Mazmur 103:1-2

Psalm 103 ¹ 

By David.

103:1 Praise the Lord, O my soul!

With all that is within me, praise ²  his holy name!

103:2 Praise the Lord, O my soul!

Do not forget all his kind deeds! ³ 

Mazmur 144:1

Psalm 144 ⁴ 

By David.

144:1 The Lord, my protector, ⁵  deserves praise ⁶  –

the one who trains my hands for battle, ⁷ 

and my fingers for war,

[103:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 103. The psalmist praises God for his mercy and willingness to forgive his people.

[103:1]  ² tn The verb “praise” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the preceding line).

[103:2]  ³ tn Or “his benefits” (see 2 Chr 32:25, where the noun is also used of kind deeds performed by the Lord).

[144:1]  ⁴ sn Psalm 144. The psalmist expresses his confidence in God, asks for a mighty display of divine intervention in an upcoming battle, and anticipates God’s rich blessings on the nation in the aftermath of military victory.

[144:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The Lord is compared to a rocky summit where one can find protection from enemies. See Ps 18:2.

[144:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord, my rocky summit.”

[144:1]  ⁷ sn The one who trains my hands for battle. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement (see Ps 18:34). Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.