Psalms 27:1

Psalm 27 1 

By David.

27:1 The Lord delivers and vindicates me! 2 

I fear no one! 3 

The Lord protects my life!

I am afraid of no one! 4 

Proverbs 28:1

28:1 The wicked person flees when there is no one pursuing, 5 

but the righteous person is as confident 6  as a lion.

1 sn Psalm 27. The author is confident of the Lord’s protection and asks the Lord to vindicate him.

2 tn Heb “the Lord [is] my light and my deliverance.” “Light” is often used as a metaphor for deliverance and the life/blessings it brings. See Pss 37:6; 97:11; 112:4; Isa 49:6; 51:4; Mic 7:8. Another option is that “light” refers here to divine guidance (see Ps 43:3).

3 tn Heb “Whom shall I fear?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “No one!”

4 tn Heb “Of whom shall I be afraid?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “No one!”

5 sn The line portrays the insecurity of a guilty person – he flees because he has a guilty conscience, or because he is suspicious of others around him, or because he fears judgment.

6 tn The verb בָּטַח (batakh) means “to trust; to be secure; to be confident.” Cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “bold.”