¹ tn The words “the king says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The speaker is the Lord’s chosen king.

² tn Or “I will relate the decree. The Lord said to me” (in accordance with the Masoretic accentuation).

³ sn ‘You are my son!’ The Davidic king was viewed as God’s “son” (see 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 89:26-27). The idiom reflects ancient Near Eastern adoption language associated with covenants of grant, by which a lord would reward a faithful subject by elevating him to special status, referred to as “sonship.” Like a son, the faithful subject received an “inheritance,” viewed as an unconditional, eternal gift. Such gifts usually took the form of land and/or an enduring dynasty. See M. Weinfeld, “The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,” JAOS 90 (1970): 184-203, for general discussion and some striking extra-biblical parallels.

⁴ tn Heb “and I, I said in my haste.”

⁵ tn Heb “from before your eyes.”

⁶ tn Heb “I will remember my song in the night, with my heart I will reflect. And my spirit searched.” As in v. 4, the words of v. 6a are understood as what the psalmist said earlier. Consequently the words “I said” are supplied in the translation for clarification (see v. 10). The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive at the beginning of the final line is taken as sequential to the perfect “I thought” in v. 6.

⁷ sn “Rahab,” which means “proud one,” is used here as a title for Egypt (see Isa 30:7).

⁸ tn Heb “to those who know me” (see Ps 36:10). Apparently the Lord speaks here. The verbal construction (the Hiphil of זָכַר, zakhar, “remember” followed by the preposition -לְ [le] with a substantive) is rare, but the prepositional phrase is best understood as indicating the recipient of the announcement (see Jer 4:16). Some take the preposition in the sense of “among” and translate, “among those who know me” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). In this case these foreigners are viewed as the Lord’s people and the psalm is interpreted as anticipating a time when all nations will worship the Lord (see Ps 86:9) and be considered citizens of Zion.

⁹ tn Heb “Look.”

¹⁰ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

¹¹ tn Heb “Cush.”

¹² tn Heb “and this one was born there.” The words “It is said of them” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarification and stylistic purposes (see v. 5). Those advocating the universalistic interpretation understand “there” as referring to Zion, but it seems more likely that the adverb refers to the nations just mentioned. The foreigners are identified by their native lands.

¹³ tn Heb “and of Zion it is said.” Another option is to translate, “and to Zion it is said.” In collocation with the Niphal of אָמַר (’amar), the preposition lamed (-לְ) can introduce the recipient of the statement (see Josh 2:2; Jer 4:11; Hos 1:10; Zeph 3:16), carry the nuance “concerning, of” (see Num 23:23), or mean “be named” (see Isa 4:3; 62:4).

¹⁴ tn Heb “a man and a man.” The idiom also appears in Esth 1:8. The translation assumes that the phrase refers to each of Zion’s residents, in contrast to the foreigners mentioned in v. 4. Those advocating the universalistic interpretation understand this as a reference to each of the nations, including those mentioned in v. 4.

¹⁵ tn Traditionally “Most High.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “and he makes her secure, the Most High.”

¹⁷ tn The words “the Lord said” are supplied in the translation for clarification. It is clear that the words of vv. 3-4 are spoken by the Lord, in contrast to vv. 1-2, which are spoken by the psalmist.

¹⁸ tn The pronoun “you” refers to the Lord, who is addressed here. The quotation that follows further develops the announcement of vv. 3-4.

¹⁹ tc Many medieval mss read the singular here, “your faithful follower.” In this case the statement refers directly to Nathan’s oracle to David (see 2 Sam 7:17).

²⁰ tn Heb “I have placed help upon a warrior.”

²¹ tn Or perhaps “a chosen one.”

²² tn The prefixed verbal form is either a preterite or an imperfect. If the latter, it emphasizes the ongoing nature of the condition in the past. The translation reflects this interpretation of the verbal form.

²³ tn Heb “a people, wanderers of heart [are] they.”

²⁴ tn Heb “and they do not know my ways.” In this context the Lord’s “ways” are his commands, viewed as a pathway from which his people, likened to wayward sheep (see v. 7), wander.

²⁵ sn Psalm 122. The psalmist expresses his love for Jerusalem and promises to pray for the city’s security.

²⁶ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

²⁷ tn Heb “in the ones saying to me.” After the verb שָׂמַח (samakh), the preposition בְּ (bet) usually introduces the reason for joy.

²⁸ tn Heb “then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with a shout.”

²⁹ tn Heb “they said among the nations.”

³⁰ tn Heb “the Lord swore an oath to David [in] truth.”

³¹ tn Heb “he will not turn back from it.”

³² tn The words “he said” are supplied in the translation to clarify that what follows are the Lord’s words.

³³ tn Heb “the fruit of your body.”

³⁴ tn Heb “remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom, the day of Jerusalem.”

³⁵ tn Heb “lay [it] bare, lay [it] bare.”