Text -- Psalms 35:12-28 (NET)

35:12 They repay me evil for the good I have done; I am overwhelmed with sorrow. 35:13 When they were sick, I wore sackcloth, and refrained from eating food. (If I am lying, may my prayers go unanswered!) 35:14 I mourned for them as I would for a friend or my brother. I bowed down in sorrow as if I were mourning for my mother. 35:15 But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together; they gathered together to ambush me. They tore at me without stopping to rest. 35:16 When I tripped, they taunted me relentlessly, and tried to bite me. 35:17 O Lord, how long are you going to just stand there and watch this? Rescue me from their destructive attacks; guard my life from the young lions! 35:18 Then I will give you thanks in the great assembly; I will praise you before a large crowd of people! 35:19 Do not let those who are my enemies for no reason gloat over me! Do not let those who hate me without cause carry out their wicked schemes! 35:20 For they do not try to make peace with others, but plan ways to deceive those who are unsuspecting. 35:21 They are ready to devour me; they say, “Aha! Aha! We’ve got you!” 35:22 But you take notice, Lord! O Lord, do not remain far away from me! 35:23 Rouse yourself, wake up and vindicate me! My God and Lord, defend my just cause! 35:24 Vindicate me by your justice, O Lord my God! Do not let them gloat over me! 35:25 Do not let them say to themselves, “Aha! We have what we wanted!” Do not let them say, “We have devoured him!” 35:26 May those who want to harm me be totally embarrassed and ashamed! May those who arrogantly taunt me be covered with shame and humiliation! 35:27 May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice! May they continually say, “May the Lord be praised, for he wants his servant to be secure.” 35:28 Then I will tell others about your justice, and praise you all day long.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Psa 35:12

¹ tn Heb “they repay me evil instead of good.”

² tn Heb “[there is] bereavement to my soul.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:13

¹ tn Heb “as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth.” Sackcloth was worn by mourners. When the psalmist’s enemies were sick, he was sorry for their misfortune and mourned for them.

² sn Fasting was also a practice of mourners. By refraining from normal activities, such as eating food, the mourner demonstrated the sincerity of his sorrow.

³ tn Heb “and my prayer upon my chest will return.” One could translate, “but my prayer was returning upon my chest,” but the use of the imperfect verbal form sets this line apart from the preceding and following lines (vv. 13a, 14), which use the perfect to describe the psalmist’s past actions.

NET Notes: Psa 35:14

¹ tn Heb “like a friend, like a brother to me I walked about.”

² sn I bowed down. Bowing down was a posture for mourning. See Ps 38:6.

³ tn Heb “like mourning for a mother [in] sorrow I bowed down.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:15

¹ tn Heb “they gathered together against me, stricken [ones], and I did not know.” The Hebrew form נֵכִים (nekhim, “stricken ones” ?) is problematic. Some suggest an emendation to נָכְרִים[כְ] (kÿnokhÿrim, “foreigners”) or “like foreigners,” which would fit with what follows, “[like] foreigners that I do not recognize.” Perhaps the form should be read as a Qal active participle, נֹכִים (nokhim, “ones who strike”) from the verbal root נָכָה (nakhah, “to strike”). The Qal of this verb is unattested in biblical Hebrew, but the peal (basic) stem appears in Old Aramaic (J. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Sefire [BibOr], 114; DNWSI 1:730.) In this case one might translate, “attackers gathered together against me though I was not aware of it” (cf. NASB “smiters”; NEB, NRSV “ruffians”; NIV “attackers”).

² tn Heb “they tore and did not keep quiet.” By using the verb “tear,” the psalmist likens his enemies to a wild animal (see Hos 13:8). In v. 17 he compares them to hungry young lions.

NET Notes: Psa 35:16

¹ tc The MT reads “as profane [ones] of mockers of food,” which is nonsensical. The present translation assumes (1) an emendation of בְּחַנְפֵי (bÿkhanfey, “as profane men”) to בְּחַנְפִי (bekhanfiy, “when I tripped”; preposition + Qal infinitive construct from II חָנַף [“limp”] + first common singular pronominal suffix) and (2) an emendation of לַעֲגֵי מָעוֹג (la’agey ma’og, “mockers of food”) to עָגוּ[ם]לַעְגָּ (la’gam ’agu, “[with] taunting they taunted”; masculine plural noun with enclitic mem + Qal perfect third common plural from לַּעַג [la’ag, “taunt”]).

² tn Heb “gnashing at me with their teeth.” The infinitive absolute adds a complementary action – they gnashed with their teeth as they taunted.

NET Notes: Psa 35:17

¹ tn Heb “O Lord, how long will you see?”

² tn Heb “bring back, restore.”

³ tn Or “my life.”

⁴ tn Heb “my only one.” The psalmist may mean that his life is precious, or that he feels isolated and alone (see Ps 22:20). The verb “guard” is supplied in the translation, because the verb “rescue” is understood by ellipsis (see the previous line).

NET Notes: Psa 35:18

¹ sn The great assembly is also mentioned in Ps 22:25.

² tn Heb “among numerous people.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:19

¹ tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Ps 38:19).

² tn Heb “rejoice.”

³ 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).

NET Notes: Psa 35:20

¹ tn Heb “for they do not speak peace.”

² tn Heb “but against the quiet ones of the land words of deceit they plan.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 20 highlight their characteristic behavior.

NET Notes: Psa 35:21

¹ tn Heb “and they cause their mouth to be wide against me.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries on the generalizing mood of the previous verse. For other examples of this use of the prefixed verbal form with vav consecutive, see GKC 329 §111.t.

² tn Heb “our eye sees.” Apparently this is an idiom meaning to “look in triumph” or “gloat over” (see Ps 54:7).

NET Notes: Psa 35:22

¹ tn Heb “you see, O Lord.” There is a deliberate play on words. In v. 21 the enemies say, “our eye sees,” but the psalmist is confident that the Lord “sees” as well, so he appeals to him for help (see also v. 17).

NET Notes: Psa 35:23

¹ sn Though he is confident that the Lord is aware of his situation (see v. 22a), the psalmist compares the Lord’s inactivity to sleep and urges him to wake up.

² tn Heb “for my justice.”

³ tn Heb “for my cause.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:24

¹ tn Heb “rejoice.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:25

¹ tn Heb “in their heart[s].”

² tn Heb “Aha! Our desire!” The “desire” of the psalmist’s enemies is to triumph over him.

NET Notes: Psa 35:26

¹ tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones who rejoice over my harm.”

² tn Heb “may they be clothed with shame and humiliation, the ones who magnify [themselves] against me.” The prefixed verbal forms in v. 26 are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-25, where the negative particle אַל (’al) appears before the prefixed verbal forms, indicating they are jussives). The psalmist is calling down judgment on his enemies.

NET Notes: Psa 35:27

¹ tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 27a are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-26).

² tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, “may the Lord be magnified [in praise].” Another option is to take the verb as an imperfect, “the Lord is great.”

³ tn Heb “the one who desires the peace of his servant.”

NET Notes: Psa 35:28

¹ tn Heb “and my tongue will proclaim your justice.”

² tn Heb “all the day your praise.” The verb “proclaim” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the previous line).