Mazmur 84:11-12

84:11 For the Lord God is our sovereign protector. ¹ 

The Lord bestows favor ²  and honor;

he withholds no good thing from those who have integrity. ³ 

84:12 O Lord who rules over all, ⁴ 

how blessed are those who trust in you! ⁵ 

[84:11]  ¹ tn Heb “[is] a sun and a shield.” The epithet “sun,” though rarely used of Israel’s God in the OT, was a well-attested royal title in the ancient Near East. For several examples from Ugaritic texts, the Amarna letters, and Assyrian royal inscriptions, see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 131, n. 2.

[84:11]  ² tn Or “grace.”

[84:11]  ³ tn Heb “he does not withhold good to those walking in integrity.”

[84:12]  ⁴ tn Traditionally “Lord of hosts.”

[84:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man [who] trusts in you.” Hebrew literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle stated here 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 plural “those.” The individual referred to here is representative of all followers of God, as the use of the plural form in v. 12b indicates.