¹ sn Hebrew literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age.

² tn Heb “he does not slander upon his tongue.” For another example of רָגַל (ragal, “slander”) see 2 Sam 19:28.

³ tn Or “his fellow.”

⁴ tn Heb “and he does not lift up an insult against one who is near to him.”

⁵ tn Heb “see my enemies for they are numerous, and [with] violent hatred they hate me.”

⁶ tn Or “redeem their lives.” The verb “redeem” casts the Lord in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis (see Pss 19:14; 69:18).

⁷ tn Heb “their blood will be precious in his eyes.”

⁸ tn Heb “they make crafty a plot.”

⁹ tn Heb “and consult together against.”

¹⁰ tn The passive participle of the Hebrew verb צָפַן (tsafan, “to hide”) is used here in the sense of “treasured; cherished.”

¹¹ tn Or “confront.”

¹² tn For this sense of the Hebrew term נגע see Ps 38:11.

¹³ tn Heb “your tent.”

¹⁴ tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

¹⁵ tn Heb “anointed.”

¹⁶ sn One hardly thinks of the moon’s rays as being physically harmful, like those of the sun. The reference to the moon may simply lend poetic balance to the verse, but it is likely that the verse reflects an ancient, primitive belief that the moon could have an adverse effect on the mind (note the English expression “moonstruck,” which reflects such a belief). Another possibility is that the sun and moon stand by metonymy for harmful forces characteristic of the day and night, respectively.

¹⁷ tn Heb “they devise wicked [plans] in [their] mind.”

¹⁸ tc Heb “they attack [for] war.” Some revocalize the verb (which is a Qal imperfect from גּוּר, gur, “to attack”) as יְגָרוּ (yÿgaru), a Piel imperfect from גָרָה (garah, “stir up strife”). This is followed in the present translation.