Psalms 32:6

32:6 For this reason every one of your faithful followers ¹  should pray to you

while there is a window of opportunity. ² 

Certainly ³  when the surging water ⁴  rises,

it will not reach them. ⁵ 

Psalms 40:3

40:3 He gave me reason to sing a new song, ⁶ 

praising our God. ⁷ 

May many see what God has done,

so that they might swear allegiance to him and trust in the Lord! ⁸ 

Psalms 69:4

69:4 Those who hate me without cause are more numerous than the hairs of my head.

Those who want to destroy me, my enemies for no reason, ⁹  outnumber me. ¹⁰ 

They make me repay what I did not steal! ¹¹ 

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¹ tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 18:25; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).

² tn Heb “at a time of finding.” This may mean, “while there is time to ‘find’ [the Lord]” and seek his forgiveness (cf. NIV). Some emend the text by combining מְצֹא (mÿtso’, “finding”) with the following term רַק (raq, “only, surely”) and read either ר[וֹ]מָצ (matsor, “distress”; see Ps 31:22) or ק[וֹ]מָצ (matsoq, “hardship”; see Ps 119:143). In this case, one may translate “in a time of distress/hardship” (cf. NEB, NRSV).

³ tn The Hebrew term רַק (raq) occasionally has an asseverative force.

⁴ sn The surging water is here a metaphor for trouble that endangers one’s life.

⁵ tn Heb “him.” The translation uses the plural “them” to agree with the plural “every one of your faithful followers” in the first line of v. 6.

⁶ sn A new song was appropriate because the Lord had intervened in the psalmist’s experience in a fresh and exciting way.

⁷ tn Heb “and he placed in my mouth a new song, praise to our God.”

⁸ tn Heb “may many see and fear and trust in the Lord.” The translation assumes that the initial prefixed verbal form is a jussive (“may many see”), rather than an imperfect (“many will see”). The following prefixed verbal forms with vav (ו) conjunctive are taken as indicating purpose or result (“so that they might swear allegiance…and trust”) after the introductory jussive.

⁹ tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Pss 35:19; 38:19).

¹⁰ tn The Hebrew verb עָצַם (’atsam) can sometimes mean “are strong,” but here it probably focuses on numerical superiority; note the parallel verb רָבַב (ravav, “be many”).

¹¹ tn Heb “that which I did not steal, then I restore.” Apparently אָז (’az, “then”) is used here to emphasize the verb that follows.

sn They make me repay what I did not steal. The psalmist’s enemies falsely accuse him and hold him accountable for alleged crimes he did not even commit.