7:2 Otherwise they will rip 1 me 2 to shreds like a lion;
they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me. 3
42:2 I thirst 4 for God,
for the living God.
I say, 5 “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” 6
50:22 Carefully consider this, you who reject God! 7
Otherwise I will rip you to shreds 8
and no one will be able to rescue you.
1 tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew text, even though “all who chase me” in v. 1 refers to a whole group of enemies. The singular is also used in vv. 4-5, but the psalmist returns to the plural in v. 6. The singular is probably collective, emphasizing the united front that the psalmist’s enemies present. This same alternation between a collective singular and a plural referring to enemies appears in Pss 9:3, 6; 13:4; 31:4, 8; 41:6, 10-11; 42:9-10; 55:3; 64:1-2; 74:3-4; 89:22-23; 106:10-11; 143:3, 6, 9.
2 tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.
3 tn Heb “tearing and there is no one rescuing.” The verbal form translated “tearing” is a singular active participle.
4 tn Or “my soul thirsts.”
5 tn The words “I say” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.
6 tn Heb “When will I go and appear [to] the face of God?” Some emend the Niphal verbal form אֵרָאֶה (’era’eh, “I will appear”) to a Qal אֶרְאֶה (’er’eh, “I will see”; see Gen 33:10), but the Niphal can be retained if one understands ellipsis of אֶת (’et) before “face” (see Exod 34:24; Deut 31:11).
7 tn Heb “[you who] forget God.” “Forgetting God” here means forgetting about his commandments and not respecting his moral authority.
8 sn Elsewhere in the psalms this verb is used (within a metaphorical framework) of a lion tearing its prey (see Pss 7:2; 17:12; 22:13).