22:14 My strength drains away like water; 1
all my bones are dislocated;
my heart 2 is like wax;
it melts away inside me.
22:15 The roof of my mouth 3 is as dry as a piece of pottery;
my tongue sticks to my gums. 4
You 5 set me in the dust of death. 6
23:5 You prepare a feast before me 7
in plain sight of my enemies.
You refresh 8 my head with oil;
my cup is completely full. 9
40:12 For innumerable dangers 10 surround me.
My sins overtake me
so I am unable to see;
they outnumber the hairs of my head
so my strength fails me. 11
40:17 I am oppressed and needy! 12
May the Lord pay attention to me! 13
You are my helper and my deliverer!
O my God, do not delay!
71:3 Be my protector and refuge, 14
a stronghold where I can be safe! 15
For you are my high ridge 16 and my stronghold.
By David.
144:1 The Lord, my protector, 18 deserves praise 19 –
the one who trains my hands for battle, 20
and my fingers for war,
1 tn Heb “like water I am poured out.”
2 sn The heart is viewed here as the seat of the psalmist’s strength and courage.
3 tc Heb “my strength” (כֹּחִי, kokhiy), but many prefer to emend the text to חִכִּי (khikiy, “my palate”; cf. NEB, NRSV “my mouth”) assuming that an error of transposition has occurred in the traditional Hebrew text.
4 tn Cf. NEB “my jaw”; NASB, NRSV “my jaws”; NIV “the roof of my mouth.”
5 sn Here the psalmist addresses God and suggests that God is ultimately responsible for what is happening because of his failure to intervene (see vv. 1-2, 11).
6 sn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to the progressive nature of the action. The psalmist is in the process of dying.
7 sn In v. 5 the metaphor switches. (It would be very odd for a sheep to have its head anointed and be served wine.) The background for the imagery is probably the royal banquet. Ancient Near Eastern texts describe such banquets in similar terms to those employed by the psalmist. (See M. L. Barre and J. S. Kselman, “New Exodus, Covenant, and Restoration in Psalm 23,” The Word of the Lord Shall Go Forth, 97-127.) The reality behind the imagery is the Lord’s favor. Through his blessings and protection he demonstrates to everyone, including dangerous enemies, that the psalmist has a special relationship with him.
8 tn The imperfect verbal form in v. 5a carries on the generalizing mood of vv. 1-4. However, in v. 5b the psalmist switches to a perfect (דִּשַּׁנְתָּ, dishanta), which may have a generalizing force as well. But then again the perfect is conspicuous here and may be present perfect in sense, indicating that the divine host typically pours oil on his head prior to seating him at the banquet table. The verb דָשַׁן (dashan; the Piel is factitive) is often translated “anoint,” but this is misleading, for it might suggest a symbolic act of initiation into royal status. One would expect the verb מָשָׁח (mashan) in this case; דָשַׁן here describes an act of hospitality extended to guests and carries the nuance “refresh.” In Prov 15:30 it stands parallel to “make happy” and refers to the effect that good news has on the inner being of its recipient.
9 tn The rare noun רְַָויָה (rÿvayah) is derived from the well-attested verb רָוָה (ravah, “be saturated, drink one’s fill”). In this context, where it describes a cup, it must mean “filled up,” but not necessarily to overflowing.
10 tn Or “sinful deeds.” The Hebrew term used here can have a nonmoral nuance (“dangers”) or a moral one (“sinful deeds”) depending on the context. The next line (see “my sins”) seems to favor the moral sense, but the psalmist also speaks of enemies shortly after this (v. 14).
11 tn Heb “and my heart abandons me.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of emotional strength and courage. For a similar idea see Ps 38:10.
12 sn See Pss 35:10; 37:14.
13 tn The prefixed verbal form may be taken as a jussive of prayer (as in the present translation; cf. NIV) or as an imperfect, “The
14 tc Heb “become for me a rocky summit of a dwelling place.” The Hebrew term מָעוֹן (ma’on, “dwelling place”) should probably be emended to מָעוֹז (ma’oz, “refuge”; see Ps 31:2).
15 tc Heb “to enter continually, you commanded to deliver me.” The Hebrew phrase לָבוֹא תָּמִיד צִוִּיתָ (lavo’ tamid tsivvita, “to enter continually, you commanded”) should be emended to לְבֵית מְצוּדוֹת (lÿvet mÿtsudot, “a house of strongholds”; see Ps 31:2).
16 sn You are my high ridge. This metaphor pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28.
17 sn Psalm 144. The psalmist expresses his confidence in God, asks for a mighty display of divine intervention in an upcoming battle, and anticipates God’s rich blessings on the nation in the aftermath of military victory.
18 tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The
19 tn Heb “blessed [be] the
20 sn The one who trains my hands for battle. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement (see Ps 18:34). Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.