¹ tn The Hebrew text has the singular “eye” here.

² tn Or perhaps, “are swollen.”

³ tn Or perhaps, “grow old.”

⁴ sn In his weakened condition the psalmist is vulnerable to the taunts and threats of his enemies.

⁵ tn Heb “he says in his heart/mind.”

⁶ tn Heb “for a generation and a generation.” The traditional accentuation of the MT understands these words with the following line.

⁷ tn Heb “who, not in calamity.” If אֲשֶׁר (’asher) is taken as a relative pronoun here, then one could translate, “[I] who [am] not in calamity.” Some emend אֲשֶׁר to אֹשֶׁר (’osher, “happiness”; see HALOT 99 s.v. אֹשֶׁר); one might then translate, “[I live in] happiness, not in calamity.” The present translation assumes that אֲשֶׁר functions here as a causal conjunction, “because, for.” For this use of אֲשֶׁר, see BDB 83 s.v. אֲשֶׁר 8.c (where the present text is not cited).

⁸ tn The grammatical construction used here (conjunction with independent pronoun) highlights the contrast between the psalmist’s defeated condition envisioned in v. 4 and confident attitude he displays in v. 5.

⁹ tn Heb “may my heart rejoice in your deliverance.” The verb form is jussive. Having expressed his trust in God’s faithful character and promises, the psalmist prays that his confidence will prove to be well-placed. “Heart” is used here of the seat of the emotions.

¹⁰ tn Heb “name.” By forgiving the sinful psalmist, the Lord’s reputation as a merciful God will be enhanced.

¹¹ sn Forgive my sin, because it is great. The psalmist readily admits his desperate need for forgiveness.

¹² tn Heb “then my soul will rejoice in the Lord and be happy in his deliverance.”

¹³ sn The reference to wounds may be an extension of the metaphorical language of v. 2. The psalmist pictures himself as one whose flesh is ripped and torn by arrows.

¹⁴ tn Heb “my wounds stink, they are festering” (cf. NEB).

¹⁵ tn Heb “from before my foolishness.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “because you acted.” The psalmist has in mind God’s disciplinary measures (see vv. 10-13).

¹⁷ tn Or “redeem us.” See Pss 25:22; 26:11; 69:18; 119:134.

¹⁸ tn Heb “daughters.” The reference is to the cities of Judah surrounding Zion (see Ps 97:8 and H. Haag, TDOT 2:336).

¹⁹ tn The prefixed verbal forms are understood as generalizing imperfects. (For other examples of an imperfect followed by causal לְמַעַן [lÿma’an], see Ps 23:3; Isa 49:7; 55:5.) Another option is to interpret the forms as jussives, “Let Mount Zion rejoice! Let the towns of Judah be happy!” (cf. NASB, NRSV; note the imperatives in vv. 12-13.)

²⁰ sn These acts of judgment are described in vv. 4-7.

²¹ tn Heb “do what is good for Zion in your favor.”

²² tn Or “Build.” The imperfect verbal form is used here to express the psalmist’s wish or request.

²³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

²⁴ tn This line is understood as giving the basis for the praise promised in the following line. Another option is to take the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) as asseverative/emphasizing, “Indeed, your loyal love is better” (cf. NEB, which leaves the particle untranslated).

²⁵ tn The word “experiencing” is supplied in the translation for clarification. The psalmist does not speak here of divine loyal love in some abstract sense, but of loyal love revealed and experienced.

²⁶ tn Heb “come near my life and redeem it.” 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 Ps 19:14).

²⁷ tn Heb “burned with fire.”

²⁸ tn Heb “because of the rebuke of your face they perish.”

²⁹ tn Heb “daughters.” The term “daughters” refers to the cities of Judah surrounding Zion (see Ps 48:11 and H. Haag, TDOT 2:336).

³⁰ tn Heb “from the sound of my groaning my bone[s] stick to my flesh.” The preposition at the beginning of the verse is causal; the phrase “sound of my groaning” is metonymic for the anxiety that causes the groaning. The point seems to be this: Anxiety (which causes the psalmist to groan) keeps him from eating (v. 4). This physical deprivation in turn makes him emaciated – he is turned to “skin and bones,” so to speak.

³¹ tn Or “for.”

³² tn Heb “there was harm to Moses.”

³³ tn The Niphal of נָחַם (nakham) refers here to God relenting from a punishment already underway.

³⁴ tn Heb “fools [they were] because of the way of their rebellion.”

³⁵ tn Heb “a salty land.”

³⁶ tn Heb “deliver me according to your faithfulness.”

³⁷ sn Psalm 116. The psalmist thanks the Lord for delivering him from a life threatening crisis and promises to tell the entire covenant community what God has done for him.

³⁸ tn Heb “I love because the Lord heard my voice, my pleas.” It is possible that “the Lord” originally appeared directly after “I love” and was later accidentally misplaced. The translation assumes the prefixed verbal form is a preterite. The psalmist recalls that God heard his cry for help (note the perfect in v. 2a and the narrative in vv. 3-4).

³⁹ tn Heb “my flesh.”

⁴⁰ tn The Hebrew verb סָמַר (samar, “to tremble”) occurs only here and in Job 4:15.

⁴¹ tn Heb “from fear of you.” The pronominal suffix on the noun is an objective genitive.

⁴² tn The verb occurs only here in the OT.

⁴³ tn Heb “[with] flowing streams my eyes go down.”

⁴⁴ tn Heb “they”; even though somewhat generic, the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴⁵ tn Heb “my voice.”

⁴⁶ tn Heb “according to.”

⁴⁷ tn Heb “according to your custom.”

⁴⁸ tn Heb “your word.”

⁴⁹ tn The number “seven” is use rhetorically to suggest thoroughness.

⁵⁰ tc Heb “because awesome things, I am distinct, amazing [are] your works.” The text as it stands is syntactically problematic and makes little, if any, sense. The Niphal of פָּלָה (pala’) occurs elsewhere only in Exod 33:16. Many take the form from פָלָא (pala’; see GKC 216 §75.qq), which in the Niphal perfect means “to be amazing” (see 2 Sam 1:26; Ps 118:23; Prov 30:18). Some, following the LXX and some other ancient witnesses, also prefer to emend the verb from first to second person, “you are amazing” (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 249, 251). The present translation assumes the text conflates two variants: נפלאים, the otherwise unattested masculine plural participle of פָלָא, and נִפְלָאוֹת (nifla’ot), the usual (feminine) plural form of the Niphal participle. The latter has been changed to a verb by later scribes in an attempt to accommodate it syntactically. The original text likely read, נוראות נפלאותים מעשׂיך (“your works [are] awesome [and] amazing”).

⁵¹ tc Heb “and my being knows very much.” Better parallelism is achieved (see v. 15a) if one emends יֹדַעַת (yoda’at), a Qal active participle, feminine singular form, to יָדַעְתָּ (yada’ta), a Qal perfect second masculine singular perfect. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 252.

⁵² tn Heb “in glory.” Here “glory” probably refers to the “honor” that belongs to the Lord’s people as a result of their deliverance (see v. 4).

⁵³ tn The significance of the reference to “beds” is unclear. Perhaps the point is that they should rejoice at all times, even when falling asleep or awaking.