Mazmur 11:3

11:3 When the foundations ¹  are destroyed,

what can the godly ²  accomplish?” ³ 

Mazmur 59:15

59:15 They wander around looking for something to eat;

they refuse to sleep until they are full. ⁴ 

Mazmur 109:7

109:7 When he is judged, he will be found ⁵  guilty! ⁶ 

Then his prayer will be regarded as sinful.

Mazmur 119:45

119:45 I will be secure, ⁷ 

for I seek your precepts.

Mazmur 132:5

132:5 until I find a place for the Lord,

a fine dwelling place ⁸  for the powerful ruler of Jacob.” ⁹ 

Mazmur 139:4

139:4 Certainly ¹⁰  my tongue does not frame a word

without you, O Lord, being thoroughly aware of it. ¹¹ 

[11:3]  ¹ tn The precise meaning of this rare word is uncertain. An Ugaritic cognate is used of the “bottom” or “base” of a cliff or mountain (see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 47, 159). The noun appears in postbiblical Hebrew with the meaning “foundation” (see Jastrow 1636 s.v. שָׁת).

[11:3]  ² tn The singular form is used here in a collective or representative sense. Note the plural form “pure [of heart]” in the previous verse.

[11:3]  ³ sn The quotation of the advisers’ words (which begins in 11:1c) ends at this point. They advise the psalmist to flee because the enemy is poised to launch a deadly attack. In such a lawless and chaotic situation godly people like the psalmist can accomplish nothing, so they might as well retreat to a safe place.

[59:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “if they are not full, they stay through the night.”

[109:7]  ⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form could be taken as a jussive, but the use of the imperfect form in the following line suggests that v. 7 anticipates the outcome of the accusation envisioned in v. 6.

[109:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “he will go out [as] a criminal” (that is, guilty).

[119:45]  ⁷ tn Heb “and I will walk about in a wide place.” The cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) conjunctive gives a further consequence of the anticipated positive divine response (see vv. 43-44). Another option is to take the cohortative as expressing the psalmist’s request. In this case one could translate, “and please give me security.”

[132:5]  ⁸ tn The plural form of the noun may indicate degree or quality; David envisions a special dwelling place (see Pss 43:3; 46:4; 84:1).

[132:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.”

[139:4]  ¹⁰ tn Or “for.”

[139:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “look, O Lord, you know all of it.”