21:7 For the king trusts 1 in the Lord,
and because of the sovereign Lord’s 2 faithfulness he is not upended. 3
31:21 The Lord deserves praise 4
for he demonstrated his amazing faithfulness to me when I was besieged by enemies. 5
32:10 An evil person suffers much pain, 6
but the Lord’s faithfulness overwhelms the one who trusts in him. 7
33:18 Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, 8
those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness 9
40:11 O Lord, you do not withhold 10 your compassion from me.
May your loyal love and faithfulness continually protect me! 11
54:5 May those who wait to ambush me 12 be repaid for their evil! 13
As a demonstration of your faithfulness, 14 destroy them!
86:5 Certainly 15 O Lord, you are kind 16 and forgiving,
and show great faithfulness to all who cry out to you.
86:15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and merciful God.
You are patient 17 and demonstrate great loyal love and faithfulness. 18
88:11 Is your loyal love proclaimed in the grave,
or your faithfulness in the place of the dead? 19
89:5 O Lord, the heavens 20 praise your amazing deeds,
as well as your faithfulness in the angelic assembly. 21
92:2 It is fitting 22 to proclaim your loyal love in the morning,
and your faithfulness during the night,
117:2 For his loyal love towers 23 over us,
and the Lord’s faithfulness endures.
Praise the Lord!
1 tn The active participle draws attention to the ongoing nature of the action.
2 tn Traditionally “the Most High’s.” The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן, ’elyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. Note the focus of vv. 8-12 and see Ps 47:2.
3 tn Another option is to translate the imperfect verbal form as future, “he will not be upended” (cf. NRSV “he shall not be moved”). Even if one chooses this option, the future tense must be understood in a generalizing sense.
4 tn Heb “blessed [be] the
5 tn Heb “for he caused his faithfulness to be amazing to me in a besieged city.” The psalmist probably speaks figuratively here. He compares his crisis to being trapped in a besieged city, but the
6 tn Heb “many [are the] pains of evil [one].” The singular form is representative here; the typical evildoer, representative of the larger group of wicked people, is in view.
7 tn Heb “but the one who trusts in the
8 tn Heb “look, the eye of the
9 tn Heb “for the ones who wait for his faithfulness.”
10 tn Some (cf. NIV, NRSV) translate the verb as a request (“do not withhold”), but elsewhere in the psalms the second masculine singular prefixed form, when addressed to God and preceded by לֹא (lo’), is always indicative in mood and never has the force of a prayer (see Pss 16:10; 22:2; 44:9 51:16-17; 60:10; 108:11; cf. NEB, NASB).
11 tn In this line the psalmist makes the transition from confidence to petition (see v. 13). Since the prefixed verbal form in the preceding line is imperfect/indicative, one could take the verb in this line as imperfect as well and translate, “your loyal love and faithfulness continually protect me” (cf. NEB). However, the כִּי (ki) at the beginning of the next verse, if causal (“because”), is best understood as introducing a motivating argument in support of a petition. For this reason v. 11b is best taken as a prayer with the prefixed form being understood as jussive (cf. NIV, NRSV). For parallels to the proposed construction (jussive followed by כִּי + perfect introducing motivating argument), see Ps 25:21, as well as Pss 10:2-3; 22:8.
12 tn Heb “to those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 56:2.
13 tn The Kethib (consonantal text) reads a Qal imperfect, “the evil will return,” while the Qere (marginal reading) has a Hiphil imperfect, “he will repay.” The parallel line has an imperative (indicating a prayer/request), so it is best to read a jussive form יָשֹׁב (yashov, “let it [the evil] return”) here.
14 tn Heb “in [or “by”] your faithfulness.”
15 tn Or “for.”
16 tn Heb “good.”
17 tn Heb “slow to anger.”
18 tn Heb “and great of loyal love and faithfulness.”
sn The psalmist’s confession of faith in this verse echoes Exod 34:6.
19 tn Heb “in Abaddon,” a name for Sheol. The noun is derived from a verbal root meaning “to perish,” “to die.”
20 tn As the following context makes clear, the personified “heavens” here stand by metonymy for the angelic beings that surround God’s heavenly throne.
21 tn Heb “in the assembly of the holy ones.” The phrase “holy ones” sometimes refers to God’s people (Ps 34:9) or to their priestly leaders (2 Chr 35:3), but here it refers to God’s heavenly assembly and the angels that surround his throne (see vv. 6-7).
22 tn The words “it is fitting” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Verses 1-3 are actually one long sentence in the Hebrew text, but this has been divided up into two shorter sentences in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.
23 tn For this sense of the Hebrew verb גָּבַר (gavar), see Ps 103:11 and L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 17, 19.