Psalms 10:5

He is secure at all times. ¹  He has no regard for your commands; ²  he disdains all his enemies. ³ 

His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies.

His ways prosper at all times; Your judgments are on high, out of his sight; As for all his adversaries, he snorts at them.

Yet they succeed in everything they do. They do not see your punishment awaiting them. They pour scorn on all their enemies.

They care nothing for what you think; if you get in their way, they blow you off.

His ways are ever fixed; your decisions are higher than he may see: as for his haters, they are as nothing to him.

Their ways prosper at all times; your judgments are on high, out of their sight; as for their foes, they scoff at them.

His ways are always prospering; Your judgments are far above, out of his sight; As for all his enemies, he sneers at them.

He is secure at all times. ¹  He has no regard for your commands; ²  he disdains all his enemies. ³ 

¹ tn Heb “they are firm, his ways, at every time.” The verb חַיִל (khayil, “be firm, be strong”) occurs only here and in Job 20:21, where it has the sense “endure.”

² tc Heb “[on a] height, your judgments from before him.” If the MT is retained, then the idea may be that God’s “judgments” are high above (i.e., not recognized) by the wicked man. However, the syntax is awkward. The translation assumes an emendation of מָרוֹם (marom, “height”) to סָרוּ (saru, “[your judgments] are turned aside”), the final mem (ם) being dittographic (note the initial mem on the immediately following word [מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ, mishÿfatekha, “your judgments”). “Judgments” probably refers here to God’s laws or commands, rather than his judicial decisions or acts of judgment.

³ tn Heb “all his enemies, he snorts against them.” This may picture the wicked man defiantly challenging his enemies because he is confident of success. Another option is to take יָפִיחַ (yafiakh) from the root יָפַח (yafakh, “to testify”) and translate “he testifies against all his enemies,” implying that he gets the upper hand over them in legal battles. The noun יָפֵחַ (yafeakh, “witness”) is attested in biblical Hebrew (see Prov 6:19; 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 9, and Hab 2:3). The verb, however, is not clearly attested.