Psalms 1:3

1:3 He is like ¹  a tree planted by flowing streams; ² 

it ³  yields ⁴  its fruit at the proper time, ⁵ 

and its leaves never fall off. ⁶ 

He succeeds in everything he attempts. ⁷ 

Psalms 3:1

Psalm 3 ⁸ 

A psalm of David, written when he fled from his son Absalom. ⁹ 

3:1 Lord, how ¹⁰  numerous are my enemies!

Many attack me. ¹¹ 

Psalms 26:1

Psalm 26 ¹² 

By David.

26:1 Vindicate me, O Lord,

for I have integrity, ¹³ 

and I trust in the Lord without wavering.

Psalms 27:9

27:9 Do not reject me! ¹⁴ 

Do not push your servant away in anger!

You are my deliverer! ¹⁵ 

Do not forsake or abandon me,

O God who vindicates me!

Psalms 32:5

32:5 Then I confessed my sin;

I no longer covered up my wrongdoing.

I said, “I will confess ¹⁶  my rebellious acts to the Lord.”

And then you forgave my sins. ¹⁷  (Selah)

Psalms 38:12

38:12 Those who seek my life try to entrap me; ¹⁸ 

those who want to harm me speak destructive words;

all day long they say deceitful things.

Psalms 54:3

54:3 For foreigners ¹⁹  attack me; ²⁰ 

ruthless men, who do not respect God, seek my life. ²¹  (Selah)

Psalms 73:28

73:28 But as for me, God’s presence is all I need. ²² 

I have made the sovereign Lord my shelter,

as ²³  I declare all the things you have done.

Psalms 101:2

101:2 I will walk in ²⁴  the way of integrity.

When will you come to me?

I will conduct my business with integrity in the midst of my palace. ²⁵ 

Psalms 127:1

Psalm 127 ²⁶ 

A song of ascents, ²⁷  by Solomon.

127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, ²⁸ 

then those who build it work in vain.

If the Lord does not guard a city, ²⁹ 

then the watchman stands guard in vain.

[1:3]  ¹ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse. According to the psalmist, the one who studies and obeys God’s commands typically prospers.

[1:3]  ² tn Heb “channels of water.”

[1:3]  ³ tn Heb “which.”

[1:3]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in v. 3 draw attention to the typical nature of the actions/states they describe.

[1:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “in its season.”

[1:3]  ⁶ tn Or “fade”; “wither.”

[1:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “and all which he does prospers”; or “and all which he does he causes to prosper.” (The simile of the tree does not extend to this line.) It is not certain if the Hiphil verbal form (יַצְלִיחַ, yatsliakh) is intransitive-exhibitive (“prospers”) or causative (“causes to prosper”) here. If the verb is intransitive, then כֹּל (kol, “all, everything”) is the subject. If the verb is causative, then the godly individual or the Lord himself is the subject and כֹּל is the object. The wording is reminiscent of Josh 1:8, where the Lord tells Joshua: “This law scroll must not leave your lips! You must memorize it day and night so you can carefully obey all that is written in it. Then you will prosper (literally, “cause your way to prosper”) and be successful.”

[3:1]  ⁸ sn Psalm 3. The psalmist acknowledges that he is confronted by many enemies (vv. 1-2). But, alluding to a divine oracle he has received (vv. 4-5), he affirms his confidence in God’s ability to protect him (vv. 3, 6) and requests that God make his promise a reality (vv. 7-8).

[3:1]  ⁹ sn According to Jewish tradition, David offered this prayer when he was forced to flee from Jerusalem during his son Absalom’s attempted coup (see 2 Sam 15:13-17).

[3:1]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew term מָה (mah, “how”) is used here as an adverbial exclamation (see BDB 553 s.v.).

[3:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “many rise up against me.”

[26:1]  ¹⁵ sn Psalm 26. The author invites the Lord to test his integrity, asserts his innocence and declares his loyalty to God.

[26:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “for I in my integrity walk.”

[27:9]  ²² tn Heb “do not hide your face from me.” The idiom “hide the face” can mean “ignore” (see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9) or carry the stronger idea of “reject” (see Pss 30:7; 88:14).

[27:9]  ²³ tn Or “[source of] help.”

[32:5]  ²⁹ tn The Hiphil of ידה normally means “give thanks, praise,” but here, as in Prov 28:13, it means “confess.”

[32:5]  ³⁰ tn Heb “the wrongdoing of my sin.” By joining synonyms for “sin” in this way, the psalmist may be emphasizing the degree of his wrongdoing.

[38:12]  ³⁶ tn Heb “lay snares.”

[54:3]  ⁴³ tc Many medieval Hebrew mss read זֵדִים (zedim, “proud ones”) rather than זָרִים (zarim, “foreigners”). (No matter which reading one chooses as original, dalet-resh confusion accounts for the existence of the variant.) The term זֵדִים (“proud ones”) occurs in parallelism with עָרִיצִים (’aritsim, “violent ones”) in Ps 86:14 and Isa 13:11. However, זָרִים (zarim, “foreigners”) is parallel to עָרִיצִים (’aritsim, “violent ones”) in Isa 25:5; 29:5; Ezek 28:7; 31:12.

[54:3]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “rise against me.”

[54:3]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and ruthless ones seek my life, they do not set God in front of them.”

[73:28]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “but as for me, the nearness of God for me [is] good.”

[73:28]  ⁵¹ tn The infinitive construct with -לְ (lÿ) is understood here as indicating an attendant circumstance. Another option is to take it as indicating purpose (“so that I might declare”) or result (“with the result that I declare”).

[101:2]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “take notice of.”

[101:2]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “I will walk about in the integrity of my heart in the midst of my house.”

[127:1]  ⁶⁴ sn Psalm 127. In this wisdom psalm the psalmist teaches that one does not find security by one’s own efforts, for God alone gives stability and security.

[127:1]  ⁶⁵ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[127:1]  ⁶⁶ sn The expression build a house may have a double meaning here. It may refer on the surface level to a literal physical structure in which a family lives, but at a deeper, metaphorical level it refers to building, perpetuating, and maintaining a family line. See Deut 25:9; Ruth 4:11; 1 Sam 2:35; 2 Sam 7:27; 1 Kgs 11:38; 1 Chr 17:10, 25. Having a family line provided security in ancient Israel.

[127:1]  ⁶⁷ sn The city symbolizes community security, which is the necessary framework for family security.