Mazmur 69:1-2

Psalm 69 ¹ 

For the music director; according to the tune of “Lilies;” ²  by David.

69:1 Deliver me, O God,

for the water has reached my neck. ³ 

69:2 I sink into the deep mire

where there is no solid ground; ⁴ 

I am in ⁵  deep water,

and the current overpowers me.

Mazmur 116:3-4

116:3 The ropes of death tightened around me, ⁶ 

the snares ⁷  of Sheol confronted me.

I was confronted ⁸  with trouble and sorrow.

116:4 I called on the name of the Lord,

“Please Lord, rescue my life!”

Mazmur 142:4-5

142:4 Look to the right and see!

No one cares about me. ⁹ 

I have nowhere to run; ¹⁰ 

no one is concerned about my life. ¹¹ 

142:5 I cry out to you, O Lord;

I say, “You are my shelter,

my security ¹²  in the land of the living.”

[69:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 69. The psalmist laments his oppressed condition and asks the Lord to deliver him by severely judging his enemies.

[69:1]  ² tn Heb “according to lilies.” See the superscription to Ps 45.

[69:1]  ³ tn The Hebrew term נפשׁ (nefesh) here refers to the psalmist’s throat or neck. The psalmist compares himself to a helpless, drowning man.

[69:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “and there is no place to stand.”

[69:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “have entered.”

[116:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “surrounded me.”

[116:3]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew noun מצר (“straits; distress”) occurs only here, Ps 118:5 and Lam 1:3. If retained, it refers to Sheol as a place where one is confined or severely restricted (cf. BDB 865 s.v. מֵצַר, “the straits of Sheol”; NIV “the anguish of the grave”; NRSV “the pangs of Sheol”). However, HALOT 624 s.v. מֵצַר suggests an emendation to מְצָדֵי (mÿtsadey, “snares of”), a rare noun attested in Job 19:6 and Eccl 7:26. This proposal, which is reflected in the translation, produces better parallelism with “ropes” in the preceding line.

[116:3]  ⁸ tn The translation assumes the prefixed verbal form is a preterite. The psalmist recalls the crisis from which the Lord delivered him.

[142:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “there is no one who recognizes me.”

[142:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “ a place of refuge perishes from me.”

[142:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “there is no one who seeks for the sake of my life.”

[142:5]  ¹² tn Heb “my portion.” The psalmist compares the Lord to landed property, which was foundational to economic stability in ancient Israel.