Discovery BoxPsalms 8:3 
Context8:3 When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made,
and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place, 1
Psalms 19:7
Context19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect
and preserves one’s life. 2
The rules set down by the Lord 3 are reliable 4
and impart wisdom to the inexperienced. 5
Psalms 22:15
Context22:15 The roof of my mouth 6 is as dry as a piece of pottery;
my tongue sticks to my gums. 7
You 8 set me in the dust of death. 9
Psalms 78:5
Context78:5 He established a rule 10 in Jacob;
he set up a law in Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to make his deeds known to their descendants, 11
Psalms 95:11
Context95:11 So I made a vow in my anger,
‘They will never enter into the resting place I had set aside for them.’” 12
Psalms 104:9
Context104:9 You set up a boundary for them that they could not cross,
so that they would not cover the earth again. 13
Psalms 140:5
Context140:5 Proud men hide a snare for me;
evil men 14 spread a net by the path;
they set traps for me. (Selah)
1 tn Heb “when I see your heavens, the works of your fingers, the moon and stars which you established.” The verb “[and] see” is understood by ellipsis in the second half of the verse.
2 tn Heb “[it] restores life.” Elsewhere the Hiphil of שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) when used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) as object, means to “rescue or preserve one’s life” (Job 33:30; Ps 35:17) or to “revive one’s strength” (emotionally or physically; cf. Ruth 4:15; Lam 1:11, 16, 19). Here the point seems to be that the law preserves the life of the one who studies it by making known God’s will. Those who know God’s will know how to please him and can avoid offending him. See v. 11a.
3 tn Traditionally, “the testimony of the
4 tn God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.
5 tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly.
6 tc Heb “my strength” (כֹּחִי, kokhiy), but many prefer to emend the text to חִכִּי (khikiy, “my palate”; cf. NEB, NRSV “my mouth”) assuming that an error of transposition has occurred in the traditional Hebrew text.
7 tn Cf. NEB “my jaw”; NASB, NRSV “my jaws”; NIV “the roof of my mouth.”
8 sn Here the psalmist addresses God and suggests that God is ultimately responsible for what is happening because of his failure to intervene (see vv. 1-2, 11).
9 sn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to the progressive nature of the action. The psalmist is in the process of dying.
10 tn The Hebrew noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to God’s command that the older generation teach their children about God’s mighty deeds in the nation’s history (see Exod 10:2; Deut 4:9; 6:20-25).
11 tn Heb “which he commanded our fathers to make them known to their sons.” The plural suffix “them” probably refers back to the
12 tn Heb “my resting place.” The promised land of Canaan is here viewed metaphorically as a place of rest for God’s people, who are compared to sheep (see v. 7).
13 tn Heb “a boundary you set up, they will not cross, they will not return to cover the earth.”
14 tn Heb “and ropes,” but many prefer to revocalize the noun as a participle (חֹבְלִים, khovÿlim) from the verb חָבַל (khaval, “act corruptly”).
