Mazmur 18:26

18:26 You prove to be reliable ¹  to one who is blameless,

but you prove to be deceptive ²  to one who is perverse. ³ 

Mazmur 34:18

34:18 The Lord is near the brokenhearted;

he delivers ⁴  those who are discouraged. ⁵ 

Mazmur 69:26

69:26 For they harass ⁶  the one whom you discipline; ⁷ 

they spread the news about the suffering of those whom you punish. ⁸ 

Mazmur 125:1

Psalm 125 ⁹ 

A song of ascents. ¹⁰ 

125:1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion;

it cannot be upended and will endure forever.

Mazmur 147:8

147:8 He covers ¹¹  the sky with clouds,

provides the earth with rain,

and causes grass to grow on the hillsides. ¹² 

Mazmur 147:11

147:11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers, ¹³ 

and in those who wait for his loyal love.

[18:26]  ¹ tn Or “blameless.”

[18:26]  ² tn The Hebrew verb פָתַל (patal) is used in only three other texts. In Gen 30:8 it means literally “to wrestle,” or “to twist.” In Job 5:13 it refers to devious individuals, and in Prov 8:8 to deceptive words.

[18:26]  ³ tn The adjective עִקֵּשׁ (’iqqesh) has the basic nuance “twisted, crooked,” and by extension refers to someone or something that is morally perverse. It appears frequently in Proverbs, where it is used of evil people (22:5), speech (8:8; 19:1), thoughts (11:20; 17:20), and life styles (2:15; 28:6). A righteous king opposes such people (Ps 101:4).

[18:26]  sn Verses 25-26 affirm God’s justice. He responds to people in accordance with their moral character. His response mirrors their actions. The faithful and blameless find God to be loyal and reliable in his dealings with them. But deceivers discover he is able and willing to use deceit to destroy them. For a more extensive discussion of the theme of divine deception in the OT, see R. B. Chisholm, “Does God Deceive?” BSac 155 (1998): 11-28.

[34:18]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form highlights the generalizing statement and draws attention to the fact that the Lord typically delivers the oppressed and needy.

[34:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “the crushed in spirit.”

[69:26]  ⁶ tn Or “persecute”; Heb “chase.”

[69:26]  ⁷ tn Heb “for you, the one whom you strike, they chase.”

[69:26]  ⁸ tn Heb “they announce the pain of your wounded ones” (i.e., “the ones whom you wounded,” as the parallel line makes clear).

[69:26]  sn The psalmist is innocent of the false charges made by his enemies (v. 4), but he is also aware of his sinfulness (v. 5) and admits that he experiences divine discipline (v. 26) despite his devotion to God (v. 9). Here he laments that his enemies take advantage of such divine discipline by harassing and slandering him. They “kick him while he’s down,” as the expression goes.

[125:1]  ⁹ sn Psalm 125. The psalmist affirms his confidence in the Lord’s protection and justice.

[125:1]  ¹⁰ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[147:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the one who covers.”

[147:8]  ¹² tn Heb “hills.”

[147:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “those who fear him.”