3:7 Rise up, 1 Lord!
Deliver me, my God!
Yes, 2 you will strike 3 all my enemies on the jaw;
you will break the teeth 4 of the wicked. 5
6:6 I am exhausted as I groan;
all night long I drench my bed in tears; 6
my tears saturate the cushion beneath me. 7
7:6 Stand up angrily, 8 Lord!
Rise up with raging fury against my enemies! 9
Wake up for my sake and execute the judgment you have decreed for them! 10
A prayer of David.
17:1 Lord, consider my just cause! 12
Pay attention to my cry for help!
Listen to the prayer
I sincerely offer! 13
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. 14
22:10 I have been dependent on you since birth; 15
from the time I came out of my mother’s womb you have been my God. 16
23:6 Surely your goodness and faithfulness 17 will pursue 18 me all my days, 19
and I will live in 20 the Lord’s house 21 for the rest of my life. 22
25:2 My God, I trust in you.
Please do not let me be humiliated;
do not let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me!
25:7 Do not hold against me 23 the sins of my youth 24 or my rebellious acts!
Because you are faithful to me, extend to me your favor, O Lord! 25
28:2 Hear my plea for mercy when I cry out to you for help,
when I lift my hands 26 toward your holy temple! 27
30:9 “What 28 profit is there in taking my life, 29
in my descending into the Pit? 30
Can the dust of the grave 31 praise you?
Can it declare your loyalty? 32
30:12 So now 33 my heart 34 will sing to you and not be silent;
O Lord my God, I will always 35 give thanks to you.
31:3 For you are my high ridge 36 and my stronghold;
for the sake of your own reputation 37 you lead me and guide me. 38
39:4 “O Lord, help me understand my mortality
and the brevity of life! 39
Let me realize how quickly my life will pass! 40
42:5 Why are you depressed, 41 O my soul? 42
Why are you upset? 43
Wait for God!
For I will again give thanks
to my God for his saving intervention. 44
42:9 I will pray 45 to God, my high ridge: 46
“Why do you ignore 47 me?
Why must I walk around mourning 48
because my enemies oppress me?”
42:11 Why are you depressed, 49 O my soul? 50
Why are you upset? 51
Wait for God!
For I will again give thanks
to my God for his saving intervention. 52
43:5 Why are you depressed, 53 O my soul? 54
Why are you upset? 55
Wait for God!
For I will again give thanks
to my God for his saving intervention. 56
56:9 My enemies will turn back when I cry out to you for help; 57
I know that God is on my side. 58
56:13 when you deliver 59 my life from death.
You keep my feet from stumbling, 60
so that I might serve 61 God as I enjoy life. 62
59:17 You are my source of strength! I will sing praises to you! 63
For God is my refuge, 64 the God who loves me. 65
For the music director; to be played on a stringed instrument; written by David.
61:1 O God, hear my cry for help!
Pay attention to my prayer!
For the music director; a psalm of David.
64:1 Listen to me, 68 O God, as I offer my lament!
Protect 69 my life from the enemy’s terrifying attacks. 70
70:5 I am oppressed and needy! 71
O God, hurry to me! 72
You are my helper and my deliverer!
O Lord, 73 do not delay!
77:2 In my time of trouble I sought 74 the Lord.
I kept my hand raised in prayer throughout the night. 75
I 76 refused to be comforted.
84:2 I desperately want to be 77
in the courts of the Lord’s temple. 78
My heart and my entire being 79 shout for joy
to the living God.
88:9 My eyes grow weak because of oppression.
I call out to you, O Lord, all day long;
I spread out my hands in prayer to you. 80
89:3 The Lord said, 81
“I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have made a promise on oath to David, my servant:
101:2 I will walk in 82 the way of integrity.
When will you come to me?
I will conduct my business with integrity in the midst of my palace. 83
102:24 I say, “O my God, please do not take me away in the middle of my life! 84
You endure through all generations. 85
A psalm of David.
110:1 Here is the Lord’s proclamation 87 to my lord: 88
“Sit down at my right hand 89 until I make your enemies your footstool!” 90
141:5 May the godly strike me in love and correct me!
May my head not refuse 91 choice oil! 92
Indeed, my prayer is a witness against their evil deeds. 93
142:3 Even when my strength leaves me, 94
you watch my footsteps. 95
In the path where I walk
they have hidden a trap for me.
142:5 I cry out to you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my shelter,
my security 96 in the land of the living.”
A psalm of David.
143:1 O Lord, hear my prayer!
Pay attention to my plea for help!
Because of your faithfulness and justice, answer me!
143:12 As a demonstration of your loyal love, 98 destroy my enemies!
Annihilate 99 all who threaten my life, 100
for I am your servant.
1 tn In v. 2 the psalmist describes his enemies as those who “confront” him (קָמִים [qamim], literally, “rise up against him”). Now, using the same verbal root (קוּם, qum) he asks the
2 tn Elsewhere in the psalms the particle כִּי (ki), when collocated with a perfect verbal form and subordinated to a preceding imperative directed to God, almost always has an explanatory or causal force (“for, because”) and introduces a motivating argument for why God should respond positively to the request (see Pss 5:10; 6:2; 12:1; 16:1; 41:4; 55:9; 56:1; 57:1; 60:2; 69:1; 74:20; 119:94; 123:3; 142:6; 143:8). (On three occasions the כִּי is recitative after a verb of perception [“see/know that,” see Pss 4:3; 25:19; 119:159]). If כִּי is taken as explanatory here, then the psalmist is arguing that God should deliver him now because that is what God characteristically does. However, such a motivating argument is not used in the passages cited above. The motivating argument usually focuses on the nature of the psalmist’s dilemma or the fact that he trusts in the Lord. For this reason it is unlikely that כִּי has its normal force here. Most scholars understand the particle כִּי as having an asseverative (emphasizing) function here (“indeed, yes”; NEB leaves the particle untranslated).
3 tn If the particle כִּי (ki) is taken as explanatory, then the perfect verbal forms in v. 7b would describe God’s characteristic behavior. However, as pointed out in the preceding note on the word “yes,” the particle probably has an asseverative force here. If so, the perfects may be taken as indicating rhetorically the psalmist’s certitude and confidence that God will intervene. The psalmist is so confident of God’s positive response to his prayer, he can describe God’s assault on his enemies as if it had already happened. Such confidence is consistent with the mood of the psalm, as expressed before (vv. 3-6) and after this (v. 8). Another option is to take the perfects as precative, expressing a wish or request (“Strike all my enemies on the jaw, break the teeth of the wicked”). See IBHS 494-95 §30.5.4c, d. However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.
4 sn The expression break the teeth may envision violent hand-to hand combat, though it is possible that the enemies are pictured here as a dangerous animal (see Job 29:17).
5 tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (rÿsha’im, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21). They oppose God and his people.
6 tn Heb “I cause to swim through all the night my bed.”
7 tn Heb “with my tears my bed I flood/melt.”
8 tn Heb “in your anger.”
9 tn Heb “Lift yourself up in the angry outbursts of my enemies.” Many understand the preposition prefixed to עַבְרוֹת (’avrot, “angry outbursts”) as adversative, “against,” and the following genitive “enemies” as subjective. In this case one could translate, “rise up against my furious enemies” (cf. NIV, NRSV). The present translation, however, takes the preposition as indicating manner (cf. “in your anger” in the previous line) and understands the plural form of the noun as indicating an abstract quality (“fury”) or excessive degree (“raging fury”). Cf. Job 21:30.
10 tc Heb “Wake up to me [with the] judgment [which] you have commanded.” The LXX understands אֵלִי (’eliy, “my God”) instead of אֵלַי (’elay, “to me”; the LXX reading is followed by NEB, NIV, NRSV.) If the reading of the MT is retained, the preposition probably has the sense of “on account of, for the sake of.” The noun מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat, “judgment”) is probably an adverbial accusative, modifying the initial imperative, “wake up.” In this case צִוִּיתָ (tsivvita, “[which] you have commanded”) is an asyndetic relative clause. Some take the perfect as precative. In this case one could translate the final line, “Wake up for my sake! Decree judgment!” (cf. NIV). However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.
11 sn Psalm 17. The psalmist asks God to intervene on his behalf because his life is threatened by dangerous enemies. He appeals to divine justice, for he is certain of his own innocence. Because he is innocent, he expects to encounter God and receive an assuring word.
12 tn Heb “hear,
13 tn Heb “Listen to my prayer, [made] without lips of deceit.”
14 tn Heb “there is no silence to me.”
15 tn Heb “upon you I was cast from [the] womb.”
16 tn Heb “from the womb of my mother you [have been] my God.”
sn Despite the enemies’ taunts, the psalmist is certain of his relationship with God, which began from the time of his birth (from the time I came out of my mother’s womb).
17 tn The noun חֶסֶד (khesed; v. 6) has been the subject of several monographs. G. R. Clark concludes that חֶסֶד “is not merely an attitude or an emotion; it is an emotion that leads to an activity beneficial to the recipient.” He explains that an act of חֶסֶד is “a beneficent action performed, in the context of a deep and enduring commitment between two persons or parties, by one who is able to render assistance to the needy party who in the circumstances is unable to help him- or herself.” (See G. R. Clark, The Word Hesed in the Hebrew Bible [JSOTSup], 267.) HALOT 336-37 s.v. defines the word as “loyalty,” or “faithfulness.” Other appropriate meanings might be “commitment” and “devotion.”
18 tn The use of רָדַף (radaf, “pursue, chase”) with טוֹב וָחֶסֶד (tov vakhesed, “goodness and faithfulness”) as subject is ironic. This is the only place in the entire OT where either of these nouns appears as the subject of this verb רָדַף (radaf, “pursue”). This verb is often used to describe the hostile actions of enemies. One might expect the psalmist’s enemies (see v. 5) to chase him, but ironically God’s “goodness and faithfulness” (which are personified and stand by metonymy for God himself) pursue him instead. The word “pursue” is used outside of its normal context in an ironic manner and creates a unique, but pleasant word picture of God’s favor (or a kind God) “chasing down” the one whom he loves.
19 tn Heb “all the days of my life.”
20 tn The verb form וְשַׁבְתִּי (vÿshavtiy) is a Qal perfect (with vav [ו] consecutive), first common singular, from שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) and should be translated, “and I will return.” But this makes no sense when construed with the following phrase, “in the house of the
21 tn Heb “the house of the
22 tn The phrase אֹרֶךְ יָמִים (’orekh yamim, “length of days”) is traditionally translated “forever.” However, this phrase, when used elsewhere of people, usually refers to a lengthy period of time, such as one’s lifetime, and does not mean “forever” in the sense of eternity. (Cf. Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20.) Furthermore, the parallel phrase “all the days of my life” suggests this more limited meaning. Psalm 21:4, where the phrase is followed by “forever and ever,” may be an exception, though the juxtaposition of the phrases may be an example of intensification, where the second phrase goes beyond the limits of the first, rather than synonymity. Even if one takes both expressions as referring to eternal life, the language is part of the king’s hyperbolic description of the
23 tn Heb “do not remember,” with the intention of punishing.
24 sn That is, the sins characteristic of youths, who lack moral discretion and wisdom.
25 tn Heb “according to your faithfulness, remember me, you, for the sake of your goodness, O
26 sn I lift my hands. Lifting one’s hands toward God was a gesture of prayer.
27 tn The Hebrew term דְּבִיר (dÿvir, “temple”) actually refers to the most holy place within the sanctuary.
28 sn The following two verses (vv. 9-10) contain the prayer (or an excerpt of the prayer) that the psalmist offered to the Lord during his crisis.
29 tn Heb “What profit [is there] in my blood?” “Blood” here represents his life.
30 tn The Hebrew term שָׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 49:9; 55:24; 103:4).
31 tn Heb “dust.” The words “of the grave” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
32 tn The rhetorical questions anticipate the answer, “Of course not!”
sn According to the OT, those who descend into the realm of death/Sheol are cut off from God’s mighty deeds and from the worshiping covenant community that experiences divine intervention (Pss 6:5; 88:10-12; Isa 38:18). In his effort to elicit a positive divine response, the psalmist reminds God that he will receive no praise or glory if he allows the psalmist to die. Dead men do not praise God!
33 tn Heb “so that”; or “in order that.”
34 tn Heb “glory.” Some view כָבוֹד (khavod, “glory”) here as a metonymy for man’s inner being (see BDB 459 s.v. II כָּבוֹד 5), but it is preferable to emend the form to כְּבֵדִי (kÿvediy, “my liver”). Like the heart, the liver is viewed as the seat of one’s emotions. See also Pss 16:9; 57:9; 108:1, as well as H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 64, and M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:90. For an Ugaritic example of the heart/liver as the source of joy, see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 47-48: “her [Anat’s] liver swelled with laughter, her heart was filled with joy, the liver of Anat with triumph.” “Heart” is used in the translation above for the sake of English idiom; the expression “my liver sings” would seem odd indeed to the modern reader.
35 tn Or “forever.”
36 sn The metaphor of the high ridge pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28.
37 tn Heb “name.” The Hebrew term שֵׁם (shem, “name”) refers here to the
38 tn The present translation assumes that the imperfect verbal forms are generalizing, “you lead me and guide me.” Other options are to take them as an expression of confidence about the future, “you will lead me and guide me” (cf. NASB), or as expressing a prayer, “lead me and guide me” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV).
39 tn Heb “Cause me to know, O
40 tn Heb “Let me know how transient I am!”
41 tn Heb “Why do you bow down?”
42 sn For poetic effect the psalmist addresses his soul, or inner self.
43 tn Heb “and [why] are you in turmoil upon me?” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries on the descriptive present nuance of the preceding imperfect. See GKC 329 §111.t.
44 tc Heb “for again I will give him thanks, the saving acts of his face.” The verse division in the Hebrew text is incorrect. אֱלֹהַי (’elohay, “my God”) at the beginning of v. 7 belongs with the end of v. 6 (see the corresponding refrains in 42:11 and 43:5, both of which end with “my God” after “saving acts of my face”). The Hebrew term פָּנָיו (panayv, “his face”) should be emended to פְּנֵי (pÿney, “face of”). The emended text reads, “[for] the saving acts of the face of my God,” that is, the saving acts associated with God’s presence/intervention.
45 tn The cohortative form indicates the psalmist’s resolve.
46 tn 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; Pss 18:2; 31:3.
47 tn Or “forget.”
48 sn Walk around mourning. See Ps 38:6 for a similar idea.
49 tn Heb “Why do you bow down?”
50 sn For poetic effect the psalmist addresses his soul, or inner self.
51 tn Heb “and why are you in turmoil upon me?”
52 tc Heb “for again I will give him thanks, the saving acts of my face and my God.” The last line should be emended to read יְשׁוּעֹת פְנֵי אֱלֹהָי (yÿshu’ot fÿney ’elohay, “[for] the saving acts of the face of my God”), that is, the saving acts associated with God’s presence/intervention. This refrain is almost identical to the one in v. 5. See also Ps 43:5.
53 tn Heb “Why do you bow down?”
54 sn For poetic effect the psalmist addresses his soul, or inner self.
55 tn Heb “and why are you in turmoil upon me?”
56 tc Heb “for again I will give him thanks, the saving acts of my face and my God.” The last line should be emended to read יְשׁוּעֹת פְנֵי אֱלֹהָי (yÿshu’ot fÿney ’elohay, “[for] the saving acts of the face of my God,” that is, the saving acts associated with God’s presence/intervention. This refrain is identical to the one in Ps 42:11. See also 42:5, which differs only slightly.
57 tn Heb “then my enemies will turn back in the day I cry out.” The Hebrew particle אָז (’az, “then”) is probably used here to draw attention to the following statement.
58 tn Heb “this I know, that God is for me.”
59 tn The perfect verbal form is probably future perfect; the psalmist promises to make good on his vows once God has delivered him (see Pss 13:5; 52:9). (2) Another option is to understand the final two verses as being added later, after the
60 tn Heb “are not my feet [kept] from stumbling?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course they are!” The question has been translated as an affirmation for the sake of clarification of meaning.
61 tn Heb “walk before.” For a helpful discussion of the background and meaning of this Hebrew idiom, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 254; cf. the same idiom in 2 Kgs 20:3; Isa 38:3.
62 tn Heb “in the light of life.” The phrase is used here and in Job 33:30.
63 tn Heb “my strength, to you I will sing praises.”
64 tn Or “my elevated place” (see Ps 18:2).
65 tn Heb “the God of my loyal love.”
66 sn Psalm 61. The psalmist cries out for help and expresses his confidence that God will protect him.
67 sn Psalm 64. The psalmist asks God to protect him from his dangerous enemies and then confidently affirms that God will destroy his enemies and demonstrate his justice in the sight of all observers.
68 tn Heb “my voice.”
69 tn The imperfect verbal form is used here to express the psalmist’s request.
70 tn Heb “from the terror of [the] enemy.” “Terror” is used here metonymically for the enemy’s attacks that produce fear because they threaten the psalmist’s life.
71 sn See Pss 35:10; 37:14.
72 tn Ps 40:17 has “may the Lord pay attention to me.”
73 tn Ps 40:17 has “my God” instead of “
74 tn Here the psalmist refers back to the very recent past, when he began to pray for divine help.
75 tn Heb “my hand [at] night was extended and was not growing numb.” The verb נָגַר (nagar), which can mean “flow” in certain contexts, here has the nuance “be extended.” The imperfect form (תָפוּג, tafug, “to be numb”) is used here to describe continuous action in the past.
76 tn Or “my soul.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) with a pronominal suffix is often equivalent to a pronoun, especially in poetry (see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 4.a).
77 tn Heb “my soul longs, it even pines for.”
78 tn Heb “the courts of the
79 tn Heb “my flesh,” which stands for his whole person and being.
80 tn Heb “I spread out my hands to you.” Spreading out the hands toward God was a prayer gesture (see Exod 9:29, 33; 1 Kgs 8:22, 38; 2 Chr 6:12-13, 29; Ezra 9:15; Job 11:13; Isa 1:15). The words “in prayer” have been supplied in the translation to clarify this.
81 tn The words “the
82 tn Heb “take notice of.”
83 tn Heb “I will walk about in the integrity of my heart in the midst of my house.”
84 tn Heb “do not lift me up in the middle of my days.”
85 tn Heb “in a generation of generations [are] your years.”
86 sn Psalm 110. In this royal psalm the psalmist announces God’s oracle to the Davidic king. The first part of the oracle appears in v. 1, the second in v. 4. In vv. 2-3 the psalmist addresses the king, while in vv. 5-7 he appears to address God.
87 tn The word נְאֻם (nÿ’um) is used frequently in the OT of a formal divine announcement through a prophet.
88 sn My lord. In the psalm’s original context the speaker is an unidentified prophetic voice in the royal court. In the course of time the psalm is applied to each successive king in the dynasty and ultimately to the ideal Davidic king. NT references to the psalm understand David to be speaking about his “lord,” the Messiah. (See Matt 22:43-45; Mark 12:36-37; Luke 20:42-44; Acts 2:34-35).
89 tn To sit at the “right hand” of the king was an honor (see 1 Kgs 2:19). In Ugaritic myth (CTA 4 v. 108-10) the artisan god Kothar-and Khasis is described as sitting at the right hand of the storm god Baal. See G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 61-62.
sn The Lord’s invitation to the Davidic king to sit down at his right hand reflects the king’s position as the Lord’s vice-regent.
90 sn When the Lord made his covenant with David, he promised to subdue the king’s enemies (see 2 Sam 7:9-11; Ps 89:22-23).
91 tn The form יָנִי (yaniy) appears to be derived from the verbal root נוּא (nu’). Another option is to emend the form to יְנָא (yÿna’), a Piel from נָאָה (na’ah), and translate “may choice oil not adorn my head” (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 271). In this case, choice oil, like delicacies in v. 4, symbolize the pleasures of sin.
92 sn May my head not refuse choice oil. The psalmist compares the constructive criticism of the godly (see the previous line) to having refreshing olive oil poured over one’s head.
93 tc Heb “for still, and my prayer [is] against their evil deeds.” The syntax of the Hebrew text is difficult; the sequence -כִּי־עוֹד וּ (kiy-’od u-, “for still and”) occurs only here. The translation assumes an emendation to כִּי עֵד תְפלָּתִי (“indeed a witness [is] my prayer”). The psalmist’s lament about the evil actions of sinful men (see v. 4) testifies against the wicked in the divine court.
94 tn Heb “my spirit grows faint.”
95 tn Heb “you know my path.”
96 tn Heb “my portion.” The psalmist compares the
97 sn Psalm 143. As in the previous psalm, the psalmist laments his persecuted state and asks the Lord to deliver him from his enemies.
98 tn Heb “in [or “by”] your faithfulness.”
99 tn The perfect with vav (ו) consecutive carries on the mood of the preceding imperfect.
100 tn Heb “all the enemies of my life.”