Mazmur 7:3

7:3 O Lord my God, if I have done what they say, ¹ 

or am guilty of unjust actions, ² 

Mazmur 7:14

7:14 See the one who is pregnant with wickedness,

who conceives destructive plans,

and gives birth to harmful lies – ³ 

Mazmur 9:17

9:17 The wicked are turned back and sent to Sheol; ⁴ 

this is the destiny of ⁵  all the nations that ignore ⁶  God,

Mazmur 9:19

9:19 Rise up, Lord! ⁷ 

Don’t let men be defiant! ⁸ 

May the nations be judged in your presence!

Mazmur 18:18

18:18 They confronted ⁹  me in my day of calamity,

but the Lord helped me. ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 30:8

30:8 To you, O Lord, I cried out;

I begged the Lord for mercy: ¹¹ 

Mazmur 31:12

31:12 I am forgotten, like a dead man no one thinks about; ¹² 

I am regarded as worthless, like a broken jar. ¹³ 

Mazmur 34:3

34:3 Magnify the Lord with me!

Let’s praise ¹⁴  his name together!

Mazmur 34:7

34:7 The Lord’s angel camps around

the Lord’s ¹⁵  loyal followers ¹⁶  and delivers them. ¹⁷ 

Mazmur 34:19

34:19 The godly ¹⁸  face many dangers, ¹⁹ 

but the Lord saves ²⁰  them ²¹  from each one of them.

Mazmur 38:10

38:10 My heart beats quickly;

my strength leaves me;

I can hardly see. ²² 

Mazmur 41:5

41:5 My enemies ask this cruel question about me, ²³ 

‘When will he finally die and be forgotten?’ ²⁴ 

Mazmur 44:12

44:12 You sold ²⁵  your people for a pittance; ²⁶ 

you did not ask a high price for them. ²⁷ 

Mazmur 47:3

47:3 He subdued nations beneath us ²⁸ 

and countries ²⁹  under our feet.

Mazmur 47:6

47:6 Sing to God! Sing!

Sing to our king! Sing!

Mazmur 48:13

48:13 Consider its defenses! ³⁰ 

Walk through ³¹  its fortresses,

so you can tell the next generation about it! ³² 

Mazmur 49:5

49:5 Why should I be afraid in times of trouble, ³³ 

when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me? ³⁴ 

Mazmur 55:11

55:11 Disaster is within it;

violence ³⁵  and deceit do not depart from its public square.

Mazmur 58:6

58:6 O God, break the teeth in their mouths!

Smash the jawbones of the lions, O Lord!

Mazmur 61:6

61:6 Give the king long life!

Make his lifetime span several generations! ³⁶ 

Mazmur 63:6

63:6 whenever ³⁷  I remember you on my bed,

and think about you during the nighttime hours.

Mazmur 64:7

64:7 But God will shoot ³⁸  at them;

suddenly they will be ³⁹  wounded by an arrow. ⁴⁰ 

Mazmur 65:3

65:3 Our record of sins overwhelms me, ⁴¹ 

but you forgive ⁴²  our acts of rebellion.

Mazmur 68:23

68:23 so that your feet may stomp ⁴³  in their blood,

and your dogs may eat their portion of the enemies’ corpses.” ⁴⁴ 

Mazmur 68:32

68:32 O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God!

Sing praises to the Lord, (Selah)

Mazmur 69:3

69:3 I am exhausted from shouting for help;

my throat is sore; ⁴⁵ 

my eyes grow tired of looking for my God. ⁴⁶ 

Mazmur 69:5

69:5 O God, you are aware of my foolish sins; ⁴⁷ 

my guilt is not hidden from you. ⁴⁸ 

Mazmur 69:8

69:8 My own brothers treat me like a stranger;

they act as if I were a foreigner. ⁴⁹ 

Mazmur 75:3

75:3 When the earth and all its inhabitants dissolve in fear, ⁵⁰ 

I make its pillars secure.” ⁵¹  (Selah)

Mazmur 77:12

77:12 I will think about all you have done;

I will reflect upon your deeds!”

Mazmur 80:10

80:10 The mountains were covered by its shadow,

the highest cedars ⁵²  by its branches.

Mazmur 83:8

83:8 Even Assyria has allied with them,

lending its strength to the descendants of Lot. ⁵³  (Selah)

Mazmur 84:7

84:7 They are sustained as they travel along; ⁵⁴ 

each one appears ⁵⁵  before God in Zion.

Mazmur 85:6

85:6 Will you not revive us once more?

Then your people will rejoice in you!

Mazmur 92:14

92:14 They bear fruit even when they are old;

they are filled with vitality and have many leaves. ⁵⁶ 

Mazmur 102:8

102:8 All day long my enemies taunt me;

those who mock me use my name in their curses. ⁵⁷ 

Mazmur 102:11

102:11 My days are coming to an end, ⁵⁸ 

and I am withered like grass.

Mazmur 102:25

102:25 In earlier times you established the earth;

the skies are your handiwork.

[7:3]  ¹ tn Heb “if I have done this.”

[7:3]  ² tn Heb “if there is injustice in my hands.” The “hands” figuratively suggest deeds or actions.

[7:14]  ³ tn Heb “and he conceives harm and gives birth to a lie.”

[7:14]  sn Pregnant with wickedness…gives birth to harmful lies. The psalmist metaphorically pictures the typical sinner as a pregnant woman, who is ready to give birth to wicked, destructive schemes and actions.

[9:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “the wicked turn back to Sheol.” The imperfect verbal form either emphasizes what typically happens or describes vividly the aftermath of the Lord’s victory over the psalmist’s enemies. See v. 3.

[9:17]  ⁵ tn The words “this is the destiny of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. The verb “are turned back” is understood by ellipsis (see the preceding line).

[9:17]  ⁶ tn Heb “forget.” “Forgetting God” refers here to worshiping false gods and thereby refusing to recognize his sovereignty (see also Deut 8:19; Judg 3:7; 1 Sam 12:9; Isa 17:10; Jer 3:21; Ps 44:20). The nations’ refusal to acknowledge God’s sovereignty accounts for their brazen attempt to attack and destroy his people.

[9:19]  ⁷ sn Rise up, Lord! …May the nations be judged. The psalm concludes with a petition that the Lord would continue to exercise his justice as he has done in the recent crisis.

[9:19]  ⁸ tn Or “prevail.”

[18:18]  ⁹ tn The same verb is translated “trapped” in v. 5. In this poetic narrative context the prefixed verbal form is best understood as a preterite indicating past tense, not imperfect.

[18:18]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “became my support.”

[30:8]  ¹¹ tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 8 are probably preterites; the psalmist recalls that he prayed in his time of crisis.

[31:12]  ¹² tn Heb “I am forgotten, like a dead man, from [the] heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the center of one’s thoughts.

[31:12]  ¹³ tn Heb “I am like a broken jar.” One throws away a broken jar without a second thought because it is considered worthless and useless.

[34:3]  ¹⁴ tn Or “exalt.”

[34:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[34:7]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “those who fear him.”

[34:7]  ¹⁷ tn The prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same generalizing force as the active participle in the first line. See GKC 329 §111.u.

[34:19]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew text uses the singular form; the representative or typical godly person is envisioned.

[34:19]  ¹⁹ tn Or “trials.”

[34:19]  ²⁰ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form highlights the generalizing statement and draws attention to the fact that the Lord typically delivers the godly.

[34:19]  ²¹ tn Heb “him,” agreeing with the singular form in the preceding line.

[38:10]  ²² 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).

[41:5]  ²³ tn Heb “my enemies speak evil concerning me.”

[41:5]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and his name perish.”

[44:12]  ²⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form is a preterite (without vav [ו] consecutive).

[44:12]  ²⁶ tn Heb “for what is not wealth.”

[44:12]  ²⁷ tn Heb “you did not multiply their purchase prices.”

[47:3]  ²⁸ tn On the meaning of the verb דָּבַר (davar, “subdue”), a homonym of דָּבַר (“speak”), see HALOT 209-10 s.v. I דבר. See also Ps 18:47 and 2 Chr 22:10. The preterite form of the verb suggests this is an historical reference and the next verse, which mentions the gift of the land, indicates that the conquest under Joshua is in view.

[47:3]  ²⁹ tn Or “peoples” (see Pss 2:1; 7:7; 9:8; 44:2).

[48:13]  ³⁰ tn Heb “set your heart to its rampart.”

[48:13]  ³¹ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word translated “walk through,” which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. Cf. NEB “pass…in review”; NIV “view.”

[48:13]  ³² sn The city’s towers, defenses, and fortresses are outward reminders and tangible symbols of the divine protection the city enjoys.

[49:5]  ³³ tn Heb “days of trouble.” The phrase also occurs in Ps 94:13. The question is rhetorical; there is no reason to be afraid when the rich oppressors threaten the weak (see v. 17). The following verses explain why this is so.

[49:5]  ³⁴ tc The MT has, “the iniquity of my heels surrounds me.” The clause is best understood as temporal and as elaborating on the preceding phrase “times of trouble.” If the MT is retained, the genitive “of my heels” would probably indicate location (“the iniquity at my heels”); the sinful actions of the rich threaten to overtake the psalmist, as it were. It is better, however, to emend עֲקֵבַי (’aqivay, “my heels”) to either (1) עֲקֻבַּי (’aqubay, “my deceitful ones,” i.e., “those who deceive me” [from the adjective עָקֹב (’aqov), “deceitful,” see Jer 17:9]) or (2) עֹקְבַי (’oqÿvay, “those who deceive me” [a suffixed active participle from עָקַב, ’aqav, “betray, deceive”]). Origen’s transliteration of the Hebrew text favors the first of these options. Either of the emendations provides a much smoother transition to v. 6, because “those who trust in their wealth” would then be appositional to “those who deceive me.”

[55:11]  ³⁵ tn Or “injury, harm.”

[61:6]  ³⁶ tn Heb “days upon days of the king add, his years like generation and generation.”

[61:6]  sn It is not certain if the (royal) psalmist is referring to himself in the third person in this verse, or if an exile is praying on behalf of the king.

[63:6]  ³⁷ tn The Hebrew term אִם (’im) is used here in the sense of “when; whenever,” as in Ps 78:34.

[64:7]  ³⁸ tn The prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive is normally used in narrative contexts to describe completed past actions. It is possible that the conclusion to the psalm (vv. 7-10) was added to the lament after God’s judgment of the wicked in response to the psalmist’s lament (vv. 1-6). The translation assumes that these verses are anticipatory and express the psalmist’s confidence that God would eventually judge the wicked. The psalmist uses a narrative style as a rhetorical device to emphasize his certitude. See GKC 329-30 §111.w.

[64:7]  ³⁹ tn The perfect verbal form here expresses the psalmist’s certitude about the coming demise of the wicked.

[64:7]  ⁴⁰ tn The translation follows the traditional accentuation of the MT. Another option is to translate, “But God will shoot them down with an arrow, suddenly they will be wounded” (cf. NIV, NRSV).

[65:3]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “the records of sins are too strong for me.”

[65:3]  ⁴² tn Or “make atonement for.”

[68:23]  ⁴³ tc Some (e.g. NRSV) prefer to emend מָחַץ (makhats, “smash; stomp”; see v. 21) to רָחַץ (rakhats, “bathe”; see Ps 58:10).

[68:23]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “[and] the tongue of your dogs from [the] enemies [may eat] its portion.”

[69:3]  ⁴⁵ tn Or perhaps “raw”; Heb “burned; enflamed.”

[69:3]  ⁴⁶ 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.

[69:5]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “you know my foolishness.”

[69:5]  ⁴⁸ sn The psalmist is the first to admit that he is not perfect. But even so, he is innocent of the allegations which his enemies bring against him (v. 5b). God, who is aware of his foolish sins and guilt, can testify to the truth of his claim.

[69:8]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and I am estranged to my brothers, and a foreigner to the sons of my mother.”

[75:3]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “melt.”

[75:3]  ⁵¹ tn The statement is understood in a generalizing sense; God typically prevents the world from being overrun by chaos. One could take this as referring to an anticipated event, “I will make its pillars secure.”

[80:10]  ⁵² tn Heb “cedars of God.” The divine name אֵל (’al, “God”) is here used in an idiomatic manner to indicate the superlative.

[83:8]  ⁵³ tn Heb “they are an arm for the sons of Lot.” The “arm” is here a symbol of military might.

[83:8]  sn The descendants of Lot were the Moabites and Ammonites.

[84:7]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “they go from strength to strength.” The phrase “from strength to strength” occurs only here in the OT. With a verb of motion, the expression “from [common noun] to [same common noun]” normally suggests movement from one point to another or through successive points (see Num 36:7; 1 Chr 16:20; 17:5; Ps 105:13; Jer 25:32). Ps 84:7 may be emphasizing that the pilgrims move successively from one “place of strength” to another as they travel toward Jerusalem. All along the way they find adequate provisions and renewed energy for the trip.

[84:7]  ⁵⁵ tn The psalmist returns to the singular (see v. 5a), which he uses in either a representative or distributive (“each one” ) sense.

[92:14]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “they are juicy and fresh.”

[102:8]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “by me they swear.” When the psalmist’s enemies call judgment down on others, they hold the psalmist up as a prime example of what they desire their enemies to become.

[102:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “my days [are] like an extended [or “lengthening”] shadow,” that is, like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness.