Mazmur 12:3

12:3 May the Lord cut off ¹  all flattering lips,

and the tongue that boasts! ² 

Mazmur 14:1

Psalm 14 ³ 

For the music director; by David.

14:1 Fools say to themselves, ⁴  “There is no God.” ⁵ 

They sin and commit evil deeds; ⁶ 

none of them does what is right. ⁷ 

Mazmur 15:3

15:3 He ⁸  does not slander, ⁹ 

or do harm to others, ¹⁰ 

or insult his neighbor. ¹¹ 

Mazmur 89:7

89:7 a God who is honored ¹²  in the great angelic assembly, ¹³ 

and more awesome than ¹⁴  all who surround him?

Mazmur 101:5

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. ¹⁵ 

Mazmur 105:14

105:14 He let no one oppress them;

he disciplined kings for their sake,

Mazmur 111:4

111:4 He does ¹⁶  amazing things that will be remembered; ¹⁷ 

the Lord is merciful and compassionate.

[12:3]  ¹ tn The verb form is a jussive, indicating that the statement is imprecatory (“May the Lord cut off”), not indicative (“The Lord will cut off”; see also Ps 109:15 and Mal 2:12). The psalmist appeals to God to destroy the wicked, rather than simply stating his confidence that he will. In this way he seeks to activate divine judgment by appealing to God’s just character. For an example of the power of such a curse, see Judg 9:7-57.

[12:3]  ² tn Heb “a tongue speaking great [things].”

[14:1]  ³ sn Psalm 14. The psalmist observes that the human race is morally corrupt. Evildoers oppress God’s people, but the psalmist is confident of God’s protection and anticipates a day when God will vindicate Israel.

[14:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “a fool says in his heart.” The singular is used here in a collective or representative sense; the typical fool is envisioned.

[14:1]  ⁵ sn “There is no God.” The statement is probably not a philosophical assertion that God does not exist, but rather a confident affirmation that God is unconcerned about how men live morally and ethically (see Ps 10:4, 11).

[14:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “they act corruptly, they make a deed evil.” The verbs describe the typical behavior of the wicked. The subject of the plural verbs is “sons of man” (v. 2). The entire human race is characterized by sinful behavior. This practical atheism – living as if there is no God who will hold them accountable for their actions – makes them fools, for one of the earmarks of folly is to fail to anticipate the long range consequences of one’s behavior.

[14:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”

[15:3]  ⁸ sn Hebrew literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age.

[15:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “he does not slander upon his tongue.” For another example of רָגַל (ragal, “slander”) see 2 Sam 19:28.

[15:3]  ¹⁰ tn Or “his fellow.”

[15:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and he does not lift up an insult against one who is near to him.”

[89:7]  ¹² tn Heb “feared.”

[89:7]  ¹³ tn Heb “in the great assembly of the holy ones.”

[89:7]  ¹⁴ tn Or perhaps “feared by.”

[101:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”

[111:4]  ¹⁶ tn Or “did,” if this refers primarily to the events of the exodus and conquest period (see vv. 6, 9).

[111:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “a memorial he had made for his amazing deeds.”