Mazmur 19:2

19:2 Day after day it speaks out; ¹ 

night after night it reveals his greatness. ² 

Mazmur 21:10

21:10 You destroy their offspring ³  from the earth,

their descendants ⁴  from among the human race. ⁵ 

Mazmur 62:11

62:11 God has declared one principle;

two principles I have heard: ⁶ 

God is strong, ⁷ 

Mazmur 88:17

88:17 They surround me like water all day long;

they join forces and encircle me. ⁸ 

Mazmur 56:2

56:2 Those who anticipate my defeat ⁹  attack me all day long.

Indeed, ¹⁰  many are fighting against me, O Exalted One. ¹¹ 

Mazmur 89:15

89:15 How blessed are the people who worship you! ¹² 

O Lord, they experience your favor. ¹³ 

[19:2]  ¹ tn Heb “it gushes forth a word.” The “sky” (see v. 1b) is the subject of the verb. Though not literally speaking (see v. 3), it clearly reveals God’s royal majesty. The sun’s splendor and its movement across the sky is in view (see vv. 4-6).

[19:2]  ² tn Heb “it [i.e., the sky] declares knowledge,” i.e., knowledge about God’s royal majesty and power (see v. 1). This apparently refers to the splendor and movements of the stars. The imperfect verbal forms in v. 2, like the participles in the preceding verse, combine with the temporal phrases (“day after day” and “night after night”) to emphasize the ongoing testimony of the sky.

[21:10]  ³ tn Heb “fruit.” The next line makes it clear that offspring is in view.

[21:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “seed.”

[21:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “sons of man.”

[62:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “one God spoke, two which I heard.” This is a numerical saying utilizing the “x” followed by “x + 1” pattern to facilitate poetic parallelism. (See W. M. W. Roth, Numerical Sayings in the Old Testament [VTSup], 55-56.) As is typical in such sayings, a list corresponding to the second number (in this case “two”) follows. Another option is to translate, “God has spoken once, twice [he has spoken] that which I have heard.” The terms אַחַת (’akhat, “one; once”) and שְׁתַּיִם (shÿtayim, “two; twice”) are also juxtaposed in 2 Kgs 6:10 (where they refer to an action that was done more than “once or twice”) and in Job 33:14 (where they refer to God speaking “one way” and then in “another manner”).

[62:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “that strength [belongs] to God.”

[88:17]  ⁸ tn Heb “they encircle me together.”

[56:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “to those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 54:5; 59:10.

[56:2]  ¹⁰ tn Or “for.”

[56:2]  ¹¹ tn Some take the Hebrew term מָרוֹם (marom, “on high; above”) as an adverb modifying the preceding participle and translate, “proudly” (cf. NASB; NIV “in their pride”). The present translation assumes the term is a divine title here. The Lord is pictured as enthroned “on high” in Ps 92:8. (Note the substantival use of the term in Isa 24:4 and see C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs (Psalms [ICC], 2:34), who prefer to place the term at the beginning of the next verse.)

[89:15]  ¹² tn Heb “who know the shout.” “Shout” here refers to the shouts of the Lord’s worshipers (see Pss 27:6; 33:3; 47:5).

[89:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “in the light of your face they walk.” The idiom “light of your face” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 44:3; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19; Dan 9:17).