9:2 I will be happy and rejoice in you!
I will sing praises to you, O sovereign One! 1
21:7 For the king trusts 2 in the Lord,
and because of the sovereign Lord’s 3 faithfulness he is not upended. 4
47:2 For the sovereign Lord 5 is awe-inspiring; 6
he is the great king who rules the whole earth! 7
71:16 I will come and tell about 8 the mighty acts of the sovereign Lord.
I will proclaim your justice – yours alone.
73:11 They say, “How does God know what we do?
Is the sovereign one aware of what goes on?” 9
83:18 Then they will know 10 that you alone are the Lord, 11
the sovereign king 12 over all the earth.
90:17 May our sovereign God extend his favor to us! 13
Make our endeavors successful!
Yes, make them successful! 14
97:9 For you, O Lord, are the sovereign king 15 over the whole earth;
you are elevated high above all gods.
107:11 because they had rebelled against God’s commands, 16
and rejected the instructions of the sovereign king. 17
110:5 O sovereign Lord, 18 at your right hand
he strikes down 19 kings in the day he unleashes his anger. 20
141:8 Surely I am looking to you, 21 O sovereign Lord.
In you I take shelter.
Do not expose me to danger! 22
1 tn Heb “[to] your name, O Most High.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his divine characteristics as suggested by his name, in this case “Most High.” This divine title (עֶלְיוֹן, ’elyo/) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Ps 47:2.
2 tn The active participle draws attention to the ongoing nature of the action.
3 tn Traditionally “the Most High’s.” The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן, ’elyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. Note the focus of vv. 8-12 and see Ps 47:2.
4 tn Another option is to translate the imperfect verbal form as future, “he will not be upended” (cf. NRSV “he shall not be moved”). Even if one chooses this option, the future tense must be understood in a generalizing sense.
5 tn Heb “the
6 tn Or “awesome.” The Niphal participle נוֹרָא (nora’), when used of God in the psalms, focuses on the effect that his royal splendor and powerful deeds have on those witnessing his acts (Pss 66:3, 5; 68:35; 76:7, 12; 89:7; 96:4; 99:3; 111:9). Here it refers to his capacity to fill his defeated foes with terror and his people with fearful respect.
7 tn Heb “a great king over all the earth.”
8 tn Heb “I will come with.”
9 tn Heb “How does God know? Is there knowledge with the Most High?” They appear to be practical atheists, who acknowledge God’s existence and sovereignty in theory, but deny his involvement in the world (see Pss 10:4, 11; 14:1).
10 tn After the preceding jussives (v. 17), the prefixed verbal form with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose (“so that they may know”) or result.
11 tn Heb “that you, your name [is] the
12 tn Traditionally “the Most High.”
13 tn Heb “and may the delight of the Master, our God, be on us.” The Hebrew term נֹעַם (no’am, “delight”) is used in Ps 27:4 of the
14 tn Heb “and the work of our hands establish over us, and the work of our hands, establish it.”
15 tn Traditionally “Most High.”
16 tn Heb “the words of God.”
17 tn Heb “the counsel of the Most High.”
18 tn As pointed in the Hebrew text, this title refers to God (many medieval Hebrew
19 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 5-6 are understood here as descriptive-dramatic or as generalizing. Another option is to take them as rhetorical. In this case the psalmist describes anticipated events as if they had already taken place.
20 tn Heb “in the day of his anger.”
21 tn Heb “my eyes [are] toward you.”
22 tn Heb “do not lay bare my life.” Only here is the Piel form of the verb collocated with the term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”). In Isa 53:12 the Lord’s servant “lays bare (the Hiphil form of the verb is used) his life to death.”