For the music director; according to the sheminith style; 2 a psalm of David.
12:1 Deliver, Lord!
For the godly 3 have disappeared; 4
people of integrity 5 have vanished. 6
7:2 Faithful men have disappeared 7 from the land;
there are no godly men left. 8
They all wait in ambush so they can shed blood; 9
they hunt their own brother with a net. 10
1 sn Psalm 12. The psalmist asks the Lord to intervene, for society is overrun by deceitful, arrogant oppressors and godly individuals are a dying breed. When the Lord announces his intention to defend the oppressed, the psalmist affirms his confidence in the divine promise.
2 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term שְׁמִינִית (shÿminit) is uncertain; perhaps it refers to a particular style of music. See 1 Chr 15:21.
3 tn The singular form is collective or representative. Note the plural form “faithful [ones]” in the following line. A “godly [one]” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 18:25; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).
4 tn Or “have come to an end.”
5 tn Heb “the faithful [ones] from the sons of man.”
6 tn The Hebrew verb פָּסַס (pasas) occurs only here. An Akkadian cognate means “efface, blot out.”
7 tn Or “have perished”; “have been destroyed.”
8 tn Heb “and an upright one among men there is not.”
9 tn Heb “for bloodshed” (so NASB); TEV “for a chance to commit murder.”
10 sn Micah compares these ungodly people to hunters trying to capture their prey with a net.