¹ tn Heb “God (the divine name אֵל [’el] is used) is angry during all the day.” The verb זֹעֵם (zo’em) means “be indignant, be angry, curse.” Here God’s angry response to wrongdoing and injustice leads him to prepare to execute judgment as described in the following verses.

² tn The construction vav (ו) + subject highlights the contrast between the exalted Lord and his defeated foes (see v. 6).

³ tn Heb “sits” (i.e., enthroned, see v. 4). The imperfect verbal form highlights the generalization.

⁴ tn Heb “he establishes for justice his throne.”

⁵ tn Heb “the peoples.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 8 either describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions (“will judge…”).

⁶ tn Or “for.”

⁷ tn Or “righteous.”

⁸ tn Heb “he loves righteous deeds.” The “righteous deeds” are probably those done by godly people (see v. 5). The Lord “loves” such deeds in the sense that he rewards them. Another option is to take צְדָקוֹת (tsÿdaqot) as referring to God’s acts of justice (see Ps 103:6). In this case one could translate, “he loves to do just deeds.”

⁹ tn Heb “the upright will see his face.” The singular subject (“upright”) does not agree with the plural verb. However, collective singular nouns can be construed with a plural predicate (see GKC 462 §145.b). Another possibility is that the plural verb יֶחֱזוּ (yekhezu) is a corruption of an original singular form. To “see” God’s “face” means to have access to his presence and to experience his favor (see Ps 17:15 and Job 33:26 [where רָאָה (ra’ah), not חָזָה (khazah), is used]). On the form פָנֵימוֹ (fanemo, “his face”) see GKC 300-301 §103.b, n. 3.

¹⁰ tn Heb “From before you may my justice come out.” The prefixed verbal form יָצָא (yatsa’) could be taken as an imperfect, but following the imperatives in v. 1, it is better understood as a jussive of prayer.

¹¹ tn Heb “May your eyes look at what is right.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as jussive. (See also the preceding note on the word “behalf.”)

¹² sn For the Lord’s decrees are just… After the call to praise (vv. 1-3), the psalmist now gives a series of reasons why the Lord is worthy of praise.

¹³ tn Heb “word.” In this context, which depicts the Lord as the sovereign creator and ruler of the world, the Lord’s “word” refers to the decrees whereby he governs his dominion.

¹⁴ tn Or “upright.”

¹⁵ tn Heb “and all his work [is] in faithfulness.”

¹⁶ sn Though he is confident that the Lord is aware of his situation (see v. 22a), the psalmist compares the Lord’s inactivity to sleep and urges him to wake up.

¹⁷ tn Heb “for my justice.”

¹⁸ tn Heb “for my cause.”

¹⁹ tn Heb “and he will bring out like light your vindication, and your just cause like noonday.”

²⁰ tn Heb “so that [they] proclaim that upright [is] the Lord, my rocky summit, and there is no injustice in him.”

²¹ tn Heb “for an eternal memorial a just [one] will be.”

²² tn Heb “I will give you thanks with an upright heart.”

²³ tn The psalmist uses an imperfect verbal form to emphasize that this is his continuing practice.

²⁴ tn Heb “do good.”

²⁵ tn Heb “according to your word.”

²⁶ tn Heb “just are your rules forever.”

²⁷ tn The cohortative verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose/result after the preceding imperative.

²⁸ tn The number “seven” is use rhetorically to suggest thoroughness.

²⁹ tn Heb “your word.”

³⁰ tn The background of the metaphor is not entirely clear. Perhaps the “ropes” are those used to harness the ox for plowing (see Job 39:10). Verse 3 pictures the wicked plowing God’s people as if they were a field. But when God “cut the ropes” of their ox, as it were, they could no longer plow. The point of the metaphor seems to be that God took away the enemies’ ability to oppress his people. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 187.

³¹ tn Heb “in all his ways.”

³² tn Heb “and [is] loving in all his deeds.”