Mazmur 5:10

5:10 Condemn them, ¹  O God!

May their own schemes be their downfall! ² 

Drive them away ³  because of their many acts of insurrection, ⁴ 

for they have rebelled against you.

Mazmur 23:4

23:4 Even when I must walk through the darkest valley, ⁵ 

I fear ⁶  no danger, ⁷ 

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff reassure me. ⁸ 

Mazmur 40:14

40:14 May those who are trying to snatch away my life

be totally embarrassed and ashamed! ⁹ 

May those who want to harm me

be turned back and ashamed! ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 70:2

70:2 May those who are trying to take my life

be embarrassed and ashamed! ¹¹ 

May those who want to harm me

be turned back and ashamed! ¹² 

Mazmur 141:4

141:4 Do not let me have evil desires, ¹³ 

or participate in sinful activities

with men who behave wickedly. ¹⁴ 

I will not eat their delicacies. ¹⁵ 

[5:10]  ¹ tn Heb “declare/regard them as guilty.” Declaring the psalmist’s adversaries guilty is here metonymic for judging them or paying them back for their wrongdoing.

[5:10]  ² tn Heb “may they fall from their plans.” The prefixed verbal form is a jussive, expressing an imprecation. The psalmist calls judgment down on the evildoers. Their plans will be their downfall in that God will judge them for their evil schemes.

[5:10]  ³ tn Or “banish them.”

[5:10]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew noun used here, פֶּשַׁע (pesha’), refers to rebellious actions. The psalmist pictures his enemies as rebels against God (see the next line).

[23:4]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew term צַלְמָוֶת (tsalmavet) has traditionally been understood as a compound noun meaning “shadow of death” (צֵל [tsel] + מָוֶת [mavet]; see BDB 853 s.v. צַלְמָוֶת). Other scholars prefer to vocalize the form צַלְמוּת (tsalmut) and understand it as an abstract noun (from the root צָלַם, tsalam) meaning “darkness.” An examination of the word’s usage favors the latter derivation. It is frequently associated with darkness/night and contrasted with light/morning (see Job 3:5; 10:21-22; 12:22; 24:17; 28:3; 34:22; Ps 107:10, 14; Isa 9:1; Jer 13:16; Amos 5:8). In some cases the darkness described is associated with the realm of death (Job 10:21-22; 38:17), but this is a metaphorical application of the word and does not reflect its inherent meaning. If the word does indeed mean “darkness,” it modifies גַיְא (gay’, “valley, ravine”) quite naturally. At the metaphorical level, v. 4 pictures the shepherd taking his sheep through a dark ravine where predators might lurk. The life-threatening situations faced by the psalmist are the underlying reality behind the imagery.

[23:4]  ⁶ tn The imperfect verbal forms in v. 4, as in vv. 1-3, highlight what is typical in the psalmist’s experience.

[23:4]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew term רַע (ra’) is traditionally translated “evil” here, perhaps suggesting a moral or ethical nuance. But at the level of the metaphor, the word means “danger, injury, harm,” as a sheep might experience from a predator. The life-threatening dangers faced by the psalmist, especially the enemies mentioned in v. 5, are the underlying reality.

[23:4]  ⁸ tn The Piel of נָחַם (nakham), when used with a human object, means “comfort, console.” But here, within the metaphorical framework, it refers to the way in which a shepherd uses his implements to assure the sheep of his presence and calm their nerves. The underlying reality is the emotional stability God provides the psalmist during life threatening situations.

[40:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones seeking my life to snatch it away.”

[40:14]  ¹⁰ tn The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse (“may those…be…embarrassed and ashamed…may those…be turned back and ashamed”) are understood as jussives. The psalmist is calling judgment down on his enemies.

[40:14]  sn See Ps 35:4 for a similar prayer.

[70:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed, the ones seeking my life.” Ps 40:14 has “together” after “ashamed,” and “to snatch it away” after “my life.”

[70:2]  ¹² tn The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse are understood as jussives. The psalmist is calling judgment down on his enemies.

[70:2]  sn See Ps 35:4 for a similar prayer.

[141:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “do not turn my heart toward an evil thing.”

[141:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to act sinfully in practices in wickedness with men, doers of evil.”

[141:4]  ¹⁵ sn Their delicacies. This probably refers to the enjoyment that a sinful lifestyle appears to offer.