Psalms 27:12-14

27:12 Do not turn me over to my enemies, ¹ 

for false witnesses who want to destroy me testify against me. ² 

27:13 Where would I be if I did not believe I would experience

the Lord’s favor in the land of the living? ³ 

27:14 Rely ⁴  on the Lord!

Be strong and confident! ⁵ 

Rely on the Lord!

Psalms 37:5-6

37:5 Commit your future to the Lord! ⁶ 

Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf. ⁷ 

37:6 He will vindicate you in broad daylight,

and publicly defend your just cause. ⁸ 

Psalms 62:5

62:5 Patiently wait for God alone, my soul! ⁹ 

For he is the one who gives me confidence. ¹⁰ 

Psalms 62:8

62:8 Trust in him at all times, you people!

Pour out your hearts before him! ¹¹ 

God is our shelter! (Selah)

Isaiah 50:10

50:10 Who among you fears the Lord?

Who obeys ¹²  his servant?

Whoever walks in deep darkness, ¹³ 

without light,

should trust in the name of the Lord

and rely on his God.

Romans 8:33-34

8:33 Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? ¹⁴  It is God who justifies. 8:34 Who is the one who will condemn? Christ ¹⁵  is the one who died (and more than that, he was raised), who is at the right hand of God, and who also is interceding for us.

¹ tn Heb “do not give me over to the desire of my enemies.”

² tn Heb “for they have risen up against me, lying witnesses and a testifier of violence.” The form יָפֵחַ (yafeakh) is traditionally understood as a verb meaning “snort, breathe out”: “for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty” (KJV; cf. BDB 422 s.v.). A better option is to take the form as a noun meaning “a witness” (or “testifier”). See Prov 6:19; 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 9, and Hab 2:3.

³ tn In the Hebrew text the sentence is incomplete: “If I had not believed [I would] see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” The words “Where would I be” are supplied in the translation to clarify the intent of the statement.

⁴ tn Or “wait.”

⁵ tn Heb “be strong and let your heart be confident.”

⁶ tn Heb “roll your way upon the Lord.” The noun “way” may refer here to one’s activities or course of life.

⁷ tn Heb “he will act.” Verse 6 explains what is meant; the Lord will vindicate those who trust in him.

⁸ tn Heb “and he will bring out like light your vindication, and your just cause like noonday.”

⁹ tn Heb “only for God be silent, my soul.” The wording is similar to that of v. 1a. Here an imperatival form, דּוֹמִּי (dommiy, “be silent”), appears instead of the noun דּוּמִיָּה (dumiyyah, “silence”). The psalmist is encouraging himself to maintain his trust in God.

¹⁰ tn Heb “for from him [is] my hope.”

¹¹ tn To “pour out one’s heart” means to offer up to God intense, emotional lamentation and petitionary prayers (see Lam 2:19).

¹² tn Heb “[who] listens to the voice of his servant?” The interrogative is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

¹³ tn The plural indicates degree. Darkness may refer to exile and/or moral evil.

¹⁴ sn An allusion to Isa 50:8 where the reference is singular; Paul applies this to all believers (“God’s elect” is plural here).

¹⁵ tc ‡ A number of significant and early witnesses, along with several others (Ì^46vid א A C F G L Ψ 6 33 81 104 365 1505 al lat bo), read ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsous, “Jesus”) after Χριστός (Cristos, “Christ”) in v. 34. But the shorter reading is not unrepresented (B D 0289 1739 1881 Ï sa). Once ᾿Ιησοῦς got into the text, what scribe would omit it? Although the external evidence is on the side of the longer reading, internally such an expansion seems suspect. The shorter reading is thus preferred. NA²⁷ has the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.