Discovery BoxPsalms 89:30-35 
Context89:30 If his sons reject my law
and disobey my regulations,
89:31 if they break 1 my rules
and do not keep my commandments,
89:32 I will punish their rebellion by beating them with a club, 2
their sin by inflicting them with bruises. 3
89:33 But I will not remove 4 my loyal love from him,
nor be unfaithful to my promise. 5
89:34 I will not break 6 my covenant
or go back on what I promised. 7
89:35 Once and for all I have vowed by my own holiness,
I will never deceive 8 David.
1 tn Or “desecrate.”
2 tn Heb “I will punish with a club their rebellion.”
sn Despite the harsh image of beating…with a club, the language reflects a father-son relationship (see v. 30; 2 Sam 7:14). According to Proverbs, a שֵׁבֶט (shevet, “club”) was sometimes utilized to administer corporal punishment to rebellious children (see Prov 13:24; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15).
3 tn Heb “with blows their sin.”
4 tn Heb “break”; “make ineffectual.” Some prefer to emend אָפִיר (’afir; the Hiphil of פָּרַר, parar, “to break”) to אָסִיר (’asir; the Hiphil of סוּר, sur, “to turn aside”), a verb that appears in 2 Sam 7:15.
5 tn Heb “and I will not deal falsely with my faithfulness.”
6 tn Or “desecrate.”
7 tn Heb “and what proceeds out of my lips I will not alter.”
8 tn Or “lie to.”
