22:2 My God, I cry out during the day,
but you do not answer,
and during the night my prayers do not let up. 1
51:2 Wash away my wrongdoing! 2
Cleanse me of my sin! 3
61:6 Give the king long life!
Make his lifetime span several generations! 4
135:20 O family of Levi, praise the Lord!
You loyal followers 5 of the Lord, praise the Lord!
145:12 so that mankind 6 might acknowledge your mighty acts,
and the majestic splendor of your kingdom.
1 tn Heb “there is no silence to me.”
2 tn Heb “Thoroughly wash me from my wrongdoing.”
3 sn In vv. 1b-2 the psalmist uses three different words to emphasize the multifaceted character and degree of his sin. Whatever one wants to call it (“rebellious acts,” “wrongdoing,” “sin”), he has done it and stands morally polluted in God’s sight. The same three words appear in Exod 34:7, which emphasizes that God is willing to forgive sin in all of its many dimensions. In v. 2 the psalmist compares forgiveness and restoration to physical cleansing. Perhaps he likens spiritual cleansing to the purification rites of priestly law.
4 tn Heb “days upon days of the king add, his years like generation and generation.”
sn It is not certain if the (royal) psalmist is referring to himself in the third person in this verse, or if an exile is praying on behalf of the king.
5 tn Heb “fearers.”
6 tn Heb “the sons of man.”