from צָהָרִים (tsaharim, “noon”).
[104:15] 115 tn Heb “and food [that] sustains the heart of man.”
[104:16] 116 sn The trees of the
[104:16] 117 tn Heb “are satisfied,” which means here that they receive abundant rain (see v. 13).
[104:17] 118 tn Heb “[the] heron [in the] evergreens [is] its home.”
[104:17] sn The cedars and evergreens of the Lebanon forest are frequently associated (see, for example, 2 Chr 2:8; Isa 14:8; 37:24; Ezek 31:8).
[104:18] 119 tn Heb “the high mountains [are] for the goats.”
[104:19] 120 tn Heb “he made [the] moon for appointed times.” The phrase “appointed times” probably refers to the months of the Hebrew lunar calendar.
[104:19] 121 tn Heb more metaphorically, “knows its setting.”
[104:20] 122 tn Heb “you make darkness, so that it might be night.”
[104:21] 123 sn The lions’ roaring is viewed as a request for food from God.
[104:22] 124 tn Heb “lie down.”
[104:23] 125 tn Heb “man goes out to his work, and to his labor until evening.”
[104:24] 126 tn Heb “How many [are] your works, O
[104:24] 127 tn Heb “all of them with wisdom you have made.”
[104:25] 128 tn Heb “this [is] the sea, great and broad of hands [i.e., “sides” or “shores”].”
[104:25] 129 tn Heb “where [there are] swimming things, and without number.”
[104:26] 130 tn Heb “[and] this Leviathan, [which] you formed to play in it.” Elsewhere Leviathan is a multiheaded sea monster that symbolizes forces hostile to God (see Ps 74:14; Isa 27:1), but here it appears to be an actual marine creature created by God, probably some type of whale.
[104:27] 131 tn Heb “All of them.” The pronoun “them” refers not just to the sea creatures mentioned in vv. 25-26, but to all living things (see v. 24). This has been specified in the translation as “all of your creatures” for clarity.
[104:27] 132 tn Heb “to give their food in its time.”
[104:28] 133 tn Heb “they are satisfied [with] good.”
[104:29] 134 tn Heb “you hide your face, they are terrified.”
[104:31] 135 tn Heb “be forever.”
[104:31] 136 tn Or “rejoice in his works.”
[104:33] 137 tn Heb “in my duration.”
[104:34] 138 tn That is, the psalmist’s thoughts as expressed in his songs of praise.
[104:35] 139 tn Or “be destroyed.”
[105:1] 140 sn Psalm 105. The psalmist summons Israel to praise God because he delivered his people from Egypt in fulfillment of his covenantal promises to Abraham. A parallel version of vv. 1-15 appears in 1 Chr 16:8-22.
[105:5] 141 tn Heb “and the judgments of his mouth.”
[105:6] 142 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
[105:6] 143 tc Some
[105:6] 144 tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[105:6] 146 tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[105:7] 147 tn Heb “in all the earth [are] his judgments.”
[105:8] 148 tn Heb “[the] word he commanded.” The text refers here to God’s unconditional covenantal promise to Abraham and the patriarchs, as vv. 10-12 make clear.
[105:10] 150 tn Or “eternal covenant.”
[105:13] 151 tn Heb “and from a kingdom to another nation.”
[105:15] 152 tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
[105:15] 153 tn Heb “anointed.”
[105:16] 154 tn Heb “and every staff of food he broke.” The psalmist refers to the famine that occurred in Joseph’s time (see v. 17 and Gen 41:53-57).
[105:17] 155 tn After the reference to the famine in v. 16, v. 17 flashes back to events that preceded the famine (see Gen 37).
[105:18] 156 tn Heb “they afflicted his feet with shackles.”
[105:18] 157 tn Heb “his neck came [into] iron.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) with the suffix could mean simply “he” or “his life.” But the nuance “neck” makes good sense here (note the reference to his “feet” in the preceding line). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 38.
[105:19] 158 tn Heb “word,” probably referring to Joseph’s prediction about the fate of Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker (see Gen 41:9-14).
[105:19] 159 tn This line may refer to Joseph’s prediction of the famine in response to Pharaoh’s dream. Joseph emphasized to Pharaoh that the interpretation of the dream came from God (see Gen 41:16, 25, 28, 32, 39).
[105:19] 160 tn Heb “refined him.”
[105:20] 161 tn Heb “[the] king sent and set him free.”
[105:21] 162 tn Heb “he made him master of his house.”
[105:22] 163 tn Heb “to bind his officials by his will.”
[105:22] 164 tn Heb “and his elders he taught wisdom.”
[105:23] 165 tn Heb “entered.”
[105:23] 166 tn Heb “lived as a resident alien.”
[105:24] 167 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the
[105:24] 168 tn Heb “him,” referring to “his people.”
[105:24] 169 tn Heb “his,” referring to “his people.”
[105:25] 170 tn Heb “their heart.”
[105:25] 171 tn Or “to deal deceptively.” The Hitpael of נָכַל (nakhal) occurs only here and in Gen 37:18, where it is used of Joseph’s brothers “plotting” to kill him.
[105:27] 172 tn Apparently the pronoun refers to “his servants” (i.e., the Israelites, see v. 25).
[105:28] 173 tn Heb “he sent darkness and made it dark.”
[105:28] sn He made it dark. The psalmist begins with the ninth plague (see Exod 10:21-29).
[105:28] 174 tn Heb “they did not rebel against his words.” Apparently this refers to Moses and Aaron, who obediently carried out God’s orders.
[105:31] 175 tn Heb “he spoke and flies came.”
[105:32] 176 tn Heb “he gave their rains hail.”
[105:32] 177 tn Heb “fire of flames [was] in their land.”
[105:34] 178 tn Heb “he spoke and locusts came.”
[105:35] 179 tn Heb “the fruit of their ground.”
[105:36] 180 tn Heb “the beginning of all their strength,” that is, reproductive power (see Ps 78:51).
[105:36] sn Verses 28-36 recall the plagues in a different order than the one presented in Exodus: v. 28 (plague 9), v. 29 (plague 1), v. 30 (plague 2), v. 31a (plague 4), v. 31b (plague 3), vv. 32-33 (plague 7), vv. 34-35 (plague 8), v. 36 (plague 10). No reference is made in Ps 105 to plagues 5 and 6.
[105:37] 181 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the
[105:37] 182 tn The word “enriched” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
[105:38] 183 tn Heb “for fear of them had fallen upon them.”
[105:40] 185 tn Heb “he [i.e., his people] asked.” The singular form should probably be emended to a plural שָׁאֲלוּ (sha’alu, “they asked”), the vav (ו) having fallen off by haplography (note the vav at the beginning of the following form).
[105:40] 186 tn Or “bread of heaven.” The reference is to manna (see Exod 16:4, 13-15).
[105:42] 188 tn Heb “his holy word.”
[105:43] 189 tn Heb “and he led his people out with joy, with a ringing cry, his chosen ones.”
[105:44] 190 tn Heb “and the [product of the] work of peoples they possessed.”
[106:1] 192 sn Psalm 106. The psalmist recalls Israel’s long history of rebellion against God, despite his mighty saving deeds on their behalf.
[106:1] 193 tn Heb “for forever [is] his loyal love.”
[106:2] 194 tn Heb “[or] cause to be heard all his praise.”
[106:5] 196 tn Heb “in order that [I may] rejoice with the rejoicing of your nation.”
[106:5] 197 tn Heb “with your inheritance.”
[106:6] 199 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 7).
[106:7] 200 tn Heb “Reed Sea” (also in vv. 9, 22). “Reed Sea” (or “Sea of Reeds”) is a more accurate rendering of the Hebrew expression יָם סוּף (yam suf), traditionally translated “Red Sea.” See the note on the term “Red Sea” in Exod 13:18.
[106:7] sn They rebelled. The psalmist recalls the people’s complaint recorded in Exod 14:12.
[106:8] 201 tn Heb “his name,” which here stands metonymically for God’s reputation.
[106:10] 204 tn Or “redeemed.”
[106:11] 206 tn Heb “remained.”
[106:12] 207 tn Heb “his words.”
[106:13] 208 tn Heb “his works.”
[106:13] 209 tn Heb “his counsel.”
[106:14] 210 sn They had an insatiable craving. This is described in Num 11:4-35.
[106:14] 211 tn Heb “they craved [with] a craving.”
[106:14] 212 tn Heb “they tested God.”
[106:15] 213 tn Heb “and he sent leanness into their being.”
[106:15] sn Disease. See Num 11:33-34, where this plague is described.
[106:16] 215 tn Heb “the holy one of the
[106:17] 217 tn Or “the assembly of Abiram.”
[106:18] 218 sn Verses 16-18 describe the events of Num 16:1-40.
[106:20] 219 tn Heb “their glory.” According to an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition, the text originally read “his glory” or “my glory.” In Jer 2:11 the
[106:22] 221 tn Or “awe-inspiring.”
[106:23] 222 tn Heb “and he said.”
[106:23] 223 tn Heb “if not,” that is, “[and would have] if [Moses] had not.”
[106:23] 224 tn Heb “stood in the gap before him.”
[106:23] 225 tn Heb “to turn back his anger from destroying.”
[106:23] sn Verses 19-23 describe the events of Exod 32:1-35.
[106:24] 226 tn Heb “a land of delight” (see also Jer 3:19; Zech 7:14).
[106:24] 227 tn Heb “his word.”
[106:25] 228 sn They grumbled in their tents. See Deut 1:27.
[106:25] 229 tn Heb “did not listen to the voice of.”
[106:26] 230 tn Heb “and he lifted his hand to [or “concerning”] them.” The idiom “to lift a hand” here refers to swearing an oath. One would sometimes solemnly lift one’s hand when making such a vow (see Ezek 20:5-6, 15).
[106:26] 231 tn Heb “to cause them to fall.”
[106:27] 232 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
[106:27] 233 tn Heb “and to cause their offspring to fall.” Some emend the verb to “scatter” to form tighter parallelism with the following line (cf. NRSV “disperse”).
[106:27] 234 tn Heb “among the lands.” The word “foreign” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
[106:28] 235 tn Heb “joined themselves to.”
[106:28] sn They worshiped Baal of Peor. See Num 25:3, 5. Baal of Peor was a local manifestation of the Canaanite deity Baal located at Peor.
[106:28] 236 tn Here “the dead” may refer to deceased ancestors (see Deut 26:14). Another option is to understand the term as a derogatory reference to the various deities which the Israelites worshiped at Peor along with Baal (see Num 25:2 and L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 49).
[106:29] 237 tn Heb “They made angry [him].” The pronominal suffix is omitted here, but does appear in a few medieval Hebrew
[106:30] 238 sn The intervention of Phinehas is recounted in Num 25:7-8.
[106:31] 239 tn Heb “and it was reckoned to him for righteousness, to a generation and a generation forever.” The verb חָשַׁב (khashav, “to reckon”) is collocated with צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “righteousness”) only in Ps 106:31 and Gen 15:6, where God rewards Abram’s faith with a land grant.
[106:31] sn Brought him a reward. See Num 25:12-13.
[106:32] 240 tn Heb “there was harm to Moses.”
[106:33] 241 tn The Hebrew text vocalizes the form as הִמְרוּ (himru), a Hiphil from מָרָה (marah, “to behave rebelliously”), but the verb fits better with the object (“his spirit”) if it is revocalized as הֵמֵרוּ (hemeru), a Hiphil from מָרַר (marar, “to be bitter”). The Israelites “embittered” Moses’ “spirit” in the sense that they aroused his temper with their complaints.
[106:33] 242 tn Heb “his spirit.”
[106:33] 243 tn The Hebrew text adds “with his lips,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[106:33] sn Verses 32-33 allude to the events of Num 20:1-13.
[106:34] 244 tn That is, the nations of Canaan.
[106:35] 245 tn Heb “their deeds.”
[106:36] 247 sn Became a snare. See Exod 23:33; Judg 2:3.
[106:37] 248 tn The Hebrew term שֵׁדִים (shedim, “demons”) occurs only here and in Deut 32:17. Some type of lesser deity is probably in view.
[106:38] 249 sn Num 35:33-34 explains that bloodshed defiles a land.
[106:39] 250 tn Heb “and they committed adultery in their actions.” This means that they were unfaithful to the
[106:40] 251 tn Heb “the anger of the
[106:40] 252 tn Heb “his inheritance.”
[106:41] 253 tn Heb “gave them into the hand of.”
[106:42] 254 tn Heb “they were subdued under their hand.”
[106:43] 255 tn The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“he would deliver”).
[106:43] 256 tn Heb “but they rebelled in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“they would have a rebellious attitude”).
[106:43] 257 tn Heb “they sank down.” The Hebrew verb מָכַךְ (makhakh, “to lower; to sink”) occurs only here in the Qal.
[106:45] 258 tn The Niphal of נָחַם (nakham) refers here to God relenting from a punishment already underway.
[106:47] 260 tn Heb “to give thanks.” The infinitive construct indicates result after the imperative.
[106:47] 261 tn Heb “to boast in your praise.”
[106:48] 262 tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21.
[106:48] 263 tn Heb “from everlasting to everlasting.”
[106:48] 264 tn Heb “surely” (אָמֵן, ’amen), traditionally transliterated “amen.”
[106:48] 265 sn The final verse (v. 48) is a conclusion to this fourth “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the first, second and third “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 41:13; 72:18-19; 89:52, respectively).
