Mazmur 1:3

1:3 He is like ¹  a tree planted by flowing streams; ² 

it ³  yields ⁴  its fruit at the proper time, ⁵ 

and its leaves never fall off. ⁶ 

He succeeds in everything he attempts. ⁷ 

Mazmur 18:30

18:30 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; ⁸ 

the Lord’s promise ⁹  is reliable; ¹⁰ 

he is a shield to all who take shelter ¹¹  in him.

Mazmur 32:5

32:5 Then I confessed my sin;

I no longer covered up my wrongdoing.

I said, “I will confess ¹²  my rebellious acts to the Lord.”

And then you forgave my sins. ¹³  (Selah)

Mazmur 35:26

35:26 May those who want to harm me be totally embarrassed and ashamed! ¹⁴ 

May those who arrogantly taunt me be covered with shame and humiliation! ¹⁵ 

Mazmur 40:14

40:14 May those who are trying to snatch away my life

be totally embarrassed and ashamed! ¹⁶ 

May those who want to harm me

be turned back and ashamed! ¹⁷ 

Mazmur 44:2

44:2 You, by your power, ¹⁸  defeated nations and settled our fathers on their land; ¹⁹ 

you crushed ²⁰  the people living there ²¹  and enabled our ancestors to occupy it. ²² 

Mazmur 57:9

57:9 I will give you thanks before the nations, O Master!

I will sing praises to you before foreigners! ²³ 

Mazmur 68:35

68:35 You are awe-inspiring, O God, as you emerge from your holy temple! ²⁴ 

It is the God of Israel ²⁵  who gives the people power and strength.

God deserves praise! ²⁶ 

Mazmur 69:14

69:14 Rescue me from the mud! Don’t let me sink!

Deliver me ²⁷  from those who hate me,

from the deep water!

Mazmur 119:75

119:75 I know, Lord, that your regulations ²⁸  are just.

You disciplined me because of your faithful devotion to me. ²⁹ 

[1:3]  ¹ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse. According to the psalmist, the one who studies and obeys God’s commands typically prospers.

[1:3]  ² tn Heb “channels of water.”

[1:3]  ³ tn Heb “which.”

[1:3]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in v. 3 draw attention to the typical nature of the actions/states they describe.

[1:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “in its season.”

[1:3]  ⁶ tn Or “fade”; “wither.”

[1:3]  sn The author compares the godly individual to a tree that has a rich water supply (planted by flowing streams), develops a strong root system, and is filled with leaves and fruit. The simile suggests that the godly have a continual source of life which in turn produces stability and uninterrupted prosperity.

[1:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “and all which he does prospers”; or “and all which he does he causes to prosper.” (The simile of the tree does not extend to this line.) It is not certain if the Hiphil verbal form (יַצְלִיחַ, yatsliakh) is intransitive-exhibitive (“prospers”) or causative (“causes to prosper”) here. If the verb is intransitive, then כֹּל (kol, “all, everything”) is the subject. If the verb is causative, then the godly individual or the Lord himself is the subject and כֹּל is the object. The wording is reminiscent of Josh 1:8, where the Lord tells Joshua: “This law scroll must not leave your lips! You must memorize it day and night so you can carefully obey all that is written in it. Then you will prosper (literally, “cause your way to prosper”) and be successful.”

[18:30]  ⁸ tn Heb “[As for] the God, his way is blameless.” The term הָאֵל (ha’el, “the God”) stands as a nominative (or genitive) absolute in apposition to the resumptive pronominal suffix on “way.” The prefixed article emphasizes his distinctiveness as the one true God (cf. Deut 33:26). God’s “way” in this context refers to his protective and salvific acts in fulfillment of his promise (see also Deut 32:4; Pss 67:2; 77:13 [note vv. 11-12, 14]; 103:7; 138:5; 145:17).

[18:30]  ⁹ sn The Lord’s promise. In the ancient Near East kings would typically seek and receive oracles from their god(s) prior to battle. For examples, see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 241-42.

[18:30]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the word of the Lord is purified.” The Lord’s “word” probably refers here to his oracle(s) of victory delivered to the psalmist before the battle(s) described in the following context. See also Pss 12:5-7 and 138:2-3. David frequently received such oracles before going into battle (see 1 Sam 23:2, 4-5, 10-12; 30:8; 2 Sam 5:19). The Lord’s word of promise is absolutely reliable; it is compared to metal that has been refined in fire and cleansed of impurities. See Ps 12:6.

[18:30]  ¹¹ sn Take shelter. See the note on the word “shelter” in v. 2.

[32:5]  ¹² tn The Hiphil of ידה normally means “give thanks, praise,” but here, as in Prov 28:13, it means “confess.”

[32:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “the wrongdoing of my sin.” By joining synonyms for “sin” in this way, the psalmist may be emphasizing the degree of his wrongdoing.

[35:26]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones who rejoice over my harm.”

[35:26]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “may they be clothed with shame and humiliation, the ones who magnify [themselves] against me.” The prefixed verbal forms in v. 26 are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-25, where the negative particle אַל (’al) appears before the prefixed verbal forms, indicating they are jussives). The psalmist is calling down judgment on his enemies.

[40:14]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones seeking my life to snatch it away.”

[40:14]  ¹⁷ tn The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse (“may those…be…embarrassed and ashamed…may those…be turned back and ashamed”) are understood as jussives. The psalmist is calling judgment down on his enemies.

[40:14]  sn See Ps 35:4 for a similar prayer.

[44:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “you, your hand.”

[44:2]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “dispossessed nations and planted them.” The third masculine plural pronoun “them” refers to the fathers (v. 1). See Ps 80:8, 15.

[44:2]  ²⁰ tn The verb form in the Hebrew text is a Hiphil preterite (without vav [ו] consecutive) from רָעַע (ra’a’, “be evil; be bad”). If retained it apparently means, “you injured; harmed.” Some prefer to derive the verb from רָעַע (“break”; cf. NEB “breaking up the peoples”), in which case the form must be revocalized as Qal (since this verb is unattested in the Hiphil).

[44:2]  ²¹ tn Or “peoples.”

[44:2]  ²² tn Heb “and you sent them out.” The translation assumes that the third masculine plural pronoun “them” refers to the fathers (v. 1), as in the preceding parallel line. See Ps 80:11, where Israel, likened to a vine, “spreads out” its tendrils to the west and east. Another option is to take the “peoples” as the referent of the pronoun and translate, “and you sent them away,” though this does not provide as tight a parallel with the corresponding line.

[57:9]  ²³ tn Or “the peoples.”

[68:35]  ²⁴ tn Heb “awesome [is] God from his holy places.” The plural of מִקְדָּשׁ (miqdash, “holy places”) perhaps refers to the temple precincts (see Ps 73:17; Jer 51:51).

[68:35]  ²⁵ tn Heb “the God of Israel, he.”

[68:35]  ²⁶ tn Heb “blessed [be] God.”

[69:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “let me be delivered.”

[119:75]  ²⁸ tn In this context (note the second line) the Hebrew term מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim), which so often refers to the regulations of God’s law elsewhere in this psalm, may refer instead to his decisions or disciplinary judgment.

[119:75]  ²⁹ tn Heb “and [in] faithfulness you afflicted me.”