Mazmur 35:27

35:27 May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice!

May they continually say, ¹  “May the Lord be praised, ²  for he wants his servant to be secure.” ³ 

Mazmur 45:15

45:15 They are bubbling with joy as they walk in procession

and enter the royal palace. ⁴ 

Mazmur 51:8

51:8 Grant me the ultimate joy of being forgiven! ⁵ 

May the bones ⁶  you crushed rejoice! ⁷ 

[35:27]  ¹ tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 27a are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-26).

[35:27]  ² tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, “may the Lord be magnified [in praise].” Another option is to take the verb as an imperfect, “the Lord is great.”

[35:27]  ³ tn Heb “the one who desires the peace of his servant.”

[45:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “they are led with joy and happiness, they enter the house of the king.”

[51:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “cause me to hear happiness and joy.” The language is metonymic: the effect of forgiveness (joy) has been substituted for its cause. The psalmist probably alludes here to an assuring word from God announcing that his sins are forgiven (a so-called oracle of forgiveness). The imperfect verbal form is used here to express the psalmist’s wish or request. The synonyms “happiness” and “joy” are joined together as a hendiadys to emphasize the degree of joy he anticipates.

[51:8]  ⁶ sn May the bones you crushed rejoice. The psalmist compares his sinful condition to that of a person who has been physically battered and crushed. Within this metaphorical framework, his “bones” are the seat of his emotional strength.

[51:8]  ⁷ tn In this context of petitionary prayer, the prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive, expressing the psalmist’s wish or request.