Mazmur 38:16

38:16 I have prayed for deliverance, because otherwise they will gloat over me; ¹ 

when my foot slips they will arrogantly taunt me. ² 

Mazmur 118:13

118:13 “You aggressively attacked me ³  and tried to knock me down, ⁴ 

but the Lord helped me.

[38:16]  ¹ tn Heb “For I said, ‘Lest they rejoice over me.’” The psalmist recalls the motivating argument of his petition. He probably prefaced this statement with a prayer for deliverance (see Pss 7:1-2; 13:3-4; 28:1).

[38:16]  ² tn Heb “they will magnify against me.” See Pss 35:26; 55:13.

[118:13]  ³ tn Heb “pushing, you pushed me.” The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following verbal idea. The psalmist appears to address the nations as if they were an individual enemy. Some find this problematic and emend the verb form (which is a Qal perfect second masculine singular with a first person singular suffix) to נִדְחֵיתִי (nidkheti), a Niphal perfect first common singular, “I was pushed.”

[118:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “to fall,” i.e., “that [I] might fall.”