15:2 Whoever lives a blameless life, 1
does what is right,
and speaks honestly. 2
18:20 The Lord repaid 3 me for my godly deeds; 4
he rewarded 5 my blameless behavior. 6
18:24 The Lord rewarded me for my godly deeds; 7
he took notice of my blameless behavior. 8
94:21 They conspire against 9 the blameless, 10
and condemn to death the innocent. 11
1 tn Heb “one who walks blamelessly.”
2 tn Heb “one who speaks truth in his heart”; or “one who speaks truth [that is] in his heart.” This apparently refers to formulating a truthful statement in one’s mind and then honestly revealing that statement in one’s speech.
3 tn In this poetic narrative context the prefixed verbal form is best understood as a preterite indicating past tense, not imperfect.
4 tn Heb “according to my righteousness.” As vv. 22-24 make clear, the psalmist refers here to his unwavering obedience to God’s commands. In these verses the psalmist explains that the
5 tn The unreduced Hiphil prefixed verbal form appears to be an imperfect, in which case the psalmist would be generalizing. However, both the preceding and following contexts (see especially v. 24) suggest he is narrating his experience. Despite its unreduced form, the verb is better taken as a preterite. For other examples of unreduced Hiphil preterites, see Pss 55:14a; 68:9a, 10b; 80:8a; 89:43a; 107:38b; 116:6b.
6 tn Heb “according to the purity of my hands he repaid to me.” “Hands” suggest activity and behavior.
7 tn Heb “according to my righteousness.”
8 tn Heb “according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.” 2 Sam 22:25 reads “according to my purity before his eyes.” The verbal repetition (compare vv. 20 and 24) sets off vv. 20-24 as a distinct sub-unit within the psalm.
9 tn Or “attack.”
10 tn Heb “the life of the blameless.”
11 tn Heb “and the blood of the innocent they declare guilty.”