Mazmur 5:4

5:4 Certainly ¹  you are not a God who approves of evil; ² 

evil people ³  cannot dwell with you. ⁴ 

Mazmur 14:4

14:4 All those who behave wickedly ⁵  do not understand – ⁶ 

those who devour my people as if they were eating bread,

and do not call out to the Lord.

Mazmur 16:10

16:10 You will not abandon me ⁷  to Sheol; ⁸ 

you will not allow your faithful follower ⁹  to see ¹⁰  the Pit. ¹¹ 

Mazmur 22:2

22:2 My God, I cry out during the day,

but you do not answer,

and during the night my prayers do not let up. ¹² 

Mazmur 24:4

24:4 The one whose deeds are blameless

and whose motives are pure, ¹³ 

who does not lie, ¹⁴ 

or make promises with no intention of keeping them. ¹⁵ 

Mazmur 26:4

26:4 I do not associate ¹⁶  with deceitful men,

or consort ¹⁷  with those who are dishonest. ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 28:5

28:5 For they do not understand the Lord’s actions,

or the way he carries out justice. ¹⁹ 

The Lord ²⁰  will permanently demolish them. ²¹ 

Mazmur 35:15

35:15 But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together;

they gathered together to ambush me. ²² 

They tore at me without stopping to rest. ²³ 

Mazmur 38:13

38:13 But I am like a deaf man – I hear nothing;

I am like a mute who cannot speak. ²⁴ 

Mazmur 40:6

40:6 Receiving sacrifices and offerings are not your primary concern. ²⁵ 

You make that quite clear to me! ²⁶ 

You do not ask for burnt sacrifices and sin offerings.

Mazmur 44:17

44:17 All this has happened to us, even though we have not rejected you ²⁷ 

or violated your covenant with us. ²⁸ 

Mazmur 49:7

49:7 Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother; ²⁹ 

he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price ³⁰ 

Mazmur 49:17

49:17 For he will take nothing with him when he dies;

his wealth will not follow him down into the grave. ³¹ 

Mazmur 51:16

51:16 Certainly ³²  you do not want a sacrifice, or else I would offer it; ³³ 

you do not desire a burnt sacrifice. ³⁴ 

Mazmur 53:4

53:4 All those who behave wickedly ³⁵  do not understand ³⁶  –

those who devour my people as if they were eating bread,

and do not call out to God.

Mazmur 55:12

55:12 Indeed, ³⁷  it is not an enemy who insults me,

or else I could bear it;

it is not one who hates me who arrogantly taunts me, ³⁸ 

or else I could hide from him.

Mazmur 60:10

60:10 Have you not rejected us, O God?

O God, you do not go into battle with our armies.

Mazmur 74:9

74:9 We do not see any signs of God’s presence; ³⁹ 

there are no longer any prophets ⁴⁰ 

and we have no one to tell us how long this will last. ⁴¹ 

Mazmur 81:9

81:9 There must be ⁴²  no other ⁴³  god among you.

You must not worship a foreign god.

Mazmur 81:11

81:11 But my people did not obey me; ⁴⁴ 

Israel did not submit to me. ⁴⁵ 

Mazmur 82:5

82:5 They ⁴⁶  neither know nor understand.

They stumble ⁴⁷  around in the dark,

while all the foundations of the earth crumble. ⁴⁸ 

Mazmur 89:22

89:22 No enemy will be able to exact tribute ⁴⁹  from him; ⁵⁰ 

a violent oppressor will not be able to humiliate him. ⁵¹ 

Mazmur 92:6

92:6 The spiritually insensitive do not recognize this;

the fool does not understand this. ⁵² 

Mazmur 94:9

94:9 Does the one who makes the human ear not hear?

Does the one who forms the human eye not see? ⁵³ 

Mazmur 101:3

101:3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest. ⁵⁴ 

I hate doing evil; ⁵⁵ 

I will have no part of it. ⁵⁶ 

Mazmur 101:7

101:7 Deceitful people will not live in my palace. ⁵⁷ 

Liars will not be welcome in my presence. ⁵⁸ 

[5:4]  ¹ tn Or “for.”

[5:4]  ² tn Heb “not a God [who] delights [in] wickedness [are] you.”

[5:4]  ³ tn The Hebrew text has simply the singular form רע, which may be taken as an abstract noun “evil” (the reference to “wickedness” in the preceding line favors this; cf. NEB, NASB, NRSV) or as a substantival adjective “evil one” (the references to evil people in the next two verses favor this; cf. NIV “with you the wicked cannot dwell”).

[5:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “cannot dwell as a resident alien [with] you.” The negated imperfect verbal form here indicates incapability or lack of permission. These people are morally incapable of dwelling in God’s presence and are not permitted to do so.

[5:4]  sn Only the godly are allowed to dwell with the Lord. Evil people are excluded. See Ps 15.

[14:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “all the workers of wickedness.” See Pss 5:5; 6:8.

[14:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “Do they not understand?” The rhetorical question (rendered in the translation as a positive affirmation) expresses the psalmist’s amazement at their apparent lack of understanding. This may refer to their lack of moral understanding, but it more likely refers to their failure to anticipate God’s defense of his people (see vv. 5-7).

[16:10]  ⁷ tn Or “my life.” The suffixed form of נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being”) is often equivalent to a pronoun in poetic texts.

[16:10]  ⁸ sn In ancient Israelite cosmology Sheol is the realm of the dead, viewed as being under the earth’s surface. See L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 165-76.

[16:10]  ⁹ tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד [khasid], traditionally rendered “holy one”) 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). The psalmist here refers to himself, as the parallel line (“You will not abandon me to Sheol”) indicates.

[16:10]  ¹⁰ tn That is, “experience.” The psalmist is confident that the Lord will protect him in his present crisis (see v. 1) and prevent him from dying.

[16:10]  sn According to Peter, the words of Ps 16:8-11 are applicable to Jesus (Acts 2:25-29). Peter goes on to argue that David, being a prophet, foresaw future events and spoke of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:30-33). Paul seems to concur with Peter in this understanding (see Acts 13:35-37). For a discussion of the NT application of these verses to Jesus’ resurrection, see R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “A Theology of the Psalms,” A Biblical Theology of the Old Testament, 292-95.

[16:10]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew word שָׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 30:9; 49:9; 55:24; 103:4). Note the parallelism with the previous line.

[22:2]  ¹² tn Heb “there is no silence to me.”

[24:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “the innocent of hands and the pure of heart.” The “hands” allude to one’s actions, the “heart” to one’s thought life and motives.

[24:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “who does not lift up for emptiness my life.” The first person pronoun on נַפְשִׁי (nafshiy, “my life”) makes little sense here; many medieval Hebrew mss support the ancient versions in reading a third person pronoun “his.” The idiom “lift the life” here means to “long for” or “desire strongly.” In this context (note the reference to an oath in the following line) “emptiness” probably refers to speech (see Ps 12:2).

[24:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and does not swear an oath deceitfully.”

[26:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “sit.”

[26:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “go.” The psalmist uses the imperfect form of the verb to emphasize that he does not make a practice of associating with such people.

[26:4]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “[those who] conceal themselves.”

[28:5]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “or the work of his hands.” In this context “the Lord’s actions” and “the work of his hands” probably refer to the way he carries out justice by vindicating the godly and punishing the wicked. (Note the final line of the verse, which refers to divine judgment. See also Ps 92:4-7.) Evil men do not “understand” God’s just ways; they fail to realize he will protect the innocent. Consequently they seek to harm the godly, as if they believe they will never be held accountable for their actions.

[28:5]  ²⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord, who is referred to in the two immediately preceding lines) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:5]  ²¹ tn Heb “will tear them down and not rebuild them.” The ungodly are compared to a structure that is permanently demolished.

[35:15]  ²² 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]  ²³ 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.

[38:13]  ²⁴ sn I am like a deaf man…like a mute. The psalmist is like a deaf mute; he is incapable of defending himself and is vulnerable to his enemies’ deception (see v. 14).

[40:6]  ²⁵ tn Heb “sacrifice and offering you do not desire.” The statement is exaggerated for the sake of emphasis (see Ps 51:16 as well). God is pleased with sacrifices, but his first priority is obedience and loyalty (see 1 Sam 15:22). Sacrifices and offerings apart from genuine allegiance are meaningless (see Isa 1:11-20).

[40:6]  ²⁶ tn Heb “ears you hollowed out for me.” The meaning of this odd expression is debated (this is the only collocation of “hollowed out” and “ears” in the OT). It may have been an idiomatic expression referring to making a point clear to a listener. The LXX has “but a body you have prepared for me,” a reading which is followed in Heb 10:5.

[44:17]  ²⁷ tn Heb “we have not forgotten you.” To “forget” God refers here to worshiping false gods and thereby refusing to recognize his sovereignty (see v. 20, as well as Deut 8:19; Judg 3:7; 1 Sam 12:9; Isa 17:10; Jer 3:21; Ps 9:17).Thus the translation “we have not rejected you” has been used.

[44:17]  ²⁸ tn Heb “and we did not deal falsely with your covenant.”

[49:7]  ²⁹ tn Heb “a brother, he surely does not ransom, a man.” The sequence אִישׁ...אָח (’akh...’ish, “a brother…a man”) is problematic, for the usual combination is אָח...אָח (“a brother…a brother”) or אִישׁ...אִישׁ (“a man…a man”). When אִישׁ and אָח are combined, the usual order is אָח...אִישׁ (“a man…a brother”), with “brother” having a third masculine singular suffix, “his brother.” This suggests that “brother” is the object of the verb and “man” the subject. (1) Perhaps the altered word order and absence of the suffix can be explained by the text’s poetic character, for ellipsis is a feature of Hebrew poetic style. (2) Another option, supported by a few medieval Hebrew mss, is to emend “brother” to the similar sounding אַךְ (’akh, “surely; but”) which occurs in v. 15 before the verb פָּדָה (padah, “ransom”). If this reading is accepted the Qal imperfect יִפְדֶּה (yifddeh, “he can [not] ransom”) would need to be emended to a Niphal (passive) form, יִפָּדֶה (yifadeh, “he can[not] be ransomed”) unless one understands the subject of the Qal verb to be indefinite (“one cannot redeem a man”). (A Niphal imperfect can be collocated with a Qal infinitive absolute. See GKC 344-45 §113.w.) No matter how one decides the textual issues, the imperfect in this case is modal, indicating potential, and the infinitive absolute emphasizes the statement.

[49:7]  ³⁰ tn Heb “he cannot pay to God his ransom price.” Num 35:31 may supply the legal background for the metaphorical language used here. The psalmist pictures God as having a claim on the soul of the individual. When God comes to claim the life that ultimately belongs to him, he demands a ransom price that is beyond the capability of anyone to pay. The psalmist’s point is that God has ultimate authority over life and death; all the money in the world cannot buy anyone a single day of life beyond what God has decreed.

[49:17]  ³¹ tn Heb “his glory will not go down after him.”

[51:16]  ³² tn Or “For.” The translation assumes the particle is asseverative (i.e., emphasizing: “certainly”). (Some translations that consider the particle asseverative leave it untranslated.) If taken as causal or explanatory (“for”, cf. NRSV), the verse would explain why the psalmist is pleading for forgiveness, rather than merely offering a sacrifice.

[51:16]  ³³ tn The translation assumes that the cohortative is used in a hypothetical manner in a formally unmarked conditional sentence, “You do not want a sacrifice, should I offer [it]” (cf. NEB). For other examples of cohortatives in the protasis (“if” clause) of a conditional sentence, see GKC 320 §108.e. (It should be noted, however, that GKC understands this particular verse in a different manner. See GKC 320 §108.f, where it is suggested that the cohortative is part of an apodosis with the protasis being suppressed.)

[51:16]  ³⁴ sn You do not desire a burnt sacrifice. The terminology used in v. 16 does not refer to expiatory sacrifices, but to dedication and communion offerings. This is not a categorical denial of the sacrificial system in general or of the importance of such offerings. The psalmist is talking about his specific situation. Dedication and communion offerings have their proper place in worship (see v. 19), but God requires something more fundamental, a repentant and humble attitude (see v. 17), before these offerings can have real meaning.

[53:4]  ³⁵ tn Heb “the workers of wickedness.” See Pss 5:5; 6:8. Ps 14:4 adds כֹּל (kol, “all of”) before “workers of wickedness.”

[53:4]  ³⁶ tn Heb “Do they not understand?” The rhetorical question expresses the psalmist’s amazement at their apparent lack of understanding. This may refer to their lack of moral understanding, but it more likely refers to their failure to anticipate God’s defense of his people (see vv. 5-6).

[55:12]  ³⁷ tn Or “for.”

[55:12]  ³⁸ tn Heb “[who] magnifies against me.” See Pss 35:26; 38:16.

[74:9]  ³⁹ tn Heb “our signs we do not see.” Because of the reference to a prophet in the next line, it is likely that the “signs” in view here include the evidence of God’s presence as typically revealed through the prophets. These could include miraculous acts performed by the prophets (see, for example, Isa 38:7-8) or object lessons which they acted out (see, for example, Isa 20:3).

[74:9]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “there is not still a prophet.”

[74:9]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “and [there is] not with us one who knows how long.”

[81:9]  ⁴² tn The imperfect verbal forms in v. 9 have a modal function, expressing what is obligatory.

[81:9]  ⁴³ tn Heb “different”; “illicit.”

[81:11]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “did not listen to my voice.”

[81:11]  ⁴⁵ tn The Hebrew expression אָבָה לִי (’avah liy) means “submit to me” (see Deut 13:8).

[82:5]  ⁴⁶ sn Having addressed the defendants, God now speaks to those who are observing the trial, referring to the gods in the third person.

[82:5]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “walk.” The Hitpael stem indicates iterative action, picturing these ignorant “judges” as stumbling around in the darkness.

[82:5]  ⁴⁸ sn These gods, though responsible for justice, neglect their duty. Their self-imposed ignorance (which the psalmist compares to stumbling around in the dark) results in widespread injustice, which threatens the social order of the world (the meaning of the phrase all the foundations of the earth crumble).

[89:22]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “an enemy will not exact tribute.” The imperfect is understood in a modal sense, indicating capability or potential.

[89:22]  ⁵⁰ tn The translation understands the Hiphil of נָשַׁא (nasha’) in the sense of “act as a creditor.” This may allude to the practice of a conqueror forcing his subjects to pay tribute in exchange for “protection.” Another option is to take the verb from a homonymic verbal root meaning “to deceive,” “to trick.” Still another option is to emend the form to יִשָּׂא (yisa’), a Qal imperfect from נָאַשׂ (na’as, “rise up”) and to translate “an enemy will not rise up against him” (see M. Dahood, Psalms [AB], 2:317).

[89:22]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “and a son of violence will not oppress him.” The imperfect is understood in a modal sense, indicating capability or potential. The reference to a “son of violence” echoes the language of God’s promise to David in 2 Sam 7:10 (see also 1 Chr 17:9).

[92:6]  ⁵² tn Heb “the brutish man does not know, and the fool does not understand this.” The adjective בַּעַר (ba’ar, “brutish”) refers to spiritual insensitivity, not mere lack of intelligence or reasoning ability (see Pss 49:10; 73:22; Prov 12:1; 30:2, as well as the use of the related verb in Ps 94:8).

[94:9]  ⁵³ tn Heb “The one who plants an ear, does he not hear? The one who forms an eye, does he not see?”

[101:3]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”

[101:3]  ⁵⁵ 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 mss. The form appears to be derived from a verbal root שׂוּט (sut, “to fall away; to swerve”; see Ps 40:4).

[101:3]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”

[101:7]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “he will not live in the midst of my house, one who does deceit.”

[101:7]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “one who speaks lies will not be established before my eyes.”