Mazmur 5:5

5:5 Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence; ¹ 

you hate ²  all who behave wickedly. ³ 

Mazmur 10:8

10:8 He waits in ambush near the villages; ⁴ 

in hidden places he kills the innocent.

His eyes look for some unfortunate victim. ⁵ 

Mazmur 11:4

11:4 The Lord is in his holy temple; ⁶ 

the Lord’s throne is in heaven. ⁷ 

His eyes ⁸  watch; ⁹ 

his eyes ¹⁰  examine ¹¹  all people. ¹² 

Mazmur 13:3

13:3 Look at me! ¹³  Answer me, O Lord my God!

Revive me, ¹⁴  or else I will die! ¹⁵ 

Mazmur 15:4

15:4 He despises a reprobate, ¹⁶ 

but honors the Lord’s loyal followers. ¹⁷ 

He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise. ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 18:24

18:24 The Lord rewarded me for my godly deeds; ¹⁹ 

he took notice of my blameless behavior. ²⁰ 

Mazmur 18:27

18:27 For you deliver oppressed ²¹  people,

but you bring down those who have a proud look. ²² 

Mazmur 19:8

19:8 The Lord’s precepts are fair ²³ 

and make one joyful. ²⁴ 

The Lord’s commands ²⁵  are pure ²⁶ 

and give insight for life. ²⁷ 

Mazmur 25:15

25:15 I continually look to the Lord for help, ²⁸ 

for he will free my feet from the enemy’s net. ²⁹ 

Mazmur 31:9

31:9 Have mercy on me, for I am in distress!

My eyes grow dim ³⁰  from suffering. ³¹ 

I have lost my strength. ³² 

Mazmur 35:19

35:19 Do not let those who are my enemies for no reason ³³  gloat ³⁴  over me!

Do not let those who hate me without cause carry out their wicked schemes! ³⁵ 

Mazmur 38:10

38:10 My heart beats quickly;

my strength leaves me;

I can hardly see. ³⁶ 

Mazmur 50:21

50:21 When you did these things, I was silent, ³⁷ 

so you thought I was exactly like you. ³⁸ 

But now I will condemn ³⁹  you

and state my case against you! ⁴⁰ 

Mazmur 51:4

51:4 Against you – you above all ⁴¹  – I have sinned;

I have done what is evil in your sight.

So ⁴²  you are just when you confront me; ⁴³ 

you are right when you condemn me. ⁴⁴ 

Mazmur 66:7

66:7 He rules ⁴⁵  by his power forever;

he watches ⁴⁶  the nations.

Stubborn rebels should not exalt ⁴⁷  themselves. (Selah)

Mazmur 69:3

69:3 I am exhausted from shouting for help;

my throat is sore; ⁴⁸ 

my eyes grow tired of looking for my God. ⁴⁹ 

Mazmur 79:10

79:10 Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”

Before our very eyes may the shed blood of your servants

be avenged among the nations! ⁵⁰ 

Mazmur 88:9

88:9 My eyes grow weak because of oppression.

I call out to you, O Lord, all day long;

I spread out my hands in prayer to you. ⁵¹ 

Mazmur 90:4

90:4 Yes, ⁵²  in your eyes a thousand years

are like yesterday that quickly passes,

or like one of the divisions of the nighttime. ⁵³ 

Mazmur 92:11

92:11 I gloat in triumph over those who tried to ambush me; ⁵⁴ 

I hear the defeated cries of the evil foes who attacked me. ⁵⁵ 

Mazmur 94:9

94:9 Does the one who makes the human ear not hear?

Does the one who forms the human eye not see? ⁵⁶ 

Mazmur 101:3

101:3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest. ⁵⁷ 

I hate doing evil; ⁵⁸ 

I will have no part of it. ⁵⁹ 

Mazmur 101:5-7

101:5 I will destroy anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.

I will not tolerate anyone who has a cocky demeanor and an arrogant attitude. ⁶⁰ 

101:6 I will favor the honest people of the land, ⁶¹ 

and allow them to live with me. ⁶² 

Those who walk in the way of integrity will attend me. ⁶³ 

101:7 Deceitful people will not live in my palace. ⁶⁴ 

Liars will not be welcome in my presence. ⁶⁵ 

Mazmur 116:8

116:8 Yes, ⁶⁶  Lord, ⁶⁷  you rescued my life from death,

and kept my feet from stumbling.

Mazmur 121:1

Psalm 121 ⁶⁸ 

A song of ascents. ⁶⁹ 

121:1 I look up ⁷⁰  toward the hills.

From where ⁷¹  does my help come?

Mazmur 139:16

139:16 Your eyes saw me when I was inside the womb. ⁷² 

All the days ordained for me

were recorded in your scroll

before one of them came into existence. ⁷³ 

Mazmur 141:8

141:8 Surely I am looking to you, ⁷⁴  O sovereign Lord.

In you I take shelter.

Do not expose me to danger! ⁷⁵ 

Mazmur 145:15

145:15 Everything looks to you in anticipation, ⁷⁶ 

and you provide them with food on a regular basis. ⁷⁷ 

[5:5]  ¹ tn Heb “before your eyes.”

[5:5]  ² sn You hate. The Lord “hates” the wicked in the sense that he despises their wicked character and deeds and actively opposes and judges them for their wickedness. See Ps 11:5.

[5:5]  ³ tn Heb “all the workers of wickedness.”

[10:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “he sits in the ambush of the villages.”

[10:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “his eyes for an unfortunate person lie hidden.” The language may picture a lion (see v. 9) peering out from its hiding place in anticipation that an unsuspecting victim will soon come strolling along.

[11:4]  ⁶ tn Because of the royal imagery involved here, one could translate “lofty palace.” The Lord’s heavenly temple is in view here (see Mic 1:2-4).

[11:4]  ⁷ sn The Lord’s throne is in heaven. The psalmist is confident that the Lord reigns as sovereign king, “keeps an eye on” all people, and responds in a just manner to the godly and wicked.

[11:4]  ⁸ sn His eyes. The anthropomorphic language draws attention to God’s awareness of and interest in the situation on earth. Though the enemies are hidden by the darkness (v. 2), the Lord sees all.

[11:4]  ⁹ tn The two Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in this verse describe the Lord’s characteristic activity.

[11:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “eyelids.”

[11:4]  ¹¹ tn For other uses of the verb in this sense, see Job 7:18; Pss 7:9; 26:2; 139:23.

[11:4]  ¹² tn Heb “test the sons of men.”

[13:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “see.”

[13:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Give light [to] my eyes.” The Hiphil of אוּר (’ur), when used elsewhere with “eyes” as object, refers to the law of God giving moral enlightenment (Ps 19:8), to God the creator giving literal eyesight to all people (Prov 29:13), and to God giving encouragement to his people (Ezra 9:8). Here the psalmist pictures himself as being on the verge of death. His eyes are falling shut and, if God does not intervene soon, he will “fall asleep” for good.

[13:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “or else I will sleep [in?] the death.” Perhaps the statement is elliptical, “I will sleep [the sleep] of death,” or “I will sleep [with the sleepers in] death.”

[15:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “despised in his eyes [is] a rejected [one].” The Hebrew term נִמְאָס (nim’as, “rejected [one]”) apparently refers here to one who has been rejected by God because of his godless behavior. It stands in contrast to “those who fear God” in the following line.

[15:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “those who fear the Lord.” The one who fears the Lord respects his sovereignty and obeys his commandments. See Ps 128:1; Prov 14:2.

[15:4]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “he takes an oath to do harm and does not change.” The phrase “to do harm” cannot mean “do harm to others,” for the preceding verse clearly characterizes this individual as one who does not harm others. In this context the phrase must refer to an oath to which a self-imprecation is attached. The godly individual takes his commitments to others so seriously he is willing to “swear to his own hurt.” For an example of such an oath, see Ruth 1:16-17.

[18:24]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “according to my righteousness.”

[18:24]  ²⁰ tn Heb “according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.” 2 Sam 22:25 reads “according to my purity before his eyes.” The verbal repetition (compare vv. 20 and 24) sets off vv. 20-24 as a distinct sub-unit within the psalm.

[18:27]  ²¹ tn Or perhaps, “humble” (note the contrast with those who are proud).

[18:27]  ²² tn Heb “but proud eyes you bring low.” 2 Sam 22:28 reads, “your eyes [are] upon the proud, [whom] you bring low.”

[19:8]  ²³ tn Or “just.” Perhaps the idea is that they impart a knowledge of what is just and right.

[19:8]  ²⁴ tn Heb “[they] make happy [the] heart.” Perhaps the point is that they bring a sense of joyful satisfaction to the one who knows and keeps them, for those who obey God’s law are richly rewarded. See v. 11b.

[19:8]  ²⁵ tn Heb “command.” The singular here refers to the law as a whole.

[19:8]  ²⁶ tn Because they reflect God’s character, his commands provide a code of moral and ethical purity.

[19:8]  ²⁷ tn Heb [they] enlighten [the] eyes.

[25:15]  ²⁸ tn Heb “my eyes continually [are] toward the Lord.”

[25:15]  ²⁹ tn Heb “for he will bring out from a net my feet.” The hostility of the psalmist’s enemies is probably in view (see v. 19).

[31:9]  ³⁰ tn Or perhaps, “are swollen.”

[31:9]  ³¹ tn Cf. Ps 6:7, which has a similar line.

[31:9]  ³² tn Heb “my breath and my stomach [grow weak].” Apparently the verb in the previous line (“grow dim, be weakened”) is to be understood here. The Hebrew term נפשׁ can mean “life,” or, more specifically, “throat, breath.” The psalmist seems to be lamenting that his breathing is impaired because of the physical and emotional suffering he is forced to endure.

[35:19]  ³³ tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Ps 38:19).

[35:19]  ³⁴ tn Heb “rejoice.”

[35:19]  ³⁵ tn Heb “[do not let] those who hate me without cause pinch [i.e., wink] an eye.” The negative particle is understood in the second line by ellipsis (see the preceding line). In the Book of Proverbs “winking an eye” is associated with deceit and trickery (see 6:13; 10:10; 16:30).

[38:10]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and the light of my eyes, even they, there is not with me.” The “light of the eyes” may refer to physical energy (see 1 Sam 14:27, 29), life itself (Ps 13:3), or the ability to see (Prov 29:23).

[50:21]  ³⁷ tn Heb “these things you did and I was silent.” Some interpret the second clause (“and I was silent”) as a rhetorical question expecting a negative answer, “[When you do these things], should I keep silent?” (cf. NEB). See GKC 335 §112.cc.

[50:21]  sn The Lord was silent in the sense that he delayed punishment. Of course, God’s patience toward sinners eventually runs out. The divine “silence” is only temporary (see v. 3, where the psalmist, having described God’s arrival, observes that “he is not silent”).

[50:21]  ³⁸ tn The Hebrew infinitive construct (הֱיוֹת, heyot) appears to function like the infinitive absolute here, adding emphasis to the following finite verbal form (אֶהְיֶה, ’ehyeh). See GKC 339-40 §113.a. Some prefer to emend הֱיוֹת (heyot) to the infinitive absolute form הָיוֹ (hayo).

[50:21]  ³⁹ tn Or “rebuke” (see v. 8).

[50:21]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “and I will set in order [my case against you] to your eyes.” The cohortative form expresses the Lord’s resolve to accuse and judge the wicked.

[51:4]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “only you,” as if the psalmist had sinned exclusively against God and no other. Since the Hebrew verb חָטָא (hata’, “to sin”) is used elsewhere of sinful acts against people (see BDB 306 s.v. 2.a) and David (the presumed author) certainly sinned when he murdered Uriah (2 Sam 12:9), it is likely that the psalmist is overstating the case to suggest that the attack on Uriah was ultimately an attack on God himself. To clarify the point of the hyperbole, the translation uses “especially,” rather than the potentially confusing “only.”

[51:4]  ⁴² tn The Hebrew term לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) normally indicates purpose (“in order that”), but here it introduces a logical consequence of the preceding statement. (Taking the clause as indicating purpose here would yield a theologically preposterous idea – the psalmist purposely sinned so that God’s justice might be vindicated!) For other examples of לְמַעַן indicating result, see 2 Kgs 22:17; Jer 27:15; Amos 2:7, as well as IBHS 638-40 §38.3.

[51:4]  ⁴³ tn Heb “when you speak.” In this context the psalmist refers to God’s word of condemnation against his sin delivered through Nathan (cf. 2 Sam 12:7-12).

[51:4]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “when you judge.”

[66:7]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “[the] one who rules.”

[66:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “his eyes watch.” “Eyes” are an anthropomorphism, attributed to God here to emphasize his awareness of all that happens on earth.

[66:7]  ⁴⁷ tn The verb form is jussive (note the negative particle אַל, ’al). The Kethib (consonantal text) has a Hiphil form of the verb, apparently to be understood in an exhibitive sense (“demonstrate stubborn rebellion”; see BDB 927 s.v. רוּם Hiph), while the Qere (marginal reading) has a Qal form, to be understood in an intransitive sense. The preposition -לְ (lamed) with pronominal suffix should be understood in a reflexive sense (“for themselves”) and indicates that the action is performed with the interest of the subject in mind.

[69:3]  ⁴⁸ tn Or perhaps “raw”; Heb “burned; enflamed.”

[69:3]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “my eyes fail from waiting for my God.” The psalmist has intently kept his eyes open, looking for God to intervene, but now his eyes are watery and bloodshot, impairing his vision.

[79:10]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “may it be known among the nations, to our eyes, the vengeance of the shed blood of your servants.”

[88:9]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “I spread out my hands to you.” Spreading out the hands toward God was a prayer gesture (see Exod 9:29, 33; 1 Kgs 8:22, 38; 2 Chr 6:12-13, 29; Ezra 9:15; Job 11:13; Isa 1:15). The words “in prayer” have been supplied in the translation to clarify this.

[90:4]  ⁵² tn Or “for.”

[90:4]  ⁵³ sn The divisions of the nighttime. The ancient Israelites divided the night into distinct periods, or “watches.”

[92:11]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “my eye gazes upon those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 56:2. The form שׁוּרָי (shuray) should be emended to שׁוֹרְרָי (shorÿray).

[92:11]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “those who rise up against me, evil [foes], my ears hear.”

[94:9]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “The one who plants an ear, does he not hear? The one who forms an eye, does he not see?”

[101:3]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”

[101:3]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the doing of swerving [deeds] I hate.” The Hebrew term סֵטִים (setim) is probably an alternate spelling of שֵׂטִים (setim), which appears in many medieval Hebrew mss. The form appears to be derived from a verbal root שׂוּט (sut, “to fall away; to swerve”; see Ps 40:4).

[101:3]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”

[101:5]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”

[101:6]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “my eyes [are] on the faithful of the land.”

[101:6]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew text simply reads, “in order to live with me.”

[101:6]  ⁶³ tn Heb “one who walks in the way of integrity, he will minister to me.”

[101:7]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “he will not live in the midst of my house, one who does deceit.”

[101:7]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “one who speaks lies will not be established before my eyes.”

[116:8]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “for.”

[116:8]  ⁶⁷ tn “Lord” is supplied here in the translation for clarification.

[121:1]  ⁶⁸ sn Psalm 121. The psalm affirms that the Lord protects his people Israel. Unless the psalmist addresses an observer (note the second person singular forms in vv. 3-8), it appears there are two or three speakers represented in the psalm, depending on how one takes v. 3. The translation assumes that speaker one talks in vv. 1-2, that speaker two responds to him with a prayer in v. 3 (this assumes the verbs are true jussives of prayer), and that speaker three responds with words of assurance in vv. 4-8. If the verbs in v. 3 are taken as a rhetorical use of the jussive, then there are two speakers. Verses 3-8 are speaker two’s response to the words of speaker one. See the note on the word “sleep” at the end of v. 3.

[121:1]  ⁶⁹ 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.

[121:1]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “I lift my eyes.”

[121:1]  ⁷¹ tn The Hebrew term מֵאַיִן (me’ayin) is interrogative, not relative, in function. Rather than directly stating that his source of help descends from the hills, the psalmist is asking, “From where does my help come?” Nevertheless, the first line does indicate that he is looking toward the hills for help, probably indicating that he is looking up toward the sky in anticipation of supernatural intervention. The psalmist assumes the dramatic role of one needing help. He answers his own question in v. 2.

[139:16]  ⁷² tn Heb “Your eyes saw my shapeless form.” The Hebrew noun גֹּלֶם (golem) occurs only here in the OT. In later Hebrew the word refers to “a lump, a shapeless or lifeless substance,” and to “unfinished matter, a vessel wanting finishing” (Jastrow 222 s.v. גּוֹלֶם). The translation employs the dynamic rendering “when I was inside the womb” to clarify that the speaker was still in his mother’s womb at the time he was “seen” by God.

[139:16]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and on your scroll all of them were written, [the] days [which] were formed, and [there was] not one among them.” This “scroll” may be the “scroll of life” mentioned in Ps 69:28 (see the note on the word “living” there).

[141:8]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “my eyes [are] toward you.”

[141:8]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “do not lay bare my life.” Only here is the Piel form of the verb collocated with the term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”). In Isa 53:12 the Lord’s servant “lays bare (the Hiphil form of the verb is used) his life to death.”

[145:15]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “the eyes of all wait for you.”

[145:15]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “and you give to them their food in its season” (see Ps 104:27).