144:8 who speak lies,
and make false promises. 1
106:12 They believed his promises; 2
they sang praises to him.
55:20 He 3 attacks 4 his friends; 5
he breaks his solemn promises to them. 6
1 tn Heb “who [with] their mouth speak falsehood, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.” The reference to the “right hand” is probably a metonymy for an oath. When making an oath, one would raise the hand as a solemn gesture. See Exod 6:8; Num 14:30; Deut 32:40. The figure thus represents the making of false oaths (false promises).
2 tn Heb “his words.”
3 sn He. This must refer to the psalmist’s former friend, who was addressed previously in vv. 12-14.
4 tn Heb “stretches out his hand against.”
5 tc The form should probably be emended to an active participle (שֹׁלְמָיו, sholÿmayv) from the verbal root שָׁלַם (shalam, “be in a covenant of peace with”). Perhaps the translation “his friends” suggests too intimate a relationship. Another option is to translate, “he attacks those who made agreements with him.”
6 tn Heb “he violates his covenant.”