Mazmur 31:1--35:28
KonteksFor the music director; a psalm of David.
31:1 In you, O Lord, I have taken shelter!
Never let me be humiliated!
Vindicate me by rescuing me! 2
Quickly deliver me!
Be my protector and refuge, 4
a stronghold where I can be safe! 5
31:3 For you are my high ridge 6 and my stronghold;
for the sake of your own reputation 7 you lead me and guide me. 8
31:4 You will free me 9 from the net they hid for me,
for you are my place of refuge.
31:5 Into your hand I entrust my life; 10
you will rescue 11 me, O Lord, the faithful God.
31:6 I hate those who serve worthless idols, 12
but I trust in the Lord.
31:7 I will be happy and rejoice in your faithfulness,
because you notice my pain
and you are aware of how distressed I am. 13
31:8 You do not deliver me over to the power of the enemy;
you enable me to stand 14 in a wide open place.
31:9 Have mercy on me, for I am in distress!
My eyes grow dim 15 from suffering. 16
I have lost my strength. 17
31:10 For my life nears its end in pain;
my years draw to a close as I groan. 18
My strength fails me because of 19 my sin,
and my bones become brittle. 20
31:11 Because of all my enemies, people disdain me; 21
my neighbors are appalled by my suffering 22 –
those who know me are horrified by my condition; 23
those who see me in the street run away from me.
31:12 I am forgotten, like a dead man no one thinks about; 24
I am regarded as worthless, like a broken jar. 25
31:13 For I hear what so many are saying, 26
the terrifying news that comes from every direction. 27
When they plot together against me,
they figure out how they can take my life.
31:14 But I trust in you, O Lord!
I declare, “You are my God!”
31:15 You determine my destiny! 28
Rescue me from the power of my enemies and those who chase me.
31:16 Smile 29 on your servant!
Deliver me because of your faithfulness!
31:17 O Lord, do not let me be humiliated,
for I call out to you!
May evil men be humiliated!
May they go wailing to the grave! 30
31:18 May lying lips be silenced –
lips 31 that speak defiantly against the innocent 32
with arrogance and contempt!
31:19 How great is your favor, 33
which you store up for your loyal followers! 34
In plain sight of everyone you bestow it on those who take shelter 35 in you. 36
31:20 You hide them with you, where they are safe from the attacks 37 of men; 38
you conceal them in a shelter, where they are safe from slanderous attacks. 39
31:21 The Lord deserves praise 40
for he demonstrated his amazing faithfulness to me when I was besieged by enemies. 41
31:22 I jumped to conclusions and said, 42
“I am cut off from your presence!” 43
But you heard my plea for mercy when I cried out to you for help.
31:23 Love the Lord, all you faithful followers 44 of his!
The Lord protects those who have integrity,
but he pays back in full the one who acts arrogantly. 45
31:24 Be strong and confident, 46
all you who wait on the Lord!
By David; a well-written song. 48
32:1 How blessed 49 is the one whose rebellious acts are forgiven, 50
whose sin is pardoned! 51
32:2 How blessed is the one 52 whose wrongdoing the Lord does not punish, 53
in whose spirit there is no deceit. 54
32:3 When I refused to confess my sin, 55
my whole body wasted away, 56
while I groaned in pain all day long.
32:4 For day and night you tormented me; 57
you tried to destroy me 58 in the intense heat 59 of summer. 60 (Selah)
32:5 Then I confessed my sin;
I no longer covered up my wrongdoing.
I said, “I will confess 61 my rebellious acts to the Lord.”
And then you forgave my sins. 62 (Selah)
32:6 For this reason every one of your faithful followers 63 should pray to you
while there is a window of opportunity. 64
Certainly 65 when the surging water 66 rises,
it will not reach them. 67
32:7 You are my hiding place;
you protect me from distress.
You surround me with shouts of joy from those celebrating deliverance. 68 (Selah)
32:8 I will instruct and teach you 69 about how you should live. 70
I will advise you as I look you in the eye. 71
32:9 Do not be 72 like an unintelligent horse or mule, 73
which will not obey you
unless they are controlled by a bridle and bit. 74
32:10 An evil person suffers much pain, 75
but the Lord’s faithfulness overwhelms the one who trusts in him. 76
32:11 Rejoice in the Lord and be happy, you who are godly!
Shout for joy, all you who are morally upright! 77
33:1 You godly ones, shout for joy because of the Lord!
It is appropriate for the morally upright to offer him praise.
33:2 Give thanks to the Lord with the harp!
Sing to him to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument!
33:3 Sing to him a new song! 79
Play skillfully as you shout out your praises to him! 80
33:4 For 81 the Lord’s decrees 82 are just, 83
and everything he does is fair. 84
33:5 The Lord promotes 85 equity and justice;
the Lord’s faithfulness extends throughout the earth. 86
33:6 By the Lord’s decree 87 the heavens were made;
by a mere word from his mouth all the stars in the sky were created. 88
33:7 He piles up the water of the sea; 89
he puts the oceans 90 in storehouses.
33:8 Let the whole earth fear 91 the Lord!
Let all who live in the world stand in awe of him!
33:9 For he spoke, and it 92 came into existence,
he issued the decree, 93 and it stood firm.
33:10 The Lord frustrates 94 the decisions of the nations;
he nullifies the plans 95 of the peoples.
33:11 The Lord’s decisions stand forever;
his plans abide throughout the ages. 96
33:12 How blessed 97 is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people whom he has chosen to be his special possession. 98
33:13 The Lord watches 99 from heaven;
he sees all people. 100
33:14 From the place where he lives he looks carefully
at all the earth’s inhabitants.
33:15 He is the one who forms every human heart, 101
and takes note of all their actions.
33:16 No king is delivered by his vast army;
a warrior is not saved by his great might.
33:17 A horse disappoints those who trust in it for victory; 102
despite its great strength, it cannot deliver.
33:18 Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, 103
those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness 104
33:19 by saving their lives from death 105
and sustaining them during times of famine. 106
33:20 We 107 wait for the Lord;
he is our deliverer 108 and shield. 109
33:21 For our hearts rejoice in him,
for we trust in his holy name.
33:22 May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord, 110
for 111 we wait for you.
Written by David, when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, causing the king to send him away. 113
34:1 I will praise 114 the Lord at all times;
my mouth will continually praise him. 115
34:2 I will boast 116 in the Lord;
let the oppressed hear and rejoice! 117
34:3 Magnify the Lord with me!
Let’s praise 118 his name together!
34:4 I sought the Lord’s help 119 and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
34:5 Those who look to him for help are happy;
their faces are not ashamed. 120
34:6 This oppressed man cried out and the Lord heard;
he saved him 121 from all his troubles.
34:7 The Lord’s angel camps around
the Lord’s 122 loyal followers 123 and delivers them. 124
34:8 Taste 125 and see that the Lord is good!
How blessed 126 is the one 127 who takes shelter in him! 128
34:9 Remain loyal to 129 the Lord, you chosen people of his, 130
for his loyal followers 131 lack nothing!
34:10 Even young lions sometimes lack food and are hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
34:11 Come children! Listen to me!
I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord. 132
34:12 Do you want to really live? 133
Would you love to live a long, happy life? 134
34:13 Then make sure you don’t speak evil words 135
or use deceptive speech! 136
34:14 Turn away from evil and do what is right! 137
Strive for peace and promote it! 138
34:15 The Lord pays attention to the godly
and hears their cry for help. 139
34:16 But the Lord opposes evildoers
and wipes out all memory of them from the earth. 140
34:17 The godly 141 cry out and the Lord hears;
he saves them from all their troubles. 142
34:18 The Lord is near the brokenhearted;
he delivers 143 those who are discouraged. 144
34:19 The godly 145 face many dangers, 146
but the Lord saves 147 them 148 from each one of them.
34:20 He protects 149 all his bones; 150
not one of them is broken. 151
34:21 Evil people self-destruct; 152
those who hate the godly are punished. 153
34:22 The Lord rescues his servants; 154
all who take shelter in him escape punishment. 155
By David.
35:1 O Lord, fight 157 those who fight with me!
Attack those who attack me!
35:2 Grab your small shield and large shield, 158
and rise up to help me!
35:3 Use your spear and lance 159 against 160 those who chase me!
Assure me with these words: 161 “I am your deliverer!”
35:4 May those who seek my life be embarrassed and humiliated!
May those who plan to harm me be turned back and ashamed! 162
35:5 May they be 163 like wind-driven chaff,
as the Lord’s angel 164 attacks them! 165
35:6 May their path be 166 dark and slippery,
as the Lord’s angel chases them!
35:7 I did not harm them, but they hid a net to catch me
and dug a pit to trap me. 167
35:8 Let destruction take them by surprise! 168
Let the net they hid catch them!
Let them fall into destruction! 169
35:9 Then I will rejoice in the Lord
and be happy because of his deliverance. 170
35:10 With all my strength I will say, 171
“O Lord, who can compare to you?
You rescue 172 the oppressed from those who try to overpower them; 173
the oppressed and needy from those who try to rob them.” 174
35:11 Violent men perjure themselves, 175
and falsely accuse me. 176
35:12 They repay me evil for the good I have done; 177
I am overwhelmed with sorrow. 178
35:13 When they were sick, I wore sackcloth, 179
and refrained from eating food. 180
(If I am lying, may my prayers go unanswered!) 181
35:14 I mourned for them as I would for a friend or my brother. 182
I bowed down 183 in sorrow as if I were mourning for my mother. 184
35:15 But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together;
they gathered together to ambush me. 185
They tore at me without stopping to rest. 186
35:16 When I tripped, they taunted me relentlessly, 187
and tried to bite me. 188
35:17 O Lord, how long are you going to just stand there and watch this? 189
Rescue 190 me 191 from their destructive attacks;
guard my life 192 from the young lions!
35:18 Then I will give you thanks in the great assembly; 193
I will praise you before a large crowd of people! 194
35:19 Do not let those who are my enemies for no reason 195 gloat 196 over me!
Do not let those who hate me without cause carry out their wicked schemes! 197
35:20 For they do not try to make peace with others, 198
but plan ways to deceive those who are unsuspecting. 199
35:21 They are ready to devour me; 200
they say, “Aha! Aha! We’ve got you!” 201
35:22 But you take notice, 202 Lord!
O Lord, do not remain far away from me!
35:23 Rouse yourself, wake up 203 and vindicate me! 204
My God and Lord, defend my just cause! 205
35:24 Vindicate me by your justice, O Lord my God!
Do not let them gloat 206 over me!
35:25 Do not let them say to themselves, 207 “Aha! We have what we wanted!” 208
Do not let them say, “We have devoured him!”
35:26 May those who want to harm me be totally embarrassed and ashamed! 209
May those who arrogantly taunt me be covered with shame and humiliation! 210
35:27 May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice!
May they continually say, 211 “May the Lord be praised, 212 for he wants his servant to be secure.” 213
35:28 Then I will tell others about your justice, 214
and praise you all day long. 215
[31:1] 1 sn Psalm 31. The psalmist confidently asks the Lord to protect him. Enemies threaten him and even his friends have abandoned him, but he looks to the Lord for vindication. In vv. 19-24, which were apparently written after the Lord answered the prayer of vv. 1-18, the psalmist thanks the Lord for delivering him.
[31:1] 2 tn Heb “in your vindication rescue me.”
[31:2] 3 tn Heb “turn toward me your ear.”
[31:2] 4 tn Heb “become for me a rocky summit of refuge.”
[31:2] 5 tn Heb “a house of strongholds to deliver me.”
[31:3] 6 sn The metaphor of the high ridge pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28.
[31:3] 7 tn Heb “name.” The Hebrew term שֵׁם (shem, “name”) refers here to the
[31:3] 8 tn The present translation assumes that the imperfect verbal forms are generalizing, “you lead me and guide me.” Other options are to take them as an expression of confidence about the future, “you will lead me and guide me” (cf. NASB), or as expressing a prayer, “lead me and guide me” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV).
[31:4] 9 tn Heb “bring me out.” The translation assumes that the imperfect verbal form expresses the psalmist’s confidence about the future. Another option is to take the form as expressing a prayer, “free me.”
[31:5] 10 tn Heb “my spirit.” The noun רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) here refers to the animating spirit that gives the psalmist life.
[31:5] 11 tn Or “redeem.” The perfect verbal form is understood here as anticipatory, indicating rhetorically the psalmist’s certitude and confidence that God will intervene. The psalmist is so confident of God’s positive response to his prayer that he can describe his deliverance as if it had already happened. Another option is to take the perfect as precative, expressing a wish or request (“rescue me”; cf. NIV). See IBHS 494-95 §30.5.4c, d. However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.
[31:6] 12 tn Heb “the ones who observe vain things of falsehood.” See Jonah 2:9.
[31:7] 13 tn Heb “you know the distresses of my life.”
[31:8] 14 tn Heb “you cause my feet to stand.”
[31:9] 15 tn Or perhaps, “are swollen.”
[31:9] 16 tn Cf. Ps 6:7, which has a similar line.
[31:9] 17 tn Heb “my breath and my stomach [grow weak].” Apparently the verb in the previous line (“grow dim, be weakened”) is to be understood here. The Hebrew term נפשׁ can mean “life,” or, more specifically, “throat, breath.” The psalmist seems to be lamenting that his breathing is impaired because of the physical and emotional suffering he is forced to endure.
[31:10] 18 tn Heb “and my years in groaning.”
[31:10] 19 tn Heb “stumbles in.”
[31:10] 20 tn Heb “grow weak.”
[31:11] 21 tn Heb “because of all my enemies I am a reproach.”
[31:11] 22 tc Heb “and to my neighbors, exceedingly.” If the MT is retained, then these words probably go with what precedes. However the syntactical awkwardness of the text suggests it is textually corrupt. P. C. Craigie (Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 258) suggests that the initial mem (מ) on מְאֹד (me’od, “exceedingly”) be understood as an enclitic mem (ם) which was originally suffixed to the preceding form and then later misinterpreted. The resulting form אֵד (’ed) can then be taken as a defectively written form of אֵיד (’ed, “calamity”). If one follows this emendation, then the text reads literally, “and to my neighbors [I am one who experiences] calamity.” The noun פַחַד (fakhad, “[object of] horror”) occurs in the next line; אֵיד and פַחַד appear in parallelism elsewhere (see Prov 1:26-27).
[31:11] 23 tn Heb “and [an object of ] horror to those known by me.”
[31:12] 24 tn Heb “I am forgotten, like a dead man, from [the] heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the center of one’s thoughts.
[31:12] 25 tn Heb “I am like a broken jar.” One throws away a broken jar without a second thought because it is considered worthless and useless.
[31:13] 26 tn Heb “the report of many.”
[31:13] 27 tn Heb “the terror from all around.”
[31:15] 28 tn Heb “in your hand [are] my times.”
[31:16] 29 tn Heb “cause your face to shine.”
[31:17] 30 tn The verb יִדְּמוּ (yiddÿmu) is understood as a form of דָּמַם (damam, “wail, lament”). Another option is to take the verb from דָּמַם (“be quiet”; see BDB 198-99 s.v. I דָּמַם), in which case one might translate, “May they lie silent in the grave.”
[31:18] 31 tn Heb “the [ones which].”
[31:19] 33 tn Or “How abundant are your blessings!”
[31:19] 34 tn Heb “for those who fear you.”
[31:19] 35 tn “Taking shelter” in the
[31:19] 36 tn Heb “you work [your favor] for the ones seeking shelter in you before the sons of men.”
[31:20] 37 tn The noun רֹכֶס (rokhes) occurs only here. Its meaning is debated; some suggest “snare,” while others propose “slander” or “conspiracy.”
[31:20] 38 tn Heb “you hide them in the hiding place of your face from the attacks of man.” The imperfect verbal forms in this verse draw attention to God’s typical treatment of the faithful.
[31:20] 39 tn Heb “you conceal them in a shelter from the strife of tongues.”
[31:21] 40 tn Heb “blessed [be] the
[31:21] 41 tn Heb “for he caused his faithfulness to be amazing to me in a besieged city.” The psalmist probably speaks figuratively here. He compares his crisis to being trapped in a besieged city, but the
[31:22] 42 tn Heb “and I, I said in my haste.”
[31:22] 43 tn Heb “from before your eyes.”
[31:23] 44 tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 16:10; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).
[31:23] 45 tn The participial forms in the second and third lines characterize the Lord as one who typically protects the faithful and judges the proud.
[31:24] 46 tn Heb “be strong and let your heart[s] be confident.”
[32:1] 47 sn Psalm 32. The psalmist recalls the agony he experienced prior to confessing his sins and affirms that true happiness comes when one’s sins are forgiven. He then urges others not to be stubborn, but to turn to God while forgiveness is available, for God extends his mercy to the repentant, while the wicked experience nothing but sorrow.
[32:1] 48 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.
[32:1] 49 tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15). Here it refers to the relief that one experiences when one’s sins are forgiven.
[32:1] 51 tn Heb “covered over.”
[32:2] 52 tn Heb “man.” The word choice reflects the perspective of the psalmist, who is male. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, the gender and age specific “man” has been translated with the more neutral “one.”
[32:2] 53 tn Heb “blessed [is] the man to whom the
[32:2] 54 sn In whose spirit there is no deceit. The point is not that the individual is sinless and pure. In this context, which focuses on confession and forgiveness of sin, the psalmist refers to one who refuses to deny or hide his sin, but instead honestly confesses it to God.
[32:3] 55 tn Heb “when I was silent.”
[32:3] 56 tn Heb “my bones became brittle.” The psalmist pictures himself as aging and growing physically weak. Trying to cover up his sin brought severe physical consequences.
[32:4] 57 tn Heb “your hand was heavy upon me.”
[32:4] 58 tc Heb “my [?] was turned.” The meaning of the Hebrew term לְשַׁד (lÿshad) is uncertain. A noun לָשָׁד (lashad, “cake”) is attested in Num 11:8, but it would make no sense to understand that word in this context. It is better to emend the form to לְשֻׁדִּי (lÿshuddiy, “to my destruction”) and understand “your hand” as the subject of the verb “was turned.” In this case the text reads, “[your hand] was turned to my destruction.” In Lam 3:3 the author laments that God’s “hand” was “turned” (הָפַךְ, hafakh) against him in a hostile sense.
[32:4] sn You tried to destroy me. The psalmist’s statement reflects his perspective. As far as he was concerned, it seemed as if the Lord was trying to kill him.
[32:4] 59 tn The translation assumes that the plural form indicates degree. If one understands the form as a true plural, then one might translate, “in the times of drought.”
[32:4] 60 sn Summer. Perhaps the psalmist suffered during the hot season and perceived the very weather as being an instrument of divine judgment. Another option is that he compares his time of suffering to the uncomfortable and oppressive heat of summer.
[32:5] 61 tn The Hiphil of ידה normally means “give thanks, praise,” but here, as in Prov 28:13, it means “confess.”
[32:5] 62 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.
[32:6] 63 tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 18:25; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).
[32:6] 64 tn Heb “at a time of finding.” This may mean, “while there is time to ‘find’ [the
[32:6] 65 tn The Hebrew term רַק (raq) occasionally has an asseverative force.
[32:6] 66 sn The surging water is here a metaphor for trouble that endangers one’s life.
[32:6] 67 tn Heb “him.” The translation uses the plural “them” to agree with the plural “every one of your faithful followers” in the first line of v. 6.
[32:7] 68 tn Heb “[with] shouts of joy of deliverance you surround me.”
[32:8] 69 tn The second person pronominal forms in this verse are singular. The psalmist addresses each member of his audience individually (see also the note on the word “eye” in the next line). A less likely option (but one which is commonly understood) is that the
[32:8] 70 tn Heb “I will instruct you and I will teach you in the way [in] which you should walk.”
[32:8] 71 tn Heb “I will advise, upon you my eye,” that is, “I will offer advice [with] my eye upon you.” In 2 Chr 20:12 the statement “our eye is upon you” means that the speakers are looking to the
[32:9] 72 tn The verb form is plural (i.e., “do not all of you be”); the psalmist addresses the whole group.
[32:9] 73 tn Heb “like a horse, like a mule without understanding.”
[32:9] 74 tn Heb “with a bridle and bit, its [?] to hold, not to come near to you.” The meaning of the Hebrew noun עֲדִי (’adiy) is uncertain. Normally the word refers to “jewelry,” so some suggest the meaning “trappings” here (cf. NASB). Some emend the form to לְחֵיהֶם (lÿkhehem, “their jawbones”) but it is difficult to see how the present Hebrew text, even if corrupt, could have derived from this proposed original reading. P. C. Craigie (Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 265) takes the form from an Arabic root and translates “whose gallop.” Cf. also NRSV “whose temper must be curbed.”
[32:10] 75 tn Heb “many [are the] pains of evil [one].” The singular form is representative here; the typical evildoer, representative of the larger group of wicked people, is in view.
[32:10] 76 tn Heb “but the one who trusts in the
[32:11] 77 tn Heb “all [you] pure of heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of one’s moral character and motives. The “pure of heart” are God’s faithful followers who trust in and love the
[33:1] 78 sn Psalm 33. In this hymn the psalmist praises the Lord as the sovereign creator and just ruler of the world who protects and vindicates those who fear him.
[33:3] 79 sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the lives of his people in fresh and exciting ways.
[33:3] 80 tn Heb “play skillfully with a loud shout.”
[33:4] 81 sn For the
[33:4] 82 tn Heb “word.” In this context, which depicts the
[33:4] 84 tn Heb “and all his work [is] in faithfulness.”
[33:5] 85 tn Heb “loves.” The verb “loves” is here metonymic; the
[33:5] 86 tn Heb “fills the earth.”
[33:6] 88 tn Heb “and by the breath of his mouth all their host.” The words “were created” are added in the translation for stylistic reasons; they are understood by ellipsis (note “were made” in the preceding line). The description is consistent with Gen 1:16, which indicates that God spoke the heavenly luminaries into existence.
[33:7] 89 tn Heb “[he] gathers like a pile the waters of the sea.” Some prefer to emend נֵד (ged, “heap, pile”; cf. NASB) to נֹד (nod, “bottle”; cf. NRSV; NIV “into jars”), but “pile” is used elsewhere to describe water that the
[33:7] 90 tn Or “watery depths.” The form תְּהוֹמוֹת (tÿhomot, “watery depths”) is the plural form of תְּהוֹם (tÿhom, “great deep”; see Gen 1:2).
[33:8] 91 tn In this context “fear” probably means “to demonstrate respect for the
[33:9] 92 tn That is, “all the earth” in the first line of v. 8. The apparent antecedent of the masculine subject of the verbs in v. 9 (note וַיֶּהִי [vayyehiy] and וַיַּעֲמֹד [vayya’amod]) is “earth” or “world,” both of which are feminine nouns. However, כָּל (kol, “all”) may be the antecedent, or the apparent lack of agreement may be explained by the collective nature of the nouns involved here (see GKC 463 §145.e).
[33:9] 93 tn Heb “he commanded.”
[33:10] 94 tn Heb “breaks” or “destroys.” The Hebrew perfect verbal forms here and in the next line generalize about the
[33:11] 96 tn Heb “the thoughts of his heart for generation to generation.” The verb “abides” is supplied in the translation. The
[33:12] 97 tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1; 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).
[33:12] 98 tn Heb “inheritance.”
[33:13] 99 tn The Hebrew perfect verbal forms in v. 13 state general facts.
[33:13] 100 tn Heb “all the sons of men.”
[33:15] 101 tn Heb “the one who forms together their heart[s].” “Heart” here refers to human nature, composed of intellect, emotions and will. The precise force of יָחַד (yakhad, “together”) is unclear here. The point seems to be that the
[33:17] 102 tn Heb “a lie [is] the horse for victory.”
[33:18] 103 tn Heb “look, the eye of the
[33:18] 104 tn Heb “for the ones who wait for his faithfulness.”
[33:19] 105 tn Heb “to save from death their live[s].”
[33:19] 106 tn Heb “and to keep them alive in famine.”
[33:20] 107 tn Or “our lives.” The suffixed form of נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being, life”) is often equivalent to a pronoun in poetic texts.
[33:20] 108 tn Or “[source of] help.”
[33:20] 109 tn Or “protector.”
[33:22] 110 tn Heb “let your faithfulness, O
[34:1] 112 sn Psalm 34. In this song of thanksgiving the psalmist praises God for delivering him from distress. He encourages others to be loyal to the Lord, tells them how to please God, and assures them that the Lord protects his servants. The psalm is an acrostic; vv. 1-21 begin with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. (Verse 6 begins with the letter he (ה) and v. 7 with the letter zayin (ז). The letter vav (ו), which comes between ה and ז, seems to be omitted, although it does appear at the beginning of v. 6b. The final verse of the psalm, which begins with the letter pe (פ), is outside the acrostic scheme.
[34:1] 113 tn Heb “By David, when he changed his sense before Abimelech and he drove him away and he went.”
[34:1] sn Pretended to be insane. The psalm heading appears to refer to the account in 1 Sam 21:10-15 which tells how David, fearful that King Achish of Gath might kill him, pretended to be insane in hopes that the king would simply send him away. The psalm heading names the king Abimelech, not Achish, suggesting that the tradition is confused on this point. However, perhaps “Abimelech” was a royal title, rather than a proper name. See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 278.
[34:1] 115 tn Heb “continually [will] his praise [be] in my mouth.”
[34:2] 116 tn Heb “my soul will boast”; or better, “let my soul boast.” Following the cohortative form in v. 1, it is likely that the prefixed verbal form here is jussive.
[34:2] 117 tn The two prefixed verbal forms in this verse are best taken as jussives, for the psalmist is calling his audience to worship (see v. 3).
[34:4] 119 tn Heb “I sought the
[34:5] 120 tc Heb “they look to him and are radiant and their faces are not ashamed.” The third person plural subject (“they”) is unidentified; there is no antecedent in the Hebrew text. For this reason some prefer to take the perfect verbal forms in the first line as imperatives, “look to him and be radiant” (cf. NEB, NRSV). Some medieval Hebrew
[34:6] 121 tn The pronoun refers back to “this oppressed man,” namely, the psalmist.
[34:7] 122 tn Heb “his”; the referent (the
[34:7] 123 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[34:7] 124 tn The prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same generalizing force as the active participle in the first line. See GKC 329 §111.u.
[34:8] 125 tn This verb is normally used of tasting or savoring food. The metaphor here appears to compare the
[34:8] 126 tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).
[34:8] 127 tn Heb “man.” The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender and age specific “man” with the more neutral “one.”
[34:8] 128 tn “Taking shelter” in the
[34:9] 130 tn Heb “O holy ones of his.”
[34:9] 131 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
[34:11] 132 tn Heb “the fear of the
[34:12] 133 tn Heb “Who is the man who desires life?” The rhetorical question is used to grab the audience’s attention. “Life” probably refers here to quality of life, not just physical existence or even duration of life. See the following line.
[34:12] 134 tn Heb “[Who] loves days to see good?”
[34:13] 135 tn Heb “guard your tongue from evil.”
[34:13] 136 tn Heb “and your lips from speaking deception.”
[34:14] 138 tn Heb “seek peace and pursue it.”
[34:15] 139 tn Heb “the eyes of the
[34:16] 140 tn Heb “the face of the
[34:17] 141 tn Heb “they” (i.e., the godly mentioned in v. 15).
[34:17] 142 tn The three perfect verbal forms are taken in a generalizing sense in v. 17 and translated with the present tense (note the generalizing mood of vv. 18-22).
[34:18] 143 tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form highlights the generalizing statement and draws attention to the fact that the
[34:18] 144 tn Heb “the crushed in spirit.”
[34:19] 145 tn The Hebrew text uses the singular form; the representative or typical godly person is envisioned.
[34:19] 147 tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form highlights the generalizing statement and draws attention to the fact that the
[34:19] 148 tn Heb “him,” agreeing with the singular form in the preceding line.
[34:20] 149 tn The Hebrew participial form suggests such protection is characteristic.
[34:20] 150 tn That is, he protects the godly from physical harm.
[34:20] 151 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).
[34:21] 152 tn Heb “evil kills the wicked [one].” The singular form is representative; the typical evil person is envisioned. The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the typical nature of the action.
[34:21] 153 tn Heb “are guilty,” but the verb is sometimes used metonymically with the meaning “to suffer the consequences of guilt,” the effect being substituted for the cause.
[34:22] 154 tn Heb “redeems the life of his servants.” The Hebrew participial form suggests such deliverance is characteristic.
[34:22] 155 tn “Taking shelter” in the
[35:1] 156 sn Psalm 35. The author, who faces ruthless enemies who seek his life for no reason, begs the Lord to fight his battles for him and to vindicate him by annihilating his adversaries.
[35:2] 158 tn Two different types of shields are mentioned here. See also Ezek 38:4. Many modern translations render the first term (translated here “small shield”) as “buckler” (cf. NASB “buckler and shield”; the order is often reversed in the translation, apparently for stylistic reasons: cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV “shield and buckler”). The English term “buckler,” referring to a small round shield held on the arm to protect the upper body, is unfamiliar to many modern readers, so the term “small shield” was used in the present translation for clarity.
[35:3] 159 tn Or “javelin.” On the meaning of this word, which occurs only here in the Hebrew Bible, see M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:210-11.
[35:3] 160 tn Heb “draw out spear and lance to meet.”
[35:3] 161 tn Heb “say to me,” or “say to my soul.”
[35:4] 162 tn The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse are understood as jussives. The psalmist is calling judgment down on his enemies. See also the distinct jussive form in v. 6.
[35:5] 163 tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive. See v. 4.
[35:5] 164 sn See the mention of the
[35:5] 165 tn Heb “as the
[35:6] 166 tn The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive, indicating this is a prayer.
[35:7] 167 tc Heb “for without cause they hid for me a pit of their net, without cause they dug for my life.” It appears that the words “pit” and “net” have been transposed. “Net” goes with the verb “hid” in the first line (see v. 8, as well as Pss 9:15; 31:4), while “pit” goes with the verb “dug” in the second line (see Ps 7:15).
[35:8] 168 tn Heb “let destruction [which] he does not know come to him.” The singular is used of the enemy in v. 8, probably in a representative or collective sense. The psalmist has more than one enemy, as vv. 1-7 make clear.
[35:8] 169 tn The psalmist’s prayer for his enemies’ demise continues. See vv. 4-6.
[35:9] 170 tn Heb “then my soul will rejoice in the
[35:10] 171 tn Heb “all my bones will say.”
[35:10] 172 tn Heb “[the one who] rescues.” The substantival participle in the Hebrew text characterizes God as one who typically rescues the oppressed.
[35:10] 173 tn Heb “from [the one who is] too strong for him.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense. The typical oppressed individual and typical oppressor are in view.
[35:10] 174 tn Heb “the oppressed [one] and needy [one] from [the one who] robs him.” As in the previous line, the singular forms are used in a representative sense.
[35:11] 175 tn Heb “witnesses of violence rise up.”
[35:11] 176 tn Heb “[that] which I do not know they ask me.”
[35:12] 177 tn Heb “they repay me evil instead of good.”
[35:12] 178 tn Heb “[there is] bereavement to my soul.”
[35:13] 179 tn Heb “as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth.” Sackcloth was worn by mourners. When the psalmist’s enemies were sick, he was sorry for their misfortune and mourned for them.
[35:13] 180 sn Fasting was also a practice of mourners. By refraining from normal activities, such as eating food, the mourner demonstrated the sincerity of his sorrow.
[35:13] 181 tn Heb “and my prayer upon my chest will return.” One could translate, “but my prayer was returning upon my chest,” but the use of the imperfect verbal form sets this line apart from the preceding and following lines (vv. 13a, 14), which use the perfect to describe the psalmist’s past actions.
[35:14] 182 tn Heb “like a friend, like a brother to me I walked about.”
[35:14] 183 sn I bowed down. Bowing down was a posture for mourning. See Ps 38:6.
[35:14] 184 tn Heb “like mourning for a mother [in] sorrow I bowed down.”
[35:15] 185 tn Heb “they gathered together against me, stricken [ones], and I did not know.” The Hebrew form נֵכִים (nekhim, “stricken ones” ?) is problematic. Some suggest an emendation to נָכְרִים[כְ] (kÿnokhÿrim, “foreigners”) or “like foreigners,” which would fit with what follows, “[like] foreigners that I do not recognize.” Perhaps the form should be read as a Qal active participle, נֹכִים (nokhim, “ones who strike”) from the verbal root נָכָה (nakhah, “to strike”). The Qal of this verb is unattested in biblical Hebrew, but the peal (basic) stem appears in Old Aramaic (J. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Sefire [BibOr], 114; DNWSI 1:730.) In this case one might translate, “attackers gathered together against me though I was not aware of it” (cf. NASB “smiters”; NEB, NRSV “ruffians”; NIV “attackers”).
[35:15] 186 tn Heb “they tore and did not keep quiet.” By using the verb “tear,” the psalmist likens his enemies to a wild animal (see Hos 13:8). In v. 17 he compares them to hungry young lions.
[35:16] 187 tc The MT reads “as profane [ones] of mockers of food,” which is nonsensical. The present translation assumes (1) an emendation of בְּחַנְפֵי (bÿkhanfey, “as profane men”) to בְּחַנְפִי (bekhanfiy, “when I tripped”; preposition + Qal infinitive construct from II חָנַף [“limp”] + first common singular pronominal suffix) and (2) an emendation of לַעֲגֵי מָעוֹג (la’agey ma’og, “mockers of food”) to עָגוּ[ם]לַעְגָּ (la’gam ’agu, “[with] taunting they taunted”; masculine plural noun with enclitic mem + Qal perfect third common plural from לַּעַג [la’ag, “taunt”]).
[35:16] 188 tn Heb “gnashing at me with their teeth.” The infinitive absolute adds a complementary action – they gnashed with their teeth as they taunted.
[35:17] 189 tn Heb “O Lord, how long will you see?”
[35:17] 190 tn Heb “bring back, restore.”
[35:17] 192 tn Heb “my only one.” The psalmist may mean that his life is precious, or that he feels isolated and alone (see Ps 22:20). The verb “guard” is supplied in the translation, because the verb “rescue” is understood by ellipsis (see the previous line).
[35:18] 193 sn The great assembly is also mentioned in Ps 22:25.
[35:18] 194 tn Heb “among numerous people.”
[35:19] 195 tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Ps 38:19).
[35:19] 197 tn Heb “[do not let] those who hate me without cause pinch [i.e., wink] an eye.” The negative particle is understood in the second line by ellipsis (see the preceding line). In the Book of Proverbs “winking an eye” is associated with deceit and trickery (see 6:13; 10:10; 16:30).
[35:20] 198 tn Heb “for they do not speak peace.”
[35:20] 199 tn Heb “but against the quiet ones of the land words of deceit they plan.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 20 highlight their characteristic behavior.
[35:21] 200 tn Heb “and they cause their mouth to be wide against me.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries on the generalizing mood of the previous verse. For other examples of this use of the prefixed verbal form with vav consecutive, see GKC 329 §111.t.
[35:21] 201 tn Heb “our eye sees.” Apparently this is an idiom meaning to “look in triumph” or “gloat over” (see Ps 54:7).
[35:22] 202 tn Heb “you see, O
[35:23] 203 sn Though he is confident that the Lord is aware of his situation (see v. 22a), the psalmist compares the Lord’s inactivity to sleep and urges him to wake up.
[35:23] 204 tn Heb “for my justice.”
[35:23] 205 tn Heb “for my cause.”
[35:25] 207 tn Heb “in their heart[s].”
[35:25] 208 tn Heb “Aha! Our desire!” The “desire” of the psalmist’s enemies is to triumph over him.
[35:26] 209 tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones who rejoice over my harm.”
[35:26] 210 tn Heb “may they be clothed with shame and humiliation, the ones who magnify [themselves] against me.” The prefixed verbal forms in v. 26 are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-25, where the negative particle אַל (’al) appears before the prefixed verbal forms, indicating they are jussives). The psalmist is calling down judgment on his enemies.
[35:27] 211 tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 27a are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-26).
[35:27] 212 tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, “may the
[35:27] 213 tn Heb “the one who desires the peace of his servant.”
[35:28] 214 tn Heb “and my tongue will proclaim your justice.”
[35:28] 215 tn Heb “all the day your praise.” The verb “proclaim” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the previous line).
