Mazmur 8:3

8:3 When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made,

and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place, ¹ 

Mazmur 20:1

Psalm 20 ² 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

20:1 May the Lord answer ³  you ⁴  when you are in trouble; ⁵ 

may the God of Jacob ⁶  make you secure!

Mazmur 36:4

36:4 He plans ways to sin while he lies in bed;

he is committed to a sinful lifestyle; ⁷ 

he does not reject what is evil. ⁸ 

Mazmur 56:8

56:8 You keep track of my misery. ⁹ 

Put my tears in your leather container! ¹⁰ 

Are they not recorded in your scroll? ¹¹ 

Mazmur 66:6

66:6 He turned the sea into dry land; ¹² 

they passed through the river on foot. ¹³ 

Let us rejoice in him there! ¹⁴ 

Mazmur 71:17

71:17 O God, you have taught me since I was young,

and I am still declaring ¹⁵  your amazing deeds.

Mazmur 74:23

74:23 Do not disregard ¹⁶  what your enemies say, ¹⁷ 

or the unceasing shouts of those who defy you. ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 88:16

88:16 Your anger overwhelms me; ¹⁹ 

your terrors destroy me.

Mazmur 139:17

139:17 How difficult it is for me to fathom your thoughts about me, O God! ²⁰ 

How vast is their sum total! ²¹ 

Mazmur 145:1

Psalm 145 ²² 

A psalm of praise, by David.

145:1 I will extol you, my God, O king!

I will praise your name continually! ²³ 

[8:3]  ¹ tn Heb “when I see your heavens, the works of your fingers, the moon and stars which you established.” The verb “[and] see” is understood by ellipsis in the second half of the verse.

[20:1]  ² sn Psalm 20. The people pray for the king’s success in battle. When the king declares his assurance that the Lord will answer the people’s prayer, they affirm their confidence in God’s enablement.

[20:1]  ³ tn The prefixed verbal forms here and in vv. 1b-5 are interpreted as jussives of prayer (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). Another option is to understand them as imperfects, “the Lord will answer,” etc. In this case the people declare their confidence that the Lord will intervene on behalf of the king and extend to him his favor.

[20:1]  ⁴ sn May the Lord answer you. The people address the king as they pray to the Lord.

[20:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “in a day of trouble.”

[20:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “the name of the God of Jacob.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his very person and to the divine characteristics suggested by his name, in this case “God of Jacob,” which highlights his relationship to Israel.

[36:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “he takes a stand in a way [that is] not good.” The word “way” here refers metaphorically to behavior or life style.

[36:4]  ⁸ tn The three imperfect verbal forms in v. 4 highlight the characteristic behavior of the typical evildoer.

[56:8]  ⁹ tn Heb “my wandering you count, you.” The Hebrew term נֹד (nod, “wandering,” derived from the verbal root נוֹד, nod, “to wander”; cf. NASB) here refers to the psalmist’s “changeable circumstances of life” and may be translated “misery.” The verb סָפַר (safar, “count”) probably carries the nuance “assess” here. Cf. NIV “my lament”; NRSV “my tossings.”

[56:8]  ¹⁰ tn Traditionally “your bottle.” Elsewhere the Hebrew word נֹאד (no’d, “leather container”) refers to a container made from animal skin which is used to hold wine or milk (see Josh 9:4, 13; Judg 4:19; 1 Sam 16:20). If such a container is metaphorically in view here, then the psalmist seems to be asking God to store up his tears as a reminder of his suffering.

[56:8]  ¹¹ tn The word “recorded” is supplied in the translation for clarification. The rhetorical question assumes a positive response (see the first line of the verse).

[66:6]  ¹² sn He turned the sea into dry land. The psalmist alludes to Israel’s crossing the Red Sea (Exod 14:21).

[66:6]  ¹³ tn Because of the reference to “the river,” some understand this as an allusion to Israel’s crossing the Jordan River. However, the Hebrew term נָהָר (nahad) does not always refer to a “river” in the technical sense; it can be used of sea currents (see Jonah 2:4). So this line may also refer to the Red Sea crossing (cf. NEB).

[66:6]  ¹⁴ tn The adverb שָׁם (sham, “there”) is used here, as often in poetic texts, to point “to a spot in which a scene is localized vividly in the imagination” (BDB 1027 s.v.).

[71:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and until now I am declaring.”

[74:23]  ¹⁶ tn Or “forget.”

[74:23]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the voice of your enemies.”

[74:23]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the roar of those who rise up against you, which ascends continually.”

[88:16]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “passes over me.”

[139:17]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and to me how precious are your thoughts, O God.” The Hebrew verb יָקַר (yaqar) probably has the sense of “difficult [to comprehend]” here (see HALOT 432 s.v. יקר qal.1 and note the use of Aramaic יַקִּר in Dan 2:11). Elsewhere in the immediate context the psalmist expresses his amazement at the extent of God’s knowledge about him (see vv. 1-6, 17b-18).

[139:17]  ²¹ tn Heb “how vast are their heads.” Here the Hebrew word “head” is used of the “sum total” of God’s knowledge of the psalmist.

[145:1]  ²² sn Psalm 145. The psalmist praises God because he is a just and merciful king who cares for his people.

[145:1]  ²³ tn Or, hyperbolically, “forever.”