A psalm – a song used at the dedication of the temple; 2 by David.
30:1 I will praise you, O Lord, for you lifted me up, 3
and did not allow my enemies to gloat 4 over me.
35:10 With all my strength I will say, 5
“O Lord, who can compare to you?
You rescue 6 the oppressed from those who try to overpower them; 7
the oppressed and needy from those who try to rob them.” 8
53:5 They are absolutely terrified, 9
even by things that do not normally cause fear. 10
For God annihilates 11 those who attack you. 12
You are able to humiliate them because God has rejected them. 13
55:23 But you, O God, will bring them 14 down to the deep Pit. 15
Violent and deceitful people 16 will not live even half a normal lifespan. 17
But as for me, I trust in you.
62:10 Do not trust in what you can gain by oppression! 18
Do not put false confidence in what you can gain by robbery! 19
If wealth increases, do not become attached to it! 20
65:5 You answer our prayers by performing awesome acts of deliverance,
O God, our savior. 21
All the ends of the earth trust in you, 22
as well as those living across the wide seas. 23
68:35 You are awe-inspiring, O God, as you emerge from your holy temple! 24
It is the God of Israel 25 who gives the people power and strength.
God deserves praise! 26
69:6 Let none who rely on you be disgraced because of me,
O sovereign Lord and king! 27
Let none who seek you be ashamed because of me,
O God of Israel!
71:22 I will express my thanks to you with a stringed instrument,
praising 28 your faithfulness, O my God!
I will sing praises to you accompanied by a harp,
O Holy One of Israel! 29
For the music director; according to the al-tashcheth style; 31 a psalm of Asaph; a song.
75:1 We give thanks to you, O God! We give thanks!
You reveal your presence; 32
people tell about your amazing deeds.
1 sn Psalm 30. The author thanks the Lord for delivering him from death and urges others to join him in praise. The psalmist experienced divine discipline for a brief time, but when he cried out for help the Lord intervened and restored his favor.
2 tn Heb “a song of the dedication of the house.” The referent of “house” is unclear. It is possible that David wrote this psalm for the dedication ceremony of Solomon’s temple. Another possibility is that the psalm was used on the occasion of the dedication of the second temple following the return from exile, or on the occasion of the rededication of the temple in Maccabean times.
3 tn Elsewhere the verb דָּלָה (dalah) is used of drawing water from a well (Exod 2:16, 19; Prov 20:5). The psalmist was trapped in the pit leading to Sheol (see v. 3), but the
4 tn Or “rejoice.”
5 tn Heb “all my bones will say.”
6 tn Heb “[the one who] rescues.” The substantival participle in the Hebrew text characterizes God as one who typically rescues the oppressed.
7 tn Heb “from [the one who is] too strong for him.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense. The typical oppressed individual and typical oppressor are in view.
8 tn Heb “the oppressed [one] and needy [one] from [the one who] robs him.” As in the previous line, the singular forms are used in a representative sense.
9 tn Heb “there they are afraid [with] fear.” The perfect verbal form is probably used in a rhetorical manner; the psalmist describes the future demise of the oppressors as if it were already occurring. The adverb שָׁם (sham, “there”) is also used here for dramatic effect, as the psalmist envisions the wicked standing in fear at a spot that is this vivid in his imagination (BDB 1027 s.v.). The cognate accusative following the verb emphasizes the degree of their terror (“absolutely”).
10 tn Heb “there is no fear.” Apparently this means the evildoers are so traumatized with panic (see v. 5b) that they now jump with fear at everything, even those things that would not normally cause fear. Ps 14:5 omits this line.
11 tn Heb “scatters the bones.” The perfect is used in a rhetorical manner, describing this future judgment as if it were already accomplished. Scattering the bones alludes to the aftermath of a battle. God annihilates his enemies, leaving their carcasses spread all over the battlefield. As the bodies are devoured by wild animals and decay, the bones of God’s dead enemies are exposed. See Ps 141:7.
12 tn Heb “[those who] encamp [against] you.” The second person masculine singular pronominal suffix probably refers to God’s people viewed as a collective whole. Instead of “for God scatters the bones of those who encamp against you,” Ps 14:5 reads, “for God is with a godly generation.”
13 tn Once again the perfect is used in a rhetorical manner, describing this future judgment as if it were already accomplished. As in the previous line, God’s people are probably addressed. The second person singular verb form is apparently collective, suggesting that the people are viewed here as a unified whole. Ps 14:6 reads here “the counsel of the oppressed you put to shame, even though God is his shelter,” the words being addressed to the wicked.
14 tn The pronominal suffix refers to the psalmist’s enemies (see v. 19).
15 tn Heb “well of the pit.” The Hebrew term שַׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 30:9; 49:9; 103:4).
16 tn Heb “men of bloodshed and deceit.”
17 tn Heb “will not divide in half their days.”
18 tn Heb “do not trust in oppression.” Here “oppression” stands by metonymy for the riches that can be gained by oppressive measures, as the final line of the verse indicates.
19 tn Heb “and in robbery do not place vain hope.” Here “robbery” stands by metonymy for the riches that can be gained by theft, as the next line of the verse indicates.
20 tn Heb “[as for] wealth, when it bears fruit, do not set [your] heart [on it].”
21 tn Heb “[with] awesome acts in deliverance you answer us, O God of our salvation.”
22 tn Heb “a source of confidence [for] all the ends of the earth.”
sn All the ends of the earth trust in you. This idealistic portrayal of universal worship is typical hymnic hyperbole, though it does anticipate eschatological reality.
23 tc Heb “and [the] distant sea.” The plural adjective is problematic after the singular form “sea.” One could emend יָם (yam, “sea”) to יָמִים (yamim, “seas”), or emend the plural form רְחֹקִים (rÿkhoqim, “far”) to the singular רָחֹק (rakhoq). In this case the final mem (ם) could be treated as dittographic; note the mem on the beginning of the first word in v. 6.
24 tn Heb “awesome [is] God from his holy places.” The plural of מִקְדָּשׁ (miqdash, “holy places”) perhaps refers to the temple precincts (see Ps 73:17; Jer 51:51).
25 tn Heb “the God of Israel, he.”
26 tn Heb “blessed [be] God.”
27 tn Heb “O Master,
28 tn The word “praising” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
29 sn The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” The
30 sn Psalm 75. The psalmist celebrates God’s just rule, which guarantees that the godly will be vindicated and the wicked destroyed.
31 tn Heb “do not destroy.” Perhaps this refers to a particular style of music, a tune title, or a musical instrument. These words also appear in the superscription to Pss 57-59.
32 tn Heb “and near [is] your name.”