Mazmur 34:22

34:22 The Lord rescues his servants; ¹ 

all who take shelter in him escape punishment. ² 

Mazmur 71:23

71:23 My lips will shout for joy! Yes, ³  I will sing your praises!

I will praise you when you rescue me! ⁴ 

Mazmur 103:4

103:4 who delivers ⁵  your life from the Pit, ⁶ 

who crowns you with his loyal love and compassion,

[34:22]  ¹ tn Heb “redeems the life of his servants.” The Hebrew participial form suggests such deliverance is characteristic.

[34:22]  ² tn “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear, and serve the Lord (Pss 2:12; 5:11-12; 31:19).

[71:23]  ³ tn Or “when.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) has an emphasizing (asseverative) function here.

[71:23]  ⁴ tn Heb “and my life [or “soul”] which you will have redeemed.” The perfect verbal form functions here as a future perfect. The psalmist anticipates praising God, for God will have rescued him by that time.

[103:4]  ⁵ tn Or “redeems.”

[103:4]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew term שַׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 30:9; 49:9; 55:24.