Mazmur 12:3

12:3 May the Lord cut off ¹  all flattering lips,

and the tongue that boasts! ² 

Mazmur 26:4

26:4 I do not associate ³  with deceitful men,

or consort ⁴  with those who are dishonest. ⁵ 

Mazmur 55:22

55:22 Throw your burden ⁶  upon the Lord,

and he will sustain you. ⁷ 

He will never allow the godly to be upended. ⁸ 

Yeremia 9:8

9:8 Their tongues are like deadly arrows. ⁹ 

They are always telling lies. ¹⁰ 

Friendly words for their neighbors come from their mouths.

But their minds are thinking up ways to trap them. ¹¹ 

[12:3]  ¹ tn The verb form is a jussive, indicating that the statement is imprecatory (“May the Lord cut off”), not indicative (“The Lord will cut off”; see also Ps 109:15 and Mal 2:12). The psalmist appeals to God to destroy the wicked, rather than simply stating his confidence that he will. In this way he seeks to activate divine judgment by appealing to God’s just character. For an example of the power of such a curse, see Judg 9:7-57.

[12:3]  ² tn Heb “a tongue speaking great [things].”

[26:4]  ³ tn Heb “sit.”

[26:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “go.” The psalmist uses the imperfect form of the verb to emphasize that he does not make a practice of associating with such people.

[26:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “[those who] conceal themselves.”

[55:22]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew noun occurs only here.

[55:22]  ⁷ tn The pronoun is singular; the psalmist addresses each member of his audience individually.

[55:22]  ⁸ tn Heb “he will never allow swaying for the righteous.”

[9:8]  ⁹ tc This reading follows the Masoretic consonants (the Kethib, a Qal active participle from שָׁחַט, shakhat). The Masoretes preferred to read “a sharpened arrow” (the Qere, a Qal passive participle from the same root or a homonym, meaning “hammered, beaten”). See HALOT 1354 s.v. II שָׁחַט for discussion. The exact meaning of the word makes little difference to the meaning of the metaphor itself.

[9:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “They speak deceit.”

[9:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “With his mouth a person speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets an ambush for him.”