Psalms 12:3

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

and the tongue that boasts! 2 

Psalms 104:7

104:7 Your shout made the waters retreat;

at the sound of your thunderous voice they hurried off –

Psalms 105:16

105:16 He called down a famine upon the earth;

he cut off all the food supply. 3 

Psalms 107:14

107:14 He brought them out of the utter darkness, 4 

and tore off their shackles.

Psalms 119:67

119:67 Before I was afflicted I used to stray off, 5 

but now I keep your instructions. 6 

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.

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

3 tn Heb “and every staff of food he broke.” The psalmist refers to the famine that occurred in Joseph’s time (see v. 17 and Gen 41:53-57).

4 tn Heb “darkness and deep darkness.” See the note on the word “darkness” in v. 10.

5 tn Heb “before I suffered, I was straying off.”

6 tn Heb “your word.”